Biomedical subjects

Caroline Lacoste

Publications and source records attributed to Caroline Lacoste.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

MAU-8 is a Phosducin-like Protein required for G protein signaling in C. elegans.

The mau-8(qm57) mutation inhibits the function of GPB-2, a heterotrimeric G protein beta subunit, and profoundly affects behavior through the Galphaq/Galphao signaling network in C. elegans. mau-8 encodes a nematode Phosducin-like Protein (PhLP), and the qm57 mutation leads to the loss of a predicted phosphorylation site in the C-terminal domain of PhLP that binds the Gbetagamma surface implicated in membrane interactions. In developing embryos, MAU-8/PhLP localizes to the cortical region, concentrates at the centrosomes of mitotic cells and remains associated with the germline blastomere. In adult animals, MAU-8/PhLP is ubiquitously expressed in somatic tissues and germline cells. MAU-8/PhLP interacts with the PAR-5/14.3.3 protein and with the Gbeta subunit GPB-1. In mau-8 mutants, the disruption of MAU-8/PhLP stabilizes the association of GPB-1 with the microtubules of centrosomes. Our results indicate that MAU-8/PhLP modulates G protein signaling, stability and subcellular location to regulate various physiological functions, and they suggest that MAU-8 might not be limited to the Galphaq/Galphao network.

Animals↗

PubMed2005

Point processes for unsupervised line network extraction in remote sensing.

This paper addresses the problem of unsupervised extraction of line networks (for example, road or hydrographic networks) from remotely sensed images. We model the target line network by an object process, where the objects correspond to interacting line segments. The prior model, called "Quality Candy," is designed to exploit as fully as possible the topological properties of the network under consideration, while the radiometric properties of the network are modeled using a data term based on statistical tests. Two techniques are used to compute this term: one is more accurate, the other more efficient. A calibration technique is used to choose the model parameters. Optimization is done via simulated annealing using a Reversible Jump Markov Chain Monte Carlo (RJMCMC) algorithm. We accelerate convergence of the algorithm by using appropriate proposal kernels. The results obtained on satellite and aerial images are quantitatively evaluated with respect to manual extractions. A comparison with the results obtained using a previous model, called the "Candy" model, shows the interest of adding quality coefficients with respect to interactions in the prior density. The relevance of using an offline computation of the data potential is shown, in particular, when a proposal kernel based on this computation is added in the RJMCMC algorithm.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2002

Phenylphenols, biphenols, bisphenol-A and 4-tert-octylphenol exhibit alpha and beta estrogen activities and antiandrogen activity in reporter cell lines.

We previously demonstrated the interactions of different chemical compounds with estrogen receptors ERalpha and ERbeta and the androgen receptor (AR) using different reporter cell lines. In this study, we characterize the ERalpha, ERbeta and AR activity of different biphenyls using the same tools. We provide evidence that several phenyl derivatives present both estrogenic and antiandrogenic activity. The extent of hydroxylation and the position of the hydroxyl function were important in determining their estrogenicity and antiandrogenicity. Of the tested compounds, bisphenol-A and 4,4' biphenol had very high estrogenic activity, although it was lower than that of the strong estrogenic alkylphenol, 4-tert-octylphenol. Bisphenol-A and 4,4' biphenol were able to activate ERs at concentrations lower than 1 microM, whereas the other compounds only activated at concentrations above 1 microM. Interestingly, 4,4' biphenol was a better agonist for ERbeta than for ERalpha. No androgenic activity was detected for any of these compounds. Bisphenol-A, 3-OH phenylphenol, 4-OH phenylphenol and 4,4' biphenol exhibited antiandrogenic activity close to that of 4-tert-octylphenol (IC(50) approximately 5 microM). In whole cell binding assays, these compounds displaced [3H] R1881 with Ki = 10 microM. Although these Ki values seem high in comparison with that of hydroxyflutamide (0.4 microM), one must keep in mind that environmental chemicals can accumulate in adipose tissues for several years. In conclusion, these environmental chemicals may have a negative impact on androgen action during fetal and post-natal life.

Androgen Receptor Antagonists↗