TASK DEFINITION: In this task, you're given a paragraph from the research paper and your task is to generate a suitable title for the research paper based on the given paper. Under 100 words is a good title length.
PROBLEM: The renin-angiotensin system plays an important role in the maintenance of blood pressure homeostasis. The angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) converts angiotensin I into angiotensin II. Angiotensin II, which binds the angiotensin II type-1 receptor (AT1R), is a potent vasoconstrictor. On a pathophysiological basis, both ACE I/D and AT1R A1166C polymorphism lead to an enhanced activity of the angiotensin II-AT1R axis, thereby possibly contributing to circulatory disturbances. A mutually facilitatory effect may be presumed between the two polymorphisms. We examined whether this synergistic effect is involved in the evolution of different types of ischemic stroke. Genetic and clinical data on 308 consecutive patients with acutely developing ischemic stroke were analyzed. A total of 272 stroke and neuroimaging alteration-free subjects served as a control group. Univariate and logistic regression statistical approaches were used. The ACE D allele combined with the AT1R 1166C allele did not yield a risk of ischemic stroke. However, the co-occurrence of the homozygous ACE D/D and at least one AT1R 1166C allele was more frequent in the ischemic stroke group than in the control group (22.4 vs 11%, p < 0.005, OR, 2.33; 95% CI, 1.46-3.7). After specific subgroup analysis, this synergistic association was even stronger for small-vessel ischemic stroke (OR, 3.44; 95% CI, 1.9-6.24; p < 0.0005). Multivariate logistic regression analysis of the data confirmed this association (adjusted OR, 3.54, 95% CI, 1.88-7.16; p < 0.0005). Our results demonstrate that ACE D/D and AT1R 1166C NeuroMolecular Medicine

SOLUTION: Coexistence of Angiotensin II Type-1 Receptor A1166C and Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme D/D Polymorphism Suggests Susceptibility for Small-Vessel-Associated Ischemic Stroke

PROBLEM: A novel betacoronavirus associated with lethal respiratory and renal complications was recently identified in patients from several countries in the Middle East. We report the deep genome sequencing of the virus directly from a patient's sputum sample. Our high-throughput sequencing yielded a substantial depth of genome sequence assembly and showed the minority viral variants in the specimen. Detailed phylogenetic analysis of the virus genome (England/ Qatar/2012) revealed its close relationship to European bat coronaviruses circulating among the bat species of the Vespertilionidae family. Molecular clock analysis showed that the 2 human infections of this betacoronavirus in June 2012 (EMC/2012) and September 2012 (England/Qatar/2012) share a common virus ancestor most likely considerably before early 2012, suggesting the human diversity is the result of multiple zoonotic events. T he ability of coronaviruses (CoVs) to infect multiple species and to rapidly change through recombination presents a continuing human health threat. The epidemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) during 2003-2004 during which a CoV transmitted from bats to civet cats and then to humans demonstrated this potential (reviewed in [1, 2] ). Recently, a novel human betacoronavirus (betaCoV) was found to be associated with at least 13 human infections, 7 of which were fatal (3-7). One of the viruses, EMC/2012, has been sequenced, and its sequence similarity to several bat CoVs suggested an animal origin, but a definitive bat species of origin has not yet been identified (3). Additional genome sequences from this virus are needed to aid diagnostics, monitor population dynamics, identify the animal source, and characterize mechanisms of pathogenesis. The large size (30,000 nt) and high variability of CoV RNA genomes present a challenge for sequencing. We describe a strategy for rapidly designing the primers necessary for reverse transcription and cDNA amplification of such diverse RNA viruses and report the full-genome determination of the novel CoV directly from patient sputum using next-generation short-read sequencing. Full genomes from 2 epidemiologically unlinked novel CoV infections separated in time by >2 months were analyzed to gain clues to 2 major questions: what are the precursors of the virus, and how long has the virus been circulating in its current form? Materials and Methods Fifteen betaCoV full genomes with the closest homology to EMC/2012 (GenBank accession no. JX869059) were analyzed to identify all possible primer-like sequences (melting temperature 58C-60C, guanine plus cytosine content 35%-60%) yielding 357,198 potential primers. The 30-kb JX869059 CoV genome was divided into fifteen 2.5-kb overlapping amplicons, and the 2 highest frequency sequences mapping in the 5 and 3 250 bp of each amplicon were selected. Reverse complements of the 3 mapping sequences were prepared, resulting in a set of 60 primers for the 15 amplicons (4 primers/amplicon). Three additional primers were added for the extreme termini of the genome. The algorithm also prepared a virtual PCR map of the predicted binding and amplicon size for the primer set on CoV genomes. A map of the primer mapping positions

SOLUTION: Full-Genome Deep Sequencing and Phylogenetic Analysis of Novel Human Betacoronavirus

PROBLEM: In addition to a set of canonical genes, coronaviruses encode additional accessory proteins. A locus located between the spike and envelope genes is conserved in all coronaviruses and contains a complete or truncated open reading frame (ORF). Previously, we demonstrated that this locus, which contains the gene for accessory protein 3a from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV), encodes a protein that forms ion channels and regulates virus release. In the current study, we explored whether the ORF4a protein of HCoV-229E has similar functions. Our findings revealed that the ORF4a proteins were expressed in infected cells and localized at the endoplasmic reticulum/Golgi intermediate compartment (ERGIC). The ORF4a proteins formed homo-oligomers through disulfide bridges and possessed ion channel activity in both Xenopus oocytes and yeast. Based on the measurement of conductance to different monovalent cations, the ORF4a was suggested to form a non-selective channel for monovalent cations, although Li + partially reduced the inward current. Furthermore, viral production decreased when the ORF4a protein expression was suppressed by siRNA in infected cells. Collectively, this evidence indicates that the HCoV-229E ORF4a protein is functionally analogous to the SARS-CoV 3a protein, which also acts as a viroporin that regulates virus production. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Viral Membrane Proteins -Channels for Cellular Networking.

SOLUTION:
The ORF4a protein of human coronavirus 229E functions as a viroporin that regulates viral production