TASK DEFINITION: Given a passage, construct a question on the basis of the information present in the passage. Construct the question in such a way that (i) it is unambiguous, (ii) it is answerable from the passage, (iii) its answer is unique (iv) it answer uses text phrases from the passage. Avoid creating questions that (i) can't be answered correctly without actually understanding the passage and (ii) uses the same words or phrases given in the passage.
PROBLEM: Although N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) has a strong relationship with incident cardiovascular disease (CVD), few studies have examined whether NT-proBNP adds to risk prediction algorithms, particularly in women.', 'This study sought to evaluate the relationship between NT-proBNP and incident CVD in women.', "Using a prospective case-cohort within the WHI (Women's Health Initiative) observational study, we selected 1,821 incident cases of CVD (746 myocardial infarctions, 754 ischemic strokes, 160 hemorrhagic strokes, and 161 other cardiovascular [CV] deaths) and a randomly selected reference cohort of 1,992 women without CVD at baseline.", 'Median levels of NT-proBNP were higher at study entry among incident cases (120.3 ng/l [interquartile range (IQR): 68.1 to 219.5 ng/l]) than among control subjects (100.4 ng/l [IQR: 59.7 to 172.6 ng/l]; p< 0.0001). Women in the highest quartile of NT-proBNP (140.8 ng/l) were at 53% increased risk of CVD versus those in the lowest quartile after adjusting for traditional risk factors (1.53 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.21 to 1.94]; p for trend<0.0001). Similar associations were observed after adjustment for Reynolds Risk Score covariables (1.53 [95% CI: 1.20 to 1.95]; p for trend<0.0001); the association remained in separate analyses of CV death (2.66 [95% CI: 1.48 to 4.81]; p for trend<0.0001), myocardial infarction (1.39[95% CI: 1.02 to 1.88]; p for trend= 0.008), and stroke (1.60 [95% CI: 1.22 to 2.11]; p for trend<0.0001). When added to traditional risk covariables, NT-proBNP improved the c-statistic (0.765 to 0.774; p= 0.0003), categorical net reclassification (0.08; p< 0.0001), and integrated discrimination (0.0105; p<0.0001). Similar results were observed when NT-proBNP was added to the Reynolds Risk Score.

SOLUTION: Do b-type natriuretic peptides improve cardiovascular disease risk prediction in a cohort of women?

PROBLEM: Physiological roles of apelin and its specific receptor APJ signaling were investigated in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). The present study determined whether apelin activates myosin light chain (MLC), a major regulatory event in initiating smooth muscle contraction.', 'To assess MLC activation, we performed Western blot and immunohistochemical studies using an antibody against the phospho-MLC. In VSMCs, apelin induces the phosphorylation of MLC in a concentration-dependent manner with a peak at 2 minutes. Pretreatment of VSMCs with pertussis toxin abolishes the apelin-induced phosphorylation of MLC. Inhibition of protein kinase C (PKC) with GF-109203X markedly attenuated the apelin-induced MLC phosphorylation. In addition, methylisobutyl amiloride, a specific inhibitor of the Na+/H+ exchanger (NHE), and KB-R7943, a potent inhibitor for the reverse mode of the Na+/Ca2+ exchanger (NCX), significantly suppressed the action of apelin. In wild-type mice, apelin phosphorylates MLC in vascular tissue, whereas it had no response in APJ-deficient mice by Western blot and immunohistochemistry. Apelin-induced phosphorylation of MLC was accompanied with myosin phosphatase target subunit phosphorylation.

SOLUTION: Does apelin stimulate myosin light chain phosphorylation in vascular smooth muscle cells?

PROBLEM: Dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) and thymidylate synthase (TS) are crucial enzymes in DNA synthesis. In alveolata both enzymes are expressed as one bifunctional enzyme.', "Loss of this essential enzyme activities after successful allelic assortment of knock out alleles yields an auxotrophic marker in ciliates. Here the cloning, characterisation and functional analysis of Tetrahymena thermophila's DHFR-TS is presented. A first aspect of the presented work relates to destruction of DHFR-TS enzyme function in an alveolate thereby causing an auxotrophy for thymidine. A second aspect is to knock in an expression cassette encoding for a foreign gene with subsequent expression of the target protein.

SOLUTION:
Does the bifunctional dihydrofolate reductase thymidylate synthase of Tetrahymena thermophila provide a tool for molecular and biotechnology applications?