OBJECTIVE To assess the risk of lung cancer in smokers of medium tar filter cigarettes compared with smokers of low tar and very low tar filter cigarettes. DESIGN Analysis of the association between the tar rating of the brand of cigarette smoked in 1982 and mortality from lung cancer over the next six years. Multivariate proportional hazards analyses used to assess hazard ratios, with adjust...

When are evolutionary outcomes predictable? Cases of convergent evolution can shed light on when, why, and how different species exhibit shared evolutionary trajectories. In particular, studying diverse species in a common environment can illuminate how different factors facilitate or constrain adaptive evolution. Here we integrate studies of pattern and process in the fauna at White Sands (New...

trans activation of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) involves the viral trans-activator protein (Tat) and a cellular factor(s) encoded on human chromosome 12 (HuChr12) that targets the trans-activation response element (TAR) in the viral long terminal repeat. Because nascent TAR RNA is predicted to form a secondary structure that specifically binds cellular proteins, we investigated ...

Marine tar residues originate from natural and anthropogenic oil releases into the ocean environment and are formed after liquid petroleum is transformed by weathering, sedimentation, and other processes. Tar balls, tar mats, and tar patties are common examples of marine tar residues and can range in size from millimeters in diameter (tar balls) to several meters in length and width (tar mats)....

Linear TAR RNA has previously been used as a decoy to inhibit HIV-1 transcription in vitro and HIV-1 replication in vivo. A 48 nucleotide circular RNA containing the stem, bulge and loop of the HIV-1 TAR element was synthesized using the self-splicing activity of a group I permuted intron-exon and was tested for its ability to function as a TAR decoy in vitro. This small circular TAR molecule w...

In 1971-3 data on smoking habits, cigarette brand smoked, morning phlegm production, and lung function were recorded for factory workers as part of the Heart Disease Prevention Project. These men were reassessed in 1984 and those who had always smoked cigarettes from the same tar group were compared with those who had dropped one tar group (mean decreases of 6.6 mg tar, 0.1 mg nicotine) and two...

The interaction between human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and RNA silencing pathways is complex and multifaceted. Essential for efficient viral transcription and supporting Tat-mediated transactivation of viral gene expression, the trans-activation responsive (TAR) element is a structured RNA located at the 5' end of all transcripts derived from HIV-1. Here, we report that this elemen...

For over a decade, the contribution of oil sands mining and processing to the pollution of the Athabasca River has been controversial. We show that the oil sands development is a greater source of contamination than previously realized. In 2008, within 50 km of oil sands upgrading facilities, the loading to the snowpack of airborne particulates was 11,400 T over 4 months and included 391 kg of ...

A new field method for tar quantification was used at Coal Oil Point (COP), California to study the mechanisms transporting oil/tar from the nearby COP natural marine hydrocarbon seep field. This method segregates tar pieces into six size classes and assigns them an average mass based on laboratory or direct field measurements. Tar accumulation on the 19,927m(2) survey area was well resolved sp...