Biology subjects

Farkas, K.

Publications and source records attributed to Farkas, K..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

ERK activity as a key player in determining cardiac cell fate choices

Heart development is supported by diverse cell types originating from the lateral plate mesoderm (LPM), including the first heart field (FHF), the second heart field (SHF), which is a part of pharyngeal mesoderm, and the newly described juxta-cardiac field (JCF) that harbors progenitor cells of the epicardium. While FGF-MEK-ERK signalling has been implicated in various developmental mechanisms, its role in cardiac specification remains elusive. This signalling pathway involves autoinhibitory loops, acting at translational and post-translational levels, resulting in pulses of ERK activity. We hypothesized that this alternating ERK activity could direct binary cell fate choices during mesodermal specification. Using an in vitro system, we found that inhibition of ERK activity in the LPM, before cardiac commitment, resulted in enriched gene expression of JCF and pharyngeal mesoderm/SHF markers, with high proepicardial marker levels, at the expense of FHF-like cardiomyocyte markers. Our findings reveal a novel contribution of ERK signalling in cell differentiation within the cardiac lineages.

cell biology↗

bioRxiv2024

Individual differences in probabilistic learning and updating predictive representations in individuals with obsessive-compulsive tendencies

Obsessive-compulsive (OC) tendencies involve intrusive thoughts and rigid, repetitive behaviours that also manifest at the subclinical level in the general population. The neurocognitive factors driving the development and persistence of the excessive presence of these tendencies remain highly elusive, though emerging theories emphasize the role of implicit information processing. Despite various empirical studies on distinct neurocognitive processes, the incidental retrieval of environmental structures in dynamic and noisy environments, such as probabilistic learning, has received relatively little attention. In this study, we aimed to unravel potential individual differences in implicit probabilistic learning and the updating of predictive representations related to OC tendencies in the general population. We conducted two independent online experiments (NStudy1 = 164, NStudy2 = 257) with young adults. Probabilistic learning was assessed using a reliable implicit visuomotor probabilistic learning task, which involved sequences with second-order non-adjacent dependencies. Our findings revealed that even among individuals displaying a broad spectrum of OC tendencies within a non-clinical population, implicit probabilistic learning remained remarkably robust. Furthermore, the results highlighted effective updating capabilities of predictive representations, which were not influenced by OC tendencies. These results offer new insights into individual differences in probabilistic learning and updating in relation to OC tendencies, contributing to theoretical, methodological, and practical approaches for understanding the maladaptive behavioural manifestations of OC disorder and subclinical tendencies.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2018

Two-step concentration of complex water samples for the detection of viruses

The accurate detection and quantification of pathogenic viruses in water is essential to understand and reduce the risk of human infection. In this paper, we validated a two-step method for the concentration of enteric viruses in water and wastewater samples. The method involves a tangential flow ultrafiltration step that reduces the sample volume of 1 - 10 L to approx. 50 mL, followed by secondary precipitation using polyethylene glycol 6000 that reduces the volume to 1 - 4 mL. For method validation, surface water samples were spiked with different concentrations of enteric viruses and viral recoveries in the concentrates exceeded 10% in all experiments. The method is suitable for water samples with high and low salinity and turbidity, allowing the accurate comparison of viral titers in a diverse range of water types. Furthermore, the method has the potential to concentrate other pathogens, e.g. bacteria or protozoa. Hence, the use of this method can improve the holistic assessment of risks associated with wastewater contaminated environments.\n\nO_LIModified tangential flow ultrafiltration method that reduces membrane clogging.\nC_LIO_LISecondary concentration with a beef extract-elution step to remove solid matter.\nC_LIO_LIThe two-step concentration method enables at least 10% recovery for different enteric viruses in difficult matrices.\nC_LIO_LIUsing the two-step concentration method 10,000x concentration can be achieved.\nC_LI\n\nSpecifications Table:\n\n\n\nO_TBL View this table:\norg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@12d4fceorg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1d2880borg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@e1acf6org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@226492org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1f8edf0_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_TBL C_TBL

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2018

Viromic analysis of wastewater input to a river catchment reveals a diverse assemblage of RNA viruses

Detection of viruses in the environment is heavily dependent on PCR-based approaches that require reference sequences for primer design. While this strategy can accurately detect known viruses, it will not find novel genotypes, nor emerging and invasive viral species. In this study, we investigated the use of viromics, i.e. high-throughput sequencing of the biosphere viral fraction, to detect human/animal pathogenic RNA viruses in the Conwy river catchment area in Wales, UK. Using a combination of filtering and nuclease treatment, we extracted the viral fraction from wastewater, estuarine river water and sediment, followed by RNASeq analysis on the Illumina HiSeq platform for the discovery of RNA virus genomes. We found a higher richness of RNA viruses in wastewater samples than in river water and sediment, and assembled a complete norovirus GI.2 genome from wastewater effluent, which was not contemporaneously detected by conventional qRT-PCR. To our knowledge, this is the first environmentally-derived norovirus genome sequence to be available from a public database. The simultaneous presence of diverse rotavirus signatures in wastewater indicated the potential for zoonotic infections in the area and suggested run-off from pig farms as a possible origin of these viruses. Our results show that viromics can be an important tool in the discovery of pathogenic viruses in the environment and can be used to inform and optimize reference-based detection methods provided appropriate and rigorous controls are included.\n\nImportanceEnteric viruses cause gastro-intestinal illness and are commonly transmitted through the faecal-oral route. When wastewater is released into river systems, these viruses can contaminate the environment. Our results show that we can use viromics to find the range of potentially pathogenic viruses that are present in the environment and identify prevalent genotypes. The ultimate goal is to trace the fate of these pathogenic viruses from origin to the point where they are a threat to human health, informing reference-based detection methods and water quality management.

microbiology↗