Activity

  • Levin Klint posted an update 2 hours, 11 minutes ago

    These findings were consistent with the composition of shikonin/alkannin derivatives in intact Lerythrorhizon plants and cell cultures. Genes encoding both enzymes were preferentially expressed in the roots and cell cultures in the dark in pigment production medium M9, conditions associated with shikonin/alkannin production. These results indicated that LeSAT1 and LeAAT1 are enantiomer-specific acyltransferases that generate various shikonin/alkannin derivatives.Plants have evolved a range of adaptive mechanisms that adjust their development and physiology to variable external conditions, particularly in perennial species subjected to long-term interplay with the environment. Exploiting the allelic diversity within available germplasm and leveraging the knowledge of the mechanisms regulating genotype interaction with the environment are crucial to address climatic challenges and assist the breeding of novel cultivars with improved resilience. The development of multisite collections is of utmost importance for the conservation and utilization of genetic materials and will greatly facilitate the dissection of genotype-by-environment interaction. Such resources are still lacking for perennial trees, especially with the intrinsic difficulties of successful propagation, material exchange, and living collection maintenance. This work describes the concept, design, and realization of the first multisite peach (Prunus persica) reference collection (PeachRefPop) located across different European countries and sharing the same experimental design. Other than an invaluable tool for scientific studies in perennial species, PeachRefPop provides a milestone in an international collaborative project for the conservation and exploitation of European peach germplasm resources and, ultimately, as a true heritage for future generations.Liquids typically form droplets when exiting a nozzle. Jets–cylindrical streams of fluid-can form transiently at higher fluid velocities, yet interfacial tension rapidly drives jet breakup into droplets via the Rayleigh-Plateau instability. Liquid metal is an unlikely candidate to form stable jets since it has enormous interfacial tension and low viscosity. BYL719 molecular weight We report that electrochemical anodization significantly lowers the effective tension of a stream of metal, transitioning it from droplets to long (long lifetime and length) wires with 100-μm diameters without the need for high velocities. Whereas surface minimization drives Rayleigh-Plateau instabilities, these streams of metal increase in surface area when laid flat upon a surface due to the low tension. The ability to tune interfacial tension over at least three orders of magnitude using modest potential ( less then 1 V) enables new approaches for production of metallic structures at room temperature, on-demand fluid-in-fluid structuring, and new tools for studying and controlling fluid behavior.CD8+ T cells play pivotal roles in eradicating pathogens and tumor cells. T cell receptor (TCR) signaling is vital for the optimal activation of CD8+ T cells. Upon TCR engagement, the transmembrane adapter protein LAT (linker for activation of T cells) recruits other key signaling molecules and forms the “LAT signalosome” for downstream signal transduction. However, little is known about which functional partners could restrain the formation of the LAT signalosome and inhibit CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL)-mediated cytotoxicity. Here we have demonstrated that LRCH1 (leucine-rich repeats and calponin homology domain containing 1) directly binds LAT, reduces LAT phosphorylation and interaction with GRB2, and also promotes the endocytosis of LAT. Lrch1-/- mice display better protection against influenza virus and Listeria infection, with enhanced CD8+ T cell proliferation and cytotoxicity. Adoptive transfer of Lrch1-/- CD8+ CTLs leads to increased B16-MO5 tumor clearance in vivo. Furthermore, knockout of LRCH1 in human chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells that recognize the liver tumor-associated antigen glypican-3 could improve CAR T cell migration and proliferation in vitro. These findings suggest LRCH1 as a potential translational target to improve T cell immunotherapy against infection and tumors.In the absence of a vaccine, social distancing measures are one of the primary tools to reduce the transmission of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus, which causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We show that social distancing following US state-level emergency declarations substantially varies by income. Using mobility measures derived from mobile device location pings, we find that wealthier areas decreased mobility significantly more than poorer areas, and this general pattern holds across income quantiles, data sources, and mobility measures. Using an event study design focusing on behavior subsequent to state emergency orders, we document a reversal in the ordering of social distancing by income Wealthy areas went from most mobile before the pandemic to least mobile, while, for multiple measures, the poorest areas went from least mobile to most. Previous research has shown that lower income communities have higher levels of preexisting health conditions and lower access to healthcare. Combining this with our core finding-that lower income communities exhibit less social distancing-suggests a double burden of the COVID-19 pandemic with stark distributional implications.Stacking layers of atomically thin transition-metal carbides and two-dimensional (2D) semiconducting transition-metal dichalcogenides, could lead to nontrivial superconductivity and other unprecedented phenomena yet to be studied. In this work, superconducting α-phase thin molybdenum carbide flakes were first synthesized, and a subsequent sulfurization treatment induced the formation of vertical heterolayer systems consisting of different phases of molybdenum carbide-ranging from α to γ’ and γ phases-in conjunction with molybdenum sulfide layers. These transition-metal carbide/disulfide heterostructures exhibited critical superconducting temperatures as high as 6 K, higher than that of the starting single-phased α-Mo2C (4 K). We analyzed possible interface configurations to explain the observed moiré patterns resulting from the vertical heterostacks. Our density-functional theory (DFT) calculations indicate that epitaxial strain and moiré patterns lead to a higher interfacial density of states, which favors superconductivity.