Measurement of CP Asymmetries in B^{0}→K_{S}^{0}π^{0}γ Decays at Belle II.

We report measurements of time-dependent CP asymmetries in B^{0}→K_{S}^{0}π^{0}γ decays based on a data sample of (388±6)×10^{6}  BB[over ¯] events collected at the ϒ(4S) resonance with the Belle II detector. The Belle II experiment operates at the SuperKEKB asymmetric-energy e^{+}e^{-} collider. We measure decay-time distributions to determine CP -violating parameters S and C.

Structural insights into light-gating of potassium-selective channelrhodopsin.

Structural information on channelrhodopsins' mechanism of light-gated ion conductance is scarce, limiting its engineering as optogenetic tools. Here, we use single-particle cryo-electron microscopy of peptidisc-incorporated protein samples to determine the structures of the slow-cycling mutant C110A of kalium channelrhodopsin 1 from Hyphochytrium catenoides (HcKCR1) in the dark and upon laser flash excitation. Upon photoisomerization of the retinal chromophore, the retinylidene Schiff base NH-bond reorients from the extracellular to the cytoplasmic side.

Evidence of h_{b}(2P)→ϒ(1S)η Decay and Search for h_{b}(1P,2P)→ϒ(1S)π^{0} with the Belle Detector.

We report the first evidence for the h_{b}(2P)→ϒ(1S)η transition with a significance of 3.5 standard deviations. The decay branching fraction is measured to be B[h_{b}(2P)→ϒ(1S)η]=(7.

Fast and Simple Protocol for N-Glycome Analysis of Human Blood Plasma Proteome.

N-glycome analysis of individual proteins and tissues is crucial for fundamental and applied biomedical research and medical diagnosis and plays an important role in the evaluation of the quality of biopharmaceutical and biotechnological products. The interest in this research area continues to grow annually, thereby increasing the demand for the high-throughput profiling of human blood plasma N-glycome. In response to this need, we have developed an optimized, simple, and rapid protocol for the N-glycome profiling of human plasma proteins.

A conserved H-bond network in human aquaporin-1 is necessary for native folding and oligomerization.

Aquaporins (AQPs) are α-helical transmembrane proteins that conduct water through membranes with high selectivity and permeability. For human AQP1, in addition to the functional Asn-Pro-Ala motifs and the aromatic/Arg selectivity filter within the pore, there are several highly conserved residues that form an expansive hydrogen-bonding network. Previous solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance studies and structural conservation analysis have detailed which residues may be involved in this network.

Phage Display Revealed the Complex Structure of the Epitope of the Monoclonal Antibody 10H10.

The annual number of reported human cases of flavivirus infections continues to increase. Measures taken by local healthcare systems and international organizations are not fully successful. In this regard, new approaches to treatment and prevention of flavivirus infections are relevant.

Measurement of Angular Coefficients of B[over ¯]→D^{*}ℓν[over ¯]_{ℓ}: Implications for |V_{cb}| and Tests of Lepton Flavor Universality.

We measure the complete set of angular coefficients J_{i} for exclusive B[over ¯]→D^{*}ℓν[over ¯]_{ℓ} decays (ℓ=e, μ). Our analysis uses the full 711  fb^{-1} Belle dataset with hadronic tag-side reconstruction. The results allow us to extract the form factors describing the B[over ¯]→D^{*} transition and the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix element |V_{cb}|.

Distribution and species composition of potato viruses in the Novosibirsk region.

Among the many diseases that affect potato plants, viral infections are the most common and cause significant damage to farms, affecting both the yield and quality of potatoes. In this regard, an important condition for preserving the potato seed fund in Russia is systematic monitoring and early highly specific detection of potato viral infections. The purpose of the work is to study samples of potato varieties collected in the Novosibirsk region for the presence of viral infections using RT-PCR.

The retinal chromophore environment in an inward light-driven proton pump studied by solid-state NMR and hydrogen-bond network analysis.

Inward proton pumping is a relatively new function for microbial rhodopsins, retinal-binding light-driven membrane proteins. So far, it has been demonstrated for two unrelated subgroups of microbial rhodopsins, xenorhodopsins and schizorhodopsins. A number of recent studies suggest unique retinal-protein interactions as being responsible for the reversed direction of proton transport in the latter group.

High prevalence of m.1555A > G in patients with hearing loss in the Baikal Lake region of Russia as a result of founder effect.

Mitochondrial forms account approximately 1-2% of all nonsyndromic cases of hearing loss (HL). One of the most common causative variants of mtDNA is the m.1555A > G variant of the MT-RNR1 gene (OMIM 561000).

Measurement of the Pion Form Factor with CMD-3 Detector and Its Implication to the Hadronic Contribution to Muon (g-2).

The cross section of the process e^{+}e^{-}→π^{+}π^{-} has been measured in the center-of-mass energy range from 0.32 to 1.2 GeV with the CMD-3 detector at the electron-positron collider VEPP-2000.

Removal of Double-Stranded RNA Contaminants During Template-Directed Synthesis of mRNA.

The removal of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) contaminants during in vitro mRNA synthesis is one of the technological problems to be solved. Apparently, these contaminants are the result of the T7 RNA polymerase side activity. In this study, we used a modified method of mRNA purification based on the selective binding of dsRNA to cellulose in ethanol-containing buffer.

First Measurement of R(X_{τ/ℓ}) as an Inclusive Test of the b→cτν Anomaly.

We measure the tau-to-light-lepton ratio of inclusive B-meson branching fractions R(X_{τ/ℓ})≡B(B→Xτν)/B(B→Xℓν), where ℓ indicates an electron or muon, and thereby test the universality of charged-current weak interactions. We select events that have one fully reconstructed B meson and a charged lepton candidate from 189  fb^{-1} of electron-positron collision data collected with the Belle II detector. We find R(X_{τ/ℓ})=0.

Structural Determinants of Peptide Nanopore Formation.

We have evolved the nanopore-forming macrolittin peptides from the bee venom peptide melittin using successive generations of synthetic molecular evolution. Despite their sequence similarity to the broadly membrane permeabilizing cytolytic melittin, the macrolittins have potent membrane selectivity. They form nanopores in synthetic bilayers made from 1-palmitoyl, 2-oleoyl-phosphatidylcholine (POPC) at extremely low peptide concentrations and yet have essentially no cytolytic activity against any cell membrane, even at high concentration.

ERNEST COST action overview on the (patho)physiology of GPCRs and orphan GPCRs in the nervous system.

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are a large family of cell surface receptors that play a critical role in nervous system function by transmitting signals between cells and their environment. They are involved in many, if not all, nervous system processes, and their dysfunction has been linked to various neurological disorders representing important drug targets. This overview emphasises the GPCRs of the nervous system, which are the research focus of the members of ERNEST COST action (CA18133) working group 'Biological roles of signal transduction'.

Graph-based algorithms to dissect long-distance water-mediated H-bond networks for conformational couplings in GPCRs.

Changes in structure and dynamics elicited by agonist ligand binding at the extracellular side of G protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) must be relayed to the cytoplasmic G protein binding side of the receptors. To decipher the role of water-mediated hydrogen-bond networks in this relay mechanism, we have developed graph-based algorithms and analysis methodologies applicable to datasets of static structures of distinct GPCRs. For a reference dataset of static structures of bovine rhodopsin solved at the same resolution, we show that graph analyses capture the internal protein-water hydrogen-bond network.

The Effect of Retinol Acetate on Liver Fibrosis Depends on the Temporal Features of the Development of Pathology.

Background: The effect of vitamin A on the manifestations of liver fibrosis is controversial and establishing the causes of its multidirectional influence is an urgent problem. In the work, the functional characteristics of the liver with Cu-induced fibrosis were determined after the restoration of vitamin A to the control level at the F0/F1 stage.

Methods: In animals with liver fibrosis, classical indicators of physiology, functional activity of the liver, histological, and hematological characteristics were determined; the content of calcium and ROS was determined in bone marrow cells.

First Observation of Neutral Bremsstrahlung Electroluminescence in Liquid Argon.

A recent discovery of additional mechanism of electroluminescence (EL) in noble gases due to the neutral bremsstrahlung (NBrS) effect led to a prediction that NBrS EL should be present in noble liquids as well. A theoretical model of NBrS EL in noble liquids was developed accordingly in the frameworks of Cohen-Lekner and Atrazhev. In this work, we confirm this prediction: For the first time, visible-range EL has been observed in liquid argon at electric fields reaching 90  kV/cm, using gas electron multiplier (GEM) and thick GEM structures.

Microscopy and spectroscopy approaches to study GPCR structure and function.

The GPCR signalling cascade is a key pathway responsible for the signal transduction of a multitude of physical and chemical stimuli, including light, odorants, neurotransmitters and hormones. Understanding the structural and functional properties of the GPCR cascade requires direct observation of signalling processes in high spatial and temporal resolution, with minimal perturbation to endogenous systems. Optical microscopy and spectroscopy techniques are uniquely suited to this purpose because they excel at multiple spatial and temporal scales and can be used in living objects.

Tests of Light-Lepton Universality in Angular Asymmetries of B^{0}→D^{*-}ℓν Decays.

We present the first comprehensive tests of the universality of the light leptons in the angular distributions of semileptonic B^{0}-meson decays to charged spin-1 charmed mesons. We measure five angular-asymmetry observables as functions of the decay recoil that are sensitive to lepton-universality-violating contributions. We use events where one neutral B is fully reconstructed in ϒ(4S)→BB[over ¯] decays in data corresponding to 189  fb^{-1} integrated luminosity from electron-positron collisions collected with the Belle II detector.

Precise Measurement of the D_{s}^{+} Lifetime at Belle II.

We measure the lifetime of the D_{s}^{+} meson using a data sample of 207  fb^{-1} collected by the Belle II experiment running at the SuperKEKB asymmetric-energy e^{+}e^{-} collider. The lifetime is determined by fitting the decay-time distribution of a sample of 116×10^{3} D_{s}^{+}→ϕπ^{+} decays. Our result is τ_{D_{s}^{+}}=(499.