Cells use 'active' energy-consuming motor and filament protein networks to control micrometre-scale transport and fluid flows. Biological active materials could be used in dynamically programmable devices that achieve spatial and temporal resolution that exceeds current microfluidic technologies. However, reconstituted motor-microtubule systems generate chaotic flows and cannot be directly harnessed for engineering applications.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe problem of protein structure determination is usually solved by X-ray crystallography. Several in silico deep learning methods have been developed to overcome the high attrition rate, cost of experiments and extensive trial-and-error settings, for predicting the crystallization propensities of proteins based on their sequences. In this work, we benchmark the power of open protein language models (PLMs) through the TRILL platform, a be-spoke framework democratizing the usage of PLMs for the task of predicting crystallization propensities of proteins.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Pilonidal sinus disease (PSD) is a chronic debilitating condition predominantly affecting young men. Laser hair depilation is an established adjunct to surgical treatment for PSD and can lead to reduced rates of recurrence, and post-surgical interventions.This study aimed to assess the outcome of laser hair depilation therapy on disease progression in pilonidal sinus disease patients at the Birmingham Skin Regional Laser Centre.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFProteins have proven to be useful agents in a variety of fields, from serving as potent therapeutics to enabling complex catalysis for chemical manufacture. However, they remain difficult to design and are instead typically selected for using extensive screens or directed evolution. Recent developments in protein large language models have enabled fast generation of diverse protein sequences in unexplored regions of protein space predicted to fold into varied structures, bind relevant targets, and catalyze novel reactions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDelivered a day after Britain's National Health Service (NHS) reached its 75th year since its opening on the Appointed Day of 5 July 1948, the Pimlott Lecture for 2023 explored the culture of NHS anniversary-making. What can the marking of these anniversaries tell us about changing attitudes towards the service, and indeed, the British state? Here, examining evidence from the media, government archives, and Mass Observation, we argue that NHS anniversaries have long functioned as points of reflection but that their role as moments of national celebration and even communion has come to the fore only recently and culminated in the apparent 'anniversary fever' of 2018. We will explore the reasons behind the growing public fervour, what it can tell us, and the lessons offered by our work on this (still) best-loved of British institutions for historians working on highly politicized objects in 'fevered' times.
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