Publications by authors named "O Rourke"

Article Synopsis
  • Understanding the role of transcription factor binding sites in gene regulation is a critical and complex issue in biology, particularly for multicellular organisms.
  • Massively parallel reporter assays (MPRAs) enable high-throughput measurement of gene expression from numerous regulatory sequences in cell cultures but face limitations in whole organisms due to the need for DNA library integration.
  • Researchers developed a system using base editing technology to introduce targeted mutations in the genomes of cell cultures and whole organisms, significantly improving the ability to study enhancer functions by using multiple guide RNAs for efficient mutagenesis.
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The ability of sensory networks to transiently store information on the scale of seconds can confer many advantages in processing time-varying stimuli. How a network could store information on such intermediate time scales, between typical neurophysiological time scales and those of long-term memory, is typically attributed to persistent neural activity. An alternative mechanism which might allow for such information storage is through temporary modifications to the neural connectivity which decay on the same second-long time scale as the underlying memories.

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Accurate quantification of forest carbon stocks is required for constraining the global carbon cycle and its impacts on climate. The accuracies of forest biomass maps are inherently dependent on the accuracy of the field biomass estimates used to calibrate models, which are generated with allometric equations. Here, we provide a quantitative assessment of the sensitivity of allometric parameters to sample size in temperate forests, focusing on the allometric relationship between tree height and crown radius.

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