Affinity maturation endows potent activity onto class 6 SARS-CoV-2 broadly neutralizing antibodies.

The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) has greatly diminished the neutralizing activity of previously FDA-approved monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), including that of antibody cocktails and of first-generation broadly neutralizing antibodies such as S309 (Sotrovimab). In contrast, antibodies targeting cryptic conformational epitopes of the receptor binding domain (RBD) have demonstrated broad activity against emerging variants, but exert only moderate neutralizing activity, which has so far hindered clinical development. Here, we utilize in vitro display technology to identify and affinity-mature antibodies targeting the cryptic class 6 epitope, accessible only in the "up" conformation of the SARS-CoV-2 spike trimer.

Why some coalitions benefit from historical myths more than others.

Behavioural ecologies in themselves can create variation in fitness interdependencies among individuals, and hence modulate the functionality of invoking historical myths. We develop this possibility for the case where coalitions form to attack and exploit enemies, or to defend and protect against hostile out-groups. We propose that invoking historical myths are functional and observed especially when groups aggressively expand.

Ecological and anthropogenic effects on the genomic diversity of lemurs in Madagascar.

Ecological variation and anthropogenic landscape modification have had key roles in the diversification and extinction of mammals in Madagascar. Lemurs represent a radiation with more than 100 species, constituting roughly one-fifth of the primate order. Almost all species of lemurs are threatened with extinction, but little is known about their genetic diversity and demographic history.

Associations between fecal glucocorticoid levels and social bonds vary with relatedness in juvenile rhesus macaques.

Strong social bonds in gregarious adult animals have been associated with lower levels of glucocorticoids. However, similar research is lacking for juvenile primates. We examined relationships between social bonds and mean concentrations of fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (fGCMs) in 44 free-ranging juvenile rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) on Cayo Santiago, Puerto Rico.

Cysticercosis in a Common Marmoset ().

cysticercosis is a rare but recently more frequently reported disease that can affect both human and non-human primates as aberrant hosts. A common marmoset was noticed as being affected by advancing weight loss that did not respond to therapy and finally had to be euthanized due to poor prognosis. A complete necropsy with gross evaluation and subsequent histological and molecular analyses was performed, revealing the presence of a cysticercosis in the thoracic and pelvic cavity and in the mesentery.

Combination of FSH and testosterone could enhance activation of primordial follicles and growth of activated follicles in 1-day-old mice ovaries cultured for 12 days.

Treatment with follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and testosterone (T2) and their combination have been observed to be influential on ovarian follicles of 1-day-old mice ovaries cultured for 8 days. Given that extension of the culture period could positively impact the development of follicles in cultured ovaries, the present study was conducted to evaluate the main and interaction effects of FSH by T2 on the development of ovarian follicles in 1-day-old mice ovaries cultured for 12 days. One-day-old mice ovaries were initially cultured with base medium for 4 days; thereafter, different hormonal treatments were added to the culture media, and the culture was continued for 8 additional days until day 12.

Teratoma Development in 129.MOLF-Chr19 Mice Elicits Two Waves of Immune Cell Infiltration.

Teratomas are a highly differentiated type of testicular germ cell tumors (TGCTs), the most common type of solid cancer in young men. Prominent inflammatory infiltrates are a hallmark of TGCTs, although their compositions and dynamics in teratomas remain elusive. Here, we reached out to characterize the infiltrating immune cells and their activation and polarization state by using high-throughput gene expression analysis of 129.

Norway rats recruit cooperation partners based on previous receipt of help while disregarding kinship.

Norway rats are known to liberate trapped conspecifics, which implies an empathic response to the deplorable situation of the captive. If this is an altruistic behavior reflecting an evolved decision rule, the requisite fitness enhancement to the actor may result either from close relatedness or the expectation of future returns. Neither potential effects of relatedness nor of reciprocal returns have yet been examined.

Comparative Analysis of Host Cell Entry Efficiency and Neutralization Sensitivity of Emerging SARS-CoV-2 Lineages KP.2, KP.2.3, KP.3, and LB.1.

New SARS-CoV-2 lineages continue to evolve and may exhibit new characteristics regarding host cell entry efficiency and potential for antibody evasion. Here, employing pseudotyped particles, we compared the host cell entry efficiency, ACE2 receptor usage, and sensitivity to antibody-mediated neutralization of four emerging SARS-CoV-2 lineages, KP.2, KP.

Photoregulatory functions drive variation in eye coloration across macaque species.

Primates, the most colorful mammalian radiation, have previously served as an interesting model to test the functions and evolutionary drivers of variation in eye color. We assess the contribution of photo-regulatory and communicative functions to the external eye appearance of nine macaque species representing all the branches of their radiation. Macaques' well described social structure and wide geographical distribution make them interesting to explore.

Modality-specific and modality-general representations of subjective value in frontal cortex.

Neuroeconomics theories propose that the value associated with diverse rewards or reward-predicting stimuli is encoded along a common reference scale, irrespective of their sensory properties. However, in a dynamic environment with changing stimulus-reward pairings, the brain must also represent the sensory features of rewarding stimuli. The mechanism by which the brain balances these needs-deriving a common reference scale for valuation while maintaining sensitivity to sensory contexts-remains unclear.

Interactions between the fovea and the periphery shape misbinding of visual features in a continuous report paradigm.

Human object perception depends on the proper integration of multiple visual features, such as color and motion. When features are integrated incorrectly, they are perceptually misbound and can cause illusions. This study investigates the phenomenon of continuous misbinding of color and motion features in peripheral vision, addressing the role of spatial continuity and color configuration in binding processes.

Neural correlates of sensorimotor adaptation: Thalamic contributions to learning from sensory prediction error.

Understanding the neural mechanism of sensorimotor adaptation is essential to reveal how the brain learns from errors, a process driven by sensory prediction errors. While the previous literature has focused on cortical and cerebellar changes, the involvement of the thalamus has received less attention. This functional magnetic resonance imaging study aims to explore the neural substrates of learning from sensory prediction errors with an additional focus on the thalamus.

ACE2-independent sarbecovirus cell entry can be supported by TMPRSS2-related enzymes and can reduce sensitivity to antibody-mediated neutralization.

The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2, demonstrated that zoonotic transmission of animal sarbecoviruses threatens human health but the determinants of transmission are incompletely understood. Here, we show that most spike (S) proteins of horseshoe bat and Malayan pangolin sarbecoviruses employ ACE2 for entry, with human and raccoon dog ACE2 exhibiting broad receptor activity. The insertion of a multibasic cleavage site into the S proteins increased entry into human lung cells driven by most S proteins tested, suggesting that acquisition of a multibasic cleavage site might increase infectivity of diverse animal sarbecoviruses for the human respiratory tract.

A longitudinal investigation of the acoustic properties of infant-directed speech from 6 to 18 months.

Caregivers often modulate their speech when interacting with infants, adapting a register that has been suggested to have attentional, affective and didactic purposes. The present preregistered study examined the longitudinal trajectories of a diverse range of acoustic features of infant-directed speech (IDS) and compared these with adult-directed speech (ADS), in Norwegian parents of 6- to 18-month-old infants. Sixty-nine families participated.

Spontaneous soft tissue tumours in aged mouse lemurs (Microcebus spp).

Mouse lemurs (Microcebus spp) are small Madagascan strepsirrhine primates increasingly used as an animal model in ageing research. During a period of 10 years, neoplastic disease occurred in 47 grey (Microcebus murinus) and Goodman's (Microcebus lehilahtsara) mouse lemurs from a captive colony in Germany. Approximately half of these tumours appeared histologically as soft tissue tumours (STTs) with a significantly higher proportion of STTs in Goodman's mouse lemurs (87.

Dexamethasone is a regulator of clock genes in testicular peritubular cells.

Background: We recently found that peritubular cells of the human testis are a dominant site of expression of the glucocorticoid receptor (GR; encoded by NR3C1). Activation of GR by dexamethasone (Dex) strongly influences the phenotype of cultured human testicular peritubular cells (HTPCs), causing massive changes of their proteome and secretome. As glucocorticoids (GC) are also known to set the internal clock of peripheral organs by regulating clock genes, we tested such an influence of Dex in HTPCs.

A human monoclonal antibody neutralizing SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variants containing the L452R mutation.

The effectiveness of SARS-CoV-2 therapeutic antibodies targeting the spike (S) receptor-binding domain (RBD) has been hampered by the emergence of variants of concern (VOCs), which have acquired mutations to escape neutralizing antibodies (nAbs). These mutations are not evenly distributed on the RBD surface but cluster on several distinct surfaces, suggesting an influence of the targeted epitope on the capacity to neutralize a broad range of VOCs. Here, we identified a potent nAb from convalescent patients targeting the receptor-binding domain of a broad range of SARS-CoV-2 VOCs.

Establishment and Validation of Fecal Secretory Immunoglobulin A Measurement for Intestinal Mucosal Health Assessment in Wild Lemurs.

The measurement of biomarkers in blood and excreta can enable immune status assessment and provide prognostic information on individual health outcomes. In this respect, the fecal measurement of secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA), the primary mammalian antibody for mucosal defense, has recently received increased interest in a few anthropoid primates, but a fecal sIgA assay for use in strepsirrhine primates has not yet been reported. Here, we develop and analytically validate a cost-effective in-house sandwich enzyme immunoassay for the extraction and measurement of sIgA in feces of redfronted lemurs (Eulemur rufifrons).

Prosocial preferences can escalate intergroup conflicts by countering selfish motivations to leave.

When defending against hostile enemies, individual group members can benefit from others staying in the group and fighting. However, individuals themselves may be better off by leaving the group and avoiding the personal risks associated with fighting. While fleeing is indeed commonly observed, when and why defenders fight or flee remains poorly understood and is addressed here with three incentivized and preregistered experiments (total n = 602).

Human-specific genetic hallmarks in neocortical development: focus on neural progenitors.

The evolutionary expansion of the neocortex in the ape lineage is the basis for the development of higher cognitive abilities. However, the human brain has uniquely increased in size and degree of folding, forming an essential foundation for advanced cognitive functions. This raises the question: what factors distinguish humans from our closest living primate relatives, such as chimpanzees and bonobos, which exhibit comparatively constrained cognitive capabilities? In this review, we focus on recent studies examining (modern) human-specific genetic traits that influence neural progenitor cells, whose behavior and activity are crucial for shaping cortical morphology.