Remodeling Zinc Deposition via Multisite Zincophilic Chlorophyll for Powerful Aprotic Zinc Batteries.

The organic electrolyte can resolve the hurdle of hydrogen evolution in aqueous electrolytes but suffers from sluggish electrochemical reaction kinetics due to a compromised mass transfer process. Herein, we introduce a chlorophyll, zinc methyl 3-devinyl-3-hydroxymethyl-pyropheophorbide- (Chl), as a multifunctional electrolyte additive for aprotic zinc batteries to address the related dynamic problems in organic electrolyte systems. The Chl exhibits multisite zincophilicity, which significantly reduces the nucleation potential, increases the nucleation sites, and induces uniform nucleation of Zn metal with a nucleation overpotential close to zero.

Nondomain biopolymers: Flexible molecular strategies to acquire biological functions.

A long-standing assumption in molecular biology posits that the conservation of protein and nucleic acid sequences emphasizes the functional significance of biomolecules. These conserved sequences fold into distinct secondary and tertiary structures, enable highly specific molecular interactions, and regulate complex yet organized molecular processes within living cells. However, recent evidence suggests that biomolecules can also function through primary sequence regions that lack conservation across species or gene families.

Two single-point mutations in Ankyrin Repeat one drastically change the threshold temperature of TRPV1.

TRPV1 plays an important role in the thermosensory system; however, the mechanism controlling its heat activation property is not well understood. Here, we determine the heat activation properties of TRPV1 cloned from tailed amphibians, which prefer cooler environments, finding the threshold temperatures were approximately 10 °C lower compared with rat TRPV1 (rTRPV1). We find that two amino acid residues (Gln, Leu/Val) in the Ankyrin Repeat 1 (ANK1) region of the N-terminal domain are conserved among tailed amphibians and different from those (Arg, Lys) in rTRPV1.

Getting Smaller by Denaturation: Acid-Induced Compaction of Antibodies.

Protein denaturation is a ubiquitous process that occurs both and . While our molecular understanding of the denatured structures of proteins is limited, it is commonly accepted that the loss of unique intramolecular contacts makes proteins larger. Herein, we report compaction of the immunoglobulin G1 (IgG1) protein upon acid denaturation.

An adjunction hypothesis between qualia and reports.

What are the nature of the relationship among qualia, contents of consciousness, and behavioral reports? Traditionally, this type of question has been only addressed a qualitative and philosophical approach. Some theorists emphasize an incomplete and inaccurate nature of reports of one's own qualia to discourage formal research programs on qualia. Other empirical researchers, however, have made substantial progress in understanding the structure of qualia from such limited reports.

Polymorphism of genes encoding drug-metabolizing and inflammation-related enzymes for susceptibility to cholangiocarcinoma in Thailand.

Background: Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is an intractable cancer, and its incidence in northeastern Thailand is the highest worldwide. Infection with the liver fluke (OV) has been associated with CCA risk. However, animal experiments have suggested that OV alone does not induce CCA, but its combination with a chemical carcinogen like nitrosamine can cause experimentally induced CCA in hamsters.

NAD Consuming Enzymes: Involvement in Therapies and Prevention of Human Diseases.

Neuroprotection is one of the hot topics in medicine. Alzheimer's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) degeneration, and axonal degeneration have been studied for the involvement of NAD depletion. Localized NAD depletion could lead to overactivation and crowding of local NAD salvage pathways.

Compensatory gene expression potentially rescues impaired brain development in Kit mutant mice.

While loss-of-function mutations in the murine dominant white spotting/Kit (W) locus affect a diverse array of cell lineages and organs, the brain, organ with the highest expression show the least number of defective phenotypes. We performed transcriptome analysis of the brains of Kit embryos and found prominent gene expression changes specifically in the E12.5 Kit homozygous mutant.

Oligonucleotide usage in coronavirus genomes mimics that in exon regions in host genomes.

Background: Viruses use various host factors for their growth, and efficient growth requires efficient use of these factors. Our previous study revealed that the occurrence frequency of oligonucleotides in the influenza virus genome is distinctly different among derived hosts, and the frequency tends to adapt to the host cells in which they grow. We aimed to study the adaptation mechanisms of a zoonotic virus to host cells.

A novel variant of NR5A1, p.R350W implicates potential interactions with unknown co-factors or ligands.

Introduction: NR5A1 and NR5A2 belong to an orphan nuclear receptor group, and approximately 60% of their amino acid sequences are conserved. Transcriptional regulation of NR5A receptors depends on interactions with co-factors or unidentified ligands.

Purpose And Methods: We employed in vitro and in silico analysis for elucidating the pathophysiology of a novel variant in the ligand-binding domain of NR5A1, p.

Evidence that only EWS among the FET proteins acquires a low partitioning property for the hyperosmotic stress response by O-GlcNAc glycosylation on its low-complexity domain.

FET proteins (FUS, EWS, and TAF15) share a common domain organization, bind RNA/DNA, and perform similarly multifunctional roles in the regulation of gene expression. Of the FET proteins, however, only EWS appears to have a distinct property in the cellular stress response. Therefore, we focused on the relationship between hyperosmotic stress response and post-translational modifications of the FET proteins.

Decreased heat sensitivity of lungfish TRPV1 revealed by the heterologous expression system.

In this study, we focused on TRPV1 of African lungfish, Protopterus annectens. During drought at high temperature, African lungfish can survive by undergoing into aestivation in mud cocoons. Therefore, lungfish is considered to have some specialized heat-sensor, TRPV1, for heat tolerance.

Growth phase-dependent production of the adhesive nanofiber protein AtaA in Acinetobacter sp. Tol 5.

AtaA, the sticky, long, and peritrichate nanofiber protein from Acinetobacter sp. Tol 5, mediates autoagglutination and is highly adhesive to various material surfaces, resulting in a biofilm. Although the production of the adhesive nanofiber protein is likely to require a large amount of energy and material sources, the relationship between AtaA fiber production and cell growth remains unknown.

Involvement of mTOR pathway in neurodegeneration in NSF-related developmental and epileptic encephalopathy.

Membrane fusion is mediated by soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor attachment protein receptor (SNARE) proteins. During neurotransmitter exocytosis, SNARE proteins on a synaptic vesicle and the target membrane form a complex, resulting in neurotransmitter release. N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor (NSF), a homohexameric ATPase, disassembles the complex, allowing individual SNARE proteins to be recycled.

An Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay to Quantify Poly (ADP-Ribose) Level In Vivo.

PolyADP-ribosylation is a posttranslational modification of proteins that results from enzymatic synthesis of poly(ADP-ribose) with NAD as the substrate. A unique characteristic of polyADP-ribosylation is that the poly(ADP-ribose) chain can have 200 or more ADP-ribose residues in branched patterns, and the presence and variety of these chains can have substantive effects on protein function. To understand how polyADP-ribosylation affects biological processes, it is important to know the physiological level of poly(ADP-ribose) in cells.

Effect of attaching hydrophilic oligopeptides to the C-terminus of organic solvent-tolerant metal-free bromoperoxidase BPO-A1 from Streptomyces aureofaciens on organic solvent-stability.

Metal-free bromoperoxidase BPO-A1 from Streptomyces aureofacience was selected among several similar enzymes exhibiting brominating activity as the most stable haloperoxidase against 70%(v/v) methanol. A comparison of the BPO-A1 and octahistidine-tagged BPO-A1 at the C-terminus (BPO-A1-His) revealed that the His-tag enhanced the organic solvent-stability of BPO-A1 with pH- and heat-stabilities. Additionally, the contribution of the hydrophilicity at the C-terminal of BPO-A1 to the organic solvent-stability was confirmed employing several mutants bearing hydrophilic oligopeptides.

Squaraine dye/TiCT MXene organic-inorganic hybrids for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution.

MXenes, a new family of 2D nanostructured materials, have been widely studied in the field of artificial photosynthesis due to their outstanding physicochemical properties. In this work, a series of 2,4-bis[4-(N,N-dibutylamino)phenyl] squaraine (SQ) derivatives with different number of hydroxyl groups were hybridized with TiCT MXene nanosheets, and the organic-inorganic hybrid photocatalysts were applied for water-splitting hydrogen evolution. The mass ratios of SQ@TiCT were optimized to 4 wt% for each SQ, and the best hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) rate of 28.

Order recognition by Schubert polynomials generated by optical near-field statistics via nanometre-scale photochromism.

Irregular spatial distribution of photon transmission through a photochromic crystal photoisomerized by a local optical near-field excitation was previously reported, which manifested complex branching processes via the interplay of material deformation and near-field photon transfer therein. Furthermore, by combining such naturally constructed complex photon transmission with a simple photon detection protocol, Schubert polynomials, the foundation of versatile permutation operations in mathematics, have been generated. In this study, we demonstrated an order recognition algorithm inspired by Schubert calculus using optical near-field statistics via nanometre-scale photochromism.

Neuropeptide FF indirectly affects testicular morphogenesis and functions in medaka.

Testicular morphogenesis and functions are considered to be under the control of neural and endocrine systems. However, the available literature is mainly limited to mammals, and it remains unclear how they are regulated in teleost species. Here, we demonstrated that neuropeptide FF (NPFF) in the brain is responsible for the follicle-stimulating hormone expression in the pituitary, which facilitates the testicular morphogenesis and androgen synthesis, and subsequently contributes to successful spermatogenesis.

Targeted deletion of ecto-5'-nucleotidase results in retention of inosine monophosphate content in postmortem muscle of medaka (Oryzias latipes).

Inosine monophosphate (IMP) is an important indicator of meat freshness and contributes to its umami taste. An attractive strategy for enhancing umami is to suppress the IMP-degrading activity and increase the IMP content in the skeletal muscle through genome editing technology using the CRISPR-Cas9 system. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying IMP degradation remain unclear.

Role of Scl39a13/ZIP13 in cardiovascular homeostasis.

Zinc plays a critical role in many physiological processes, and disruption of zinc homeostasis induces various disorders, such as growth retardation, osteopenia, immune deficiency, and inflammation. However, how the imbalance in zinc homeostasis leads to heart disease is not yet fully understood. Cardiovascular diseases are a major cause of death worldwide, and the development of novel therapeutic targets to treat it is urgently needed.

Expression of ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 is induced by nerve injury and its deficiency affects neurite tip morphology and elongation in cultured neurons.

Axonal regeneration requires changes in the lipid dynamics of the axon membrane for growth and extension. Here, we examined the expression of genes associated with lipid transport after nerve injury. The expression of ATP-binding cassette transporter-A1 (ABCA1), which participates in the transport of cholesterol from the plasma membrane, was markedly upregulated in motor and sensory neurons after nerve injury.

Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus ORF4b protein inhibits TLR7- and TLR9-dependent alpha interferon induction.

The Toll-like receptor (TLR)7- and TLR9-dependent signalling cascade is responsible for production of a large amount of alpha interferon by plasmacytoid dendritic cells upon viral infection. Here, we show that Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) accessory protein ORF4b has the most potential among the MERS-CoV accessory proteins to inhibit the TLR7/9-signaling-dependent alpha interferon production. ORF4b protein, which has a bipartite nuclear localization signal, was found to bind to IKKα, a kinase responsible for phosphorylation of interferon regulatory factor (IRF)7.

Dermocystid infection in Japanese fire-bellied newt, Cynops pyrrhogaster.

Here, we report details of a new infectious disease in wild-caught Japanese fire-bellied newts (Cynops pyrrhogaster), a Near Threatened species. Skin lesions consisting of numerous masses were found in the animals near Lake Biwa, Shiga Prefecture, Japan. The gross appearance of the skin lesions showed blister-, cyst-, and/or tumor-like morphology.

AI-based search for convergently expanding, advantageous mutations in SARS-CoV-2 by focusing on oligonucleotide frequencies.

Among mutations that occur in SARS-CoV-2, efficient identification of mutations advantageous for viral replication and transmission is important to characterize and defeat this rampant virus. Mutations rapidly expanding frequency in a viral population are candidates for advantageous mutations, but neutral mutations hitchhiking with advantageous mutations are also likely to be included. To distinguish these, we focus on mutations that appear to occur independently in different lineages and expand in frequency in a convergent evolutionary manner.