Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences recent issues

[Letters] Nodule morphology and growth model

Boudreau, B. P. — 2008-05-13

[Letters] Reply to Boudreau: Morphologic expression of ferromanganese nodules

Asikainen, C. A. — 2008-05-13

[This Week in PNAS] In This Issue

2008-05-13

[Commentary] Increasing fluid intelligence is possible after all

Sternberg, R. J. — 2008-05-13

[Commentary] Long-distance splicing

Anderson, A. M., Staley, J. P. — 2008-05-13

[Commentary] A truer measure of our ignorance

Amaral, L. A. N. — 2008-05-13

[Chemistry] Cross-polarized excitons in carbon nanotubes

2008-05-13

Polarization of low-lying excitonic bands in finite-size semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) is studied by using quantum-chemical methodologies. Our calculations...

[Chemistry] Mitochondrial copper(I) transfer from Cox17 to Sco1 is coupled to electron transfer

2008-05-13

The human protein Cox17 contains three pairs of cysteines. In the mitochondrial intermembrane space (IMS) it exists in a partially...

[Chemistry] Characterization of selective binding of alkali cations with carboxylate by x-ray absorption spectroscopy of liquid microjets

2008-05-13

We describe an approach for characterizing selective binding between oppositely charged ionic functional groups under biologically relevant conditions. Relative shifts...

[Chemistry] Platinum-based inhibitors of amyloid-{beta} as therapeutic agents for Alzheimer's disease

2008-05-13

Amelyoid-β peptide (Aβ) is a major causative agent responsible for Alzheimer's disease (AD). Aβ contains a high affinity metal binding...

[Geology] A Miocene to Pleistocene climate and elevation record of the Sierra Nevada (California)

Mulch, A., Sarna-Wojcicki, A. M., Perkins, M. E., Chamberlain, C. P. — 2008-05-13

Orographic precipitation of Pacific-sourced moisture creates a rain shadow across the central part of the Sierra Nevada (California) that contrasts...

[Physics] Electronic duality in strongly correlated matter

Park, T., Graf, M. J., Boulaevskii, L., Sarrao, J. L., Thompson, J. D. — 2008-05-13

Superconductivity develops from an attractive interaction between itinerant electrons that creates electron pairs, which condense into a macroscopic quantum state—the...

[Psychology] From the Cover: Improving fluid intelligence with training on working memory

Jaeggi, S. M., Buschkuehl, M., Jonides, J., Perrig, W. J. — 2008-05-13

Fluid intelligence (Gf) refers to the ability to reason and to solve new problems independently of previously acquired knowledge. Gf...

[Anthropology-BS] Unlocking evidence of early diet from tooth enamel

Humphrey, L. T., Dean, M. C., Jeffries, T. E., Penn, M. — 2008-05-13

Recent developments in microspatial analysis of enamel chemistry provide the resolution needed to reconstruct detailed chronological records of an individual's...

[Applied_Biological_Sciences] Endochondral bone tissue engineering using embryonic stem cells

2008-05-13

Embryonic stem cells can provide an unlimited supply of pluripotent cells for tissue engineering applications. Bone tissue engineering by directly...

[Biochemistry] Evidence for the aldo-keto reductase pathway of polycyclic aromatic trans-dihydrodiol activation in human lung A549 cells

2008-05-13

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are tobacco carcinogens implicated in the causation of human lung cancer. Metabolic activation is a key...

[Biochemistry] Regression supports two mechanisms of fork processing in phage T4

Long, D. T., Kreuzer, K. N. — 2008-05-13

Replication forks routinely encounter damaged DNA and tightly bound proteins, leading to fork stalling and inactivation. To complete DNA synthesis,...

[Biochemistry] In vitro reconstitution and crystal structure of p-aminobenzoate N-oxygenase (AurF) involved in aureothin biosynthesis

Choi, Y. S., Zhang, H., Brunzelle, J. S., Nair, S. K., Zhao, H. — 2008-05-13

p-aminobenzoate N-oxygenase (AurF) from Streptomyces thioluteus catalyzes the formation of unusual polyketide synthase starter unit p-nitrobenzoic acid (pNBA) from p-aminobenzoic...

[Biochemistry] From the Cover: Cis- and trans-splicing of mRNAs mediated by tRNA sequences in eukaryotic cells

Di Segni, G., Gastaldi, S., Tocchini-Valentini, G. P. — 2008-05-13

The formation of chimeric mRNAs is a strategy used by human cells to increase the complexity of their proteome, as...

[Biochemistry] Human biliverdin reductase is an ERK activator; hBVR is an ERK nuclear transporter and is required for MAPK signaling

Lerner-Marmarosh, N., Miralem, T., Gibbs, P. E. M., Maines, M. D. — 2008-05-13

Activation of the MEK/ERK/Elk-signaling cascade is a mechanism for relaying mitogenic and stress stimuli for gene activation. MEK1 is the...

[Biochemistry] Structure of a TrmA-RNA complex: A consensus RNA fold contributes to substrate selectivity and catalysis in m5U methyltransferases

Alian, A., Lee, T. T., Griner, S. L., Stroud, R. M., Finer-Moore, J. — 2008-05-13

TrmA catalyzes S-adenosylmethionine (AdoMet)-dependent methylation of U54 in most tRNAs. We solved the structure of the Escherichia coli 5-methyluridine (m⁵U)...

[Biochemistry] Structural insight into signal conversion and inactivation by NTPDase2 in purinergic signaling

Zebisch, M., Strater, N. — 2008-05-13

Cell surface-located nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolases (NTPDase1, -2, -3, and -8) are oligomeric integral membrane proteins responsible for signal conversion and...

[Biophysics] Terahertz radiation from bacteriorhodopsin reveals correlated primary electron and proton transfer processes

2008-05-13

The kinetics of electrogenic events associated with the different steps of the light-induced proton pump of bacteriorhodopsin is well studied...

[Biophysics] Dynamics of phosphodiester synthesis by DNA ligase

Crut, A., Nair, P. A., Koster, D. A., Shuman, S., Dekker, N. H. — 2008-05-13

Ligases are essential actors in DNA replication, recombination, and repair by virtue of their ability to seal breaks in the...

[Biophysics] Molecular mechanism of pH sensing in KcsA potassium channels

Thompson, A. N., Posson, D. J., Parsa, P. V., Nimigean, C. M. — 2008-05-13

The bacterial potassium channel KcsA is gated by high concentrations of intracellular protons, allowing the channel to open at pH...

[Biophysics] Force-induced growth of adhesion domains is controlled by receptor mobility

Smith, A.-S., Sengupta, K., Goennenwein, S., Seifert, U., Sackmann, E. — 2008-05-13

In living cells, adhesion structures have the astonishing ability to grow and strengthen under force. Despite the rising evidence of...

[Cell_Biology] Glucose sensing by MondoA:Mlx complexes: A role for hexokinases and direct regulation of thioredoxin-interacting protein expression

2008-05-13

Glucose is a fundamental metabolite, yet how cells sense and respond to changes in extracellular glucose concentration is not completely...

[Cell_Biology] Different assemblies of the DAM1 complex follow shortening microtubules by distinct mechanisms

2008-05-13

Mitotic chromosomes segregate at the ends of shortening spindle microtubules (MTs). In budding yeast, the Dam1 multiprotein complex supports this...

[Cell_Biology] Dachshund inhibits oncogene-induced breast cancer cellular migration and invasion through suppression of interleukin-8

2008-05-13

Oncogene-mediated signaling to the host environment induces a subset of cytokines and chemokines. The Drosophila Dac gene promotes migration of...

[Cell_Biology] Influence of genotype and nutrition on survival and metabolism of starving yeast

Boer, V. M., Amini, S., Botstein, D. — 2008-05-13

Starvation of yeast cultures limited by auxotrophic requirements results in glucose wasting and failure to achieve prompt cell-cycle arrest when...

[Developmental_Biology] Inhibition of Wnt signaling by the osteoblast-specific transcription factor Osterix

2008-05-13

The recent identification of the genes responsible for several human genetic diseases affecting bone homeostasis and the characterization of mouse...

[Developmental_Biology] Gene regulation logic in retinal ganglion cell development: Isl1 defines a critical branch distinct from but overlapping with Pou4f2

Mu, X., Fu, X., Beremand, P. D., Thomas, T. L., Klein, W. H. — 2008-05-13

Understanding gene regulatory networks (GRNs) that control neuronal differentiation will provide systems-level perspectives on neurogenesis. We have previously constructed a...

[Ecology] From the Cover: Quorum decision-making facilitates information transfer in fish shoals

Ward, A. J. W., Sumpter, D. J. T., Couzin, I. D., Hart, P. J. B., Krause, J. — 2008-05-13

Despite the growing interest in collective phenomena such as "swarm intelligence" and "wisdom of the crowds," little is known about...

[Environmental_Sciences-BS] Iodide accumulation provides kelp with an inorganic antioxidant impacting atmospheric chemistry

2008-05-13

Brown algae of the Laminariales (kelps) are the strongest accumulators of iodine among living organisms. They represent a major pump...

[Evolution] From the Cover: Estimating the size of the human interactome

2008-05-13

After the completion of the human and other genome projects it emerged that the number of genes in organisms as...

[Evolution] Direct phylogenetic evidence for lateral transfer of elongation factor-like gene

Kamikawa, R., Inagaki, Y., Sako, Y. — 2008-05-13

Genes encoding elongation factor-like (EFL) proteins, which show high similarity to elongation factor-1 (EF-1), have been found in phylogenetically distantly...

[Evolution] Arbovirus evolution in vivo is constrained by host alternation

2008-05-13

The intrinsic plasticity of RNA viruses can facilitate host range changes that lead to epidemics. However, evolutionary processes promoting cross-species...

[Evolution] The evolution of modularity in bacterial metabolic networks

Kreimer, A., Borenstein, E., Gophna, U., Ruppin, E. — 2008-05-13

Deciphering the modular organization of metabolic networks and understanding how modularity evolves have attracted tremendous interest in recent years. Here,...

[Evolution] Selfishness as second-order altruism

Eldakar, O. T., Wilson, D. S. — 2008-05-13

Selfishness is seldom considered a group-beneficial strategy. In the typical evolutionary formulation, altruism benefits the group, selfishness undermines altruism, and...

[Evolution] Null mutations in human and mouse orthologs frequently result in different phenotypes

Liao, B.-Y., Zhang, J. — 2008-05-13

One-to-one orthologous genes of relatively closely related species are widely assumed to have similar functions and cause similar phenotypes when...

[Evolution] Centrosomal RNA correlates with intron-poor nuclear genes in Spisula oocytes

Alliegro, M. C., Alliegro, M. A. — 2008-05-13

The evolutionary origin of centriole/kinetosomes, centrosomes, and other microtubule organizing centers (MTOCs), whether by direct filiation or symbiogenesis, has been...

[Genetics] Promoter polymorphism of the erythropoietin gene in severe diabetic eye and kidney complications

2008-05-13

Significant morbidity and mortality among patients with diabetes mellitus result largely from a greatly increased incidence of microvascular complications. Proliferative...

[Genetics] Genomic and epigenetic alterations deregulate microRNA expression in human epithelial ovarian cancer

2008-05-13

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are an abundant class of small noncoding RNAs that function as negative gene regulators. miRNA deregulation is involved...

[Immunology] Dendritic cell-mediated NK cell activation is controlled by Jagged2-Notch interaction

2008-05-13

Natural killer (NK) cells regulate various immune responses by exerting cytotoxic activity or secreting cytokines. The interaction of NK cells...

[Immunology] Identification of innate immunity genes and pathways using a comparative genomics approach

2008-05-13

To reveal regulators of innate immunity, we used RNAi assays to monitor the immune response when genes are inhibited in...

[Medical_Sciences] Expression of an estrogen receptor agonist in differentiating osteoblast cultures

McCarthy, T. L., Clough, M. E., Gundberg, C. M., Centrella, M. — 2008-05-13

Osteoblasts respond in direct and indirect ways to estrogens, and age-dependent changes in hormone levels and bone health can be...

[Medical_Sciences] Sildenafil and cardiomyocyte-specific cGMP signaling prevent cardiomyopathic changes associated with dystrophin deficiency

2008-05-13

We recently demonstrated early metabolic alterations in the dystrophin-deficient mdx heart that precede overt cardiomyopathy and may represent an early...

[Medical_Sciences] Interferon signaling and treatment outcome in chronic hepatitis C

2008-05-13

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major cause of chronic liver disease worldwide. The current standard therapy for chronic...

[Medical_Sciences] The basal-like mammary carcinomas induced by Brca1 or Bard1 inactivation implicate the BRCA1/BARD1 heterodimer in tumor suppression

2008-05-13

Women with germ-line mutations of the BRCA1 tumor suppressor gene are highly susceptible to breast and ovarian cancer. The protein...

[Medical_Sciences] Tissue-engineered endothelial and epithelial implants differentially and synergistically regulate airway repair

Zani, B. G., Kojima, K., Vacanti, C. A., Edelman, E. R. — 2008-05-13

The trilaminate vascular architecture provides biochemical regulation and mechanical integrity. Yet regulatory control can be regained after injury without recapitulating...

[Microbiology] Diverse syntrophic partnerships from deep-sea methane vents revealed by direct cell capture and metagenomics

2008-05-13

Microorganisms play a fundamental role in the cycling of nutrients and energy on our planet. A common strategy for many...

[Microbiology] Host and invader impact of transfer of the clc genomic island into Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1

Gaillard, M., Pernet, N., Vogne, C., Hagenbuchle, O., van der Meer, J. R. — 2008-05-13

Genomic islands, large potentially mobile regions of bacterial chromosomes, are a major contributor to bacteria evolution. Here, we investigated the...

[Microbiology] Rhizobium cellulase CelC2 is essential for primary symbiotic infection of legume host roots

2008-05-13

The rhizobia–legume, root-nodule symbiosis provides the most efficient source of biologically fixed ammonia fertilizer for agricultural crops. Its development involves...

[Neuroscience] Pink1 regulates mitochondrial dynamics through interaction with the fission/fusion machinery

Yang, Y., Ouyang, Y., Yang, L., Beal, M. F., McQuibban, A., Vogel, H., Lu, B. — 2008-05-13

Mitochondria form dynamic tubular networks that undergo frequent morphological changes through fission and fusion, the imbalance of which can affect...

[Neuroscience] A mutation in mouse Disc1 that models a schizophrenia risk allele leads to specific alterations in neuronal architecture and cognition

2008-05-13

DISC1 is a strong candidate susceptibility gene for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and depression. Using a mouse strain carrying an endogenous...

[Pharmacology] A soluble activin type IIA receptor induces bone formation and improves skeletal integrity

2008-05-13

Diseases that affect the regulation of bone turnover can lead to skeletal fragility and increased fracture risk. Members of the...

[Physiology] Human ApoD, an apolipoprotein up-regulated in neurodegenerative diseases, extends lifespan and increases stress resistance in Drosophila

Muffat, J., Walker, D. W., Benzer, S. — 2008-05-13

Apolipoprotein D (ApoD) expression increases in several neurological disorders and in spinal cord injury. We provide a report of a...

[Physiology] Proteasomal adaptation to environmental stress links resistance to proteotoxicity with longevity in Caenorhabditis elegans

2008-05-13

The burden of protein misfolding is believed to contribute to aging. However, the links between adaptations to conditions associated with...

[Plant_Biology] From the Cover: COI1 is a critical component of a receptor for jasmonate and the bacterial virulence factor coronatine

Katsir, L., Schilmiller, A. L., Staswick, P. E., He, S. Y., Howe, G. A. — 2008-05-13

Jasmonate (JA) is a lipid-derived hormone that regulates diverse aspects of plant immunity and development. An amino acid-conjugated form of...

[errata] Correction for Li et al., Urocortin 3 regulates glucose-stimulated insulin secretion and energy homeostasis

2008-05-13

[This Week in PNAS] In This Issue

2008-05-06

[Commentary] Why conservation planning needs socioeconomic data

Polasky, S. — 2008-05-06

[Perspective] What's the point of the type III secretion system needle?

2008-05-06

Recent work by several groups has significantly expanded our knowledge of the structure, regulation of assembly, and function of components...

[Chemistry] Folding of a donor-acceptor polyrotaxane by using noncovalent bonding interactions

2008-05-06

Mechanically interlocked compounds, such as bistable catenanes and bistable rotaxanes, have been used to bring about actuation in nanoelectromechanical systems...

[Geology] Younger Dryas "black mats" and the Rancholabrean termination in North America

Haynes, C. V. — 2008-05-06

Of the 97 geoarchaeological sites of this study that bridge the Pleistocene-Holocene transition (last deglaciation), approximately two thirds have a...

[Geophysics] Prediction of an U2S3-type polymorph of Al2O3 at 3.7 Mbar

Umemoto, K., Wentzcovitch, R. M. — 2008-05-06

We predict by first principles a phase transition in alumina at 3.7 Mbar and room temperature from the CaIrO₃-type polymorph...

[Applied_Biological_Sciences] Mice lacking angiotensin-converting enzyme have increased energy expenditure, with reduced fat mass and improved glucose clearance

2008-05-06

In addition to its role in the storage of fat, adipose tissue acts as an endocrine organ, and it contains...

[Applied_Biological_Sciences] Cyclic distension of fibrin-based tissue constructs: Evidence of adaptation during growth of engineered connective tissue

Syedain, Z. H., Weinberg, J. S., Tranquillo, R. T. — 2008-05-06

Tissue engineering provides a means to create functional living tissue replacements. Here, we examine the effects of 3 weeks of...

[Biochemistry] Investigations of valanimycin biosynthesis: Elucidation of the role of seryl-tRNA

Garg, R. P., Qian, X. L., Alemany, L. B., Moran, S., Parry, R. J. — 2008-05-06

The antibiotic valanimycin is a naturally occurring azoxy compound produced by Streptomyces viridifaciens MG456-hF10. Precursor incorporation experiments showed that valanimycin...

[Biochemistry] Biogenesis of extracellular microfibrils: Multimerization of the fibrillin-1 C terminus into bead-like structures enables self-assembly

2008-05-06

Microfibrils are essential elements in elastic and nonelastic tissues contributing to homeostasis and growth factor regulation. Fibrillins form the core...

[Biochemistry] Hypusine modification for growth is the major function of spermidine in Saccharomyces cerevisiae polyamine auxotrophs grown in limiting spermidine

Chattopadhyay, M. K., Park, M. H., Tabor, H. — 2008-05-06

Spermidine and its derivative, hypusinated eIF5A, are essential for the growth of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Very low concentrations of spermidine (10^–8...

[Biochemistry] Structural and mechanistic insight into the basis of mucopolysaccharidosis IIIB

Ficko-Blean, E., Stubbs, K. A., Nemirovsky, O., Vocadlo, D. J., Boraston, A. B. — 2008-05-06

Mucopolysaccharidosis III (MPS III) has four forms (A–D) that result from buildup of an improperly degraded glycosaminoglycan in lysosomes. MPS...

[Biochemistry] The crystal structure and dimerization interface of GADD45{gamma}

2008-05-06

Gadd45 proteins are recognized as tumor and autoimmune suppressors whose expression can be induced by genotoxic stresses. These proteins are...

[Biochemistry] Revealing the moonlighting role of NADP in the structure of a flavin-containing monooxygenase

Alfieri, A., Malito, E., Orru, R., Fraaije, M. W., Mattevi, A. — 2008-05-06

Flavin-containing monooxygenases (FMOs) are, after cytochromes P450, the most important monooxygenase system in humans and are involved in xenobiotics metabolism...

[Biochemistry] Design of protein function leaps by directed domain interface evolution

Huang, J., Koide, A., Makabe, K., Koide, S. — 2008-05-06

Most natural proteins performing sophisticated tasks contain multiple domains where an active site is located at the domain interface. Comparative...

[Biochemistry] Activation of PI3K/Akt and MAPK pathways regulates Myc-mediated transcription by phosphorylating and promoting the degradation of Mad1

Zhu, J., Blenis, J., Yuan, J. — 2008-05-06

Mad1, a member of the Myc/Max/Mad family, suppresses Myc-mediated transcriptional activity by competing with Myc for heterodimerization with its obligatory...

[Biophysics] From the Cover: Assembly mechanism of recombinant spider silk proteins

Rammensee, S., Slotta, U., Scheibel, T., Bausch, A. R. — 2008-05-06

Spider silk threads are formed by the irreversible aggregation of silk proteins in a spinning duct with dimensions of only...

[Biophysics] Release of hydrophobic molecules from polymer micelles into cell membranes revealed by Forster resonance energy transfer imaging

Chen, H., Kim, S., Li, L., Wang, S., Park, K., Cheng, J.-X. — 2008-05-06

It is generally assumed that polymeric micelles, upon administration into the blood stream, carry drug molecules until they are taken...

[Biophysics] Single-molecule nonequilibrium periodic Mg2+-concentration jump experiments reveal details of the early folding pathways of a large RNA

Qu, X., Smith, G. J., Lee, K. T., Sosnick, T. R., Pan, T., Scherer, N. F. — 2008-05-06

The evolution of RNA conformation with Mg²⁺ concentration ([Mg²⁺]) is typically determined from equilibrium titration measurements or nonequilibrium single [Mg²⁺]-jump...

[Cell_Biology] Mathematical modeling identifies Smad nucleocytoplasmic shuttling as a dynamic signal-interpreting system

Schmierer, B., Tournier, A. L., Bates, P. A., Hill, C. S. — 2008-05-06

TGF-β-induced Smad signal transduction from the membrane into the nucleus is not linear and unidirectional, but rather a dynamic network...

[Cell_Biology] {beta}-Arrestin-1 mediates glucagon-like peptide-1 signaling to insulin secretion in cultured pancreatic {beta} cells

2008-05-06

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is a polypeptide hormone secreted from enteroendocrine L cells and potentiates glucose-dependent insulin secretion in pancreatic β...

[Cell_Biology] Bone marrow-derived circulating endothelial precursors do not contribute to vascular endothelium and are not needed for tumor growth

2008-05-06

The mechanisms by which bone marrow (BM)-derived stem cells might contribute to angiogenesis and the origin of neovascular endothelial cells...

[Cell_Biology] Rapid signal transduction in living cells is a unique feature of mechanotransduction

Na, S., Collin, O., Chowdhury, F., Tay, B., Ouyang, M., Wang, Y., Wang, N. — 2008-05-06

It is widely postulated that mechanotransduction is initiated at the local force–membrane interface by inducing local conformational changes of proteins,...

[Cell_Biology] Phenotypic transcription factors epigenetically mediate cell growth control

2008-05-06

Ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes are down-regulated during osteogenesis, myogenesis, and adipogenesis, necessitating a mechanistic understanding of interrelationships between growth control...

[Cell_Biology] Cardiac developmental defects and eccentric right ventricular hypertrophy in cardiomyocyte focal adhesion kinase (FAK) conditional knockout mice

2008-05-06

Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) is a nonreceptor tyrosine kinase that plays an important role in integrin-mediated signal transduction. To explore...

[Developmental_Biology] Pygopus activates Wingless target gene transcription through the mediator complex subunits Med12 and Med13

Carrera, I., Janody, F., Leeds, N., Duveau, F., Treisman, J. E. — 2008-05-06

Wnt target gene transcription is mediated by nuclear translocation of stabilized β-catenin, which binds to TCF and recruits Pygopus, a...

[Developmental_Biology] Functional specialization among insect chitinase family genes revealed by RNA interference

Zhu, Q., Arakane, Y., Beeman, R. W., Kramer, K. J., Muthukrishnan, S. — 2008-05-06

The biological functions of individual members of the large family of chitinase-like proteins from the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum...

[Developmental_Biology] ES cell pluripotency and germ-layer formation require the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling component BAF250a

Gao, X., Tate, P., Hu, P., Tjian, R., Skarnes, W. C., Wang, Z. — 2008-05-06

ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling complexes are a notable group of epigenetic modifiers that use the energy of ATP hydrolysis to change...

[Developmental_Biology] The fetal liver is a niche for maturation of primitive erythroid cells

Isern, J., Fraser, S. T., He, Z., Baron, M. H. — 2008-05-06

Primitive erythroid cells (EryP) are the earliest differentiated cell type of the mammalian embryo. They appear in the yolk sac...

[Environmental_Sciences-BS] From the Cover: Impacts of climate warming on terrestrial ectotherms across latitude

2008-05-06

The impact of anthropogenic climate change on terrestrial organisms is often predicted to increase with latitude, in parallel with the...

[Environmental_Sciences-BS] On the protection of "protected areas"

Joppa, L. N., Loarie, S. R., Pimm, S. L. — 2008-05-06

Tropical moist forests contain the majority of terrestrial species. Human actions destroy between 1 and 2 million km² of such...

[Evolution] Noncanonical role of Hox14 revealed by its expression patterns in lamprey and shark

Kuraku, S., Takio, Y., Tamura, K., Aono, H., Meyer, A., Kuratani, S. — 2008-05-06

Hox genes are arranged in uninterrupted clusters in vertebrate genomes, and the nested patterns of their expression define spatial identities...

[Immunology] Selective targeting of ITK blocks multiple steps of HIV replication

2008-05-06

Treatment for HIV has relied on the use of antiretroviral agents that can be subject to the development of resistant...

[Immunology] Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase in lung dendritic cells promotes Th2 responses and allergic inflammation

2008-05-06

Indoleamine 2,3 dioxygenase (IDO) has emerged as an important mediator of immune tolerance via inhibition of Th1 responses. However, the...

[Immunology] Structural basis for NKG2A/CD94 recognition of HLA-E

Kaiser, B. K., Pizarro, J. C., Kerns, J., Strong, R. K. — 2008-05-06

The NKG2x/CD94 (x = A, C, E) natural killer-cell receptors perform an important role in immunosurveillance by binding to HLA-E...

[Medical_Sciences] High blood pressure arising from a defect in vascular function

2008-05-06

Hypertension, a major cardiovascular risk factor and cause of mortality worldwide, is thought to arise from primary renal abnormalities. However,...

[Medical_Sciences] Microdeletions are a general feature of adult and adolescent acute lymphoblastic leukemia: Unexpected similarities with pediatric disease

2008-05-06

We present here a genome-wide map of abnormalities found in diagnostic samples from 45 adults and adolescents with acute lymphoblastic...

[Medical_Sciences] Inhibition of neural crest migration underlies craniofacial dysmorphology and Hirschsprung's disease in Bardet-Biedl syndrome

2008-05-06

Facial recognition is central to the diagnosis of many syndromes, and craniofacial patterns may reflect common etiologies. In the pleiotropic...

[Medical_Sciences] Targeted deletion of the murine corneodesmosin gene delineates its essential role in skin and hair physiology

2008-05-06

Controlled proteolytic degradation of specialized junctional structures, corneodesmosomes, by epidermal proteases is an essential process for physiological desquamation of the...

[Microbiology] A polycyclic terpenoid that alleviates oxidative stress

Bosak, T., Losick, R. M., Pearson, A. — 2008-05-06

Polycyclic terpenoid lipids such as hopanes and steranes have been widely used to understand ancient biology, Earth history, and the...