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Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a novel class of RNA whose physiological function has yet to be investigated. A recent publication in Science provides the first evidence of the biological relevance of a circRNA in an in vivo model and unveils an unexpected twist on their crosstalk with miRNAs.
Intermittent fasting (IF) has been shown to promote metabolic health in several organisms. Two recent papers show that IF induces white adipose tissue beiging and increases thermogenesis, which improves metabolic health in mice.
In a recent paper published in Cell Research, a cryo-EM structure reveals the interface between DNA-PKcs and the Ku70/80:DNA complex, together forming the DNA-dependent protein kinase holoenzyme in non-homologous DNA end joining. Insight from this structure suggests how an allosteric rearrangement of DNA-PKcs driven by Ku70/80:DNA binding regulates kinase activity in this largest member of a family of structurally homologous phosphoinositide 3-kinase-related protein kinases that includes mTOR, ATR, and ATM.
In a recent paper published in Cell Research, Abdul-Ghani and colleagues show that the cytokine, cardiotrophin-1 (CT1), drives a protective form of reversible cardiac hypertrophy that acts through a nonapoptotic caspase-dependent mechanism. Since CT1 can be delivered as exogenous protein, these studies provide new biological insights and potential translational opportunities.