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Bioactive cements are widely used in dentistry and medicine. Here, using a variety of novel experimental techniques, the authors uncover the atomic and vibrational contributions to the mechanical toughness of bioactive cement during the setting process.
Potassium is necessary for the mechanical-electrical transduction needed for hearing. Here the authors study mice lacking the potassium channel KCNK5 and show that these channels are mostly expressed in the outer sulcus and are required for hearing, pointing to their essential role in potassium recycling.
The synthesis of porous materials with hierarchically-sized pores is an attractive target for a variety of applications. Here, the authors employin situgenerated metal-organic assemblies as metal-organic framework templates which, upon removal, yield single mesoporous-microporous materials.
TheMononegaviralesinclude Ebola virus, Rabies, Measles virus and human Metapneumovirus (hMPV). Here, the authors have reported the high resolution crystal structure of a domain of the large protein of hMPV, providing insight into the mRNA modifying activities of this protein.
Date palm is a perennial fruit tree crop that thrives in arid environments of North Africa and the Middle East. Here Hazzouriet al. analyze the date palm germplasm by re-sequencing 62 different varieties and uncover selection signatures and candidate genes associated with important agronomic traits.
Little is known about how the physical properties of three dimensional (3D) extracellular matrices modulate cell adhesion dynamics. Here Doyle et al.generate 3D collagen gels of varying microarchitecture and quantify the effect on adhesion dynamics and cell motility.
Evidence suggests that the superconducting gap structures of Fe-based high temperature superconductors are highly sensitive to material parameters. Here, the authors use muon spin rotation to evidence the appearance of superconducting nodes in optimally-doped Ba0.65Rb0.35Fe2As2under hydrostatic pressure.
Past studies on genetics of puberty relied on rare disorders or age of menarche in women. Here, Dayet al. examine puberty timing in men by the age of voice breaking, and find some loci with sexually dimorphic effects and genetic architectures shared with other health conditions.
Brown dwarfs are small stars that are believed to be made of a warm dense plasma that cannot support hydrogen fusion as larger stars do. Here, the authors present a method for studying the properties, such as resistivity, of warm dense plasmas in the laboratory.
Genomic DNA lesions exist in low levels and cannot be amplified by standard PCR. Here, Riedlet al. report a method to amplify damaged DNA sites by replacing them via DNA repair with unnatural base pairs, which are subsequently identified by Sanger sequencing or α-hemolysin nanopore sequencing.
Free-standing graphene is inherently crumpled in the out-of-plane direction due to dynamic flexural phonons and static wrinkling. Here, the authors use optical interferometry as a delicate probe to investigate the consequences of this crumpling on the effective mechanical constants of graphene.
The concerted action of the hormones cytokinin and auxin is an important regulator of plant development. Here Šimášková et al. propose a mechanistic basis by which cytokinin-responsive transcription factors regulate transport of auxin in Arabidopsisroots.
The efficiency of single junction solar cells is limited by their inability to absorb photons with an energy smaller than the bandgap. Here, the authors surpass the Shockley-Queisser limit by using an integrated hot-electron thermophotonic emitter to thermally up-convert sub-bandgap photons.
The development of asthma following eczema is known as the atopic march. Here the authors conduct a GWAS on affected children and identify two novel loci associated with the disease phenotype.
The aging myopathy is characterized by diastolic dysfunction of unknown aetiology. Rota et al. show that increased late Na+ current (INaL) underlies diastolic dysfunction in the aged heart, and that inhibiting INaLimproves diastolic indices and corrects the kinetics of cardiomyocyte contraction and relaxation in aged mice.
The absence of in situand long-term meteorological data hampers our understanding of wind movement on Mars. Here, the authors use 3D airflow modelling to investigate small scale ripple migration and suggest that local dune topography exerts a strong influence on wind speed and direction.
Synthetic biology can be used to regulate target genes and uncover gene function in physiologically relevant settings. Here Robles-Oteiza et al. describe a new recombinase-based system for conditional inactivation and inducible restoration of gene function and develop new mouse models to study p53 and Rb.
The small ubiquitin-like modifier SUMO can be conjugated to hundreds of protein species to affect their stability or activity. Here the authors use a quantitative proteomics approach to identify sumoylated proteins modified by the STUbL and Ufd1 pathways in fission yeast.