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Journal articleTossell K, Yu X, Giannos P, et al., 2023,
Somatostatin neurons in prefrontal cortex initiate sleep preparatory behavior and sleep via the preoptic and lateral hypothalamus
, Nature Neuroscience, Vol: 26, Pages: 1805-1819, ISSN: 1097-6256The prefrontal cortex (PFC) enables mammals to respond to situations, including internal states, with appropriate actions. One such internal state could be ‘tiredness’. Here, using activity tagging in the mouse PFC, we identified particularly excitable, fast-spiking, somatostatin-expressing, γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) (PFCSst-GABA) cells that responded to sleep deprivation. These cells projected to the lateral preoptic (LPO) hypothalamus and the lateral hypothalamus (LH). Stimulating PFCSst-GABA terminals in the LPO hypothalamus caused sleep-preparatory behavior (nesting, elevated theta power and elevated temperature), and stimulating PFCSst-GABA terminals in the LH mimicked recovery sleep (non-rapid eye-movement sleep with higher delta power and lower body temperature). PFCSst-GABA terminals had enhanced activity during nesting and sleep, inducing inhibitory postsynaptic currents on diverse cells in the LPO hypothalamus and the LH. The PFC also might feature in deciding sleep location in the absence of excessive fatigue. These findings suggest that the PFC instructs the hypothalamus to ensure that optimal sleep takes place in a suitable place.
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Journal articleSavolainen V, 2023,
Environmental DNA helps reveal reef shark distribution across a remote archipelago
, Ecological Indicators, Vol: 154, Pages: 1-10, ISSN: 1470-160XEnvironmental DNA (eDNA) methods are being increasingly used in proof-of-concept studies to detect shark species, many populations of which are experiencing severe declines. These methods are widely seen as the future of biodiversity monitoring, but they have yet to become established as routine monitoring techniques for elasmobranch species. Here, we developed species-specific quantitative PCR assays for the detection of grey reef shark (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos) and silvertip shark (Carcharhinus albimarginatus). We assessed whether species-specific eDNA methods could infer the distribution of the two species around the atolls of the Chagos Archipelago, which, despite being surrounded by a large marine protected area, experience contrasting levels of illegal fishing leading to heterogeneity in shark population densities. We found that eDNA detections were significantly reduced and sporadic around the northern atolls, which are under high pressure from illegal fishing. By contrast eDNA detections of both species were ubiquitous and consistent around the highly protected atoll Diego Garcia. We postulate that current levels of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing is having a significant impact on the shark community in the northern atolls and suppressing local reef shark populations. In the northern atolls we also employed visual and acoustic telemetry techniques to reveal the distribution of reef sharks. We found that despite eDNA samples being taken directly after visual surveys, detection results did not correlate, suggesting a need for further optimisation of eDNA methods for detecting sharks. However, both species were detected by eDNA in sites where they were not observed, highlighting that the scale of the sampling environment must be considered when inferring eDNA results and showing that eDNA methods can be used to fill gaps in data from more established monitoring techniques. We conclude that eDNA methods should be used in combination with oth
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Journal articleAi L, Langer J, Muggleton SH, et al., 2023,
Explanatory machine learning for sequential human teaching.
, Mach. Learn., Vol: 112, Pages: 3591-3632 -
Journal articleDevenish AJM, Schmitter P, Jellason NP, et al., 2023,
One hundred priority questions for the development of sustainable food systems in Sub-Saharan Africa
, Land, Vol: 12, ISSN: 2073-445XSub-Saharan Africa is facing an expected doubling of human population and tripling of food demand over the next quarter century, posing a range of severe environmental, political, and socio-economic challenges. In some cases, key Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are in direct conflict, raising difficult policy and funding decisions, particularly in relation to trade-offs between food production, social inequality, and ecosystem health. In this study, we used a horizon-scanning approach to identify 100 practical or research-focused questions that, if answered, would have the greatest positive impact on addressing these trade-offs and ensuring future productivity and resilience of food-production systems across sub-Saharan Africa. Through direct canvassing of opinions, we obtained 1339 questions from 331 experts based in 55 countries. We then used online voting and participatory workshops to produce a final list of 100 questions divided into 12 thematic sections spanning topics from gender inequality to technological adoption and climate change. Using data on the background of respondents, we show that perspectives and priorities can vary, but they are largely consistent across different professional and geographical contexts. We hope these questions provide a template for establishing new research directions and prioritising funding decisions in sub-Saharan Africa.
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Journal articleEgli M, Rapp Wright H, Oloyede O, et al., 2023,
A One-Health environmental risk assessment of contaminants of emerging concern in London’s waterways throughout the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic
, Environment International, Vol: 180, ISSN: 0160-4120The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic had huge impacts on global urban populations, activity and health, yet little is known about attendant consequences for urban river ecosystems. We detected significant changes in occurrence and risks from contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) in waterways across Greater London (UK) during the pandemic. We were able to rapidly identify and monitor large numbers of CECs in n=390 samples across 2019–2021 using novel direct-injection liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry methods for scalable targeted analysis, suspect screening and prioritisation of CEC risks. At total of 10,029 measured environmental concentrations (MECs) were obtained for 66 unique CECs. Pharmaceutical MECs decreased during lockdown in 2020 in the R. Thames (p≤0.001), but then increased significantly in 2021 (p ≤0.01). For the tributary rivers, the R. Lee, Beverley Brook, R. Wandle and R. Hogsmill were the most impacted primarily via wastewater treatment plant effluent and combined sewer overflows. For the R. Hosgmill in particular, pharmaceutical MEC trends were generally correlated with NHS prescription statistics, likely reflecting limited wastewater dilution. Suspect screening of ∼1,200 compounds tentatively identified 25 additional CECs at the five impacted sites, including metabolites such as O-desmethylvenlafaxine, an EU Watch List compound. Lastly, risk quotients (RQs) ≥0.1 were calculated for 21 compounds across the whole Greater London freshwater catchment, of which 7 were of medium risk (RQ ≥1.0) and three were in the high-risk category (RQ ≥10), including imidacloprid (RQ=19.6), azithromycin (15.7) and diclofenac (10.5). This is the largest spatiotemporal dataset of its kind for any major capital city globally and the first for Greater London, representing ∼16 % of the population of England, and delivering a foundational One Health case study in the third largest city in Europe across a global pandemic.
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Journal articlede Ceglia R, Ledonne A, Litvin DG, et al., 2023,
Specialized astrocytes mediate glutamatergic gliotransmission in the CNS.
, Nature, Vol: 622, Pages: 120-129Multimodal astrocyte-neuron communications govern brain circuitry assembly and function1. For example, through rapid glutamate release, astrocytes can control excitability, plasticity and synchronous activity2,3 of synaptic networks, while also contributing to their dysregulation in neuropsychiatric conditions4-7. For astrocytes to communicate through fast focal glutamate release, they should possess an apparatus for Ca2+-dependent exocytosis similar to neurons8-10. However, the existence of this mechanism has been questioned11-13 owing to inconsistent data14-17 and a lack of direct supporting evidence. Here we revisited the astrocyte glutamate exocytosis hypothesis by considering the emerging molecular heterogeneity of astrocytes18-21 and using molecular, bioinformatic and imaging approaches, together with cell-specific genetic tools that interfere with glutamate exocytosis in vivo. By analysing existing single-cell RNA-sequencing databases and our patch-seq data, we identified nine molecularly distinct clusters of hippocampal astrocytes, among which we found a notable subpopulation that selectively expressed synaptic-like glutamate-release machinery and localized to discrete hippocampal sites. Using GluSnFR-based glutamate imaging22 in situ and in vivo, we identified a corresponding astrocyte subgroup that responds reliably to astrocyte-selective stimulations with subsecond glutamate release events at spatially precise hotspots, which were suppressed by astrocyte-targeted deletion of vesicular glutamate transporter 1 (VGLUT1). Furthermore, deletion of this transporter or its isoform VGLUT2 revealed specific contributions of glutamatergic astrocytes in cortico-hippocampal and nigrostriatal circuits during normal behaviour and pathological processes. By uncovering this atypical subpopulation of specialized astrocytes in the adult brain, we provide insights into the complex roles of astrocytes in central nervous system (CNS) physiology and diseases, and ide
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Journal articleHazra S, Moulick D, Mukherjee A, et al., 2023,
Evaluation of efficacy of non-coding RNA in abiotic stress management of field crops: Current status and future prospective.
, Plant Physiol Biochem, Vol: 203Abiotic stresses are responsible for the major losses in crop yield all over the world. Stresses generate harmful ROS which can impair cellular processes in plants. Therefore, plants have evolved antioxidant systems in defence against the stress-induced damages. The frequency of occurrence of abiotic stressors has increased several-fold due to the climate change experienced in recent times and projected for the future. This had particularly aggravated the risk of yield losses and threatened global food security. Non-coding RNAs are the part of eukaryotic genome that does not code for any proteins. However, they have been recently found to have a crucial role in the responses of plants to both abiotic and biotic stresses. There are different types of ncRNAs, for example, miRNAs and lncRNAs, which have the potential to regulate the expression of stress-related genes at the levels of transcription, post-transcription, and translation of proteins. The lncRNAs are also able to impart their epigenetic effects on the target genes through the alteration of the status of histone modification and organization of the chromatins. The current review attempts to deliver a comprehensive account of the role of ncRNAs in the regulation of plants' abiotic stress responses through ROS homeostasis. The potential applications ncRNAs in amelioration of abiotic stresses in field crops also have been evaluated.
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Conference paperYong H, Chan KLA, Larrouy-Maumus G, et al., 2023,
URINARY METABOLITE BIOMARKERS CHANGES IN OBESITY- INDUCED NAFLD AND OBESITY- INDUCED NAFLD PLUS XX.
, Meeting of the American-Association-for-the-Study-of-Liver-Diseases (AASLD), Publisher: LIPPINCOTT WILLIAMS & WILKINS, Pages: S893-S894, ISSN: 0270-9139 -
Journal articleMurray J, Smith AP, Simpson M, et al., 2023,
Climate, as well as branch-level processes, drive canopy soil abundance and chemistry
, GEODERMA, Vol: 438, ISSN: 0016-7061 -
Journal articleAdachi H, Sakai T, Kourelis J, et al., 2023,
Jurassic NLR: conserved and dynamic evolutionary features of the atypically ancient immune receptor ZAR1
, The Plant Cell, Vol: 35, Pages: 3662-3685, ISSN: 1040-4651Plant nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat (NLR) immune receptors generally exhibit hallmarks of rapid evolution, even at the intraspecific level. We used iterative sequence similarity searches coupled with phylogenetic analyses to reconstruct the evolutionary history of HOPZ-ACTIVATED RESISTANCE1 (ZAR1), an atypically conserved NLR that traces its origin to early flowering plant lineages ∼220 to 150 million yrs ago (Jurassic period). We discovered 120 ZAR1 orthologs in 88 species, including the monocot Colocasia esculenta, the magnoliid Cinnamomum micranthum, and most eudicots, notably the Ranunculales species Aquilegia coerulea, which is outside the core eudicots. Ortholog sequence analyses revealed highly conserved features of ZAR1, including regions for pathogen effector recognition and cell death activation. We functionally reconstructed the cell death activity of ZAR1 and its partner receptor-like cytoplasmic kinase (RLCK) from distantly related plant species, experimentally validating the hypothesis that ZAR1 evolved to partner with RLCKs early in its evolution. In addition, ZAR1 acquired novel molecular features. In cassava (Manihot esculenta) and cotton (Gossypium spp.), ZAR1 carries a C-terminal thioredoxin-like domain, and in several taxa, ZAR1 duplicated into 2 paralog families, which underwent distinct evolutionary paths. ZAR1 stands out among angiosperm NLR genes for having experienced relatively limited duplication and expansion throughout its deep evolutionary history. Nonetheless, ZAR1 also gave rise to noncanonical NLRs with integrated domains and degenerated molecular features.
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Journal articleWiggins BG, Wang Y-F, Burke A, et al., 2023,
Endothelial sensing of AHR ligands regulates intestinal homeostasis
, Nature, Vol: 621, Pages: 821-829, ISSN: 0028-0836Endothelial cells (ECs) line the blood and lymphatic vasculature, and act as an essential physical barrier, control nutrient transport, facilitate tissue immunosurveillance, and coordinate angiogenesis/ lymphangiogenesis1,2. In the intestine, dietary and microbial cues are particularly important in the regulation of organ homeostasis. However, whether enteric ECs actively sense and integrate such signals is currently unknown. Here, we show that the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) acts as a critical node for EC-sensing of dietary metabolites in adult mice and human primary ECs. We first established a comprehensive single-cell endothelial atlas of the mouse small intestine, uncovering the cellular complexity and functional heterogeneity of blood and lymphatic ECs. Analyses of AHR mediated responses at single-cell resolution identified tissue-protective transcriptional signatures and regulatory networks promoting cellular quiescence and vascular normalcy at steady state. Endothelial AHR-deficiency in adult mice resulted in dysregulated inflammatory responses, and the initiation of proliferative pathways. Furthermore, endothelial sensing of dietary AHR ligands was required for optimal protection against enteric infection. In human ECs, AHR signalling promoted quiescence and restrained activation by inflammatory mediators. Together, our data provide a comprehensive dissection of the impact of environmental sensing across the spectrum of enteric endothelia, demonstrating that endothelial AHR signalling integrates dietary cues to maintain tissue homeostasis by promoting EC quiescence and vascular normalcy.
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Journal articleHaas O, Prentice IC, Harrison SP, 2023,
The response of wildfire regimes to Last Glacial Maximum carbon dioxide and climate
, BIOGEOSCIENCES, Vol: 20, Pages: 3981-3995, ISSN: 1726-4170 -
Journal articleCaceres C, Bourtzis K, Gouvi G, et al., 2023,
Development of a novel genetic sexing strain of Ceratitis capitata based on an X-autosome translocation
, SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, Vol: 13, ISSN: 2045-2322 -
Journal articleBoussac A, Sugiura M, Nakamura M, et al., 2023,
Absorption changes in Photosystem II in the Soret band region upon the formation of the chlorophyll cation radical [P<sub>D1</sub>P<sub>D2</sub>]<SUP>+</SUP>
, PHOTOSYNTHESIS RESEARCH, ISSN: 0166-8595 -
Journal articleDrury F, Grover M, Hintze M, et al., 2023,
A PAX6-regulated receptor tyrosine kinase pairs with a pseudokinase to activate immune defense upon oomycete recognition in Caenorhabditis elegans.
, Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, Vol: 120Oomycetes were recently discovered as natural pathogens of Caenorhabditis elegans, and pathogen recognition alone was shown to be sufficient to activate a protective transcriptional program characterized by the expression of multiple chitinase-like (chil) genes. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying oomycete recognition in animals remain fully unknown. We performed here a forward genetic screen to uncover regulators of chil gene induction and found several independent loss-of-function alleles of old-1 and flor-1, which encode receptor tyrosine kinases belonging to the C. elegans-specific KIN-16 family. We report that OLD-1 and FLOR-1 are both necessary for mounting the immune response and act in the epidermis. FLOR-1 is a pseudokinase that acts downstream of the active kinase OLD-1 and regulates OLD-1 levels at the plasma membrane. Interestingly, the old-1 locus is adjacent to the chil genes in the C. elegans genome, thereby revealing a genetic cluster important for oomycete resistance. Furthermore, we demonstrate that old-1 expression at the anterior side of the epidermis is regulated by the VAB-3/PAX6 transcription factor, well known for its role in visual system development in other animals. Taken together, our study reveals both conserved and species-specific factors shaping the activation and spatial characteristics of the immune response to oomycete recognition.
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Journal articleFrankel G, 2023,
Plasmids pick a bacterial partner before committing to conjugation (vol 51, pg 8925, 2023)
, NUCLEIC ACIDS RESEARCH, Vol: 51, Pages: 10812-10812, ISSN: 0305-1048 -
Journal articleFrankel G, David S, Low WW, et al., 2023,
Plasmids pick a bacterial partner before committing to conjugation
, NUCLEIC ACIDS RESEARCH, Vol: 51, Pages: 8925-8933, ISSN: 0305-1048 -
Journal articleSarkar A, Niraula G, Levine D, et al., 2023,
Development of a Ratiometric Tension Sensor Exclusively Responding to Integrin Tension Magnitude in Live Cells
, ACS SENSORS, Vol: 8, Pages: 3701-3712, ISSN: 2379-3694 -
Journal articleLee S, Seung J, Yang Y, et al., 2023,
The Water-Exclusion Trap (WET): A 3D printable window trap collector that prevents DNA degradation
, METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION, ISSN: 2041-210X -
Journal articleKvasnica J, Matula R, Rejzek M, et al., 2023,
Multi-stemming enhances tree survival and growth in Borneo's logged forests
, FOREST ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT, Vol: 544, ISSN: 0378-1127 -
Journal articleUkegbu CV, Gomes AR, Giorgalli M, et al., 2023,
Identification of genes required for<i> Plasmodium</i> gametocyte-to-sporozoite development in the mosquito vector
, CELL HOST & MICROBE, Vol: 31, Pages: 1539-+, ISSN: 1931-3128- Author Web Link
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- Citations: 1
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Journal articleSasidharan S, Davis DM, Dunlop IE, 2023,
Bioinspired Materials for Immunoengineering of T Cells and Natural Killer Cells
, ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS, ISSN: 1616-301X -
Journal articleLagou V, Jiang L, Ulrich A, et al., 2023,
GWAS of random glucose in 476,326 individuals provide insights into diabetes pathophysiology, complications and treatment stratification
, Nature Genetics, Vol: 55, Pages: 1448-1461, ISSN: 1061-4036Conventional measurements of fasting and postprandial blood glucose levels investigated in genome-wide association studies (GWAS) cannot capture the effects of DNA variability on 'around the clock' glucoregulatory processes. Here we show that GWAS meta-analysis of glucose measurements under nonstandardized conditions (random glucose (RG)) in 476,326 individuals of diverse ancestries and without diabetes enables locus discovery and innovative pathophysiological observations. We discovered 120 RG loci represented by 150 distinct signals, including 13 with sex-dimorphic effects, two cross-ancestry and seven rare frequency signals. Of these, 44 loci are new for glycemic traits. Regulatory, glycosylation and metagenomic annotations highlight ileum and colon tissues, indicating an underappreciated role of the gastrointestinal tract in controlling blood glucose. Functional follow-up and molecular dynamics simulations of lower frequency coding variants in glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP1R), a type 2 diabetes treatment target, reveal that optimal selection of GLP-1R agonist therapy will benefit from tailored genetic stratification. We also provide evidence from Mendelian randomization that lung function is modulated by blood glucose and that pulmonary dysfunction is a diabetes complication. Our investigation yields new insights into the biology of glucose regulation, diabetes complications and pathways for treatment stratification.
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Journal articlede Ceglia R, Ledonne A, Litvin DG, et al., 2023,
Specialized astrocytes mediate glutamatergic gliotransmission in the CNS
, NATURE, ISSN: 0028-0836 -
Journal articleBoyle KB, Ellison CJ, Elliott PR, et al., 2023,
TECPR1 conjugates LC3 to damaged endomembranes upon detection of sphingomyelin exposure
, EMBO JOURNAL, Vol: 42, ISSN: 0261-4189- Author Web Link
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- Citations: 2
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Journal articleDunne EM, Thompson SED, Butler RJ, et al., 2023,
Mechanistic neutral models show that sampling biases drive the apparent explosion of early tetrapod diversity
, Nature Ecology and Evolution, Vol: 7, Pages: 1480-1489, ISSN: 2397-334XEstimates of deep-time biodiversity typically rely on statistical methods to mitigate the impacts of sampling biases in the fossil record. However, these methods are limited by the spatial and temporal scale of the underlying data. Here we use a spatially explicit mechanistic model, based on neutral theory, to test hypotheses of early tetrapod diversity change during the late Carboniferous and early Permian, critical intervals for the diversification of vertebrate life on land. Our simulations suggest that apparent increases in early tetrapod diversity were not driven by local endemism following the ‘Carboniferous rainforest collapse’. Instead, changes in face-value diversity can be explained by variation in sampling intensity through time. Our results further demonstrate the importance of accounting for sampling biases in analyses of the fossil record and highlight the vast potential of mechanistic models, including neutral models, for testing hypotheses in palaeobiology.
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Journal articleHuang X, Torre I, Chiappi M, et al., 2023,
Cryo-electron tomography of intact cardiac muscle reveals myosin binding protein-C linking myosin and actin filaments
, JOURNAL OF MUSCLE RESEARCH AND CELL MOTILITY, Vol: 44, Pages: 165-178, ISSN: 0142-4319- Author Web Link
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- Citations: 2
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Conference paperGimeno-Molina B, Bayar E, Mountain K, et al., 2023,
The role of cervical neutrophils in cervicovaginal inflammation in women at high-risk of delivering preterm
, 12th International Workshop Reunion Island Reproductive Immunology, Immunological tolerance and Immunology of preeclampsia, Publisher: ELSEVIER IRELAND LTD, Pages: 31-31, ISSN: 0165-0378 -
Conference paperMountain K, MacIntyre D, Chan D, et al., 2023,
ABO blood group antigens and preterm birth risk
, 12th International Workshop Reunion Island Reproductive Immunology, Immunological tolerance and Immunology of preeclampsia, Publisher: ELSEVIER IRELAND LTD, Pages: 37-37, ISSN: 0165-0378 -
OtherRowell J, Lau C-I, Yanez DC, et al., 2023,
Hedgehog signalling in allograft vasculopathy: a new therapeutic target?
, Publisher: CELL PRESS
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