| | Neuroscience: Flipping the sleep switch
Inactivation of a group of sleep-promoting neurons through dopamine signalling can cause acute or chronic wakefulness in flies, depending on changes in two different potassium-channel proteins. | Mammalian development: Mechanics drives cell differentiation
Several hypotheses have been formulated to explain how cells make the first lineage decision during mammalian embryonic development. An overarching mechanism now unifies these disparate models. | Structural biology: Signal locked in
A plant receptor protein interacts in an unusual way with the hormone it binds. The receptor cleaves the hormone, a fragment of which then binds covalently to the receptor and triggers a major receptor shape change. | Cancer: Fat and the fate of pancreatic tumours
In obese people with pancreatic cancer, the many interactions between fat cells and the inflammatory microenvironment surrounding the tumour leads to below-average prognosis and chemotherapy outcome. | Cancer: Endothelial-cell killing promotes metastasis
To migrate into the lungs, cancer cells in the bloodstream must cross the lung's endothelial-cell barrier. A study shows that cancer cells can achieve this feat by signalling to induce endothelial-cell death. | Tempo and mode of genome evolution in a 50,000-generation experiment
Whole-genome sequencing of 264 clones sampled from 12 Escherichia coli populations evolved over 50,000 generations under identical culture conditions is used to characterize the patterns and dynamics of genome evolution over time. | SAR11 bacteria linked to ocean anoxia and nitrogen loss
Bacteria of the SAR11 clade constitute up to one half of all marine microbes and are thought to require oxygen for growth; here, a subgroup of SAR11 bacteria are shown to thrive in ocean oxygen minimum zones and to encode abundant respiratory nitrate reductases. | Circadian neuron feedback controls the Drosophila sleep–activity profile
A subset of dorsal clock neurons are identified in Drosophila as sleep-promoting cells, which participate in a feedback loop with pacemaker neurons to drive both midday siesta and night-time sleep. | Oxidative diversification of amino acids and peptides by small-molecule iron catalysis
Two small-molecule iron catalysts are shown to be capable of facilitating the targeted C–H oxidative modification of amino acids and peptides with preservation of α-centre chirality (a challenging synthesis), producing a diverse range of amino acids and peptides. | Thirst neurons anticipate the homeostatic consequences of eating and drinking
Feedback from the oral cavity to thirst-promoting neurons in the subfornical organ (SFO) during eating and drinking is integrated with information about blood composition, providing a prediction of how oral consumption will affect fluid balance and leading to changes in behaviour. | A partially differentiated interior for (1) Ceres deduced from its gravity field and shape
Gravity and shape measurements for Ceres obtained from the Dawn spacecraft mission show that it is in hydrostatic equilibrium with its inferred normalized mean moment of inertia of 0.37, suggesting that Ceres has a rocky chondritic core overlaid by a volatile-rich icy shell. | Asymmetric division of contractile domains couples cell positioning and fate specification
Here, a combination of biophysical measurement, modelling, and genetic and experimental manipulation of cell contractile components is used to analyse the formation of the inner cell mass in the early mouse embryo. | Operation of a homeostatic sleep switch
Sleep-promoting neurons in Drosophila are shown to switch between electrical activity and silence as a function of sleep need; the switch is operated by dopamine and involves the antagonistic regulation of two potassium channels. | Enhanced electrocatalytic CO2 reduction via field-induced reagent concentration
Gold and palladium nanoneedle electrocatalysts benefit from field-induced reagent concentration to improve the efficiency of carbon dioxide reduction in the synthesis of carbon-based fuels using renewable electricity. | Catalytic enantioselective 1,6-conjugate additions of propargyl and allyl groups
A difficult synthesis is described that uses an organocopper catalyst and commercially available starting materials to give high yield and the mechanics of the reaction are elucidated through density functional theory. | Global profiling of SRP interaction with nascent polypeptides
Here, the selection of substrates by the protein–RNA complex known as the signal recognition particle (SRP) is investigated in the bacterium Escherichia coli, revealing that the SRP has a strong preference for hydrophobic transmembrane domains of inner membrane proteins. | DWARF14 is a non-canonical hormone receptor for strigolactone
Structural, biochemical, mass spectrometry and genetic analyses define Arabidopsis thaliana AtD14 as a non-canonical hormone receptor for strigolactone, which hydrolyses strigolactone into a covalently linked intermediate molecule and undergoes an open-to-closed state transition for interaction with D3 to trigger strigolactone signalling. | Emergence of a Homo sapiens-specific gene family and chromosome 16p11.2 CNV susceptibility
Reconstruction of the evolutionary history of the chromosome 16p11.2 locus and identification of bolA family member 2 (BOLA2) as a gene duplicated exclusively in Homo sapiens. | Tumour-cell-induced endothelial cell necroptosis via death receptor 6 promotes metastasis
Human and murine tumour cells induce programmed necrosis (necroptosis) of endothelial cells, which promotes tumour cell extravasation and metastasis. | Mechanism of arginine sensing by CASTOR1 upstream of mTORC1
Structural data on the protein CASTOR1 reveal how the mTORC1 pathway senses intracellular arginine, suggesting a repurposing of an evolutionarily pre-metazoan mechanism. | Reconstruction of bacterial transcription-coupled repair at single-molecule resolution
Single-molecule assays show that the recruitment of UvrA and UvrAB to Mfd–RNA polymerase complex formed on a DNA lesion arrests the translocating complex and causes its dissolution. | Cotranslational signal-independent SRP preloading during membrane targeting
The signal recognition particle (SRP) preferentially binds peptides destined for secretion before peptide-targeting signals are translated through recognition of elements in their mRNA, including non-coding sequences. | | Follicular CXCR5-expressing CD8+ T cells curtail chronic viral infection | | Defining CD8+ T cells that provide the proliferative burst after PD-1 therapy | | Corrigendum: Concerted nucleophilic aromatic substitution with 19F− and 18F− | | | | | New podcast with Eppendorf Award 2016 winner, Adrian Liston
Nature is the partner for the Eppendorf Award for Young European Investigators. This year the prize was awarded to Adrian Liston for his groundbreaking work in elucidating key mechanisms by which the immune system avoids attacking its own organism while remaining effective against pathogens.
Listen to a podcast with Adrian to learn more about his work. | | | | | | | | | | | | | The genetic architecture of type 2 diabetes
Sequencing data from two large-scale studies show that most of the genetic variation influencing the risk of type 2 diabetes involves common alleles and is found in regions previously identified by genome-wide association studies, clarifying the genetic architecture of this disease.
Christian Fuchsberger, Jason Flannick, Tanya M. Teslovich et al. | Structural basis of potent Zika–dengue virus antibody cross-neutralization
Monoclonal antibodies isolated from patients with dengue virus infection also bind to the Zika virus E protein and neutralize both Zika and dengue virus infection; the structures of two of these antibodies in complex with the Zika virus envelope protein define the binding determinants of the epitope and identify the structural basis of antibody cross neutralization.
Giovanna Barba-Spaeth, Wanwisa Dejnirattisai, Alexander Rouvinski et al. | | Bright carbonate deposits as evidence of aqueous alteration on (1) Ceres
High-resolution near-infrared observations of the Occator bright areas on the dwarf planet Ceres suggest that the bright material is mostly made up of endogenous sodium carbonate.
M. C. De Sanctis, A. Raponi, E. Ammannito et al. | Controlling charge quantization with quantum fluctuations
A device consisting of a metallic island connected to electrodes via tunable semiconductor-based conduction channels is used to explore the evolution of charge quantization in the presence of quantum fluctuations; the measurements reveal a robust scaling of charge quantization as the square root of the residual electron reflection probability across a quantum channel, consistent with theoretical predictions.
S. Jezouin, Z. Iftikhar, A. Anthore et al. | Demonstration of a small programmable quantum computer with atomic qubits
A small programmable quantum computer is demonstrated that uses five trapped ions as qubits; the computer is reconfigurable and different algorithms can be compiled without changing the hardware.
S. Debnath, N. M. Linke, C. Figgatt et al. | Carbon-based tribofilms from lubricating oils
Moving mechanical interfaces need to be lubricated to ensure long life and easy slippage; here, a new type of coating is described—comprising nitrides of either molybdenum or vanadium, together with a copper or nickel catalyst—that generates protective tribofilms from lubricating oils.
Ali Erdemir, Giovanni Ramirez, Osman L. Eryilmaz et al. | Evidence for climate change in the satellite cloud record
Satellite records show that the global pattern of cloud changes between the 1980s and the 2000s are similar to the patterns predicted by models of climate with recent external radiative forcing, and that the primary drivers of the cloud changes appear to be increasing greenhouse gas concentrations and a recovery from volcanic radiative cooling.
Joel R. Norris, Robert J. Allen, Amato T. Evan et al. | A novel excitatory network for the control of breathing
A novel rhythmogenic brainstem network was discovered in mice that is necessary and sufficient for generating postinspiration, a breathing phase also used for swallowing, coughing and vocalization.
Tatiana M. Anderson, Alfredo J. Garcia, Nathan A. Baertsch et al. | Synchronized cycles of bacterial lysis for in vivo delivery
Clinically relevant bacteria have been engineered to lyse synchronously at a threshold population density and release genetically encoded therapeutics; treatment of mice with these bacteria slowed the growth of tumours.
M. Omar Din, Tal Danino, Arthur Prindle et al. | CD47-blocking antibodies restore phagocytosis and prevent atherosclerosis
Atherosclerotic lesions in mice and humans switch on a ‘don’t eat me’ signal—expression of CD47—that prevents effective removal of diseased tissue; anti-CD47 antibody therapy can normalize this defective efferocytosis, with beneficial results in several mouse models of atherosclerosis.
Yoko Kojima, Jens-Peter Volkmer, Kelly McKenna et al. | Neoantigen landscape dynamics during human melanoma–T cell interactions
Analyses of tumour samples and tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes from two patients with melanoma who were treated with adoptive T-cell therapy provide evidence for tumour escape by loss and downregulation of immunogenic antigens.
Els M. E. Verdegaal, Noel F. C. C. de Miranda, Marten Visser et al. | eIF3d is an mRNA cap-binding protein that is required for specialized translation initiation
The initiation protein eIF3d serves as an alternative cap-recognition factor for a subclass of mRNAs, such as c-Jun; the high-resolution structure of the eIF3d cap-binding domain can be modelled onto the cap structure, defining interactions that are needed for translation of these mRNAs.
Amy S. Y. Lee, Philip J. Kranzusch, Jennifer A. Doudna et al. | The structural basis of modified nucleosome recognition by 53BP1
A cryo-electron microscopy structure of the DNA damage repair protein 53BP1 bound to a nucleosome illuminates the way 53BP1 recognizes two types of histone modifications (a methyl group and a ubiquitin moiety), and provides insight into the highly specified recognition and recruitment of 53BP1 to modified chromatin.
Marcus D. Wilson, Samir Benlekbir, Amélie Fradet-Turcotte et al. | Structure of the adenosine A2A receptor bound to an engineered G protein
An engineered G protein is used to bind to and stabilize the active conformation of the adenosine A2A receptor, enabling the acquisition of an X-ray crystal structure of this GPCR in an active state.
Byron Carpenter, Rony Nehmé, Tony Warne et al. | Architecture of fully occupied GluA2 AMPA receptor–TARP complex elucidated by cryo-EM
The cryo-electron microscopy structure of the homomeric GluA2 AMPA receptor in the presence of TARP γ2 subunits is reported, which reveals that TARPs are arranged around the ion channel domain and underneath the ligand-binding domains, poised to modulate receptor activity.
Yan Zhao, Shanshuang Chen, Craig Yoshioka et al. | | | | |
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