Locked nailing for the treatment of displaced articular fractures of the calcaneus: description of a new procedure with calcanail®

Although open reduction and internal fixation is considered the best method for treating displaced articular fractures of the calcaneus, lateral approach is at high risk for wound healing complications. For this reason, the authors developed a posterior approach and a new implant to perform both intrafocal reduction and internal fixation. The aim of this technical note is to describe this method of treatment for displaced articular fractures of the calcaneus, which offered the following advantages: (a) the creation of a working channel that provides also a significant bone autograft, (b) the intrafocal reduction of the displaced articular surface, (c) the insertion of a locking nail that maintains the reduced articular surface at the right height, (d) the possibility to switch from an ORIF to a reconstruction arthrodesis with the same approach and instrumentation in case of severely damaged posterior facet

Structural insights into the cTAR DNA recognition by the HIV-1 nucleocapsid protein: role of sugar deoxyriboses in the binding polarity of NC

An essential step of the reverse transcription of the HIV-1 genome is the first strand transfer that requires the annealing of the TAR RNA hairpin to the cTAR DNA hairpin. HIV-1 nucleocapsid protein (NC) plays a crucial role by facilitating annealing of the complementary hairpins. Using nuclear magnetic resonance and gel retardation assays, we investigated the interaction between NC and the top half of the cTAR DNA (mini-cTAR). We show that NC(11-55) binds the TGG sequence in the lower stem that is destabilized by the adjacent internal loop. The 5′ thymine interacts with residues of the N-terminal zinc knuckle and the 3′ guanine is inserted in the hydrophobic plateau of the C-terminal zinc knuckle. The TGG sequence is preferred relative to the apical and internal loops containing unpaired guanines. Investigation of the DNA–protein contacts shows the major role of hydrophobic interactions involving nucleobases and deoxyribose sugars. A similar network of hydrophobic contacts is observed in the published NC:DNA complexes, whereas NC contacts ribose differently in NC:RNA complexes. We propose that the binding polarity of NC is related to these contacts that could be responsible for the preferential binding to single-stranded nucleic acids

Structural determinants of TAR RNA-DNA annealing in the absence and presence of HIV-1 nucleocapsid protein

Annealing of the TAR RNA hairpin to the cTAR DNA hairpin is required for the minus-strand transfer step of HIV-1 reverse transcription. HIV-1 nucleocapsid protein (NC) plays a crucial role by facilitating annealing of the complementary hairpins. To gain insight into the mechanism of NC-mediated TAR RNA–DNA annealing, we used structural probes (nucleases and potassium permanganate), gel retardation assays, fluorescence anisotropy and cTAR mutants under conditions allowing strand transfer. In the absence of NC, cTAR DNA-TAR RNA annealing depends on nucleation through the apical loops. We show that the annealing intermediate of the kissing pathway is a loop–loop kissing complex involving six base-pairs and that the apical stems are not destabilized by this loop–loop interaction. Our data support a dynamic structure of the cTAR hairpin in the absence of NC, involving equilibrium between both the closed conformation and the partially open ‘Y’ conformation. This study is the first to show that the apical and internal loops of cTAR are weak and strong binding sites for NC, respectively. NC slightly destabilizes the lower stem that is adjacent to the internal loop and shifts the equilibrium toward the ‘Y’ conformation exhibiting at least 12 unpaired nucleotides in its lower part

Central brain postembryonic development in Drosophila: implication of genes expressed at the interhemispheric junction.

Postembryonic brain development of Drosophila has become recently a subject of intense investigations. In particular, the linotte (lio) mutants display strong structural defects in the mushroom bodies and the central complex. The Lio kinase is expressed in a glial structure at the interhemispheric junction of late larval and young pupal brain. With the aim of identifying new genes involved in the formation of adult central brain structures, 821 enhancer-trap Gal4 lines were generated and screened for late larval expression. We identified 167 lines showing expression at or near the interhemispheric junction of third-instar larval brain, an area from which the central complex differentiates. Adult brains from 104 of these 167 lines were analyzed through paraffin sections. This secondary screen allowed the recovery of five central brain mutants. Of 89 control lines showing various patterns of expression excluding the interhemispheric junction, only one anatomical mutant was isolated. These six mutations, which have been thoroughly characterized, affect the midline area of the adult brain with phenotypes of split central complex structures and/or fused mushroom body lobes. This work opens the way for further analysis of the molecular and cellular events involved in central brain reorganization during metamorphosis

(4) Genetic algorithms aided optics optimization for beam energy spread measurements

The Linear IFMIF Prototype Accelerator (LIPAc) is designed to provide 125mA CW Deuteron beams at 9MeV. This series reports on the commissioning of the LIPAc. This work focuses on the optimization, aided by genetic algorithm, of transport optics to perform energy spread measurement after the Radio Frequency Quadrupole (RFQ) module.2022年日本原子力学会春の年