Impact of sea-ice dynamics on the spatial distribution of diatom resting stages in sediments of the Pacific Arctic region

Author Posting. © American Geophysical Union, 2021. This article is posted here by permission of American Geophysical Union for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans 126(7), (2021): e2021JC017223, https://doi.org/10.1029/2021JC017223.The Pacific Arctic region is characterized by seasonal sea-ice, the spatial extent and duration of which varies considerably. In this region, diatoms are the dominant phytoplankton group during spring and summer. To facilitate survival during periods that are less favorable for growth, many diatom species produce resting stages that settle to the seafloor and can serve as a potential inoculum for subsequent blooms. Since diatom assemblage composition is closely related to sea-ice dynamics, detailed studies of biophysical interactions are fundamental to understanding the lower trophic levels of ecosystems in the Pacific Arctic. One way to explore this relationship is by comparing the distribution and abundance of diatom resting stages with patterns of sea-ice coverage. In this study, we quantified viable diatom resting stages in sediments collected during summer and autumn 2018 and explored their relationship to sea-ice extent during the previous winter and spring. Diatom assemblages were clearly dependent on the variable timing of the sea-ice retreat and accompanying light conditions. In areas where sea-ice retreated earlier, open-water species such as Chaetoceros spp. and Thalassiosira spp. were abundant. In contrast, proportional abundances of Attheya spp. and pennate diatom species that are commonly observed in sea-ice were higher in areas where diatoms experienced higher light levels and longer day length in/under the sea-ice. This study demonstrates that sea-ice dynamics are an important determinant of diatom species composition and distribution in the Pacific Arctic region.This work was conducted by the Arctic Challenge for Sustainability (ArCS) project, Arctic Challenge for Sustainability II (ArCSII) project and ArCS program for overseas visits by young researchers. In addition, this work was partly supported by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI Grant Number JP20J20410 and JP21H02263. We thank Anderson laboratory members for their support of our study at WHOI, and also thank Robert Pickart, Leah McRaven, and Jacqueline Grebmeier for their support and assistance on the Healy cruises. Funding for DA, EF, and MR was provided by the NOAA Arctic Research Program through the Cooperative Institute for the North Atlantic Region (CINAR Award NA14OAR4320158), by the NOAA ECOHAB Program (NA20NOS4780195) and by the National Science Foundation Office of Polar Programs (OPP-1823002). This is ECOHAB contribution number ECO986.2021-12-1

Assessment of skin inflammation using near-infrared Raman spectroscopy combined with artificial intelligence analysis in an animal model

Raman spectroscopy is a powerful method for estimating the molecular structure of a target that can be adapted for biomedical analysis given its non-destructive nature. Inflammatory skin diseases impair the skin’s barrier function and interfere with the patient’s quality of life. There are limited methods for non-invasive and objective assessment of skin inflammation. We examined whether Raman spectroscopy can be used to predict skin inflammation with high sensitivity and specificity when combined with artificial intelligence (AI) analysis. Inflammation was chemically induced in mouse ears, and Raman spectra induced by a 785 nm laser were recorded. A principal component (PC) analysis of the Raman spectra was performed to extract PCs with the highest percentage of variance and to estimate the statistical score. The accuracy in predicting inflammation based on the Raman spectra with or without AI analysis was assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. We observed some typical changes in the Raman spectra upon skin inflammation, which may have resulted from vasodilation and interstitial oedema. The estimated statistical scores based on spectral changes correlated with the histopathological changes in the skin. The ROC curve based on PC2, which appeared to include some spectral features, revealed a maximum accuracy rate of 80.0% with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.864. The AI analysis improved the accuracy rate to 93.1% with an AUC of 0.972. The current findings demonstrate that the combination of Raman spectroscopy with near-infrared excitation and AI analysis can provide highly accurate information on the pathology of skin inflammation

/s//t//k/ の母音環境における調音結合の定量的測定 : エレクトロパラトグラフィ（EPG）を用いた評価

研究報告Original Articles　CVC の無意味音節において先行母音・後続母音が/s//t//k/ に及ぼす影響について定量的に検証することを目的に調査を行った．成人被験者3 名を対象に30 個の無意味音節についてEPG を用いて測定した．無意味音節は/s//t//k/ における前後の母音の影響を検討できるような音節の組み合せになるように，CVC 音節の一方の先行母音，あるいは後続母音を/a/ に統一し，もう一方を日本語5 母音に変化させた．EPG から得られたデータは，各子音における最大接触フレームから累積パターンを作成し，舌の口蓋への接触の前後の程度を示すCoG を算出した．/s//t/ については，先行母音・後続母音に/i/ が来る場合に他の母音に比べてCoG の平均値が有意に低く，舌の接触範囲が後方に広がっていることが示唆された．また，/s/ においては硬口蓋中央部にかけて正中方向に接触が広がった．/k/ においては，先行母音・後続母音ともにCoG の平均値が［ika］，［ɯka］・［eka］，［aka］・［oka］の順に低くなり，各音節群間に有意差が認められた．つまり，/i/ → /e//u/ → /a//o/ の順に接触面が前方に広がることが示唆された．これらは，効率的に構音するために先行母音や後続母音の舌の位置が子音に影響を与えているものと考えられ，先行・後続母音のような音環境を考慮した構音訓練が必要と思われた．　The aim of this study was to analyze co-articulatory effect of vowel environments on VCV contexts. The study used electropalatography (EPG) to record three normally speaking adults’ tongue-palate contact patterns of /s//t//k/ in thirty VCV contexts. A cumulative template was generated from the maximum contact frame for each sound and the center of gravity (CoG) value was calculated, which represents the relative concentration of electrodes in the anterior-posterior dimension of the palate. The most fronted and most contact occurred in /i/ contexts during utterances with /s//t/. The tongue-to-plate contacts spread backward in the order / i/ → /e//u/ → /a//o/ during utterances with /k/. It is considered that different vowel contexts influence the tongue-palate contact of these consonants for efficient articulation

日本語音 /k/・/ɾ/ において母音環境が子音に及ぼす影響

研究報告Original Articles　2 歳から6 歳までの116 名を対象に日本語子音/k/・/ɾ/ について，発達途上の構音獲得に後続母音が与える影響を明らかとする目的で調査を行った．その結果，/k/では［ke］・［kʲi］→［kɯ］→［ka］・［ko］の順に構音が獲得され，これは後続母音による調音結合の影響により構音の難易度が上がるためと考えられた．一方，/ɾ/ は後続母音の影響はあまり受けず，/ɾ/ が語頭音に来る場合や歯茎音が続く場合など他の音環境の要因によって構音の難易度が影響された．これは，構音操作時の力のコントロールが必要となる音環境の場合に構音の難易度が高くなることが推察された．　For 116 subjects from age 2 to age 6, an investigation was conducted with regard to the Japanese Sounds /k/ and /ɾ/, for the purpose of clarifying the effect that the succeeding vowel has on the acquisition of articulation in development. As a result, with /k/, articulation is acquired in the order［ ke］/［kʲi］ →［kɯ］→［ka］/［ko］，and it is thought that this is because the degree of difficulty of articulation increases due to the effect of co-articulation caused by the succeeding vowel. On the other hand, /ɾ/ is hardly affected by the succeeding vowel, and the degree of difficulty of articulation is affected by other causes that stem from the phonetic environment, such as in the case where /ɾ/ is the initial sound, or the in case where /ɾ/ is succeeded by an alveolar consonant. It has been inferred that this is due to a raising of the degree of difficulty of articulation in cases where the phonetic environment requires control of sound production strength at the time of manipulating the articulation

Ultrafast single-molecule imaging reveals focal adhesion nano-architecture and molecular dynamics

細胞膜上の分子がバレエの群舞のように見えてきた： 1蛍光分子の感度で、究極速度で撮像できるカメラを開発. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2023-06-06.Using our newly developed ultrafast camera described in the companion paper, we reduced the data acquisition periods required for photoactivation/photoconversion localization microscopy (PALM, using mEos3.2) and direct stochastic reconstruction microscopy (dSTORM, using HMSiR) by a factor of ≈30 compared with standard methods, for much greater view-fields, with localization precisions of 29 and 19 nm, respectively, thus opening up previously inaccessible spatiotemporal scales to cell biology research. Simultaneous two-color PALM-dSTORM and PALM-ultrafast (10 kHz) single fluorescent-molecule imaging-tracking has been realized. They revealed the dynamic nanoorganization of the focal adhesion (FA), leading to the compartmentalized archipelago FA model, consisting of FA-protein islands with broad diversities in size (13–100 nm; mean island diameter ≈30 nm), protein copy numbers, compositions, and stoichiometries, which dot the partitioned fluid membrane (74-nm compartments in the FA vs. 109-nm compartments outside the FA). Integrins are recruited to these islands by hop diffusion. The FA-protein islands form loose ≈320 nm clusters and function as units for recruiting FA proteins

The CCHamide1 Neuropeptide Expressed in the Anterior Dorsal Neuron 1 Conveys a Circadian Signal to the Ventral Lateral Neurons in Drosophila melanogaster

The fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster possesses approximately 150 brain clock neurons that control circadian behavioral rhythms. Even though individual clock neurons have self-sustaining oscillators, they interact and synchronize with each other through a network. However, little is known regarding the factors responsible for these network interactions. In this study, we investigated the role of CCHamide1 (CCHa1), a neuropeptide expressed in the anterior dorsal neuron 1 (DN1a), in intercellular communication of the clock neurons. We observed that CCHa1 connects the DN1a clock neurons to the ventral lateral clock neurons (LNv) via the CCHa1 receptor, which is a homolog of the gastrin-releasing peptide receptor playing a role in circadian intercellular communications in mammals. CCHa1 knockout or knockdown flies have a generally low activity level with a special reduction of morning activity. In addition, they exhibit advanced morning activity under light-dark cycles and delayed activity under constant dark conditions, which correlates with an advance/delay of PAR domain Protein 1 (PDP1) oscillations in the small-LNv (s-LNv) neurons that control morning activity. The terminals of the s-LNv neurons show rather high levels of Pigment-dispersing factor (PDF) in the evening, when PDF is low in control flies, suggesting that the knockdown of CCHa1 leads to increased PDF release; PDF signals the other clock neurons and evidently increases the amplitude of their PDP1 cycling. A previous study showed that high-amplitude PDP1 cycling increases the siesta of the flies, and indeed, CCHa1 knockout or knockdown flies exhibit a longer siesta than control flies. The DN1a neurons are known to be receptive to PDF signaling from the s-LNv neurons; thus, our results suggest that the DN1a and s-LNv clock neurons are reciprocally coupled via the neuropeptides CCHa1 and PDF, and this interaction fine-tunes the timing of activity and sleep

健常発達における音韻プロセスの変化

研究報告Original Articles　日本語における発達途上でみられる音韻プロセスを明らかにする目的で，2 歳から6 歳の健常児116 名を対象に調査を行った．発話サンプルは構音障害研究会（2010）から出版されている新版- 構音検査の単語検査にて採取した．発話をIPA 表記に従って音声記号で表記した上で，その誤りを川合（2011）の提唱している音韻プロセス分類に従って整理した．その結果，健常発達で認められる音韻プロセスは，語全体プロセスでは「子音の省略」「子音の調和・同化」，分節音変化プロセスでは「前方化」，「破裂音化」，「破擦音化」，「口蓋音化」であった．また，これらの音韻プロセスが消失する年齢群については，3 歳代までに「子音の省略」，「子音の調和・同化」，「前方化」，「摩擦音の破裂音化」，「破擦音化」，4 歳代までに「弾き音の破裂音化」，5 歳代までに「口蓋音化」が消失することが明らかとなった．　To ascertain the developmental phonological processes in Japanese-speaking children, we examined speech samples from 116 normally developing children, aged two to six years. Speechsamples were elicited using the latest version of the articulation test. The assessor transcribed each child’s responses in the International Phonetic Alphabet and classified them according toKawai’s phonological process categories.　Results indicated that the common phonological processes were consonant deletion, consonantharmony, fronting, stopping, affrication, and palatalization. Those which disappeared by age three were consonant deletion, consonant harmony, fronting, stopping of fricative, and affrication. Stopping of the tap or the flap disappeared by age four. Palatalization disappeared by age five

Behçetʼs disease complicated by ileocecal and esophageal perforation

　A 36-year-old Japanese man known to have incomplete Behçet’s disease (oral aphthous ulcers, genital ulcers, skin lesions, and esophageal and ileocecal ulcers) was admitted to our hospital in January 2011 for abdominal pain. We administered corticosteroids and immunosuppressants. Two months later, we performed an ileocecal resection to control gastrointestinal bleeding from the ileocecal ulcers. High fever persisted after this surgery, and upper gastrointestinal endoscopy demonstrated ulcer penetration between the lower and abdominal esophagus. Eighteen days after the initial ileocecal resection, we performed a lower esophagus resection, gastric tube reconstruction and enterostomy, during which we confirmed a 5-mm-dia. perforated site at the posterior wall of the abdominal esophagus. Postoperative anastomotic leakage and empyema occurred, but they were relieved by thoracic drainage and empyema dissection

Organoids with cancer stem cell-like properties secrete exosomes and HSP90 in a 3D nanoenvironment

Ability to form cellular aggregations such as tumorspheres and spheroids have been used as a morphological marker of malignant cancer cells and in particular cancer stem cells (CSC). However, the common definition of the types of cellular aggregation formed by cancer cells has not been available. We examined morphologies of 67 cell lines cultured on three dimensional morphology enhancing NanoCulture Plates (NCP) and classified the types of cellular aggregates that form. Among the 67 cell lines, 49 cell lines formed spheres or spheroids, 8 cell lines formed grape-like aggregation (GLA), 8 cell lines formed other types of aggregation, and 3 cell lines formed monolayer sheets. Seven GLA-forming cell lines were derived from adenocarcinoma among the 8 lines. A neuroendocrine adenocarcinoma cell line PC-3 formed asymmetric GLA with ductal structures on the NCPs and rapidly growing asymmetric tumors that metastasized to lymph nodes in immunocompromised mice. In contrast, another adenocarcinoma cell line DU-145 formed spheroids in vitro and spheroid-like tumors in vivo that did not metastasize to lymph nodes until day 50 after transplantation. Culture in the 3D nanoenvironment and in a defined stem cell medium enabled the neuroendocrine adenocarcinoma cells to form slowly growing large organoids that expressed multiple stem cell markers, neuroendocrine markers, intercellular adhesion molecules, and oncogenes in vitro. In contrast, the more commonly used 2D serum-contained environment reduced intercellular adhesion and induced mesenchymal transition and promoted rapid growth of the cells. In addition, the 3D stemness nanoenvironment promoted secretion of HSP90 and EpCAM-exosomes, a marker of CSC phenotype, from the neuroendocrine organoids. These findings indicate that the NCP-based 3D environment enables cells to form stem cell tumoroids with multipotency and model more accurately the in vivo tumor status at the levels of morphology and gene expression

Dynamic Meso-Scale Anchorage of GPI-Anchored Receptors in the Plasma Membrane: Prion Protein vs. Thy1

The central mechanism for the transmission of the prion protein misfolding is the structural conversion of the normal cellular prion protein to the pathogenic misfolded prion protein, by the interaction with misfolded prion protein. This process might be enhanced due to the homo-dimerization/oligomerization of normal prion protein. However, the behaviors of normal prion protein in the plasma membrane have remained largely unknown. Here, using single fluorescent-molecule imaging, we found that both prion protein and Thy1, a control glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored protein, exhibited very similar intermittent transient immobilizations lasting for a few seconds within an area of 24.2 and 3.5 nm in diameter in CHO-K1 and hippocampal neurons cultured for 1- and 2-weeks, respectively. Prion protein molecules were immobile during 72% of the time, approximately 1.4× more than Thy1, due to prion protein’s higher immobilization frequency. When mobile, prion protein diffused 1.7× slower than Thy1. Prion protein’s slower diffusion might be caused by its transient interaction with other prion protein molecules, whereas its brief immobilization might be due to temporary association with prion protein clusters. Prion protein molecules might be newly recruited to prion protein clusters all the time, and simultaneously, prion protein molecules in the cluster might be departing continuously. Such dynamic interactions of normal prion protein molecules would strongly enhance the spreading of misfolded prion protein