Lipoprotein lipase regulates hematopoietic stem progenitor cell maintenance through DHA supply.

Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) mediates hydrolysis of triglycerides (TGs) to supply free fatty acids (FFAs) to tissues. Here, we show that LPL activity is also required for hematopoietic stem progenitor cell (HSPC) maintenance. Knockout of Lpl or its obligatory cofactor Apoc2 results in significantly reduced HSPC expansion during definitive hematopoiesis in zebrafish. A human APOC2 mimetic peptide or the human very low-density lipoprotein, which carries APOC2, rescues the phenotype in apoc2 but not in lpl mutant zebrafish. Creating parabiotic apoc2 and lpl mutant zebrafish rescues the hematopoietic defect in both. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is identified as an important factor in HSPC expansion. FFA-DHA, but not TG-DHA, rescues the HSPC defects in apoc2 and lpl mutant zebrafish. Reduced blood cell counts are also observed in Apoc2 mutant mice at the time of weaning. These results indicate that LPL-mediated release of the essential fatty acid DHA regulates HSPC expansion and definitive hematopoiesis

Superconductivity in the cobalt-doped V3Si A15 intermetallic compound

The A15 structure of superconductors is a prototypical type-II superconductor that has generated considerable interest since the early history of superconducting materials. This paper discusses the superconducting properties of previously unreported V3-xCoxSi alloys. It is found that the lattice parameter decreases with increasing cobalt-doped content and leads to an increased residual resistivity ratio (RRR) value of the V3-xCoxSi system. Meanwhile, the superconducting transition temperature (Tc) cobalt-doped content. Furthermore, the fitted data show that the increase of cobalt-doped content also reduces the lower/upper critical fields of the V3-xCoxSi system. Type-II superconductivity is demonstrated on all V3-xCoxSi samples. With higher Co-doped content, V3-xCoxSi alloys may have superconducting and structural phase transitions at low-temperature regions. As the electron/atom (e/a) ratio increases, the Tc variation trend of V3Si is as pronounced as in crystalline alloys and monotonically follows the trend observed for amorphous superconductors.Comment: 20 pages, 7 figure

A development potential assessment method for clean energy stations

Clean energy is expected to enter a new stage of large-scale development along with the growing demand for building regional clean energy stations. However, as many regional clean energy stations comprise multiple stations with different output characteristics and complementary coupling, the development potential of these stations cannot be simply based on the superposition of outputs, as this method lacks reasonable assessment results. This study proposes a method of combining Grey relational analysis (GRA), artificial neural network (ANN), and XGBoost algorithm for the potential assessment of clean energy stations. First, GRA and ANN are used for the relational analysis between the output of clean energy stations and meteorological factors. Second, the meteorological factors with high correlation and the existing historical data are used to predict the future outputs of new clean energy stations via XGBoost. Finally, according to the predicted output, an assessment method that includes available capacity coefficient (AOC) and other evaluation indicators is proposed. The case studies in this research prove the effectiveness and applicability of the proposed method

LAMOST meets Gaia: The Galactic Open Clusters

Open Clusters are born and evolve along the Milky Way plane, on them is imprinted the history of the Galactic disc, including the chemical and dynamical evolution. Chemical and dynamical properties of open clusters can be derived from photometric, spectroscopic, and astrometric data of their member stars. Based on the photometric and astrometric data from the Gaia mission, the membership of stars in more than 2000 Galactic clusters has been identified in the literature. The chemical and kinematical properties, however, are still poorly known for many of these clusters. In synergy with the large spectroscopic survey LAMOST (data release 8) and Gaia (data release 2), we report a new comprehensive catalogue of 386 open clusters. This catalogue has homogeneous parameter determinations of radial velocity, metallicity, and dynamical properties, such as orbit, eccentricity, angular momenta, total energy, and 3D Galactic velocity. These parameters allow the first radial velocity determination and the first spectroscopic [Fe/H] determination for 44 and 137 clusters, respectively. The metallicity distribution of majority clusters shows falling trends in the parameter space of the Galactocentric radius, the total energy, and the Z component of angular momentum -- except for two old groups that show flat tails in their own parameter planes. Cluster populations of ages younger and older than 500 Myrs distribute diversely on the disc. The latter has a spatial consistency with the Galactic disc flare. The 3-D spatial comparison between very young clusters (< 100 Myr) and nearby molecular clouds revealed a wide range of metallicity distribution along the Radcliffe gas cloud wave, indicating a possible inhomogeneous mixing or fast star formation along the wave. This catalogue would serve the community as a useful tool to trace the chemical and dynamical evolution of the Milky Way.Comment: accepted for publication on A&

Pseudopodium-enriched atypical kinase 1 mediates angiogenesis by modulating GATA2-dependent VEGFR2 transcription

PEAK1 is a newly described tyrosine kinase and scaffold protein that transmits integrin-mediated extracellular matrix (ECM) signals to facilitate cell movement and growth. While aberrant expression of PEAK1 has been linked to cancer progression, its normal physiological role in vertebrate biology is not known. Here we provide evidence that PEAK1 plays a central role in orchestrating new vessel formation in vertebrates. Deletion of the PEAK1 gene in zebrafish, mice, and human endothelial cells (ECs) induced severe defects in new blood vessel formation due to deficiencies in EC proliferation, survival, and migration. Gene transcriptional and proteomic analyses of PEAK1-deficient ECs revealed a significant loss of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2) mRNA and protein expression, as well as downstream signaling to its effectors, ERK, Akt, and Src kinase. PEAK1 regulates VEGFR2 expression by binding to and increasing the protein stability of the transcription factor GATA-binding protein 2 (GATA2), which controls VEGFR2 transcription. Importantly, PEAK1-GATA2-dependent VEGFR2 expression is mediated by EC adhesion to the ECM and is required for breast cancer-induced new vessel formation in mice. Also, elevated expression of PEAK1 and VEGFR2 mRNA are highly correlated in many human cancers including breast cancer. Together, our findings reveal a novel PEAK1-GATA2-VEGFR2 signaling axis that integrates cell adhesion and growth factor cues from the extracellular environment necessary for new vessel formation during vertebrate development and cancer.NIHNCIAHANIGMS/NIHRay Thomas Edwards FoundationUniv Calif San Diego, Dept Pathol, La Jolla, CA 92093 USAUniv Calif San Diego, Moores Canc Ctr, La Jolla, CA 92093 USAUniv Calif San Diego, Dept Pharmacol, La Jolla, CA 92093 USAUniv Calif San Diego, Skaggs Sch Pharm & Pharmaceut Sci, La Jolla, CA 92093 USAUniv Calif San Diego, Dept Med, La Jolla, CA 92093 USAUniv Fed Sao Paulo, Dept Biochem, Sao Paulo, SP, BrazilUniv Calif San Diego, Sanford Consortium Regenerat Med, La Jolla, CA 92093 USAComenius Univ, Jessenius Fac Med Martin, Dept Mol Med, Biomed Ctr Martin, Martin 03601, SlovakiaUniv Fed Sao Paulo, Dept Biochem, Sao Paulo, SP, BrazilNIH: CA182495NIH: CA184594NIH: CA097022NIH: HL135737NIH: CA050286NCI: CA180374AHA: 16POST27250126NIGMS/NIH: K12GM068524Web of Scienc