6,106 research outputs found
Staphylococcal Periscope proteins Aap, SasG, and Pls project noncanonical legume-like lectin adhesin domains from the bacterial surface
Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis are frequently associated with medical device infections that involve establishment of a bacterial biofilm on the device surface. Staphylococcal surface proteins Aap, SasG, and Pls are members of the Periscope Protein class and have been implicated in biofilm formation and host colonization; they comprise a repetitive region ("B region") and an N-terminal host colonization domain within the "A region," predicted to be a lectin domain. Repetitive E-G5 domains (as found in Aap, SasG, and Pls) form elongated "stalks" that would vary in length with repeat number, resulting in projection of the N-terminal A domain variable distances from the bacterial cell surface. Here, we present the structures of the lectin domains within A regions of SasG, Aap, and Pls and a structure of the Aap lectin domain attached to contiguous E-G5 repeats, suggesting the lectin domains will sit at the tip of the variable length rod. We demonstrate that these isolated domains (Aap, SasG) are sufficient to bind to human host desquamated nasal epithelial cells. Previously, proteolytic cleavage or a deletion within the A domain had been reported to induce biofilm formation; the structures suggest a potential link between these observations. Intriguingly, while the Aap, SasG, and Pls lectin domains bind a metal ion, they lack the nonproline cis peptide bond thought to be key for carbohydrate binding by the lectin fold. This suggestion of noncanonical ligand binding should be a key consideration when investigating the host cell interactions of these bacterial surface proteins
Vacuum Stability, Perturbativity, and Scalar Singlet Dark Matter
We analyze the one-loop vacuum stability and perturbativity bounds on a
singlet extension of the Standard Model (SM) scalar sector containing a scalar
dark matter candidate. We show that the presence of the singlet-doublet quartic
interaction relaxes the vacuum stability lower bound on the SM Higgs mass as a
function of the cutoff and lowers the corresponding upper bound based on
perturbativity considerations. We also find that vacuum stability requirements
may place a lower bound on the singlet dark matter mass for given singlet
quartic self coupling, leading to restrictions on the parameter space
consistent with the observed relic density. We argue that discovery of a light
singlet scalar dark matter particle could provide indirect information on the
singlet quartic self-coupling.Comment: 25 pages, 10 figures; v2 - fixed minor typos; v3 - added to text
discussions of other references, changed coloring of figures for easier black
and white viewin
How do psychiatrists address delusions in first meetings in acute care? A qualitative study
Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution Licens
Sea level: measuring the bounding surfaces of the ocean
The practical need to understand sea level along the coasts, such as for safe navigation given the spatially variable tides, has resulted in tide gauge observations having the distinction of being some of the longest instrumental ocean records. Archives of these records, along with geological constraints, have allowed us to identify the century-scale rise in global sea level. Additional data sources, particularly satellite altimetry missions, have helped us to better identify the rates and causes of sea level rise and the mechanisms leading to spatial variability in the observed rates. Analysis of all of the data reveals the need for long-term and stable observation systems to assess accurately the regional changes as well as to improve our ability to estimate future changes in sea level. While information from many scientific disciplines is needed to understand sea level change, this paper focuses on contributions from geodesy and the role of the ocean’s bounding surfaces: the sea surface and the Earth’s crust
Providing alcohol-related screening and brief interventions to adolescents through health care systems: Obstacles and solutions
Duncan Clark and Howard Moss identify obstacles to alcohol-related screening and treatment for adolescents and propose policy solutions
Large-scale synchrony of gap dynamics and the distribution of understory tree species in maple-beech forests
Large-scale synchronous variations in community dynamics are well documented for a vast array of organisms, but are considerably less understood for forest trees. Because of temporal variations in canopy gap dynamics, forest communities—even old-growth ones—are never at equilibrium at the stand scale. This paucity of equilibrium may also be true at the regional scale. Our objectives were to determine (1) if nonequilibrium dynamics caused by temporal variations in the formation of canopy gaps are regionally synchronized, and (2) if spatiotemporal variations in canopy gap formation aVect the relative abundance of tree species in the understory. We examined these questions by analyzing variations in the suppression and release history of Acer saccharum Marsh. and Fagus grandifolia Ehrh. from 481 growth series of understory saplings taken from 34 mature stands. We observed that (1) the proportion of stems in release as a function of time exhibited a U-shaped pattern over the last 35 years, with the lowest levels occurring during 1975–1985, and that (2) the response to this in terms of species composition was that A. saccharum became more abundant at sites that had the highest proportion of stems in release during 1975–1985. We concluded that the understory dynamics, typically thought of as a stand-scale process, may be regionally synchronized
Morphology of the megalopa of the mud crab, Rhithropanopeus harrisii (Gould, 1841) (Decapoda, Brachyura, Panopeidae), identified by DNA barcode.
The morphology of the megalopa stage of the
panopeid Rhithropanopeus harrisii is redescribed and
illustrated in detail from plankton specimens identified by
DNA barcode (16S mtDNA) as previous descriptions do
not meet the current standard of brachyuran larval
description. Several morphological characters vary widely
from those of other panopeid species which could cast
some doubt on the species’ placement in the same family.
Besides, some anomalous megalopae of R. harrisii were
found among specimens reared at the laboratory from
zoeae collected in the plankton. These anomalous morphological
features are discussed in terms of problems
associated with laboratory rearing conditions
Posthumanist Education
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