RNA:protein ratio of the unicellular organism as a characteristic of phosphorous and nitrogen stoichiometry and of the cellular requirement of ribosomes for protein synthesis

Background Mean phosphorous:nitrogen (P:N) ratios and relationships of P:N ratios with the growth rate of organisms indicate a surprising similarity among and within microbial species, plants, and insect herbivores. To reveal the cellular mechanisms underling this similarity, the macromolecular composition of seven microorganisms and the effect of specific growth rate (SGR) on RNA:protein ratio, the number of ribosomes, and peptide elongation rate (PER) were analyzed under different conditions of exponential growth. Results It was found that P:N ratios calculated from RNA and protein contents in these particular organisms were in the same range as the mean ratios reported for diverse organisms and had similar positive relationships with growth rate, consistent with the growth-rate hypothesis. The efficiency of protein synthesis in microorganisms is estimated as the number of active ribosomes required for the incorporation of one amino acid into the synthesized protein. This parameter is calculated as the SGR:PER ratio. Experimental and theoretical evidence indicated that the requirement of ribosomes for protein synthesis is proportional to the RNA:protein ratio. The constant of proportionality had the same values for all organisms, and was derived mechanistically from the characteristics of the protein-synthesis machinery of the cell (the number of nucleotides per ribosome, the average masses of nucleotides and amino acids, the fraction of ribosomal RNA in the total RNA, and the fraction of active ribosomes). Impairment of the growth conditions decreased the RNA:protein ratio and increased the overall efficiency of protein synthesis in the microorganisms. Conclusion Our results suggest that the decrease in RNA:protein and estimated P:N ratios with decrease in the growth rate of the microorganism is a consequence of an increased overall efficiency of protein synthesis in the cell resulting from activation of the general stress response and increased transcription of cellular maintenance genes at the expense of growth related genes. The strong link between P:N stoichiometry, RNA:protein ratio, ribosomal requirement for protein synthesis, and growth rate of microorganisms indicated by the study could be used to characterize the N and P economy of complex ecosystems such as soils and the oceans

The winds and currents mission concept

© The Author(s), 2019. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Rodriguez, E., Bourassa, M., Chelton, D., Farrar, J. T., Long, D., Perkovic-Martin, D., & Samelson, R. The winds and currents mission concept. Frontiers in Marine Science, 6, (2019): 438, doi:10.3389/fmars.2019.00438.The Winds and Currents Mission (WaCM) is a proposed approach to meet the need identified by the NRC Decadal Survey for the simultaneous measurements of ocean vector winds and currents. WaCM features a Ka-band pencil-beam Doppler scatterometer able to map ocean winds and currents globally. We review the principles behind the WaCM measurement and the requirements driving the mission. We then present an overview of the WaCM observatory and tie its capabilities to other OceanObs reviews and measurement approaches.ER was funded under NASA grant NNN13D462T. DC was funded under NASA grant NNX10AO98G. JF was funded under NASA grants NNX14AM71G and NNX16AH76G. DL was funded under NASA grant NNX14AM67G. DP-M was funded under NASA grant NNH13ZDA001N. RS was funded under NASA grant NNX14AM66G

The origin of platelets enabled the evolution of eutherian placentation

Invasive placentation with extended pregnancy is a shared derived characteristic unique to eutherian mammals that possess a highly effective system of haemostasis, platelets. These are found in all mammals but no other group of animals. We propose that platelets and megakaryocytes (large polyploid nucleated bone marrow cells that produce platelets) evolved from an ancestral 2 N thrombocyte by polyploidization and that the possession of platelets enabled the evolution of invasive placentation. This could explain why invasive placentation is limited to mammals

Radiative orbital electron capture by the atomic nucleus

The rate for the photon emission accompanying orbital 1S electron capture by the atomic nucleus is recalculated. While a photon can be emitted by the electron or by the nucleus, the use of the length gauge significantly suppresses the nuclear contribution. Our calculations resolve the long standing discrepancy of theoretical predictions with experimental data for $\Delta J=2$ forbidden transitions. We illustrate the results by comparison with the data established experimentally for the first forbidden unique decays of $^{41}$Ca and $^{204}$Tl.Comment: 18 pages, 2 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.