Structures of the CCR5 N Terminus and of a Tyrosine-Sulfated Antibody with HIV-1 gp120 and CD4

The CCR5 co-receptor binds to the HIV-l gp120 envelope glycoprotein and facilitates HIV-l entry into cells. Its N terminus is tyrosine-sulfated, as are many antibodies that react with the co-receptor binding site on gp120. We applied nuclear magnetic resonance and crystallographic techniques to analyze the structure of the CCR5 N terminus and that of the tyrosine-sulfated antibody 412d in complex with gp120 and CD4. The conformations of tyrosine-sulfated regions of CCR5 (α-helix) and 412d (extendedloop) are surprisingly different. Nonetheless, a critical sulfotyrosine on CCR5 and on 412d induces similar structural rearrangements in gp120. These results now provide a framework for understanding HIV-l interactions with the CCR5 N terminus during viral entry and define a conserved site on gp120, whose recognition of sulfotyrosine engenders posttranslational mimicry by the immune system

Structures of the CCR5 N Terminus and of a Tyrosine-Sulfated Antibody with HIV-1 gp120 and CD4

The CCR5 co-receptor binds to the HIV-l gp120 envelope glycoprotein and facilitates HIV-l entry into cells. Its N terminus is tyrosine-sulfated, as are many antibodies that react with the co-receptor binding site on gp120. We applied nuclear magnetic resonance and crystallographic techniques to analyze the structure of the CCR5 N terminus and that of the tyrosine-sulfated antibody 412d in complex with gp120 and CD4. The conformations of tyrosine-sulfated regions of CCR5 (α-helix) and 412d (extendedloop) are surprisingly different. Nonetheless, a critical sulfotyrosine on CCR5 and on 412d induces similar structural rearrangements in gp120. These results now provide a framework for understanding HIV-l interactions with the CCR5 N terminus during viral entry and define a conserved site on gp120, whose recognition of sulfotyrosine engenders posttranslational mimicry by the immune system

Effect of Layer-Stacking on the Electronic Structure of Graphene Nanoribbons

The evolution of electronic structure of graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) as a function of the number of layers stacked together is investigated using \textit{ab initio} density functional theory (DFT) including interlayer van der Waals interactions. Multilayer armchair GNRs (AGNRs), similar to single-layer AGNRs, exhibit three classes of band gaps depending on their width. In zigzag GNRs (ZGNRs), the geometry relaxation resulting from interlayer interactions plays a crucial role in determining the magnetic polarization and the band structure. The antiferromagnetic (AF) interlayer coupling is more stable compared to the ferromagnetic (FM) interlayer coupling. ZGNRs with the AF in-layer and AF interlayer coupling have a finite band gap while ZGNRs with the FM in-layer and AF interlayer coupling do not have a band gap. The ground state of the bi-layer ZGNR is non-magnetic with a small but finite band gap. The magnetic ordering is less stable in multilayer ZGNRs compared to single-layer ZGNRs. The quasipartcle GW corrections are smaller for bilayer GNRs compared to single-layer GNRs because of the reduced Coulomb effects in bilayer GNRs compared to single-layer GNRs.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure

Reaction rates and transport in neutron stars

Understanding signals from neutron stars requires knowledge about the transport inside the star. We review the transport properties and the underlying reaction rates of dense hadronic and quark matter in the crust and the core of neutron stars and point out open problems and future directions.Comment: 74 pages; commissioned for the book "Physics and Astrophysics of Neutron Stars", NewCompStar COST Action MP1304; version 3: minor changes, references updated, overview graphic added in the introduction, improvements in Sec IV.A.

Search for new phenomena in final states with an energetic jet and large missing transverse momentum in pp collisions at √ s = 8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

Results of a search for new phenomena in final states with an energetic jet and large missing transverse momentum are reported. The search uses 20.3 fb−1 of √ s = 8 TeV data collected in 2012 with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Events are required to have at least one jet with pT > 120 GeV and no leptons. Nine signal regions are considered with increasing missing transverse momentum requirements between Emiss T > 150 GeV and Emiss T > 700 GeV. Good agreement is observed between the number of events in data and Standard Model expectations. The results are translated into exclusion limits on models with either large extra spatial dimensions, pair production of weakly interacting dark matter candidates, or production of very light gravitinos in a gauge-mediated supersymmetric model. In addition, limits on the production of an invisibly decaying Higgs-like boson leading to similar topologies in the final state are presente

Judgment of Learning Accuracy in High-functioning Adolescents and Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder

This study explored whether adults and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) demonstrate difficulties making metacognitive judgments, specifically judgments of learning. Across two experiments, the study examined whether individuals with ASD could accurately judge whether they had learnt a piece of information (in this case word pairs). In Experiment 1, adults with ASD demonstrated typical accuracy on a standard ‘cue-alone’ judgment of learning (JOL) task, compared to age- and IQmatched neurotypical adults. Additionally, in Experiment 2, adolescents with ASD demonstrated typical accuracy on both a standard ‘cue-alone’ JOL task, and a ‘cue-target’ JOL task. These results suggest that JOL accuracy is unimpaired in ASD. These results have important implications for both theories of metacognition in ASD and educational practise

Electromagnetic Wave Theory and Applications

Contains table of contents for Section 3 and reports on seven research projects.Joint Services Electronics Program Contract DAAL03-89-C-0001National Science Foundation Contract ECS 86-20029Schlumberger- Doll ResearchU.S. Army Research Office Contract DAAL03 88-K-0057National Aeronautics and Space Administration Contract NAGW-1617U.S. Navy - Office of Naval Research Contract N00014-89-J-1107National Aeronautics and Space Administration Contract NAGW-1272National Aeronautics and Space Administration Contract 958461Simulation Technologies Contract DAAH01-87-C-0679U.S. Army Corp of Engineers Contract DACA39-87-K-0022WaveTracer, Inc.U.S. Navy - Office of Naval Research Contract N00014-89-J-1019U.S. Air Force Systems - Electronic Systems Division Contract F19628-88-K-0013Digital Equipment CorporationInternational Business Machines CorporationU.S. Department of Transportation Contract DTRS-57-88-C-0007

Rare copy number variation in cerebral palsy

As per publisher: published online 22 May 2013Recent studies have established the role of rare copy number variants (CNVs) in several neurological disorders but the contribution of rare CNVs to cerebral palsy (CP) is not known. Fifty Caucasian families having children with CP were studied using two microarray designs. Potentially pathogenic, rare (<1% population frequency) CNVs were identified, and their frequency determined, by comparing the CNVs found in cases with 8329 adult controls with no known neurological disorders. Ten of the 50 cases (20%) had rare CNVs of potential relevance to CP; there were a total of 14 CNVs, which were observed in <0.1% (<8/8329) of the control population. Eight inherited from an unaffected mother: a 751-kb deletion including FSCB, a 1.5-Mb duplication of 7q21.13, a 534-kb duplication of 15q11.2, a 446-kb duplication including CTNND2, a 219-kb duplication including MCPH1, a 169-kb duplication of 22q13.33, a 64-kb duplication of MC2R, and a 135-bp exonic deletion of SLC06A1. Three inherited from an unaffected father: a 386-kb deletion of 12p12.2-p12.1, a 234-kb duplication of 10q26.13, and a 4-kb exonic deletion of COPS3. The inheritance was unknown for three CNVs: a 157-bp exonic deletion of ACOX1, a 693-kb duplication of 17q25.3, and a 265-kb duplication of DAAM1. This is the first systematic study of CNVs in CP, and although it did not identify de novo mutations, has shown inherited, rare CNVs involving potentially pathogenic genes and pathways requiring further investigation.Gai McMichael, Santhosh Girirajan, Andres Moreno-De-Luca, Jozef Gecz, Chloe Shard, Lam Son Nguyen, Jillian Nicholl, Catherine Gibson, Eric Haan, Evan Eichler, Christa Lese Martin and Alastair MacLenna

Electromagnetic Wave Theory and Applications

Contains table of contents for Section 3, reports on six research projects and a list of publications and conference papers.Joint Services Electronics Program Contract DAAL03-89-C-0001National Science Foundation Grant ECS 86-20029Schlumberger- Doll ResearchU.S. Army Research Office Contract DAAL03 88-K-0057U.S. Navy - Office of Naval Research Contract N00014-90-J-1002National Aeronautics and Space Administration Grant NAGW-1617U.S. Navy - Office of Naval Research Grant N00014-89-J-1107National Aeronautics and Space Administration Grant NAGW-1272National Aeronautics and Space Administration Agreement 958461U.S. Army - Corps of Engineers Contract DACA39-87-K-0022U.S. Air Force - Electronic Systems Division Contract F19628-88-K-0013U.S. Navy - Office of Naval Research Grant N00014-89-J-1019Digital Equipment CorporationIBM CorporationU.S. Department of Transportation Contract DTRS-57-88-C-00078Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency Contract MDA972-90-C-002

Higher Plant Cytochrome b5 Polypeptides Modulate Fatty Acid Desaturation

BACKGROUND: Synthesis of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in the endoplasmic reticulum of plants typically involves the fatty acid desaturases FAD2 and FAD3, which use cytochrome b(5) (Cb5) as an electron donor. Higher plants are reported to have multiple isoforms of Cb5, in contrast to a single Cb5 in mammals and yeast. Despite the wealth of information available on the roles of FAD2 and FAD3 in PUFA synthesis, information regarding the contributions of various Cb5 isoforms in desaturase-mediated reactions is limited. RESULTS: The present functional characterization of Cb5 polypeptides revealed that all Arabidopsis Cb5 isoforms are not similarly efficient in ω-6 desaturation, as evidenced by significant variation in their product outcomes in yeast-based functional assays. On the other hand, characterization of Cb5 polypeptides of soybean (Glycine max) suggested that similar ω-6 desaturation efficiencies were shared by various isoforms. With regard to ω-3 desaturation, certain Cb5 genes of both Arabidopsis and soybean were shown to facilitate the accumulation of more desaturation products than others when co-expressed with their native FAD3. Additionally, similar trends of differential desaturation product accumulation were also observed with most Cb5 genes of both soybean and Arabidopsis even if co-expressed with non-native FAD3. CONCLUSIONS: The present study reports the first description of the differential nature of the Cb5 genes of higher plants in fatty acid desaturation and further suggests that ω-3/ω-6 desaturation product outcome is determined by the nature of both the Cb5 isoform and the fatty acid desaturases