Alien Registration- Maslen, Helen L. (Madison, Somerset County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/7096/thumbnail.jp

Molecular basis of APC/C regulation by the spindle assembly checkpoint.

In the dividing eukaryotic cell, the spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC) ensures that each daughter cell inherits an identical set of chromosomes. The SAC coordinates the correct attachment of sister chromatid kinetochores to the mitotic spindle with activation of the anaphase-promoting complex (APC/C), the E3 ubiquitin ligase responsible for initiating chromosome separation. In response to unattached kinetochores, the SAC generates the mitotic checkpoint complex (MCC), which inhibits the APC/C and delays chromosome segregation. By cryo-electron microscopy, here we determine the near-atomic resolution structure of a human APC/C–MCC complex (APC/C(MCC)). Degron-like sequences of the MCC subunit BubR1 block degron recognition sites on Cdc20, the APC/C coactivator subunit responsible for substrate interactions. BubR1 also obstructs binding of the initiating E2 enzyme UbcH10 to repress APC/C ubiquitination activity. Conformational variability of the complex enables UbcH10 association, and structural analysis shows how the Cdc20 subunit intrinsic to the MCC (Cdc20(MCC)) is ubiquitinated, a process that results in APC/C reactivation when the SAC is silenced

Sequences in the cytoplasmic tail of SARS-CoV-2 Spike facilitate expression at the cell surface and syncytia formation.

The Spike (S) protein of SARS-CoV-2 binds ACE2 to direct fusion with host cells. S comprises a large external domain, a transmembrane domain, and a short cytoplasmic tail. Understanding the intracellular trafficking of S is relevant to SARS-CoV-2 infection, and to vaccines expressing full-length S from mRNA or adenovirus vectors. Here we report a proteomic screen for cellular factors that interact with the cytoplasmic tail of S. We confirm interactions with the COPI and COPII vesicle coats, ERM family actin regulators, and the WIPI3 autophagy component. The COPII binding site promotes exit from the endoplasmic reticulum, and although binding to COPI should retain S in the early Golgi where viral budding occurs, there is a suboptimal histidine residue in the recognition motif. As a result, S leaks to the surface where it accumulates and can direct the formation of multinucleate syncytia. Thus, the trafficking signals in the tail of S indicate that syncytia play a role in the SARS-CoV-2 lifecycle

Fast spin +-2 spherical harmonics transforms and application in cosmology

A fast and exact algorithm is developed for the spin +-2 spherical harmonics transforms on equi-angular pixelizations on the sphere. It is based on the Driscoll and Healy fast scalar spherical harmonics transform. The theoretical exactness of the transform relies on a sampling theorem. The associated asymptotic complexity is of order O(L^2 log^2_2(L)), where 2L stands for the square-root of the number of sampling points on the sphere, also setting a band limit L for the spin +-2 functions considered. The algorithm is presented as an alternative to existing fast algorithms with an asymptotic complexity of order O(L^3) on other pixelizations. We also illustrate these generic developments through their application in cosmology, for the analysis of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization data.Comment: 20 pages, 2 figures. Version accepted for publication in J. Comput. Phys

Spectral Analysis of the Supreme Court

The focus of this paper is the linear algebraic framework in which the spectral analysis of voting data like that above is carried out. As we will show, this framework can be used to pinpoint voting coalitions in small voting bodies like the United States Supreme Court. Our goal is to show how simple ideas from linear algebra can come together to say something interesting about voting. And what could be more simple than where our story begins— with counting

DEK influences the trade-off between growth and arrest via H2A.Z-nucleosomes in Arabidopsis

The decision of whether to grow and proliferate or to restrict growth and develop resilience to stress is a key biological trade-off. In plants, constitutive growth results in increased sensitivity to environmental stress1,2. The underlying mechanisms controlling this decision are however not well understood. We used temperature as a cue to discover regulators of this process in plants, as it both enhances growth and development rates within a specific range and is also a stress at extremes. We found that the conserved chromatin-associated protein DEK plays a central role in balancing the response between growth and arrest in Arabidopsis, and it does this via H2A.Z-nucleosomes. DEK target genes show two distinct categories of chromatin architecture based on the distribution of H2A.Z in +1 nucleosome and gene body, and these predict induction or repression by DEK. We show that these chromatin signatures of DEK target genes are conserved in human cells, suggesting that DEK may act through an evolutionarily conserved mechanism to control the balance between growth and arrest in plants and animals

Arsenite sorption and co-precipitation with calcite

Sorption of As(III) by calcite was investigated as a function of As(III) concentration, time and pH. The sorption isotherm, i.e. the log As(III) vs. log [As(OH)3 degrees / Assat] plot is S-shaped and has been modelled on an extended version of the surface precipitation model. At low concentrations, As(OH)3 degrees is adsorbed by complexation to surface Ca surface sites, as previously described by the X-ray standing wave technique. The inflexion point of the isotherm, where As(OH)3 degrees is limited by the amount of surface sites (ST), yields 6 sites nm-2 in good agreement with crystallographic data. Beyond this value, the amount of sorbed arsenic increases linearly with solution concentration, up to the saturation of arsenic with respect to the precipitation of CaHAsO3(s). The solid solutions formed in this concentration range were examined by X-ray and neutron diffraction. The doped calcite lattice parameters increase with arsenic content while c/a ratio remains constant. Our results made on bulk calcite on the atomic displacement of As atoms along [0001] direction extend those published by Cheng et al., (1999) on calcite surface. This study provides a molecular-level explanation for why As(III) is trapped by calcite in industrial treatments.Comment: 9 page

High Performance Magnetic Bearings for Aero Applications

Several previous annual reports were written and numerous papers published on the topics for this grant. That work is not repeated here in this final report. Only the work completed in the final year of the grant is presented in this final report. This final year effort concentrated on power loss measurements in magnetic bearing rotors. The effect of rotor power losses in magnetic bearings are very important for many applications. In some cases, these losses must be minimized to maximize the length of time the rotating machine can operate on a fixed energy or power supply. Examples include aircraft gas turbine engines, space devices, or energy storage flywheels. In other applications, the heating caused by the magnetic bearing must be removed. Excessive heating can be a significant problem in machines as diverse as large compressors, electric motors, textile spindles, and artificial heart pumps