Conformational plasticity of RNA for target recognition as revealed by the 2.15 Å crystal structure of a human IgG–aptamer complex

Aptamers are short single-stranded nucleic acids with high affinity to target molecules and are applicable to therapeutics and diagnostics. Regardless of an increasing number of reported aptamers, the structural basis of the interaction of RNA aptamer with proteins is poorly understood. Here, we determined the 2.15 Å crystal structure of the Fc fragment of human IgG1 (hFc1) complexed with an anti-Fc RNA aptamer. The aptamer adopts a characteristic structure fit to hFc1 that is stabilized by a calcium ion, and the binding activity of the aptamer can be controlled many times by calcium chelation and addition. Importantly, the aptamer–hFc1 interaction involves mainly van der Waals contacts and hydrogen bonds rather than electrostatic forces, in contrast to other known aptamer–protein complexes. Moreover, the aptamer–hFc1 interaction involves human IgG-specific amino acids, rendering the aptamer specific to human IgGs, and not crossreactive to other species IgGs. Hence, the aptamer is a potent alternative for protein A affinity purification of Fc-fusion proteins and therapeutic antibodies. These results demonstrate, from a structural viewpoint, that conformational plasticity and selectivity of an RNA aptamer is achieved by multiple interactions other than electrostatic forces, which is applicable to many protein targets of low or no affinity to nucleic acids

The Japanese space gravitational wave antenna; DECIGO

DECi-hertz Interferometer Gravitational wave Observatory (DECIGO) is the future Japanese space gravitational wave antenna. DECIGO is expected to open a new window of observation for gravitational wave astronomy especially between 0.1 Hz and 10 Hz, revealing various mysteries of the universe such as dark energy, formation mechanism of supermassive black holes, and inflation of the universe. The pre-conceptual design of DECIGO consists of three drag-free spacecraft, whose relative displacements are measured by a differential Fabry– Perot Michelson interferometer. We plan to launch two missions, DECIGO pathfinder and pre- DECIGO first and finally DECIGO in 2024

DECIGO pathfinder

DECIGO pathfinder (DPF) is a milestone satellite mission for DECIGO (DECi-hertz Interferometer Gravitational wave Observatory) which is a future space gravitational wave antenna. DECIGO is expected to provide us fruitful insights into the universe, in particular about dark energy, a formation mechanism of supermassive black holes, and the inflation of the universe. Since DECIGO will be an extremely large mission which will formed by three drag-free spacecraft with 1000m separation, it is significant to gain the technical feasibility of DECIGO before its planned launch in 2024. Thus, we are planning to launch two milestone missions: DPF and pre-DECIGO. The conceptual design and current status of the first milestone mission, DPF, are reviewed in this article

TonEBP suppresses adipogenesis and insulin sensitivity by blocking epigenetic transition of PPAR gamma 2

TonEBP is a key transcription factor in cellular adaptation to hypertonic stress, and also in macrophage activation. Since TonEBP is involved in inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and atherosclerosis, we asked whether TonEBP played a role in adipogenesis and insulin resistance. Here we report that TonEBP suppresses adipogenesis and insulin signaling by inhibiting expression of the key transcription factor PPAR gamma 2. TonEBP binds to the PPAR gamma 2 promoter and blocks the epigenetic transition of the locus which is required for the activation of the promoter. When TonEBP expression is reduced, the epigenetic transition and PPAR gamma 2 expression are markedly increased leading to enhanced adipogenesis and insulin response while inflammation is reduced. Thus, TonEBP is an independent determinant of adipose insulin sensitivity and inflammation. TonEBP is an attractive therapeutic target for insulin resistance in lieu of PPAR gamma agonistsopen0

Radiation therapy and photodynamic therapy for biliary tract and ampullary carcinomas

The purpose of radiation therapy for unresectable biliary tract cancer is to prolong survival or prolong stent patency, and to provide palliation of pain. For unresectable bile duct cancer, there are a number of studies showing that radiation therapy is superior to the best supportive care. Although radiation therapy is used in many institutions, no large randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have been performed to date and the evidence level supporting the superiority of this treatment is low. Because long-term relief of jaundice is difficult without using biliary stenting, a combination of radiation therapy and stent placement is commonly used. As radiation therapy, external-beam radiation therapy is usually performed, but combined use of intraluminal brachytherapy with external beam radiation therapy is more useful for making the treatment more effective. There are many reports demonstrating improved response rates as well as extended survival and time to recurrence achieved by this combination therapy. Despite the low level of the evidence, this combination therapy is performed at many institutions. It is expected that multiinstitutional RCTs will be carried out. Unresectable gallbladder cancer with a large focus is usually extensive, and normal organs with high radio sensitivity exist contiguously with it. Therefore, only limited anticancer effects are to be expected from external beam radiation therapy for this type of cancer. The number of reports on ampullary cancer is small and the role of radiation therapy in this cancer has not been established. Combination treatment for ampullary cancer consists of either a single use of intraoperative radiation therapy, postoperative external beam radiation therapy or intraluminal brachytherapy, or a combination of two or three of these therapies. Intraoperative radiation therapy is superior in that it enables precise irradiation to the target site, thereby protecting adjacent highly radiosensitive normal tissues from irradiation. There are reports showing extended survival, although not significant, in groups undergoing intraoperative or postoperative radiation therapy compared with groups without radiation therapy. To date, there are no reports of large RCTs focusing on the significance of radiation therapy as a postoperative adjuvant treatment, so its usefulness as a postoperative adjuvant treatment is not proven. An alternative treatment is photodynamic therapy. There is an RCT demonstrating that, in unresectable bile duct cancer, extended survival and improved quality of life (QOL) have been achieved through a combination of photodynamic therapy and biliary stenting, compared with biliary stenting alone. Results from large RCTs are desired

The cerebrovascular basement membrane: Role in the clearance of β-amyloid and cerebral amyloid angiopathy

Cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA), the accumulation of β-amyloid (Aβ) peptides in the walls of cerebral blood vessels, is observed in the majority of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) brains and is thought to be due to a failure of the aging brain to clear Aβ. Perivascular drainage of Aβ along cerebrovascular basement membranes (CVBMs) is one of the mechanisms by which Aβ is removed from the brain. CVBMs are specialized sheets of extracellular matrix that provide structural and functional support for cerebral blood vessels. Changes in CVBM composition and structure are observed in the aged and AD brain and may contribute to the development and progression of CAA. This review summarizes the properties of the CVBM, its role in mediating clearance of interstitial fluids and solutes from the brain, and evidence supporting a role for CVBM in the etiology of CAA

Hereditary and Sporadic Forms of Aβ-Cerebrovascular Amyloidosis and Relevant Transgenic Mouse Models

Cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) refers to the specific deposition of amyloid fibrils in the leptomeningeal and cerebral blood vessel walls, often causing secondary vascular degenerative changes. Although many kinds of peptides are known to be deposited as vascular amyloid, amyloid-β (Aβ)-CAA is the most common type associated with normal aging, sporadic CAA, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Down’s syndrome. Moreover, Aβ-CAA is also associated with rare hereditary cerebrovascular amyloidosis due to mutations within the Aβ domain of the amyloid precursor protein (APP) such as Dutch and Flemish APP mutations. Genetics and clinicopathological studies on these familial diseases as well as sporadic conditions have already shown that CAA not only causes haemorrhagic and ischemic strokes, but also leads to progressive dementia. Transgenic mouse models based on familial AD mutations have also successfully reproduced many of the features found in human disease, providing us with important insights into the pathogenesis of CAA. Importantly, such studies have pointed out that specific vastopic Aβ variants or an unaltered Aβ42/Aβ40 ratio favor vascular Aβ deposition over parenchymal plaques, but higher than critical levels of Aβ40 are also observed to be anti-amyloidogenic. These data would be important in the development of therapies targeting amyloid in vessels

The status of DECIGO

DECIGO (DECi-hertz Interferometer Gravitational wave Observatory) is the planned Japanese space gravitational wave antenna, aiming to detect gravitational waves from astrophysically and cosmologically significant sources mainly between 0.1 Hz and 10 Hz and thus to open a new window for gravitational wave astronomy and for the universe. DECIGO will consists of three drag-free spacecraft arranged in an equilateral triangle with 1000 km arm lengths whose relative displacements are measured by a differential Fabry-Perot interferometer, and four units of triangular Fabry-Perot interferometers are arranged on heliocentric orbit around the sun. DECIGO is vary ambitious mission, we plan to launch DECIGO in era of 2030s after precursor satellite mission, B-DECIGO. B-DECIGO is essentially smaller version of DECIGO: B-DECIGO consists of three spacecraft arranged in an triangle with 100 km arm lengths orbiting 2000 km above the surface of the earth. It is hoped that the launch date will be late 2020s for the present