Chemical Defense of an Asian Snake Reflects Local Availability of Toxic Prey and Hatchling Diet

Species that sequester toxins from prey for their own defense against predators may exhibit population-level variation in their chemical arsenal that reflects the availability of chemically defended prey in their habitat. Rhabdophis tigrinus is an Asian snake that possesses defensive glands in the skin of its neck (nuchal glands\u27), which typically contain toxic bufadienolide steroids that the snakes sequester from consumed toads. In this study, we compared the chemistry of the nuchal gland fluid of R.tigrinus from toad-rich and toad-free islands in Japan and determined the effect of diet on the nuchal gland constituents. Our findings demonstrate that captive-hatched juveniles from toad-rich Ishima Island that had not been fed toads possess defensive bufadienolides in their nuchal glands, presumably due to maternal provisioning of these sequestered compounds. Wild-caught juveniles from Ishima possess large quantities of bufadienolides, which could result from a combination of maternal provisioning and sequestration of these defensive compounds from consumed toads. Interestingly, juvenile females from Ishima possess larger quantities of bufadienolides than do juvenile males, whereas a small sample of field-collected snakes suggests that adult males contain larger quantities of bufadienolides than do adult females. Captive-born hatchlings from Kinkasan Island lack bufadienolides in their nuchal glands, reflecting the absence of toads on that island, but they can sequester bufadienolides by feeding on toads (Bufo japonicus) in captivity. The presence of large quantities of bufadienolides in the nuchal glands of R.tigrinus from Ishima may reduce the risk of predation by providing an effective chemical defense, whereas snakes on Kinkasan may experience increased predation due to the lack of defensive compounds in their nuchal glands

Analysis of circadian pattern reveals tissue-specific alternative transcription in leptin signaling pathway

*Background*
It has been previously reported that most mammalian genes display a circadian oscillation in their baseline expression. Consequently, the phase and amplitude of each component of a signal transduction cascade has downstream consequences. 

*Results*
We report our analysis of alternative transcripts in the leptin signaling pathway which is responsible for the systemic regulation of macronutrient storage and energy balance. We focused on the circadian expression pattern of a critical component of the leptin signaling system, suppressor of cytokine signaling 3 (SOCS3). On an Affymetrix GeneChip 430A2 microarray, this gene is represented by three probe sets targeting different regions within the 3’ end of the last exon. We demonstrate that in murine brown adipose tissue two downstream 3’ probe sets experience circadian baseline oscillation in counter-phase to the upstream probe set. Such differences in expression patterns are a telltale sign of alternative splicing within the last exon of SOCS3. In contrast, all three probe sets oscillated in a common phase in murine liver and white adipose tissue. This suggests that the regulation of SOCS3 expression in brown fat is tissue specific. Another component of the signaling pathway, Janus kinase (JAK), is directly regulated by SOCS and has alternative transcript probe sets oscillating in counter-phase in a white adipose tissue specific manner.
 
*Conclusion*
We hypothesize that differential oscillation of alternative transcripts may provide a mechanism to maintain steady levels of expression in spite of circadian baseline variation

Effect of substrate thermal resistance on space-domain microchannel

In recent years, Fluorescent Melting Curve Analysis (FMCA) has become an almost ubiquitous feature of commercial quantitative PCR (qPCR) thermal cyclers. Here a micro-fluidic device is presented capable of performing FMCA within a microchannel. The device consists of modular thermally conductive blocks which can sandwich a microfluidic substrate. Opposing ends of the blocks are held at differing temperatures and a linear thermal gradient is generated along the microfluidic channel. Fluorescent measurements taken from a sample as it passes along the micro-fluidic channel permits fluorescent melting curves to be generated. In this study we measure DNA melting temperature from two plasmid fragments. The effects of flow velocity and ramp-rate are investigated, and measured melting curves are compared to those acquired from a commercially available PCR thermocycler

The mechanism of twin thickening and the elastic strain state of TWIP steel nanotwins

A Twinning Induced Plasticity (TWIP) steel with a nominal composition of Fe-16.4Mn-0.9C-0.5Si-0.05Nb-0.05V was deformed to an engineering strain of 6\%. The strain around the deformation twins were mapped using the 4D-STEM technique. Strain mapping showed a large average elastic strain of approximately 6\% in the directions parallel and perpendicular to the twinning direction. However, the large average strain comprised of several hot spots of even larger strains of up to 12\%. These hot spots could be attributed to a high density of sessile Frank dislocations on the twin boundary and correspond to shear stresses of 1--1.5 GPa. The strain and therefore stress fields are significantly larger than other materials known to twin and are speculated to be responsible for the early thickness saturation of TWIP steel nanotwins. The ability to keep twins extremely thin helps improve grain fragmentation, \textit{i.e.} the dynamic Hall-Petch effect, and underpins the large elongations and strain hardening rates in TWIP steels

Use of near infrared reflectance spectroscopy to predict nitrogen uptake by winter wheat within fields with high variability in organic matter

In this study, the ability to predict N-uptake in winter wheat crops using NIR-spectroscopy on soil samples was evaluated. Soil samples were taken in unfertilized plots in one winter wheat field during three years (1997-1999) and in another winter wheat field nearby in one year (2000). Soil samples were analyzed for organic C content and their NIR-spectra. N-uptake was measured as total N-content in aboveground plant materials at harvest. Models calibrated to predict N-uptake were internally cross validated and validated across years and across fields. Cross-validated calibrations predicted N-uptake with an average error of 12.1 to 15.4 kg N ha-1. The standard deviation divided by this error (RPD) ranged between 1.9 and 2.5. In comparison, the corresponding calibrations based on organic C alone had an error from 11.7 to 28.2 kg N ha-1 and RPDs from 1.3 to 2.5. In three of four annual calibrations within a field, the NIR-based calibrations worked better than the organic C based calibrations. The prediction of N-uptake across years, but within a field, worked slightly better with an organic C based calibration than with a NIR based one, RPD = 1.9 and 1.7 respectively. Across fields, the corresponding difference was large in favour of the NIR-calibration, RPD = 2.5 for the NIR-calibration and 1.5 for the organic C calibration. It was concluded that NIR-spectroscopy integrates information about organic C with other relevant soil components and therefore has a good potential to predict complex functions of soils such as N-mineralization. A relatively good agreement of spectral relationships to parameters related to the N-mineralization of datasets across the world suggests that more general models can be calibrated

py4DSTEM: a software package for multimodal analysis of four-dimensional scanning transmission electron microscopy datasets

Scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) allows for imaging, diffraction, and spectroscopy of materials on length scales ranging from microns to atoms. By using a high-speed, direct electron detector, it is now possible to record a full 2D image of the diffracted electron beam at each probe position, typically a 2D grid of probe positions. These 4D-STEM datasets are rich in information, including signatures of the local structure, orientation, deformation, electromagnetic fields and other sample-dependent properties. However, extracting this information requires complex analysis pipelines, from data wrangling to calibration to analysis to visualization, all while maintaining robustness against imaging distortions and artifacts. In this paper, we present py4DSTEM, an analysis toolkit for measuring material properties from 4D-STEM datasets, written in the Python language and released with an open source license. We describe the algorithmic steps for dataset calibration and various 4D-STEM property measurements in detail, and present results from several experimental datasets. We have also implemented a simple and universal file format appropriate for electron microscopy data in py4DSTEM, which uses the open source HDF5 standard. We hope this tool will benefit the research community, helps to move the developing standards for data and computational methods in electron microscopy, and invite the community to contribute to this ongoing, fully open-source project

Correlative analysis of structure and chemistry of LixFePO4 platelets using 4D-STEM and X-ray ptychography

Lithium iron phosphate (LixFePO4), a cathode material used in rechargeable Li-ion batteries, phase separates upon de/lithiation under equilibrium. The interfacial structure and chemistry within these cathode materials affects Li-ion transport, and therefore battery performance. Correlative imaging of LixFePO4 was performed using four-dimensional scanning transmission electron microscopy (4D-STEM), scanning transmission X-ray microscopy (STXM), and X-ray ptychography in order to analyze the local structure and chemistry of the same particle set. Over 50,000 diffraction patterns from 10 particles provided measurements of both structure and chemistry at a nanoscale spatial resolution (16.6-49.5 nm) over wide (several micron) fields-of-view with statistical robustness.LixFePO4 particles at varying stages of delithiation were measured to examine the evolution of structure and chemistry as a function of delithiation. In lithiated and delithiated particles, local variations were observed in the degree of lithiation even while local lattice structures remained comparatively constant, and calculation of linear coefficients of chemical expansion suggest pinning of the lattice structures in these populations. Partially delithiated particles displayed broadly core-shell-like structures, however, with highly variable behavior both locally and per individual particle that exhibited distinctive intermediate regions at the interface between phases, and pockets within the lithiated core that correspond to FePO4 in structure and chemistry.The results provide insight into the LixFePO4 system, subtleties in the scope and applicability of Vegards law (linear lattice parameter-composition behavior) under local versus global measurements, and demonstrate a powerful new combination of experimental and analytical modalities for bridging the crucial gap between local and statistical characterization.Comment: 17 pages, 4 figure