Center to limb variation of penumbral Stokes V profiles

We investigated the horizontal and the vertical component of the Evershed flow (EF). To this end, we computed average Stokes V profiles for various velocity classes in penumbrae at different heliocentric angles. Our results show that for blueshifted profiles an additional lobe with the same polarity as the spot is present in the blue side of the average Stokes V profile. The amplitude of the additional lobe grows with increasing blueshift and with increasing heliocentric angle. For small redshifts, the profiles show an additional lobe with the opposite polarity as the spot on the red side of the average Stokes V profile. Even at disk center, the original polarity of the average Stokes V profile is reversed for strong redshifts. The transition between the different types of Stokes V profiles is continuous and indicates that not only the vertical, but also the horizontal EF is a magnetized stream of plasma in a magnetic background field

Nomenclature for kidney function and disease: report of a Kidney Disease:Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) Consensus Conference

The worldwide burden of kidney disease is rising, but public awareness remains limited, underscoring the need for more effective communication by stakeholders in the kidney health community. Despite this need for clarity, the nomenclature for describing kidney function and disease lacks uniformity. In June 2019, Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) convened a Consensus Conference with the goal of standardizing and refining the nomenclature used in the English language to describe kidney function and disease, and of developing a glossary that could be used in scientific publications. Guiding principles of the conference were that the revised nomenclature should be patient-centered, precise, and consistent with nomenclature used in the KDIGO guidelines. Conference attendees reached general consensus on the following recommendations: (i) to use "kidney" rather than "renal" or "nephro-" when referring to kidney disease and kidney function; (ii) to use "kidney failure" with appropriate descriptions of presence or absence of symptoms, signs, and treatment, rather than "end-stage kidney disease"; (iii) to use the KDIGO definition and classification of acute kidney diseases and disorders (AKD) and acute kidney injury (AKI), rather than alternative descriptions, to define and classify severity of AKD and AKI; (iv) to use the KDIGO definition and classification of chronic kidney disease (CKD) rather than alternative descriptions to define and classify severity of CKD; and (v) to use specific kidney measures, such as albuminuria or decreased glomerular filtration rate (GFR), rather than "abnormal" or "reduced" kidney function to describe alterations in kidney structure and function. A proposed 5-part glossary contains specific items for which there was general agreement. Conference attendees acknowledged limitations of the recommendations and glossary, but they considered standardization of scientific nomenclature to be essential for improving communication

Methionine Sulfoxide Reductases Are Essential for Virulence of Salmonella Typhimurium

Production of reactive oxygen species represents a fundamental innate defense against microbes in a diversity of host organisms. Oxidative stress, amongst others, converts peptidyl and free methionine to a mixture of methionine-S- (Met-S-SO) and methionine-R-sulfoxides (Met-R-SO). To cope with such oxidative damage, methionine sulfoxide reductases MsrA and MsrB are known to reduce MetSOs, the former being specific for the S-form and the latter being specific for the R-form. However, at present the role of methionine sulfoxide reductases in the pathogenesis of intracellular bacterial pathogens has not been fully detailed. Here we show that deletion of msrA in the facultative intracellular pathogen Salmonella (S.) enterica serovar Typhimurium increased susceptibility to exogenous H2O2, and reduced bacterial replication inside activated macrophages, and in mice. In contrast, a ΔmsrB mutant showed the wild type phenotype. Recombinant MsrA was active against free and peptidyl Met-S-SO, whereas recombinant MsrB was only weakly active and specific for peptidyl Met-R-SO. This raised the question of whether an additional Met-R-SO reductase could play a role in the oxidative stress response of S. Typhimurium. MsrC is a methionine sulfoxide reductase previously shown to be specific for free Met-R-SO in Escherichia (E.) coli. We tested a ΔmsrC single mutant and a ΔmsrBΔmsrC double mutant under various stress conditions, and found that MsrC is essential for survival of S. Typhimurium following exposure to H2O2, as well as for growth in macrophages, and in mice. Hence, this study demonstrates that all three methionine sulfoxide reductases, MsrA, MsrB and MsrC, facilitate growth of a canonical intracellular pathogen during infection. Interestingly MsrC is specific for the repair of free methionine sulfoxide, pointing to an important role of this pathway in the oxidative stress response of Salmonella Typhimurium

The genetic architecture of the human cerebral cortex

The cerebral cortex underlies our complex cognitive capabilities, yet little is known about the specific genetic loci that influence human cortical structure. To identify genetic variants that affect cortical structure, we conducted a genome-wide association meta-analysis of brain magnetic resonance imaging data from 51,665 individuals. We analyzed the surface area and average thickness of the whole cortex and 34 regions with known functional specializations. We identified 199 significant loci and found significant enrichment for loci influencing total surface area within regulatory elements that are active during prenatal cortical development, supporting the radial unit hypothesis. Loci that affect regional surface area cluster near genes in Wnt signaling pathways, which influence progenitor expansion and areal identity. Variation in cortical structure is genetically correlated with cognitive function, Parkinson's disease, insomnia, depression, neuroticism, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Characterization of XynC from Bacillus subtilis subsp. subtilis Strain 168 and Analysis of Its Role in Depolymerization of Glucuronoxylan

Secretion of xylanase activities by Bacillus subtilis 168 supports the development of this well-defined genetic system for conversion of methylglucuronoxylan (MeGAX(n) [where n represents the number of xylose residues]) in the hemicellulose component of lignocellulosics to biobased products. In addition to the characterized glycosyl hydrolase family 11 (GH 11) endoxylanase designated XynA, B. subtilis 168 secretes a second endoxylanase as the translated product of the ynfF gene. This sequence shows remarkable homology to the GH 5 endoxylanase secreted by strains of Erwinia chrysanthemi. To determine its properties and potential role in the depolymerization of MeGAX(n), the ynfF gene was cloned and overexpressed to provide an endoxylanase, designated XynC, which was characterized with respect to substrate preference, kinetic properties, and product formation. With different sources of MeGAX(n) as the substrate, the specific activity increased with increasing methylglucuronosyl substitutions on the β-1,4-xylan chain. With MeGAX(n) from sweetgum as a preferred substrate, XynC exhibited a V(max) of 59.9 units/mg XynC, a K(m) of 1.63 mg MeGAX(n)/ml, and a k(cat) of 2,635/minute at pH 6.0 and 37°C. Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization—time of flight mass spectrometry and (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance data revealed that each hydrolysis product has a single glucuronosyl substitution penultimate to the reducing terminal xylose. This detailed analysis of XynC from B. subtilis 168 defines the unique depolymerization process catalyzed by the GH 5 endoxylanases. Based upon product analysis, B. subtilis 168 secretes both XynA and XynC. Expression of xynA was subject to MeGAX(n) induction; xynC expression was constitutive with growth on different substrates. Translation and secretion of both GH 11 and GH 5 endoxylanases by the fully sequenced and genetically malleable B. subtilis 168 recommends this bacterium for the introduction of genes required for the complete utilization of products of the enzyme-catalyzed depolymerization of MeGAX(n). B. subtilis may serve as a model platform for development of gram-positive biocatalysts for conversion of lignocellulosic materials to renewable fuels and chemicals

Additional file 1: of Genomic and transcriptomic analysis of carbohydrate utilization by Paenibacillus sp. JDR-2: systems for bioprocessing plant polysaccharides

A table summarizing the proteins belonging to the xylan utilization systems in Pjdr2 as previously determined [ 1 ]. (DOCX 19 kb