A snoRNA modulates mRNA 3' end processing and regulates the expression of a subset of mRNAs.

mRNA 3' end processing is an essential step in gene expression. It is well established that canonical eukaryotic pre-mRNA 3' processing is carried out within a macromolecular machinery consisting of dozens of trans-acting proteins. However, it is unknown whether RNAs play any role in this process. Unexpectedly, we found that a subset of small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) are associated with the mammalian mRNA 3' processing complex. These snoRNAs primarily interact with Fip1, a component of cleavage and polyadenylation specificity factor (CPSF). We have functionally characterized one of these snoRNAs and our results demonstrated that the U/A-rich SNORD50A inhibits mRNA 3' processing by blocking the Fip1-poly(A) site (PAS) interaction. Consistently, SNORD50A depletion altered the Fip1-RNA interaction landscape and changed the alternative polyadenylation (APA) profiles and/or transcript levels of a subset of genes. Taken together, our data revealed a novel function for snoRNAs and provided the first evidence that non-coding RNAs may play an important role in regulating mRNA 3' processing

Complete genome analysis of a novel E3-partial-deleted human adenovirus type 7 strain isolated in Southern China

Human adenovirus (HAdV) is a causative agent of acute respiratory disease, which is prevalent throughout the world. Recently there are some reports which found that the HAdV-3 and HAdV-5 genomes were very stable across 50 years of time and space. But more and more recombinant genomes have been identified in emergent HAdV pathogens and it is a pathway for the molecular evolution of types. In our paper, we found a HAdV-7 GZ07 strain isolated from a child with acute respiratory disease, whose genome was E3-partial deleted. The whole genome was 32442 bp with 2864 bp deleted in E3 region and was annotated in detail (GenBank: HQ659699). The growth character was the same as that of another HAdV-7 wild strain which had no gene deletion. By comparison with E3 regions of the other HAdV-B, we found that only left-end two proteins were remained: 12.1 kDa glycoprotein and 16.1 kDa protein. E3 MHC class I antigen-binding glycoprotein, hypothetical 20.6 kDa protein, 20.6 kDa protein, 7.7 kDa protein., 10.3 kDa protein, 14.9 kDa protein and E3 14.7 kDa protein were all missing. It is the first report about E3 deletion in human adenovirus, which suggests that E3 region is also a possible recombination region in adenovirus molecular evolution

YY1 Positively Regulates Transcription by Targeting Promoters and Super-Enhancers through the BAF Complex in Embryonic Stem Cells

Yin Yang 1 (YY1) regulates early embryogenesis and adult tissue formation. However, the role of YY1 in stem cell regulation remains unclear. YY1 has a Polycomb group (PcG) protein-dependent role in mammalian cells. The PcG-independent functions of YY1 are also reported, although their underlying mechanism is still undefined. This paper reports the role of YY1 and BAF complex in the OCT4-mediated pluripotency network in mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs). The interaction between YY1 and BAF complex promotes mESC proliferation and pluripotency. Knockdown of Yy1 or Smarca4, the core component of the BAF complex, downregulates pluripotency markers and upregulates several differentiation markers. Moreover, YY1 enriches at both promoter and super-enhancer regions to stimulate transcription. Thus, this study elucidates the role of YY1 in regulating pluripotency through its interaction with OCT4 and the BAF complex and the role of BAF complex in integrating YY1 into the core pluripotency networkThis research was funded by grants from the National Key Research and Development Program (2016YFA [0101700] and 2017YFA0102800), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31771639), the Guangdong Innovative and Entrepreneurial Research Team Program 2016ZT06S029, the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (17ykzd04), and Thousand Youth Talents Plan to J.D., the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81703086) to J.W. and the NIH (1R01-GM095942 and 1R21HD087722) and the Empire State Stem Cell funded through the New York State Department of Health (NYSTEM; C028103 and C028121) to J.W.S

An analysis of model tests on rock cavern damage induced by underground explosion

The rock cover thickness required for construction of underground ammunition facilities can be designed based on currently existing design manuals, mainly US DoD 6055.STD1, NATO AASTP-1 Part III 2, and UK JSP 482.3 It is found that rock cover requirement is scattered from 0.8 Q1/3 to 1.2 Q1/3 (Q: Charge Weight in kg) according to different manuals, where the effects of loading density and rock mass strength have not been incorporated. The damage pattern and intensity of rock cover are not addressed in the design manuals. Due to the fact that full scale underground explosion tests are extremely expensive, it is almost impossible to evaluate rock cover damage based on full scale tests. The traditional analysis simplifies rock cover failure using a quasi-static approach, which ignored dynamic failure feature of the rock mass.4−7 The design manuals for rock cover are empirical and lack significantly theoretical basis. A rock cover damage model based on dynamic analysis is of special interests for underground ammunition storage design. The objective of the proposed blast test project is to investigate rock cover damage induced by underground explosion to support the development of rock cover design criteria for underground ammunition storage. The effects of rock mass strength, loading density, and cover depth on the dynamic failure of the rock cover will be studied through model tests of underground explosions, and to find the critical overburden of rock chambers under the conditions of scheduled underground cave room and ammunition quantity through explosion tests on rock chambers. The model tests include: (a) Two different rock types, i.e. soft rock and hard rock; (b) Rock chamber with different depths; (c) Detonation with different loading densities. It is expected that the test results can provide some insight understanding on rock cover damage induced by underground explosion

High dielectric tunability of Ba(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3-(Ba0.7Ca0.3)TiO3 thick films modified by a solution-immersion process

High-quality lead-free 0.5Ba(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3-0.5(Ba0.7Ca0.3)TiO3 thick films with the thickness of 8 μm were prepared by screen printing with a solution-immersion process. The solution-modified films near the morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) showed very dense and homogenous microstructure with large grain size, and exhibited moderate dielectric constant of 1680 and low dielectric loss of 1.38% at 10 kHz with 0 V bias at room temperature. High dielectric tunability up to 76.7% at 12 kV/mm and 10 kHz was achieved in the modified films. The excellent dielectric properties associated with good microstructure and MPB composition, make the lead-free films be a promising candidate for dielectric tunable capacitor applications

AKT-induced lncRNA VAL promotes EMT-independent metastasis through diminishing Trim16-dependent Vimentin degradation

The role of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) in AKT-driven tumor development is unclear. Here, the authors identify VAL (Vimentin associated lncRNA) to be directly induced by AKT/STAT3 signaling and report a lncRNA-mediated mechanism for active AKT-driven EMT-independent lung adenocarcinoma metastasis