1. |
- Blösch, Günter, et al.
(author)
-
Twenty-three unsolved problems in hydrology (UPH) - a community perspective
- 2019
-
In: Hydrological Sciences Journal. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0262-6667 .- 2150-3435. ; 64:10, s. 1141-1158
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This paper is the outcome of a community initiative to identify major unsolved scientific problems in hydrology motivated by a need for stronger harmonisation of research efforts. The procedure involved a public consultation through online media, followed by two workshops through which a large number of potential science questions were collated, prioritised, and synthesised. In spite of the diversity of the participants (230 scientists in total), the process revealed much about community priorities and the state of our science: a preference for continuity in research questions rather than radical departures or redirections from past and current work. Questions remain focused on the process-based understanding of hydrological variability and causality at all space and time scales. Increased attention to environmental change drives a new emphasis on understanding how change propagates across interfaces within the hydrological system and across disciplinary boundaries. In particular, the expansion of the human footprint raises a new set of questions related to human interactions with nature and water cycle feedbacks in the context of complex water management problems. We hope that this reflection and synthesis of the 23 unsolved problems in hydrology will help guide research efforts for some years to come.
|
|
2. |
- Cornejo, María Paula, et al.
(author)
-
GHSR in a Subset of GABA Neurons Controls Food Deprivation-Induced Hyperphagia in Male Mice
- 2024
-
In: Endocrinology. - : Oxford University Press. - 0013-7227 .- 1945-7170. ; 165:7
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The growth hormone secretagogue receptor (GHSR), primarily known as the receptor for the hunger hormone ghrelin, potently controls food intake, yet the specific Ghsr-expressing cells mediating the orexigenic effects of this receptor remain incompletely characterized. Since Ghsr is expressed in gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)–producing neurons, we sought to investigate whether the selective expression of Ghsr in a subset of GABA neurons is sufficient to mediate GHSR's effects on feeding. First, we crossed mice that express a tamoxifen-dependent Cre recombinase in the subset of GABA neurons that express glutamic acid decarboxylase 2 (Gad2) enzyme (Gad2-CreER mice) with reporter mice, and found that ghrelin mainly targets a subset of Gad2-expressing neurons located in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus (ARH) and that is predominantly segregated from Agouti-related protein (AgRP)–expressing neurons. Analysis of various single-cell RNA-sequencing datasets further corroborated that the primary subset of cells coexpressing Gad2 and Ghsr in the mouse brain are non-AgRP ARH neurons. Next, we crossed Gad2-CreER mice with reactivable GHSR-deficient mice to generate mice expressing Ghsr only in Gad2-expressing neurons (Gad2-GHSR mice). We found that ghrelin treatment induced the expression of the marker of transcriptional activation c-Fos in the ARH of Gad2-GHSR mice, yet failed to induce food intake. In contrast, food deprivation–induced refeeding was higher in Gad2-GHSR mice than in GHSR-deficient mice and similar to wild-type mice, suggesting that ghrelin-independent roles of GHSR in a subset of GABA neurons is sufficient for eliciting full compensatory hyperphagia in mice.
|
|
3. |
- Moores, John E., et al.
(author)
-
Atmospheric movies acquired at the Mars Science Laboratory landing site : Cloud Morphology, Frequency and Significance to the Gale Crater Water Cycle and Phoenix Mission Results
- 2015
-
In: Advances in Space Research. - : Elsevier BV. - 0273-1177 .- 1879-1948. ; 55:9, s. 2217-2238
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report on the first 360 sols (LS 150° to 5°), representing just over half a Martian year, of atmospheric monitoring movies acquired using the NavCam imager from the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Rover Curiosity. Such movies reveal faint clouds that are difficult to discern in single images. The data set acquired was divided into two different classifications depending upon the orientation and intent of the observation. Up to sol 360, 73 Zenith Movies and 79 Supra-Horizon Movies have been acquired and time-variable features could be discerned in 25 of each. The data set from MSL is compared to similar observations made by the Surface Stereo Imager (SSI) onboard the Phoenix Lander and suggests a much drier environment at Gale Crater (4.6°S) during this season than was observed in Green Valley (68.2°N) as would be expected based on latitude and the global water cycle. The optical depth of the variable component of clouds seen in images with features are up to 0.047 ± 0.009 with a granularity to the features observed which averages 3.8 degrees. MCS also observes clouds during the same period of comparable optical depth at 30 and 50 km that would suggest a cloud spacing of 2.0 to 3.3 km. Multiple motions visible in atmospheric movies support the presence of two distinct layers of clouds. At Gale Crater, these clouds are likely caused by atmospheric waves given the regular spacing of features observed in many Zenith movies and decreased spacing towards the horizon in sunset movies consistent with clouds forming at a constant elevation. Reanalysis of Phoenix data in the light of the NavCam equatorial dataset suggests that clouds may have been more frequent in the earlier portion of the Phoenix mission than was previously thought.
|
|
4. |
- Moores, John E., et al.
(author)
-
Observational evidence of a suppressed planetary boundary layer in northern Gale Crater, Mars as seen by the Navcam instrument onboard the Mars Science Laboratory rover
- 2015
-
In: Icarus. - : Elsevier BV. - 0019-1035 .- 1090-2643. ; 249, s. 129-142
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The Navigation Cameras (Navcam) of the Mars Science Laboratory rover, Curiosity, have been used to examine two aspects of the planetary boundary layer: vertical dust distribution and dust devil frequency. The vertical distribution of dust may be obtained by using observations of the distant crater rim to derive a line-of-sight optical depth within Gale Crater and comparing this optical depth to column optical depths obtained using Mastcam observations of the solar disc. The line of sight method consistently produces lower extinctions within the crater compared to the bulk atmosphere. This suggests a relatively stable atmosphere in which dust may settle out leaving the air within the crater clearer than air above and explains the correlation in observed column opacity between the floor of Gale Crater and the higher elevation Meridiani Planum. In the case of dust devils, despite an extensive campaign only one optically thick vortex (τ=1.5±0.5×10-3) was observed compared to 149 pressure events > 0.5Pa observed in REMS pressure data. Correcting for temporal coverage by REMS and geographic coverage by Navcam still suggests 104 vortices should have been viewable, suggesting that most vortices are dustless. Additionally, the most intense pressure excursions observed on other landing sites (pressure drop >2.5Pa) are lacking from the observations by the REMS instrument. Taken together, these observations are consistent with pre-landing circulation modeling of the crater showing a suppressed, shallow boundary layer. They are further consistent with geological observations of dust that suggests the northern portion of the crater is a sink for dust in the current era.
|
|
5. |
- Sroka, Ewa Maria, et al.
(author)
-
Major histocompatibility class I antigenic peptides derived from translation of pre-mRNAs generate immune tolerance
- 2023
-
In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. - : Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. - 0027-8424 .- 1091-6490. ; 120:7
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Antigenic peptides derived from introns are presented on major histocompatibility (MHC) class I molecules, but how these peptides are produced is poorly understood. Here, we show that an MHC class I epitope (SL8) sequence inserted in the second intron of the β-globin gene in a C57BL/6 mouse (HBB) generates immune tolerance. Introduction of SL8-specific CD8+ T cells derived from OT-1 transgenic mice resulted in a threefold increase in OT-1 T cell proliferation in HBB animals, as compared to wild-type animals. The growth of MCA sarcoma cells expressing the intron-derived SL8 epitope was suppressed in wild-type animals compared to HBB mice. The β-globin pre-mRNA was detected in the light polysomal fraction, and introducing stop codons identified a non-AUG initiation site between +228 and +255 nts upstream of the SL8. Isolation of ribosome footprints confirmed translation initiation within this 27 nt sequence. Furthermore, treatment with splicing inhibitor shifts the translation of the pre-mRNA to monosomal fractions and results in an increase of intron-derived peptide substrate as shown by polysome profiling and cell imaging. These results show that non-AUG-initiated translation of pre-mRNAs generates peptides for MHC class I immune tolerance and helps explain why alternative tissue-specific splicing is tolerated by the immune system.
|
|
6. |
- Webster, Christopher R., et al.
(author)
-
Background levels of methane in Mars' atmosphere show strong seasonal variations
- 2018
-
In: Science. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science. - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 360:6393, s. 1093-1096
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Variable levels of methane in the martian atmosphere have eluded explanation partly because the measurements are not repeatable in time or location. We report in situ measurements at Gale crater made over a 5-year period by the Tunable Laser Spectrometer on the Curiosity rover. The background levels of methane have a mean value 0.41 ± 0.16 parts per billion by volume (ppbv) (95% confidence interval) and exhibit a strong, repeatable seasonal variation (0.24 to 0.65 ppbv). This variation is greater than that predicted from either ultraviolet degradation of impact-delivered organics on the surface or from the annual surface pressure cycle. The large seasonal variation in the background and occurrences of higher temporary spikes (~7 ppbv) are consistent with small localized sources of methane released from martian surface or subsurface reservoirs.
|
|
7. |
- Betancourt, Lazaro Hiram, et al.
(author)
-
Improved survival prognostication of node-positive malignant melanoma patients utilizing shotgun proteomics guided by histopathological characterization and genomic data
- 2019
-
In: Scientific Reports. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2045-2322. ; 9:1
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Metastatic melanoma is one of the most common deadly cancers, and robust biomarkers are still needed, e.g. to predict survival and treatment efficiency. Here, protein expression analysis of one hundred eleven melanoma lymph node metastases using high resolution mass spectrometry is coupled with in-depth histopathology analysis, clinical data and genomics profiles. This broad view of protein expression allowed to identify novel candidate protein markers that improved prediction of survival in melanoma patients. Some of the prognostic proteins have not been reported in the context of melanoma before, and few of them exhibit unexpected relationship to survival, which likely reflects the limitations of current knowledge on melanoma and shows the potential of proteomics in clinical cancer research.
|
|
8. |
|
|
9. |
- Martins, Rodrigo Prado, et al.
(author)
-
Nuclear processing of nascent transcripts determines synthesis of full-length proteins and antigenic peptides
- 2019
-
In: Nucleic Acids Research. - : Oxford University Press. - 0305-1048 .- 1362-4962. ; 47:6, s. 3086-3100
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Peptides presented on major histocompatibility (MHC) class I molecules form an essential part of the immune system's capacity to detect virus-infected or transformed cells. Earlier works have shown that pioneer translation peptides (PTPs) for the MHC class I pathway are as efficiently produced from introns as from exons, or from mRNAs targeted for the nonsense-mediated decay pathway. The production of PTPs is a target for viral immune evasion but the underlying molecular mechanisms that govern this non-canonical translation are unknown. Here, we have used different approaches to show how events taking place on the nascent transcript control the synthesis of PTPs and full-length proteins. By controlling the subcellular interaction between the G-quadruplex structure (G4) of a gly-ala encoding mRNA and nucleolin (NCL) and by interfering with mRNA maturation using multiple approaches, we demonstrate that antigenic peptides derive from a nuclear non-canonical translation event that is independently regulated from the synthesis of full-length proteins. Moreover, we show that G4 are exploited to control mRNA localization and translation by distinguishable mechanisms that are targets for viral immune evasion.
|
|
10. |
- Moore, Casey A., et al.
(author)
-
A Full Martian Year of Line-of-Sight Extinction within Gale Crater, Mars as Acquired by the MSL Navcam through sol 900
- 2016
-
In: Icarus. - : Elsevier BV. - 0019-1035 .- 1090-2643. ; 264, s. 102-108
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report on line-of-sight extinction in northern Gale Crater, Mars as seen by the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover, Curiosity from sol 100 to sol 900; a little more than an entire martian year. Navcam images oriented due north, which show the distant crater rim, the near ground and the sky allow the extinction due to dust within the crater to be determined. This line-of sight extinction is compared to a complementary dataset of column extinctions derived from Mastcam. The line-of-sight extinction within the crater is less than the column extinction for the majority of the martian year. This implies that the relatively low mixing ratio of dust within the crater as compared to the atmosphere above the crater rim persists through most of the year. This suggests relatively little mixing between the atmosphere above the crater and the atmosphere inside the crater and suggests that northern Gale Crater is a net sink of dust in the current era. The data does however show a yearly convergence of the line-of-sight extinction and the column-averaged extinction around Ls = 270° – 290°. This suggests that air above the crater mixes with air in the crater at this time, as predicted by mesoscale models. Matching line-of-sight and column extinction values are also seen around Ls ≈ 135°, a season that has only been observed once in this dataset, this is particularly interesting as the Rover Environmental Monitoring Station onboard Curiosity reports increased convective boundary layer heights in the same season.
|
|