1. |
- Namkoong, H, et al.
(author)
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DOCK2 is involved in the host genetics and biology of severe COVID-19
- 2022
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In: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1476-4687 .- 0028-0836. ; 609:7928, s. 754-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Identifying the host genetic factors underlying severe COVID-19 is an emerging challenge1–5. Here we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) involving 2,393 cases of COVID-19 in a cohort of Japanese individuals collected during the initial waves of the pandemic, with 3,289 unaffected controls. We identified a variant on chromosome 5 at 5q35 (rs60200309-A), close to the dedicator of cytokinesis 2 gene (DOCK2), which was associated with severe COVID-19 in patients less than 65 years of age. This risk allele was prevalent in East Asian individuals but rare in Europeans, highlighting the value of genome-wide association studies in non-European populations. RNA-sequencing analysis of 473 bulk peripheral blood samples identified decreased expression of DOCK2 associated with the risk allele in these younger patients. DOCK2 expression was suppressed in patients with severe cases of COVID-19. Single-cell RNA-sequencing analysis (n = 61 individuals) identified cell-type-specific downregulation of DOCK2 and a COVID-19-specific decreasing effect of the risk allele on DOCK2 expression in non-classical monocytes. Immunohistochemistry of lung specimens from patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia showed suppressed DOCK2 expression. Moreover, inhibition of DOCK2 function with CPYPP increased the severity of pneumonia in a Syrian hamster model of SARS-CoV-2 infection, characterized by weight loss, lung oedema, enhanced viral loads, impaired macrophage recruitment and dysregulated type I interferon responses. We conclude that DOCK2 has an important role in the host immune response to SARS-CoV-2 infection and the development of severe COVID-19, and could be further explored as a potential biomarker and/or therapeutic target.
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2. |
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3. |
- Wang, QBS, et al.
(author)
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The whole blood transcriptional regulation landscape in 465 COVID-19 infected samples from Japan COVID-19 Task Force
- 2022
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In: Nature communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 13:1, s. 4830-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a recently-emerged infectious disease that has caused millions of deaths, where comprehensive understanding of disease mechanisms is still unestablished. In particular, studies of gene expression dynamics and regulation landscape in COVID-19 infected individuals are limited. Here, we report on a thorough analysis of whole blood RNA-seq data from 465 genotyped samples from the Japan COVID-19 Task Force, including 359 severe and 106 non-severe COVID-19 cases. We discover 1169 putative causal expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) including 34 possible colocalizations with biobank fine-mapping results of hematopoietic traits in a Japanese population, 1549 putative causal splice QTLs (sQTLs; e.g. two independent sQTLs at TOR1AIP1), as well as biologically interpretable trans-eQTL examples (e.g., REST and STING1), all fine-mapped at single variant resolution. We perform differential gene expression analysis to elucidate 198 genes with increased expression in severe COVID-19 cases and enriched for innate immune-related functions. Finally, we evaluate the limited but non-zero effect of COVID-19 phenotype on eQTL discovery, and highlight the presence of COVID-19 severity-interaction eQTLs (ieQTLs; e.g., CLEC4C and MYBL2). Our study provides a comprehensive catalog of whole blood regulatory variants in Japanese, as well as a reference for transcriptional landscapes in response to COVID-19 infection.
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4. |
- Niemi, MEK, et al.
(author)
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- 2021
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swepub:Mat__t
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5. |
- Kanai, M, et al.
(author)
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- 2023
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swepub:Mat__t
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6. |
- De Kauwe, M. G., et al.
(author)
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A test of the ‘one-point method’ for estimating maximum carboxylation capacity from field-measured, light-saturated photosynthesis
- 2016
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In: New Phytologist. - : Wiley. - 0028-646X .- 1469-8137. ; 210:3, s. 1130-1144
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Simulations of photosynthesis by terrestrial biosphere models typically need a specification of the maximum carboxylation rate (Vcmax). Estimating this parameter using A–Ci curves (net photosynthesis, A, vs intercellular CO2 concentration, Ci) is laborious, which limits availability of Vcmax data. However, many multispecies field datasets include net photosynthetic rate at saturating irradiance and at ambient atmospheric CO2 concentration (Asat) measurements, from which Vcmax can be extracted using a ‘one-point method’. We used a global dataset of A–Ci curves (564 species from 46 field sites, covering a range of plant functional types) to test the validity of an alternative approach to estimate Vcmax from Asat via this ‘one-point method’. If leaf respiration during the day (Rday) is known exactly, Vcmax can be estimated with an r2 value of 0.98 and a root-mean-squared error (RMSE) of 8.19 μmol m−2 s−1. However, Rday typically must be estimated. Estimating Rday as 1.5% of Vcmax, we found that Vcmax could be estimated with an r2 of 0.95 and an RMSE of 17.1 μmol m−2 s−1. The one-point method provides a robust means to expand current databases of field-measured Vcmax, giving new potential to improve vegetation models and quantify the environmental drivers of Vcmax variation.
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8. |
- Alonso-Mori, R., et al.
(author)
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Towards characterization of photo-excited electron transfer and catalysis in natural and artificial systems using XFELs
- 2016
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In: Faraday discussions. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 1359-6640 .- 1364-5498. ; 194, s. 621-638
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The ultra-bright femtosecond X-ray pulses provided by X-ray Free Electron Lasers (XFELs) open capabilities for studying the structure and dynamics of a wide variety of biological and inorganic systems beyond what is possible at synchrotron sources. Although the structure and chemistry at the catalytic sites have been studied intensively in both biological and inorganic systems, a full understanding of the atomic-scale chemistry requires new approaches beyond the steady state X-ray crystallography and X-ray spectroscopy at cryogenic temperatures. Following the dynamic changes in the geometric and electronic structure at ambient conditions, while overcoming X-ray damage to the redox active catalytic center, is key for deriving reaction mechanisms. Such studies become possible by using the intense and ultra-short femtosecond X-ray pulses from an XFEL, where sample is probed before it is damaged. We have developed methodology for simultaneously collecting X-ray diffraction data and X-ray emission spectra, using an energy dispersive spectrometer, at ambient conditions, and used this approach to study the room temperature structure and intermediate states of the photosynthetic water oxidizing metallo-protein, photosystem II. Moreover, we have also used this setup to simultaneously collect the X-ray emission spectra from multiple metals to follow the ultrafast dynamics of light-induced charge transfer between multiple metal sites. A Mn-Ti containing system was studied at an XFEL to demonstrate the efficacy and potential of this method.
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9. |
- Gryzlova, E. V., et al.
(author)
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Doubly resonant three-photon double ionization of Ar atoms induced by an EUV free-electron laser
- 2011
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In: Physical Review A (Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics). - 1050-2947. ; 84:6
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A mechanism for three-photon double ionization of atoms by extreme-ultraviolet free-electron laser pulses is revealed, where in a sequential process the second ionization step, proceeding via resonant two-photon ionization of ions, is strongly enhanced by the excitation of ionic autoionizing states. In contrast to the conventional model, the mechanism explains the observed relative intensities of photoelectron peaks and their angular dependence in three-photon double ionization of argon.
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10. |
- Ma, R., et al.
(author)
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Photoelectron angular distributions for the two-photon ionization of helium by ultrashort extreme ultraviolet free-electron laser pulses
- 2013
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In: Journal of Physics B: Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics. - : IOP Publishing. - 0953-4075 .- 1361-6455. ; 46:16
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The two-photon ionization of helium atoms by ultrashort extreme-ultraviolet free-electron laser pulses, produced by the SPring-8 Compact SASE Source test accelerator, was investigated at photon energies of 20.3, 21.3, 23.0 and 24.3 eV. The angular distribution of photoelectrons generated by two-photon ionization is obtained using a velocity map imaging spectrometer. The phase-shift differences and amplitude ratios of the outgoing s and d continuum wave packets are extracted from the photoelectron angular distributions. The obtained values of the phase-shift differences are distinct from scattering phase-shift differences when the photon energy is tuned to a resonance with an excited level or Rydberg manifold. The difference stems from the co-presence of resonant and non-resonant path contributions in the two-photon ionization by femtosecond pulses. Since the relative contribution of both paths can be controlled in principle by the pulse shape, these results illustrate a new way to tailor the continuum wave packet.
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11. |
- Mondal, S., et al.
(author)
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Photoelectron angular distributions for the two-photon sequential double ionization of xenon by ultrashort extreme ultraviolet free electron laser pulses
- 2013
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In: Journal of Physics B: Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics. - : IOP Publishing. - 0953-4075 .- 1361-6455. ; 46:16
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Xenon atoms are double-ionized by sequential two-photon absorption by ultrashort extreme ultraviolet free-electron laser pulses with a photon energy of 23.0 and 24.3 eV, produced by the SPring-8 Compact SASE Source test accelerator. The angular distributions of photoelectrons generated by two-photon double ionization are obtained using velocity map imaging. The results are reproduced reasonably well by the present theoretical calculations within the multi-configurational Dirac-Fock approach.
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12. |
- Nagaya, K., et al.
(author)
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Multiple photoionization of rare-gas clusters by EUV-FEL at Spring-8
- 2012
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In: Journal of Physics, Conference Series. - : IOP Publishing. - 1742-6588 .- 1742-6596. ; 388:3, s. 032082-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Multiple photoionization processes of giant rare-gas clusters are investigated in the wavelength region of 51 to 61nm at Spring8. We report here some latest results of our investigation; the frustration of photoionization for giant xenon clusters and the charge transfer in Ar-core Ne-shell clusters.
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13. |
- Smith, N. G., et al.
(author)
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Global photosynthetic capacity is optimized to the environment
- 2019
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In: Ecology Letters. - : Wiley. - 1461-023X .- 1461-0248. ; 22:3, s. 506-517
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Earth system models (ESMs) use photosynthetic capacity, indexed by the maximum Rubisco carboxylation rate (V-cmax), to simulate carbon assimilation and typically rely on empirical estimates, including an assumed dependence on leaf nitrogen determined from soil fertility. In contrast, new theory, based on biochemical coordination and co-optimization of carboxylation and water costs for photosynthesis, suggests that optimal V-cmax can be predicted from climate alone, irrespective of soil fertility. Here, we develop this theory and find it captures 64% of observed variability in a global, field-measured V-cmax dataset for C-3 plants. Soil fertility indices explained substantially less variation (32%). These results indicate that environmentally regulated biophysical constraints and light availability are the first-order drivers of global photosynthetic capacity. Through acclimation and adaptation, plants efficiently utilize resources at the leaf level, thus maximizing potential resource use for growth and reproduction. Our theory offers a robust strategy for dynamically predicting photosynthetic capacity in ESMs.
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14. |
- Kim, Kyung Hwan, et al.
(author)
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Anisotropic X-Ray Scattering of Transiently Oriented Water
- 2020
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In: Physical Review Letters. - : American Physical Society (APS). - 0031-9007 .- 1079-7114. ; 125:7
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We study the structural dynamics of liquid water by time-resolved anisotropic x-ray scattering under the optical Kerr effect condition. In this way, we can separate the anisotropic scattering decay of 160 fs from the delayed temperature increase of similar to 0.1 K occurring at 1 ps and quantify transient changes in the O-O pair distribution function. Polarizable molecular dynamics simulations reproduce well the experiment, indicating transient alignment of molecules along the electric field, which shortens the nearest-neighbor distances. In addition, analysis of the simulated water local structure provides evidence that two hypothesized fluctuating water configurations exhibit different polarizability.
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15. |
- Kumarathunge, Dushan P., et al.
(author)
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Acclimation and adaptation components of the temperature dependence of plant photosynthesis at the global scale
- 2019
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In: New Phytologist. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0028-646X .- 1469-8137. ; 222:2, s. 768-784
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The temperature response of photosynthesis is one of the key factors determining predicted responses to warming in global vegetation models (GVMs). The response may vary geographically, owing to genetic adaptation to climate, and temporally, as a result of acclimation to changes in ambient temperature. Our goal was to develop a robust quantitative global model representing acclimation and adaptation of photosynthetic temperature responses.We quantified and modelled key mechanisms responsible for photosynthetic temperature acclimation and adaptation using a global dataset of photosynthetic CO2 response curves, including data from 141 C3 species from tropical rainforest to Arctic tundra. We separated temperature acclimation and adaptation processes by considering seasonal and common-garden datasets, respectively.The observed global variation in the temperature optimum of photosynthesis was primarily explained by biochemical limitations to photosynthesis, rather than stomatal conductance or respiration. We found acclimation to growth temperature to be a stronger driver of this variation than adaptation to temperature at climate of origin.We developed a summary model to represent photosynthetic temperature responses and showed that it predicted the observed global variation in optimal temperatures with high accuracy. This novel algorithm should enable improved prediction of the function of global ecosystems in a warming climate.
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16. |
- Nguyen, Son Tien, et al.
(author)
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Electronic properties of the residual donor in unintentionally doped beta-Ga2O3
- 2016
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In: Journal of Applied Physics. - : AMER INST PHYSICS. - 0021-8979 .- 1089-7550. ; 120:23
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Electron paramagnetic resonance was used to study the donor that is responsible for the n-type conductivity in unintentionally doped (UID) beta-Ga2O3 substrates. We show that in as-grown materials, the donor requires high tempeature annealing to be activated. In partly activated materials with the donor concentration in the 10(16) cm(-3) range or lower, the donor is found to behave as a negative-U center (often called a DX center) with the negative charge state DX- lying similar to 16-20 meV below the neutral charge state d(0) (or E-d), which is estimated to be similar to 28-29 meV below the conduction band minimum. This corresponds to a donor activation energy of E-a similar to 44-49 meV. In fully activated materials with the donor spin density close to similar to 1 x 10(18) cm(-3), donor electrons become delocalized, leading to the formation of impurity bands, which reduces the donor activation energy to E-a similar to 15-17 meV. The results clarify the electronic structure of the dominant donor in UID beta-Ga2O3 and explain the large variation in the previously reported donor activation energy. Published by AIP Publishing.
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17. |
- Rosiak, D., et al.
(author)
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Enhanced Quadrupole and Octupole Strength in Doubly Magic Sn 132
- 2018
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In: Physical Review Letters. - 0031-9007. ; 121:25
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The first 2+ and 3- states of the doubly magic nucleus Sn132 are populated via safe Coulomb excitation employing the recently commissioned HIE-ISOLDE accelerator at CERN in conjunction with the highly efficient MINIBALL array. The Sn132 ions are accelerated to an energy of 5.49 MeV/nucleon and impinged on a Pb206 target. Deexciting γ rays from the low-lying excited states of the target and the projectile are recorded in coincidence with scattered particles. The reduced transition strengths are determined for the transitions 0g.s.+→21+, 0g.s.+→31-, and 21+→31- in Sn132. The results on these states provide crucial information on cross-shell configurations which are determined within large-scale shell-model and Monte Carlo shell-model calculations as well as from random-phase approximation and relativistic random-phase approximation. The locally enhanced B(E2;0g.s.+→21+) strength is consistent with the microscopic description of the structure of the respective states within all theoretical approaches. The presented results of experiment and theory can be considered to be the first direct verification of the sphericity and double magicity of Sn132.
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18. |
- Schubert, M., et al.
(author)
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Anisotropy, phonon modes, and free charge carrier parameters in monoclinic beta-gallium oxide single crystals
- 2016
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In: PHYSICAL REVIEW B. - : AMER PHYSICAL SOC. - 2469-9950. ; 93:12, s. 125209-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We derive a dielectric function tensor model approach to render the optical response of monoclinic and triclinic symmetry materials with multiple uncoupled infrared and far-infrared active modes. We apply our model approach to monoclinic beta-Ga2O3 single-crystal samples. Surfaces cut under different angles from a bulk crystal, (010) and ((2) over bar 01), are investigated by generalized spectroscopic ellipsometry within infrared and far-infrared spectral regions. We determine the frequency dependence of 4 independent beta-Ga2O3 Cartesian dielectric function tensor elements by matching large sets of experimental data using a point-by-point data inversion approach. From matching our monoclinic model to the obtained 4 dielectric function tensor components, we determine all infrared and far-infrared active transverse optic phonon modes with A(u) and B-u symmetry, and their eigenvectors within the monoclinic lattice. We find excellent agreement between our model results and results of density functional theory calculations. We derive and discuss the frequencies of longitudinal optical phonons in beta-Ga2O3. We derive and report density and anisotropic mobility parameters of the free charge carriers within the tin-doped crystals. We discuss the occurrence of longitudinal phonon plasmon coupled modes in beta-Ga2O3 and provide their frequencies and eigenvectors. We also discuss and present monoclinic dielectric constants for static electric fields and frequencies above the reststrahlen range, and we provide a generalization of the Lyddane-Sachs-Teller relation for monoclinic lattices with infrared and far-infrared active modes. We find that the generalized Lyddane-Sachs-Teller relation is fulfilled excellently for beta-Ga2O3.
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