NATURE AND THE NATURE RESEARCH JOURNALS PRESS RELEASE
For papers that will be published online on 27 April 2008
This press release is copyrighted to the Nature journals mentioned below.
Solely for the purpose of soliciting informed comment on Nature journal papers, you may show relevant parts of this document, and the papers to which it refers, to independent specialists – but you must ensure in advance that they understand and accept Nature’s embargo conditions.
This press release contains:
· Summaries of newsworthy papers:
Long-term carbon cycle finely balanced – Nature Geoscience
Fast ice flow on water? – Nature Geoscience
THC meets its rival – Nature Chemical Biology
Methyl modifications spread out – Nature Chemical Biology
A rogue neighbourhood – Nature Medicine
Breast cancer risk variants – Nature Genetics
Inflammatory bowel diseases share genetic risk factors – Nature Genetics
Sequencing sheds light on the cancer genome – Nature Genetics
Let there be light – Nature Neuroscience
Visualizing neuronal activity in 3D – Nature Neuroscience
· Mention of papers to be published at the same time with the same embargo
· Geographical listing of authors
PDFs of all the papers mentioned on this release can be found in the relevant journal’s section of http://press.nature.com. Press contacts for the Nature journals are listed at the end of this release.
Warning: This document, and the Nature journal papers to which it refers, may contain information that is price sensitive (as legally defined, for example, in the UK Criminal Justice Act 1993 Part V) with respect to publicly quoted companies. Anyone dealing in securities using information contained in this document, or in advance copies of a Nature journal’s content, may be guilty of insider trading under the US Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
PICTURES: To obtain artwork from any of the journals, you must first obtain permission from the copyright holder (if named) or author of the research paper in question (if not).
NOTE: Once a paper is published, the digital object identifier (DOI) number can be used to retrieve the abstract and full text from the journal web site (abstracts are available to everyone, full text is available only to subscribers). To do this, add the DOI to the following URL: http://dx.doi.org/ (For example, http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ng730). For more information about DOIs and Advance Online Publication, see http://www.nature.com/ng/aop/.
PLEASE CITE THE SPECIFIC NATURE JOURNAL AND WEBSITE AS THE SOURCE OF THE FOLLOWING ITEMS. IF PUBLISHING ONLINE, PLEASE CARRY A HYPERLINK TO THE APPROPRIATE JOURNAL’S WEBSITE.
****************************************NATURE GEOSCIENCE******************************************
(http://www.nature.com/ngeo)
[1] Long-term carbon cycle finely balanced
DOI: 10.1038/ngeo185
Over the last 610,000 years, the input of carbon to the atmosphere has been closely balanced by its removal. A paper online this week in Nature Geoscience provides the first direct observational support for long term carbon-cycle feedbacks that provide an effective thermostat for the Earth’s temperatures.
Richard Zeebe and a colleague compared the levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide as recorded in ice cores with records of carbonate saturation in the deep sea for the last six glacial cycles. They found that although carbon dioxide levels varied between glacial and interglacial states, the long-term average atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations changed by no more than 22 parts per million by volume. This is suggestive of a feedback mechanism in which the carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere, primarily through volcanoes, is balanced by the removal of atmospheric carbon dioxide through the weathering of mountains, usually within a few hundred thousand years.
Author contact:
Richard Zeebe (University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, USA)
Tel: +1 808 956 6473; E-mail: [email protected]
[2] Fast ice flow on water?
DOI: 10.1038/ngeo186
In the coming decades, significant changes in the polar regions will increase the contribution of ice sheets to global sea-level rise. The degree of influence that water beneath the ice sheets exerts on fast ice flow in Greenland and Antarctica will depend on the geometry and capacity of the subglacial hydrologic system, concludes a review article published online this week in Nature Geoscience.
Ice sheets and glaciers are underlain by complex systems of meltwater streams and ponds. Robin Bell’s overview of recent work suggests that in Greenland, the influence of meltwater on ice loss will depend on the subglacial hydrologic system met by water transferred down from surface meltwater ponds. In Antarctica, subglacial lakes can modulate the speed of ice streams and act as nucleation points for new fast-flowing tributaries.
Author contact:
Robin Bell (Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, NY, USA)
Tel: +1 845 365 8827; E-mail: [email protected]
*************************************NATURE CHEMICAL BIOLOGY ***********************************
(http://www.nature.com/nchembio)
[3] THC meets its rival
DOI: 10.1038/nchembio.86
Scientists have discovered a method for blocking the negative effects of THC – the psychoactive ingredient of marijuana – reports a paper online this week in Nature Chemical Biology. THC is noted for its analgesic and anti-anxiety effects as well as its undesirable cognitive defects, such as memory loss. The study finds that THC mimics the behavioural consequences of a hyperactive brain signalling system and that blocking this system could lead to better compounds to treat conditions such as pain.
Since THC uses the same brain receptor as the endogenous lipids 2-AG and anandamide, John Casida and colleagues used organophosphorus (OP) nerve agents to block the breakdown of these compounds, which had the effect of augmenting their signalling power. The OP compounds elicit the THC medicinal effects of analgesia and hypothermia without affecting cognitive function.
It may be possible to achieve medicinal value without producing full-blown cannabinoid effects.
Author contact:
John Casida (University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA)
Tel: +1 510 642 5424, Email: [email protected]
[4] Methyl modifications spread out
DOI: 10.1038/nchembio.88
Scientists have discovered new targets for an enzyme previously thought to act only on histones, according to a paper to be published online this week in Nature Chemical Biology. This report broadens the importance of this class of enzymes, and may change the way scientists think about histone modifications.
Histones are the bulky protein assemblies that keep our DNA wrapped up tightly, preventing damage and controlling when specific DNA sequences are expressed. Histones are modified by an assortment of other proteins; these modifications are now understood to dictate the release or protection of the DNA, although the specific details of these processes remain unclear.
Albert Jeltsch and colleagues have discovered that an enzyme that adds methyl groups to lysine amino acids acts on other proteins in addition to histones, and that these modifications similarly change the behaviour or function of the identified proteins. This work demonstrates that the cell is regulated in a more complex way than previously anticipated, and opens new questions about how and why these modifications occur.
Author contact:
Albert Jeltsch (Jacobs University Bremen, Germany)
Tel: +49 421 200 3247; E-mail: [email protected]
*******************************************Nature MEDICINE********************************************
(http://www.nature.com/naturemedicine)
[5] A rogue neighbourhood
DOI: 10.1038/nm1764
Gene expression changes in the tissue microenvironment in which a tumour arises can be used to predict outcome in patients with breast cancer, suggests a report online this week in Nature Medicine.
Analysis of the genes expressed in cancer has provided important information that can help predict the aggressiveness of tumours and their likely response to therapy. Morag Park and colleagues show that the tumour connective tissue or ‘stroma’ also undergoes changes in gene expression that can help inform disease outcome. By analyzing the tissue surrounding breast tumours, they identify a gene signature that classifies tumours according to clinical outcomes, independent of other prognostic factors.
In addition to providing a new diagnostic tool for breast cancer, these findings highlight the emerging role of tumour stroma in cancer progression.
Author contact:
Morag Park (McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada)
Tel: +1 514 843 1479; E-mail: [email protected]
Other papers from Nature Medicine to be published online at the same time and with the same embargo:
[6] Inhibition of pulmonary antibacterial defense by interferon-gamma during recovery from influenza infection
DOI: 10.1038/nm1765
[7] CD3-specific antibody–induced immune tolerance involves transforming growth factor-beta from phagocytes digesting apoptotic T cells
DOI: 10.1038/nm1749
***********************************************NATURE GENETICS **************************************
(http://www.nature.com/naturegenetics)
[8] Breast cancer risk variants
DOI: 10.1038/ng.131
Two common genetic variants on chromosome 5 increase susceptibility to certain types of breast cancer breast cancer, according to a study published online this week in Nature Genetics.
Previous studies had provided suggestive evidence that a region on chromosome 5 might harbour risk variants that increase the risk of breast cancer.
Simon Stacey and colleagues assessed the presence of ten variants from the region in more than 6,000 individuals with breast cancer and more than 30,000 controls. Two variants in particular were significantly more common in those with breast cancer, particularly breast cancer characterized by expression of the oestrogen receptor. The closest gene in the region is MRPS30, which encodes a protein found in mitochondria that has been implicated in the promotion of cell death.
Author contact:
Simon Stacey (deCODE Genetics, Reykjavik, Iceland)
Tel: +354 570 2880; E-mail: [email protected]
Edward Farmer (deCODE Genetics, New York, NY, USA) Additional media contact
E-mail: [email protected]
[9] & [10] Inflammatory bowel diseases share genetic risk factors
DOI: 10.1038/ng.145
DOI: 10.1038/ng.148
Several genetic risk variants are identified for the common inflammatory bowel disease ulcerative colitis, in two studies published online this week in Nature Genetics. Some of these variants also predispose to Crohn’s disease, a related chronic disorder of the intestine.
Ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease are similar, though distinct, inflammatory bowel disorders that affect 1 in 250 individuals of Northern European descent. Significant progress has been made in identifying genetic variants that point to susceptibility to Crohn’s disease, but this has been less true of ulcerative colitis, and the common genetic underpinnings of the two disorders are not well understood.
Jack Satsangi and colleagues carried out a scan for variants affecting risk of colitis, and identified ECM1, which encodes a protein that is secreted by cells and activates a key immune regulator. These authors also show that five previously identified susceptibility genes for Crohn’s disease are common to ulcerative colitis, while three are not.
In a separate study, Stefan Schreiber and colleagues investigated 50 previously reported susceptibility loci for Crohn’s disease in more than 1,800 individuals with Crohn’s disease and more than 1,100 individuals with ulcerative colitis. Several were identified as risk variants for both diseases, while three were specific to Crohn’s disease and three specific to ulcerative colitis. Together these studies lay the groundwork for a more complete assessment of the genetic relationship between the two diseases.
Author contacts:
Jack Satsangi (University of Edinburgh, UK) Author paper [9]
Tel: +44 131 651 3789; E-mail: [email protected]
Colette McColl PA to Jack Satsangi
Tel: +44 131 651 1807
Stefan Schreiber (University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel, Germany) Author paper [10]
Tel: +49 431 597 1279; E-mail: [email protected]
[11] Sequencing sheds light on the cancer genome
DOI: 10.1038/ng.128
The rearrangement of genomes in people with lung cancer can be identified using an approach called ‘massively parallel sequencing.’ The study, published online this week in Nature Genetics, looked at the genomes of two individuals with lung cancer at a single base pair resolution.
Most of the known genes associated with cancer contribute to disease as part of rearrangements of the genome, often with two genes that are usually separate fusing to generate an abnormal gene product that causes disease. The evidence suggests that there are many such fusions yet to be identified, but current methods generally do a poor job of characterizing such rearrangements at high resolution.
Michael Stratton, Andrew Futreal and colleagues carried out parallel DNA sequencing of both ends of millions of short DNA fragments from two lung cancer cell lines. Those ‘read pairs’ that did not align correctly with respect to each other on the reference human genome were considered candidate rearrangements. The authors then further characterized these regions by additional sequencing to confirm that they represent genuine rearrangements. A number of newly identified fusion transcripts were found, and the authors anticipate that this method will uncover many more fusions that promote the development of a variety of cancers.
Author contacts:
Michael Stratton (Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Hinxton, UK)
Tel: +44 1223 494757; E-mail: [email protected]
Andrew Futreal (Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Hinxton, UK)
Tel: +44 1223 494857; E-mail: [email protected]
*******************************************NATURE NEUROSCIENCE ***********************************
(http://www.nature.com/natureneuroscience)
[12] Let there be light
DOI: 10.1038/nn.2117
Some vision in blind mice can be restored with the help of a light-sensitive ion channel from green algae, reports a paper published online in Nature Neuroscience this week.
Botond Roska and colleagues studied mice that had lost all photoreceptors in their retina. They expressed the algal channel ChR2 in another retinal nerve cell. Strong light opens this channel, activating the neurons that express it and resulting in light-dependent signals being transmitted to the visual area in the back of the mouse brain. When suddenly exposed to strong light, the formerly blind ChR2-carrying mice tried to run for cover, and they also turned their heads in response to moving grid patterns. Compared to normal mice, however, the vision of ChR2-carrying ‘blind’ mice remained poor.
Loss of photoreceptor neurons in the retina due to conditions such as macular degeneration or retinitis pigmentosa is the leading cause of blindness. There is no effective treatment for photoreceptor degeneration. The optic nerve and visual cortex remain intact in these patients, so artificial expression of light-sensitive channels in the retina could some day be used therapeutically.
Author contact:
Botond Roska (Friedrich Miescher Institut, Basel, Switzerland)
Tel: +41 61 697 8575; Email: [email protected]
[13] Visualizing neuronal activity in 3D
DOI: 10.1038/nn.2116
The ability to ‘watch’ neurons respond to specific stimuli has greatly enhanced our understanding of how brain cell populations encode information. A technical report published online this week in Nature Neuroscience allows scientists to extend this analysis from 2 to 3 dimensions.
Previously, Saggau and colleagues demonstrated the theoretical possibility of rapidly visualizing neuronal activity in three dimensions using a special microscope and physical tricks using lasers. They now incorporate all of these features into a new system to provide the first ‘random access’ microscope, allowing researchers to select regions of interest for analysis anywhere in a particular volume of tissue. As a demonstration, the authors load neurons with a dye that signals activity, and follow the signals produced at tens of locations at an acquisition rate of thousands of measurements per second. Before, scientists could only take such rapid measurements in two dimensions, with 3D access limited to a temporal resolution of one measurement over tens of seconds.
These improvements in imaging neuronal activity will provide researchers with a much richer picture of how neurons in different layers of the brain functionally interact. This technology will be most useful for imaging studies involving live animals, since most relevant neuronal structures are oriented perpendicular to the imaging area of the microscope when using these preparations.
Author contact:
Peter Saggau (Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA)
Tel: +1 713 798 5082; E-mail: [email protected]
***************************************************************************************************************
Items from other Nature journals to be published online at the same time and with the same embargo:
Nature (http://www.nature.com/nature)
[14] HP1-b mobilization promotes chromatin changes that initiate the DNA damage response
DOI: 10.1038/nature06875
NATURE PHOTONICS (http://www.nature.com/nphoton)
[15] Omnidirectional absorption in nanostructured metal surfaces
DOI: 10.1038/nphoton.2008.76
Nature PHYSICS (http://www.nature.com/naturephysics)
[16] Thermodynamic properties of a spin-1/2 spin-liquid state in a k-type organic salt
DOI: 10.1038/nphys942
[17] Towards fault-tolerant quantum computing with trapped ions
DOI: 10.1038/nphys961
[18] Process tomography of quantum memory in a Josephson-phase qubit coupled to a two-level state
DOI: 10.1038/nphys972
[19] Discovery of an excited pair state in superfluid 3He
DOI: 10.1038/nphys969
NATURE MATERIALS (http://www.nature.com/naturematerials)
[20] Electronic structures of interfacial states formed at polymeric semiconductor heterojunctions
DOI: 10.1038/nmat2182
[21] Electric-field control of local ferromagnetism using a magnetoelectric multiferroic
DOI: 10.1038/nmat2184
NATURE BIOTECHNOLOGY (http://www.nature.com/naturebiotechnology)
[22] CpG-free plasmids confer reduced inflammation and sustained pulmonary gene expression
DOI: 10.1038/nbt1399
[23] A combinatorial library of lipid-like materials for delivery of RNAi therapeutics
DOI: 10.1038/nbt1402
[24] The impact of target site accessibility on the design of effective siRNAs
DOI: 10.1038/nbt1404
NATURE NANOTECHNOLOGY (http://www.nature.com/nnano)
[25] Mass production and dynamic imaging of fluorescent nanodiamonds
DOI: 10.1038/nnano.2008.99
NATURE IMMUNOLOGY (http://www.nature.com/natureimmunology)
[26] Sequential control of Toll-like receptor–dependent responses by IRAK1 and IRAK2
DOI: 10.1038/ni.1606
[27] A critical function for TGF-beta signaling in the development of natural CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T cells
DOI: 10.1038/ni.1607
[28] Transcription factor Mef2c is required for B cell proliferation and survival after antigen receptor stimulation
DOI: 10.1038/ni.1609
Nature STRUCTURAL & MOLECULAR BIOLOGY (http://www.nature.com/natstructmolbiol)
[29] Structure of the GspK–GspI–GspJ complex from the enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli type 2 secretion system
DOI: 10.1038/nsmb.1426
[30] Mouse Eri1 interacts with the ribosome and catalyzes 5.8S rRNA processing
DOI: 10.1038/nsmb.1417
***************************************************************************************************************
The following paper will be published online on Nature Neuroscience’s website at 2000 London time (BST) / 1500 US Eastern time on Wednesday 23 April, which is when the embargo will lift. The rest of the papers on this press release remain under embargo until Sunday 27 April 1800 London time (BST) / 1300 US Eastern time.
[31] Redshifted optogenetic excitation: a tool for fast neural control derived from Volvox carteri
DOI: 10.1038/nn.2120
***************************************************************************************************************
GEOGRAPHICAL LISTING OF AUTHORS
The following list of places refers to the whereabouts of authors on the papers numbered in this release. The listing may be for an author's main affiliation, or for a place where they are working temporarily. Please see the PDF of the paper for full details.
AUSTRIA
Innsbruck: 17
Vienna: 24
BELGIUM
Mons: 20
CANADA:
Halifax: 12
Quebec: 5
FRANCE
Besancon: 7
Orsay: 15
GERMANY
Berlin: 31
Bremen: 4
Cologne: 30
Kiel: 10
Kulmbach: 23
Munich: 30
ICELAND
Reykjavik: 8
ISRAEL
Jerusalem: 18
JAPAN
Kyoto: 4
Miyagi: 16
Osaka: 16, 26
Saitama: 4, 16
Tokyo: 16
MALAYSIA
Selangor Darul Ehsan: 22
NETHERLANDS
Doetinchem: 8
Nijmegen: 8
NIGERIA
Oyo State: 8
NORWAY
Oslo: 10
RUSSIA
Saratov: 15
SPAIN
Calatayud: 8
Madrid: 15
San Sebastian: 15
Zaragoza: 8
SWEDEN
Gothenburg: 20
Stockholm: 8
SWITZERLAND
Basel: 12
Geneva: 23
Villigen: 21
TAIWAN
Taichung: 25
Taipei: 25
UNITED KINGDOM
Bristol: 22
Cambridge: 9, 11, 14, 15, 20
Edinburgh: 9, 22
London: 9, 22
Newcastle: 9
Oxford: 9, 22
Sheffield: 9
Southampton: 15
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
California
Berkeley: 3, 21
Carlsbad: 23
La Jolla: 3
Los Angeles: 8
Palo Alto: 21
San Francisco: 7, 30
Santa Barbara: 18
Stanford: 1, 31
Georgia
Atlanta: 4
Hawaii
Honolulu: 1, 8
Illinois
Chicago: 8
Evanston: 19
Maryland
Bethesda: 7, 27
Massachusetts
Boston: 12, 30
Cambridge: 23
Framingham: 22
Worcester: 24
Missouri
St Louis: 28
New York
Albany: 6, 28
Palisades: 2
Upton: 20
Texas
Dallas: 28
Houston: 13
Washington
Seattle: 29
PRESS CONTACTS…
For media inquiries relating to embargo policy for all the Nature Research Journals:
Rachel Twinn (Nature London)
Tel: +44 20 7843 4658; E-mail: [email protected]
Ruth Francis (Head of Press, Nature, London)
Tel: +44 20 7843 4562; E-mail: [email protected]
For media inquiries relating to editorial content/policy for the Nature Research Journals, please contact the journals individually:
Nature Biotechnology (New York)
Peter Hare
Tel: +1 212 726 9284; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Chemical Biology (Boston)
Andrea Garvey
Tel: +1 617 475 9241, E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Genetics (New York)
Orli Bahcall
Tel: +1 212 726 9311; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Geoscience (London)
Heike Langenberg
Tel: +44 20 7843 4042; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Immunology (New York)
Laurie Dempsey
Tel: +1 212 726 9372; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Materials (London)
Alison Stoddart
Tel: +44 20 7843 4593; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Medicine (New York)
Juan Carlos Lopez
Tel: +1 212 726 9325; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Nanotechnology (London)
Peter Rodgers
Tel: +44 20 7014 4019; Email: [email protected]
Nature Neuroscience (New York)
Sandra Aamodt (based in California)
Tel: +1 530 795 3256; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Photonics (Tokyo)
Oliver Graydon
Tel: +81 3 3267 8776; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Physics (London)
Alison Wright
Tel: +44 20 7843 4555; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Structural & Molecular Biology (New York)
Michelle Montoya
Tel: +1 212 726 9326; E-mail: [email protected]
About Nature Publishing Group
Nature Publishing Group (NPG) is a division of Macmillan Publishers Ltd, dedicated to serving the academic, professional scientific and medical communities. NPG's flagship title, Nature, was first published in 1869. Other publications include Nature research journals, Nature Reviews, Nature Clinical Practice and a range of prestigious academic journals including society-owned publications. NPG also provides news content through [email protected]. Scientific career information and free job postings are offered on Naturejobs.
NPG is a global company with headquarters in London and offices in New York, San Francisco, Washington DC, Boston, Tokyo, Paris, Munich, Hong Kong, Melbourne, Delhi, Mexico City and Basingstoke. For more information, please go to www.nature.com.
