Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)

Researchers from the Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, have found a surprisingly simple way of understanding social-distancing behavior during an epidemic.

Researchers from Osaka University found that TEX38 and ZDHHC19 co-localize on the plasma membrane of spermatids and mediate S-palmitoylation of ARRDC5, a crucial protein for spermatogenesis. Disrupting either TEX38 or ZDHHC19 inhibited cytoplasm removal from the sperm head, resulting in deformed sperm and infertility in a male mouse model.

A twist you’ll never see coming: a breakthrough in understanding the relationship between chirality and electric flow at a microscopic level may help us develop chiral information technology.

Data could help rethink climate change models regarding sources of carbon and CO2 sinks

Researchers from Osaka University have discovered that GPR31, found in certain immune cells in the human gut, plays a key role in responding to bacterial metabolites and activating immune responses. Specifically, in the presence of metabolite pyruvate, these cells extend dendrites to sample the gut environment, detect pathogens, and activate T cells through GPR31. This discovery could inform the development of new drugs, vaccines, and probiotics that enhance gut immunity by targeting this pathway.

An unprecedented rapid increase in anthropogenic fingerprints around 1952 in the global strata reflects the point in time when humanity began to overwhelm the Earth system

A team of scientists in Singapore and the US uncovered how a protein that controls our biological clock modifies its own function, offering new ways for treating jet lag and seasonal adjustments

The Androgen Receptor in Mesenchymal Progenitor Cells Drives Skeletal Muscle Mass Regulation

Our understanding of Venus' water history and the potential that it was once habitable in the past is being challenged by observations made by researchers from Tohoku University.

- DGIST Professor Ko Jaewon and team identify a single family of synaptic membrane proteins that inhibit excitatory and synaptic properties - The findings may provide key clues to the development of therapeutics for related brain disorders targeting different synaptic protein complexes inhibited by MDGA proteins * MDGA: a synaptic adhesion protein that plays an essential role in how nerve cells connect with each other to transmit neural signals.

New research employs shutter speed analogies to validate 55-year-old theory about chemical reaction rates.

A new technology to increase visibility of cancer cells to the immune system using CRISPR has been developed, and could lead to a new way to treat cancer.

Researchers from Osaka University have discovered a novel treatment to relieve cytokine release syndrome (CRS), a life-threatening inflammation triggered by a serious infection or severe burn. Treatment with a short-acting antibody reduces the inflammatory effects of interleukin-6, a key cytokine in CRS while avoiding the side effects associated with previous longer-acting therapies.

Research by Assistant Professor Edison Ang Huixiang and his team from National Institute of Education/Nanyang Technological University Singapore

Researchers from Osaka University have shown that a protein called HKDC1 is a new target of another protein, TFEB, and plays key roles in maintaining the stability of both mitochondria and lysosomes. HKDC1 is essential for mitophagy to remove damaged mitochondria, and mediates mitochondria–lysosome contact, which is critical for lysosomal repair. The role of HKDC1 in maintaining the stability of these organelles counteracts cellular senescence, revealing HKDC1 as a potential therapeutic target for age-related diseases.

A broad-spectrum antiviral drug candidate, 2-thiouridine, that targets positive-strand RNA viruses has been identified and characterized.

The authors identified a structure in the circadian mRNA Period2 that affects the sleep-wake cycle. The results indicate how translation and post-transcriptional processes influence the body’s internal clock and its impact on sleep patterns.

This novel technology: - provides potential treatment in relation to restoring aging muscle cells obtained from older adults and remedying sarcopenia in aging animals through bioelectric medicine - presents a new paradigm for treating sarcopenia, for which no drugs are currently available to treat this condition - has been reported in the internationally renowned academic journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)

Study addresses gaps in understanding of swine influenza A virus evolution and highlights need for early warning of disease emergence

DNA and RNA, the two main types of nucleic acid and the building blocks of life, are susceptible to environmental stimuli, which can cause them to deform, bend or twist. These deformations can significantly affect gene regulation and protein functions, but they are extremely difficult to measure using traditional techniques. Recently, a research team co-led by a physicist from City University of Hong Kong (CityU) accurately measured the change in a nucleic acid induced by salt, temperature change and stretching force. Their findings help reveal the underlying universal deformation mechanisms of DNA and RNA.

Researchers from the Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, provide physical insights into porous soft materials, which will facilitate the design of many energy, medical, and other technologies.

The brain is a highly efficient, sophisticated information processing system. To achieve maximum efficiency, it can store reservoirs of interconnected nodes that transform input signals into a more complex representation. This has inspired a theoretical computational model known as reservoir computing. A research team has recently harnessed this model to analyze the computational capabilities of an artificially cultured brain composed of neurons derived from the cerebral cortex of rats.

Researchers at Kanazawa University report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS) high-speed atomic force microscopy experiments that show how ligands associated with stimulating and suppressing activation of the TRPV1 protein increase and decrease the molecule’s structural variations. The observations provide insights into how these heat- and chilli-sensing proteins function.

To survive, all organisms must regulate their appetite. Hormones and small proteins called neuropeptides perform this process, stimulating feelings of hunger and fullness. When researchers noted the similarities between GAWamide, a neuropeptide that regulates feeding in the Cladonema jellyfish, and myoinhibitory peptide, a neuropeptide that regulates feeding in fruit flies, they decided to test whether they could exchange the two. Their success in doing so highlights the deep evolutionary origins of feeding regulation.

A group including Osaka Metropolitan University researchers discovered that the rhodopsin—a protein in the eye that detects light—of whale sharks has changed to efficiently detect blue light, which penetrates deep-sea water easily. The amino acid substitutions–one of which is counterintuitively associated with congenital stationary night blindness in humans—aid in detecting the low levels of light in the deep-sea. Although these changes make the whale shark rhodopsin less thermally stable the deep-sea temperature, allows their rhodopsin to keep working. This suggests that the unique adaptation evolved to function in the low-light low-temperature environment where whale sharks live.

Researchers from Osaka University identified the role of a protein known as testis-specific kinase substrate (TSKS) in the process of spermiation, the release of mature sperm. Analysis of a gene-modified mouse model in which TSKS is disrupted revealed that TSKS is necessary for sperm to eliminate cytoplasm and become streamlined. These findings may lead to the development of diagnostic tests and male contraceptives.

Researchers from Osaka University have shown sex-specific differences in the immune response to COVID-19 infection. By identifying and analyzing the immune cell population in COVID-19 patients, they showed that infection results in a reduced ratio of circulating follicular T regulatory (cTfr) cells to a network of antibody-producing proteins, correlated with dysregulated antibody production. This cTfr cell reduction is more significant in males, providing cellular evidence for the observed association between increased risk and male sex.

Osaka Metropolitan University scientists have demonstrated that fish can recognize “it’s me” when they themselves in a picture for the first time in non-human animals. Further testing made it clear that the fish recognize their own face in the pictures like humans.

Researchers led by Osaka University demonstrated the role of endothelial cell-specific protein Roundabout4 (Robo4) in the reduction of vascular permeability and mortality in mouse models of severe infection. The research team identified a drug inhibitor that increased Robo4 expression and reduced mortality in sepsis and SARS-CoV-2 mouse models of infection. These findings may aid in the development of drugs to reduce the mortality rate of severe infectious diseases.

The Sox9 gene is upregulated in the absence of sex-determining Y chromosome and Sry gene in Amami spiny rat.