The number of new X-ray crystallography-based submissions to the Protein Data Bank appears to be at the beginning of a decline, perhaps signalling an end to the era of the dominance of X-ray crystallography within structural biology. This letter, from the viewpoint of a young structural biologist, applies the Copernican method to the life expectancy of crystallography and asks whether the technique is still the mainstay of structural biology. A study of the rate of Protein Data Bank depositions allows a more nuanced analysis of the fortunes of macromolecular X-ray crystallography and shows that cryo-electron microscopy might now be outcompeting crystallography for new labour and talent, perhaps heralding a change in the landscape of the field.

Scott J. Neal, Qingxiang Zhou, and Francesca Pignoni

The specification of organs, tissues and cell types results from cell fate restrictions enacted by nuclear transcription factors under the control of conserved signaling pathways. The progenitor epithelium of the Drosophila compound eye, the eye imaginal disc, is a premier model for the study of such processes. Early in development, apposing cells of the eye disc are established as either retinal progenitors or support cells of the peripodial epithelium (PE), in a process whose genetic and mechanistic determinants are poorly understood. We have identified Protein Phosphatase 2A (PP2A), and specifically a STRIPAK-PP2A complex that includes the scaffolding and substrate-specificity components Cka, Strip and SLMAP, as a critical player in the retina-PE fate choice. We show that these factors suppress ectopic retina formation in the presumptive PE and do so via the Hippo signaling axis. STRIPAK-PP2A negatively regulates Hpo kinase, and consequently its substrate Wts, to release the transcriptional co-activator Yki into the nucleus. Thus, a modular higher-order PP2A complex refines the activity of this general phosphatase to act in a precise specification of cell fate.

Kasun Buddika, Ishara S. Ariyapala, Mary A. Hazuga, Derek Riffert, and Nicholas S. Sokol

Stressed cells downregulate translation initiation and assemble membrane-less foci termed stress granules (SGs). Extensively characterized in cultured cells, the existence of such structures in stressed adult stem cell pools remain poorly characterized. Here we report that Drosophila orthologs of mammalian SG components AGO1, ATX2, CAPRIN, eIF4E, FMRP, G3BP, LIN-28, PABP, and TIAR are enriched in adult intestinal progenitor cells where they accumulate in small cytoplasmic messenger ribonucleoprotein complexes (mRNPs). Treatment with sodium arsenite or rapamycin reorganized these mRNPs into large cytoplasmic granules. Formation of these intestinal progenitor stress granules (IPSGs) depended on polysome disassembly, led to translational downregulation, and was reversible. While canonical SG nucleators ATX2 and G3BP were sufficient for IPSG formation in the absence of stress, neither of them, nor TIAR, either individually or collectively, were required for stress-induced IPSG formation. This work therefore finds that IPSGs do not assemble via a canonical mechanism, raising the possibility that other stem cell populations employ a similar stress-response mechanism.

Samantha-Su Z. Taylor, Nicole L. Jacobsen, Tasha K. Pontifex, Paul Langlais, and Janis M. Burt

Connexin 37 (Cx37) expression profoundly suppresses proliferation of rat insulinoma (Rin) cells in a manner dependent on gap junction channel (GJCh) functionality and the presence and phosphorylation status of its carboxyl-terminus (CT). In Rin cells growth arrested by induced Cx37 expression, serine 319 (S319) is frequently phosphorylated. Preventing phosphorylation at this site (alanine substitution; S319A) relieved Cx37 of its growth suppressive effect whereas mimicking phosphorylation at this site (aspartate substitution; S319D) enhanced Cx37's growth suppressive properties. Like Cx37-WT, -S319D GJChs and hemichannels (HChs) preferred the closed state, rarely opening fully, and gated slowly. In contrast, Cx37-S319A channels preferred open states, opened fully, and gated rapidly. These data indicate that phosphorylation-dependent conformational differences in Cx37 protein and channel function underlie Cx37-induced growth arrest vs. growth permissive phenotypes. That the closed state of -WT and Cx37-S319D GJChs and HChs favors growth arrest suggests that rather than specific permeants mediating cell cycle arrest, the closed conformation instead supports interaction of Cx37 with growth regulatory proteins that result in growth arrest.

Restless volcano. This Feb. 10 satellite radar image shows the summit of Alaska’s Cleveland Volcano and a new lava dome within the volcano’s summit crater […]

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Researchers at the Smithsonian's National Zoo's new genetics lab use animal DNA to diagnose new diseases, discover new species help in conservation efforts and solve mysteries.

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A sickness called panda love: TED talk by National Zoo’s Bill McShea

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What is the average blood pressure of a geriatric sloth bear? Asia Trail keeper Stacey Tabellario is hoping to learn exactly that, as she trains […]

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Known around the world for personal and culturally inspired choreography, Dana Tai Soon Burgess has been named the Smithsonian’s first choreographer-in-residence at the National Portrait […]

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Known around the world for personal and culturally inspired choreography, Dana Tai Soon Burgess has been named the Smithsonian’s first choreographer-in-residence at the National Portrait […]

The post Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company @ Portrait Gallery appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The Emeco Alfi Chair is on view as part of ‘Making | Breaking New Arrivals,’ at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum May–October, 2017. To learn […]

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Businesses are cutting back on hours to avoid having to provide health care coverage under the new Affordable Care Act.

Steve Julian: Business analyst Mark Lacter, who's affected here?

Mark Lacter: Thirty hours a week is the magic number for workers to be considered full time under the new law.  If a business has 50 or more full-time employees, health care coverage has to be provided.  Except that a lot business owners say that the additional cost is going to be a financial killer, so instead, some of them have been cutting back hours to below that 30-hour threshold.  More than 200,000 Californians are at risk of losing hours from the health care law - that according to one study.

Julian: What kinds of businesses are doing this?

Lacter: Restaurant chains have received much of the attention, but the city of Long Beach, as an example, is going to reduce hours for a couple of hundred of its workers.  And, last week came word that the L.A.-based clothing chain Forever 21 will cut some of its full-time employees to a maximum 29-and-a-half hours a week, and classify them as part time.  That touched off an outcry on the Internet - people were saying that Forever 21 was being unfair and greedy - though the company says that only a small number of employees are affected, and that its decision has nothing to do with the Affordable Care Act.  There's really no way to know - Forever 21 is a private company, which means it's not obligated to disclose a whole lot.  What we do know is that those people will be losing their health care coverage.

Julian: And, the ultimate impact on businesses and workers?

Lacter: Steve, you're looking at several years before the picture becomes clear.  Here in California, workers not eligible for health care through their employer can get their own individual coverage, and if their income levels are not over a certain amount, they'd be eligible for Medicaid.  And, let's not forget many businesses already provide coverage for their employees.  So, lots of rhetoric - but, not many conclusions to draw from, which does make you wonder why so many business owners are unwilling to at least give this thing a chance.  Just doesn't seem to be much generosity of spirit for their workers, not to mention any recognition that if people can go to a doctor instead of an emergency room we'd probably all be better off.

Julian: Health care is far from the only controversy for Forever 21, true?

Lacter: In some ways, it's one of the biggest Southern California success stories.  Don Chang emigrated here in 1981 from Korea at the age of 18, opened his first store in Highland Park three years later (it was called Fashion 21), and he never looked back.  Today, revenues are approaching $4 billion.  But, the guy must have some pretty hefty legal bills because his company has been accused of all kinds of workplace violations.  The lawsuits alleged that workers preparing items for the Forever 21 stores didn't receive overtime, that they didn't get required work breaks, that they received substandard wages, and that they worked in dirty and unsafe conditions - sweatshop conditions, essentially.

Julian: Are most of their claims settled out of court?  You don't hear much about them.

Lacter: They are, which means there's usually a minimal amount of media coverage.  If a privately held company decides to keep quiet by not releasing financial results or other operational information, there's not likely to be much of a story - unlike what happens with a company like Apple, which is always under scrutiny.  Sometimes, plaintiffs will try to organize class-action suits, but that's extremely tough when you're dealing with low-wage workers who are often very reluctant to get involved because of their legal status.  And, let's not forget that Forever 21 - like any low-cost retailer - is simply catering to the demand for cheap, stylish clothes that are made as quickly as possible.

Julian: I guess you can't make that happen when wages and benefits are appreciably higher than your competition.

Lacter: The next time you walk into a Forever 21 store and wonder how prices can be so reasonable, that's how.

Mark Lacter writes for Los Angeles Magazine and pens the business blog at LA Observed.com.

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

We've been reporting on the city of Los Angeles approving major developments without seismic studies attached.

Steve Julian: Business analyst Mark Lacter, why is this?

Mark Lacter: Steve, this is a real gotcha moment for the L.A. Planning Department, the City Council, and everyone else at City Hall who signed off on these projects.  The latest revelation, which was reported by the L.A. Times, shows that a planned 39-story residential tower in Century City is just 300 feet from the active Santa Monica fault.  And, we're only learning about this because the Metropolitan Transportation Authority did its own seismic testing near the site when it was looking for potential subway stops, and officials decided that it was too close to the fault.  This also comes after three large-scale projects in Hollywood were found to be located quite close to the active Hollywood fault.

Julian: The concern is that if any faults were to rupture, the foundation of a building could be split apart.

Lacter: Kind of an inconvenient truth both for the developers, who have millions of dollars riding on these projects, and for L.A. city officials who are betting on a future that will include many more high rises.  And, we should note that more than two-dozen high rises are either in the process of going up, or are at least on the drawing board.  In case you're wondering why there aren't regulations that monitor this sort of thing, the answer is that there are regulations.  California has a law that requires state geologists to map active earthquake faults, and then set zones on either side of the fault line.

Julian: Has the state done this?

Lacter: The state says it hasn't had the time nor the money to map areas within the city of L.A., though the faults have been known to be in the general vicinity of these projects - and so, you'd think the city would want them tested extensively.  Of course, that would mean more delays, which the developers wouldn't be happy with.

Julian: Of course, seismic studies are not always definitive.

Lacter: They're not - and it's possible that different geologists would come up with different findings.  But so far, most of the information seems to be coming from the developers, and you have to wonder whether it's a great idea to rely on folks who have a financial interest in a project to tell us what's safe and what isn't.  Probably not.

Julian: Your article in the new issue of Los Angeles Magazine raises a broader point about the city's business climate.

Lacter: Steve, for many years, L.A. has been branded as a terrible place to do business because of government interference, but that's largely a myth.  If anything, city officials have been too accommodating.  Frankly, the anti-business rap never made much sense when you consider the thousands of companies that start up here each year.  A study by the accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers ranks L.A. particularly high when it comes to ease of doing business, which runs counter to the conventional wisdom.

Julian: You're not saying it's truly easy, are you?

Lacter: Easy, no.  There certainly are plenty of reasons for business owners to pull out their hair.  And those hassles, along with an unemployment rate that remains quite high, has given developers and others the leverage to ask for various giveaways.  All they have to do is say that their projects will generate more jobs, and city officials tend to respond favorably - no matter how questionable those proposals might be.  And, by the way, job creation doesn't always determine economic growth, certainly not in the short term.

Julian: We all remember during the mayoral campaign, candidates were talking about how their policies would lead to lower unemployment...

Lacter: ...right, almost like they could pick up jobs at Ralphs.  Well, it doesn't work that way.  Thing is, the city of L.A. doesn't need to cut so many deals - the local economy is rich enough and broad enough to keep prospering.  Which is why city officials would be much better off laying off the incentives, and focusing on the basics - public safety, transportation, the parks, and libraries.  Do that right, and the business climate will take care of itself.

Mark Lacter writes for Los Angeles Magazine and pens the business blog at LA Observed.com.

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

If you see a web site that states "Press <> to watch the video" and then prompts you to allow browser notifications, do not click on the allow button. These sites are just trying to trick you into subscribing to their browser notifications so that they can send notification spam directly to your desktop.

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Two grass species that had been relatively rare in the plots, Spartina patens and Distichlis spicata, began to respond vigorously to the excess nitrogen. Eventually the grasses became much more abundant. Nitrogen ultimately changed the composition of the ecosystem as well as its capacity to store carbon.

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Now the Global Plants Initiativeis catapulting biodiversity research to a new level by sharing these historic plant collections in a massive online database of high-resolution scans.

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In 1909, naturalist Dr. Edgar A. Mearns joined Theodore Roosevelt and scientists from the Smithsonian and New York’s American Museum of Natural History on an […]

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Fulcaldea stuessyi is a newly discovered member of the Barnadesioideae, a subfamily of the Compositae, or sunflower family of flowering plants. It was found in northeastern […]

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One way to avoid a cold or the flu, doctors say, is to stay away from crowded places. Viruses spread fast in places where people […]

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According to a new study by biologists at the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center and Virginia Tech the offspring of a certain songbird, the wood thrush, […]

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Forty percent of the world’s 2.5 billion people live in coastal cities and towns. A team including Smithsonian marine biologists just released 25 years of […]

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If you try to open a text file with UTF-16 or UTF-32 encoding, the Import Tool displays a warning message stating that the encoding is not supported.  If you continue to load the file anyways, it is opened with UTF-8 encoding, and the file may not be displayed or imported as expected.This bug exists in the following release(s):
R2020a

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The GDC Compliance Advisory Board (CAB) provides insight into how to interpret the Strong Consumer Authentication (SCA) mandate described in PSD 2 without jeopardizing data privacy concerns protected by GDPR. 

Experimental electron-density studies based on high-resolution diffraction experiments allow halogen bonds between heavy halogens to be classified. The topological properties of the electron density in Cl⋯Cl contacts vary smoothly as a function of the inter­action distance. The situation is less straightforward for halogen bonds between iodine and small electronegative nucleophiles, such as nitro­gen or oxygen, where the electron density in the bond critical point does not simply increase for shorter distances. The number of successful charge–density studies involving iodine is small, but at least individual examples for three cases have been observed. (a) Very short halogen bonds between electron-rich nucleophiles and heavy halogen atoms resemble three-centre–four-electron bonds, with a rather symmetric heavy halogen and without an appreciable σ hole. (b) For a narrow inter­mediate range of halogen bonds, the asymmetric electronic situation for the heavy halogen with a pronounced σ hole leads to rather low electron density in the (3,−1) critical point of the halogen bond; the properties of this bond critical point cannot fully describe the nature of the associated inter­action. (c) For longer and presumably weaker contacts, the electron density in the halogen bond critical point is only to a minor extent reduced by the presence of the σ hole and hence may be higher than in the aforementioned case. In addition to the electron density and its derived properties, the halogen–carbon bond distance opposite to the σ hole and the Raman frequency for the associated vibration emerge as alternative criteria to gauge the halogen-bond strength. We find exceptionally long C—I distances for tetra­fluoro­diiodo­benzene molecules in cocrystals with short halogen bonds and a significant red shift for their Raman vibrations.

(The Paypers) American Express (Amex) has sent a data breach notification to a group of its...

(The Paypers) HID Global, an identity solutions company, has completed the acquisition of the...

File photo: Lorne Street Elementary students had to grab books from a book bin after their library was closed during the recession.; Credit: Annie Gilbertson/KPCC

More than 200 Los Angeles Unified School District elementary school libraries have reopened in just two months, according to district officials.

Recession-era budget cuts had left many libraries without staffing. The cuts persisted even when the economy began to improve: a year ago half of the district's 650,000 students were still without a librarian or library aide.

Without library workers, state law prohibits students from browsing collections, pulling reference materials or checking out books. 

“We have been living without libraries and, no, we don’t want to because they are essential for academic achievement and learning for our students," said Mark Bobrosky, a librarian at Walter Reed Middle School.

School board member Monica Ratliff created a task force to recommend ways to expand libraries after KPCC reported that Lorne Street Elementary in Northridge had a library full of books collecting dust.

"This idea of equity — we are trying to make sure we don't have library deserts," Ratliff said at the board's curriculum, instruction and assessment committee meeting on Tuesday.

Even when the board committed funds for elementary school libraries, the district found it hard to fill openings. Library aides worked just three hours a day, five days a week.

Members of the task force suggested assigning library aides to two schools, doubling their hours and providing benefits.  Elementary school libraries began to quickly reopen. 

But while conditions have improved for elementary students, middle school libraries are still hard hit, with nearly 65 percent of their campus libraries shuttered.

Bobrosky said reopening the libraries is vital for L.A. Unified's success in implementing the Common Core state standards, which require research projects incorporating a variety of texts.

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.