Nature Communications - 7 May 2014

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Weekly Content Alert 07 May 2014  Featured image: Nightingale et al. show controlled chemical synthesis in a fluid stream comprising three distinct phases. Latest content: Articles Corrigendum Journal homepage Recommend to library Web feed   Advertisement Join the most influential in European science at EuroScience Open Forum (ESOF) 2014 Copenhagen - June 21-26, 2014 and be the first to know - scientific news from all of the sciences. Early bird offer! Get one year Nature subscription for free - sign up before May 31    Advertisement They're recruiting scientists just like you! The Naturejobs Career Expo is coming to Boston, Massachusetts on May 20, 2014. Take advantage of this free opportunity to meet employers, attend workshops and further develop your career. Don't wait-register today!        Latest Articles View all Articles     Spider genomes provide insight into composition and evolution of venom and silk OPEN Kristian W. Sanggaard, Jesper S. Bechsgaard, Xiaodong Fang, Jinjie Duan, Thomas F. Dyrlund, Vikas Gupta, Xuanting Jiang, Ling Cheng, Dingding Fan, Yue Feng, Lijuan Han, Zhiyong Huang, Zongze Wu, Li Liao, Virginia Settepani, Ida B. Thøgersen, Bram Vanthournout, Tobias Wang, Yabing Zhu, Peter Funch et al. Spiders use self-produced venom and silk for their daily survival. Here, the authors report the assembled genome of the social velvet spider and a draft assembly of the tarantula genome and, together with proteomic data, provide insights into the evolution of genes that affect venom and silk production. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4765 Biological Sciences  Evolution  Genetics  Madden–Julian Oscillation prediction skill of a new-generation global model demonstrated using a supercomputer OPEN Tomoki Miyakawa, Masaki Satoh, Hiroaki Miura, Hirofumi Tomita, Hisashi Yashiro, Akira T. Noda, Yohei Yamada, Chihiro Kodama, Masahide Kimoto and Kunio Yoneyama Prediction of the Madden–Julian Oscillation using complex cloud-resolving models has been limited by computational power. Here, Miyakawa et al. run a series of simulations using the newly developed 10 peta-flop 'K computer' and demonstrate a Madden–Julian Oscillation predictive window of 27 days. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4769 Earth Sciences  Atmospheric science  Climate science  Waving potential in graphene Jun Yin, Zhuhua Zhang, Xuemei Li, Jin Yu, Jianxin Zhou, Yaqing Chen and Wanlin Guo Attempts have been made in flowing liquids over carbon nanomaterials to generate electric voltages, but a convincing or significant voltage is yet to be obtained. Here, Yin et al. show an electrokinetic process in which an electric potential of 0.1 V is generated in graphene by a moving liquid–gas boundary. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4582 Physical Sciences  Materials science  Nanotechnology  Physical chemistry  Engineering colloidal quantum dot solids within and beyond the mobility-invariant regime David Zhitomirsky, Oleksandr Voznyy, Larissa Levina, Sjoerd Hoogland, Kyle W. Kemp, Alexander H. Ip, Susanna M. Thon and Edward H. Sargent Colloidal quantum dots are promising materials for efficient low-cost solar cells and optoelectronics, but their performance does not improve with increased carrier mobility. Here, the authors show instead that the spacing between recombination centres controls the diffusion length. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4803 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Materials science  Angiotensin II plasma levels are linked to disease severity and predict fatal outcomes in H7N9-infected patients Fengming Huang, Jing Guo, Zhen Zou, Jun Liu, Bin Cao, Shuyang Zhang, Hui Li, Wei Wang, Miaomiao Sheng, Song Liu, Jingcao Pan, Changjun Bao, Mei Zeng, Haixia Xiao, Guirong Qian, Xinjun Hu, Yuanting Chen, Yu Chen, Yan Zhao, Qiang Liu et al. An avian influenza H7N9 virus causes severe human disease, including acute and often lethal respiratory failure. Here, the authors report that plasma levels of angiotensin II, a regulatory peptide of the renin–angiotensin system, are associated with disease severity and fatal outcome in infected patients. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4595 Biological Sciences  Medical research  Microbiology  Virology  Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 protects from lethal avian influenza A H5N1 infections Zhen Zou, Yiwu Yan, Yuelong Shu, Rongbao Gao, Yang Sun, Xiao Li, Xiangwu Ju, Zhu Liang, Qiang Liu, Yan Zhao, Feng Guo, Tian Bai, Zongsheng Han, Jindong Zhu, Huandi Zhou, Fengming Huang, Chang Li, Huijun Lu, Ning Li, Dangsheng Li et al. H5N1 avian influenza viruses can be highly pathogenic. Here, the authors show that H5N1 infection leads to increased serum levels of angiotensin II in patients and mice, and that administration of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 ameliorates lung injury in infected mice. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4594 Biological Sciences  Medical research  Microbiology  Virology  Controlled multistep synthesis in a three-phase droplet reactor OPEN Adrian M. Nightingale, Thomas W. Phillips, James H. Bannock and John C. de Mello Droplet chemistry is less susceptible to channel-fouling than single-phase flow chemistry, but is largely limited to simple reactions where all reagents are preloaded into droplets. Here, the authors report a method for multistep chemistry in droplets, using two immiscible liquids and a gas to achieve controlled, sequential reagent addition. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4777 Chemical Sciences  Inorganic chemistry  Physical chemistry  High-throughput and combinatorial gene expression on a chip for metabolism-induced toxicology screening Seok Joon Kwon, Dong Woo Lee, Dhiral A. Shah, Bosung Ku, Sang Youl Jeon, Kusum Solanki, Jessica D. Ryan, Douglas S. Clark, Jonathan S. Dordick and Moo-Yeal Lee Current tools to test drug metabolism and toxicity in the liver are mainly based on time-consuming traditional cell culture methods. Here Kwon et al. report a high-throughput system employing cells cultured on micropillars that can be transfected with combinations of drug-metabolizing enzymes. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4739 Biological Sciences  Medical research  IL-21 induces IL-22 production in CD4+ T cells Ada Yeste, Ivan D. Mascanfroni, Meghan Nadeau, Evan J. Burns, Ann-Marcia Tukpah, Andrezza Santiago, Chuan Wu, Bonny Patel, Deepak Kumar and Francisco J Quintana The cytokine interleukin-22 maintains the integrity of the colonic epithelium during inflammation. Here, the authors show that IL-21 regulates the production of IL-22 in T cells and this mechanism plays a protective role in a mouse model of colitis. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4753 Biological Sciences  Immunology  IL-27 and IL-12 oppose pro-inflammatory IL-23 in CD4+ T cells by inducing Blimp1 Christina Heinemann, Sylvia Heink, Franziska Petermann, Ajithkumar Vasanthakumar, Veit Rothhammer, Elien Doorduijn, Meike Mitsdoerffer, Christopher Sie, Olivia Prazeres da Costa, Thorsten Buch, Bernhard Hemmer, Mohamed Oukka, Axel Kallies and Thomas Korn Autoimmune diseases are regulated by the balance between pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Here, the authors show that the transcriptional regulator Blimp1 is induced in inflammatory T helper cells by the cytokines IL-27 and IL-12 to counteract pro-inflammatory IL-23 and promote resolution of tissue inflammation. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4770 Biological Sciences  Immunology  Enhanced flexibility of place discrimination learning by targeting striatal cholinergic interneurons Kana Okada, Kayo Nishizawa, Ryoji Fukabori, Nobuyuki Kai, Akira Shiota, Masatsugu Ueda, Yuji Tsutsui, Shogo Sakata, Natsuki Matsushita and Kazuto Kobayashi Striatal cholinergic interneurons are implicated in various behaviours and cognitive processes. Here, Okada et al. selectively ablate these interneurons in rats and show that cholinergic interneurons inhibit place reversal learning through M4, but not M1 muscarinic receptors. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4778 Biological Sciences  Neuroscience  On-the-fly decoding luminescence lifetimes in the microsecond region for lanthanide-encoded suspension arrays OPEN Yiqing Lu, Jie Lu, Jiangbo Zhao, Janet Cusido, Françisco M Raymo, Jingli Yuan, Sean Yang, Robert C. Leif, Yujing Huo, James A. Piper, J Paul Robinson, Ewa M. Goldys and Dayong Jin Accurately determining luminescence lifetimes for slow-decaying signals can be challenging. Here, the authors report a fitting algorithm and subsequently experimentally show a method for the rapid measurement of luminescence lifetimes in the microsecond region. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4741 Physical Sciences  Analytical chemistry  Materials science  Optical physics  Endoplasmic reticulum calcium release through ITPR2 channels leads to mitochondrial calcium accumulation and senescence Clotilde Wiel, Hélène Lallet-Daher, Delphine Gitenay, Baptiste Gras, Benjamin Le Calvé, Arnaud Augert, Mylène Ferrand, Natalia Prevarskaya, Hélène Simonnet, David Vindrieux and David Bernard Cellular senescence is a protective mechanism that prevents replication of cells exposed to stresses such as replicative exhaustion, oncogenic signals and oxidative stress. Wiel et al. reveal a role for calcium signalling between the endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria in senescence maintenance. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4792 Biological Sciences  Cell biology  Electrical magnetochiral anisotropy in a bulk chiral molecular conductor Flavia Pop, Pascale Auban-Senzier, Enric Canadell, Geert L. J. A. Rikken and Narcis Avarvari Electrical magnetochiral anisotropy phenomenon describes the change in resistance of chiral materials caused by the interplay between chirality, conductivity and magnetic fields. Pop et al. show here for the first time the occurrence of this phenomenon in a bulk chiral molecular conductor. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4757 Chemical Sciences  Materials science  Emergence of collective modes and tri-dimensional structures from epithelial confinement M. Deforet, V. Hakim, H.G. Yevick, G. Duclos and P. Silberzan Many biological processes involve spatially confined cells. Deforet et al. observe and model the behaviours of spatially constrained cell monolayers, and demonstrate that confinement alone induces morphogenesis-like processes including spontaneous collective oscillations and transition to three-dimensional growth. 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4747 Biological Sciences  Biophysics  Cell biology  The malaria parasite egress protease SUB1 is a calcium-dependent redox switch subtilisin OPEN Chrislaine Withers-Martinez, Malcolm Strath, Fiona Hackett, Lesley F. Haire, Steven A. Howell, Philip A. Walker, Christodoulou Evangelos, Guy G. Dodson and Michael J. Blackman In the malarial parasitophorous vacuole, the serine protease SUB1 processes parasite proteins that are required for release from host cells and invasion. Here, the authors report the first crystallographic structure of SUB1 in complex with its cognate prodomain revealing its substrate interactions and providing insight into its regulation. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4726 Biological Sciences  Biochemistry  Microbiology  Photochemically colour-tuneable white fluorescence illuminants consisting of conjugated polymer nanospheres Jingxhou Bu, Kazuyoshi Watanabe, Hiroyuki Hayasaka and Kazuo Akagi Aromatic conjugated polymers are candidates for optoelectronic applications, but photoswitching of white fluorescence emission has not been realized in these materials. Here, Bu et al. achieve this goal by mixing red, blue and green fluorescent polymer nanospheres in both solutions and films. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4799 Chemical Sciences  Materials science  Nanotechnology  Organic chemistry  Potential energy surfaces and reaction pathways for light-mediated self-organization of metal nanoparticle clusters Zijie Yan, Stephen K. Gray and Norbert F. Scherer Understanding the interactions between nanoparticles is vital for controlling their assembly. Here, the authors show how photonic control and binding of nanoparticles can be understood with the concept of potential energy surfaces, giving path-dependent formation of clusters. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4751 Physical Sciences  Materials science  Nanotechnology  Optical physics  Coaxial wet-spun yarn supercapacitors for high-energy density and safe wearable electronics OPEN Liang Kou, Tieqi Huang, Bingna Zheng, Yi Han, Xiaoli Zhao, Karthikeyan Gopalsamy, Haiyan Sun and Chao Gao High-energy yarn supercapacitors are desirable for safe and wearable electronics. Here, Kou et al. use a coaxial wet-spinning assembly method to fabricate core-sheath fibres of polymer-wrapped carbon nanomaterials and demonstrate high-performance supercapacitor applications. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4754 Chemical Sciences  Materials science  Nanotechnology  Dynamics of a producer-freeloader ecosystem on the brink of collapse Andrew Chen, Alvaro Sanchez, Lei Dai and Jeff Gore Ecosystems may irreversibly change after perturbations once the tipping point is reached. Here, the authors assess the dynamics of an experimental ecosystem on the brink of collapse and find that the producer populations grow in size as the environment deteriorates, but the collective dynamics slows down near the tipping point. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4713 Biological Sciences  Ecology  Redox active iron nitrosyl units in proton reduction electrocatalysis Chung-Hung Hsieh, Shengda Ding, Özlen F. Erdem, Danielle J. Crouthers, Tianbiao Liu, Charles C. L. McCrory, Wolfgang Lubitz, Codrina V. Popescu, Joseph H. Reibenspies, Michael B. Hall and Marcetta Y. Darensbourg There is substantial interest in the development of base metal molecular catalysts for hydrogen generation. Here, the authors report a nitrosyl-containing diiron complex, and study its versatile electrochemical behaviour, which is due to the two unique iron sites and the redox active nitrosyl ligands. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4684 Chemical Sciences  Catalysis  Inorganic chemistry  Ebf factors and MyoD cooperate to regulate muscle relaxation via Atp2a1 Saihong Jin, Jeehee Kim, Torsten Willert, Tanja Klein-Rodewald, Mario Garcia-Dominguez, Matias Mosqueira, Rainer Fink, Irene Esposito, Lorenz C. Hofbauer, Patrick Charnay and Matthias Kieslinger The specificity in myogenic transcription is poorly defined. Here, Jin et al. describe Ebf3 as a regulator of terminal muscle differentiation in the diaphragm and show that Ebf factors cooperate with the myogenic regulatory factor MyoD in the induction of muscle-specific genes. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4793 Biological Sciences  Developmental biology  The histone H2A deubiquitinase Usp16 regulates embryonic stem cell gene expression and lineage commitment Wei Yang, Yun-Hwa Lee, Amanda E. Jones, Jessica L. Woolnough, Dewang Zhou, Qian Dai, Qiang Wu, Keith E. Giles, Tim M. Townes and Hengbin Wang Embryonic stem cell differentiation requires activation of lineage-specific genes. Here the authors show that the histone H2A deubiquitinase Usp16 is required for relieving ubiquitinated H2A-mediated silencing of lineage-specific genes and embryonic stem cell differentiation. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4818 Biological Sciences  Developmental biology  Molecular biology  A generalized non-local optical response theory for plasmonic nanostructures N. A. Mortensen, S. Raza, M. Wubs, T. Søndergaard and S. I. Bozhevolnyi As plasmonic structures shrink towards sub-nanometre scales, it becomes more important to develop theoretical tools to explain their optical properties. Towards this aim, the authors present a semiclassical approach to describe experimental results for the non-local optical response of nanostructures. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4809 Physical Sciences  Condensed matter  Optical physics  Theoretical physics  Chemodiversity of dissolved organic matter in lakes driven by climate and hydrology Anne M. Kellerman, Thorsten Dittmar, Dolly N. Kothawala and Lars J. Tranvik Lakes play an important role in the global carbon cycle and understanding their organic matter cycling is vital. Kellerman et al. apply an ultrahigh-resolution technique to 120 lakes across Sweden and show that the molecular composition is shaped by water dynamics and temperature. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4804 Earth Sciences  Biogeochemistry  Climate science  Functional and molecular features of the calmodulin-interacting protein IQCG required for haematopoiesis in zebrafish Li-Ting Chen, Wen-Xue Liang, Shuo Chen, Ren-Ke Li, Jue-Ling Tan, Peng-Fei Xu, Liu-Fei Luo, Lei Wang, Shan-He Yu, Guoyu Meng, Keqin Kathy Li, Ting-Xi Liu, Zhu Chen and Sai-Juan Chen NUP98–IQCG is a fusion protein found in acute leukaemia that functions as a regulator of transcriptional expression. Here, Chen et al. investigate IQCG-mediated calcium signalling in haematopoiesis, and propose a model where IQCG can store calmodulin, which once released, activates CaM-dependent kinase IV. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4811 Biological Sciences  Developmental biology  Sophisticated digestive systems in early arthropods Jean Vannier, Jianni Liu, Rudy Lerosey-Aubril, Jakob Vinther and Allison C. Daley Reconstructing patterns of diversification of early animals is challenging. Here, Vannier et al. describe complex digestive organs in arthropods from the early Cambrian of China and Greenland and show similarities with modern crustaceans, suggesting that these structures might have promoted ecological diversification. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4641 Biological Sciences  Ecology  Evolution  Palaeontology  Ferroelastic domain switching dynamics under electrical and mechanical excitations Peng Gao, Jason Britson, Christopher T. Nelson, Jacob R. Jokisaari, Chen Duan, Morgan Trassin, Seung-Hyub Baek, Hua Guo, Linze Li, Yiran Wang, Ying-Hao Chu, Andrew M. Minor, Chang-Beom Eom, Ramamoorthy Ramesh, Long-Qing Chen and Xiaoqing Pan The electromechanical response of thin film ferroelectric devices is considerably influenced by ferroelastic domains. Here, the authors observe that these ferroeleastic domains can be stabilized by dislocations, providing feedback for a better control over the properties of these devices. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4801 Physical Sciences  Condensed matter  Materials science  Contrasting role of antimony and bismuth dopants on the thermoelectric performance of lead selenide Yeseul Lee, Shih-Han Lo, Changqiang Chen, Hui Sun, Duck-Young Chung, Thomas C. Chasapis, Ctirad Uher, Vinayak P. Dravid and Mercouri G. Kanatzidis For power generation through waste-heat recovery to become competitive, the conversion efficiency of tellurium-free materials needs to be increased. Here, the authors show the effect of dopant-induced nanostructuring on the thermoelectric properties of the promising lead selenide. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4640 Physical Sciences  Materials science  Orbital control of western North America atmospheric circulation and climate over two glacial cycles Matthew S. Lachniet, Rhawn F. Denniston, Yemane Asmerom and Victor J. Polyak A palaeoclimate record from Devils Hole, North America, has long called into question the theory of orbital-scale climate variability. Lachniet et al. present a new, well-dated, speleothem record and reveal evidence for strong orbital forcing of palaeoclimate in this region for at least the past 175 kyrs. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4805 Earth Sciences  Climate science  Geology and geophysics  Macromolecular structures probed by combining single-shot free-electron laser diffraction with synchrotron coherent X-ray imaging Marcus Gallagher-Jones, Yoshitaka Bessho, Sunam Kim, Jaehyun Park, Sangsoo Kim, Daewoong Nam, Chan Kim, Yoonhee Kim, Do Young Noh, Osamu Miyashita, Florence Tama, Yasumasa Joti, Takashi Kameshima, Takaki Hatsui, Kensuke Tono, Yoshiki Kohmura, Makina Yabashi, S. Samar Hasnain, Tetsuya Ishikawa and Changyong Song et al. Macromolecular complexes hold promise for future generations of drug delivery carriers, but probing their structures with high resolution is challenging. Here, the authors combine X-ray free-electron laser and synchrotron approaches to reveal the core-shell structure of RNA interference microsponges. 02 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4798 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Biotechnology  A liquid crystalline chirality balance for vapours OPEN Takuya Ohzono, Takahiro Yamamoto and Jun-ichi Fukuda Chiral determination of vapours is possible in biological systems as an important part of the olfactory system. Here, the authors describe a system that is capable of visually detecting and distinguishing the chirality of vapour-phase molecules by structural changes in a liquid crystal confined in open microchannels. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4735 Physical Sciences  Analytical chemistry  Applied physics  Physical chemistry  Spectral interferometric microscopy reveals absorption by individual optical nanoantennas from extinction phase OPEN Sylvain D. Gennaro, Yannick Sonnefraud, Niels Verellen, Pol Van Dorpe, Victor V. Moshchalkov, Stefan A. Maier and Rupert F. Oulton Absorption by an optical nanoantenna determines its interaction strength with light, yet this quantity is hidden from conventional spectroscopy. Gennaro et al. now demonstrate a spectroscopic technique that reveals a nanoantenna's absorption by recovering its amplitude and phase response. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4748 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Nanotechnology  Optical physics  G-protein stimulatory subunit alpha and Gq/11α G-proteins are both required to maintain quiescent stem-like chondrocytes Andrei S. Chagin, Karuna K. Vuppalapati, Tatsuya Kobayashi, Jun Guo, Takao Hirai, Min Chen, Stefan Offermanns, Lee S. Weinstein and Henry M. Kronenberg The resting zone of the growth plate of mammalian long bones contains stem-like chondrocytes. Here, the authors show that G-protein stimulatory alpha subunit, Gsα, and the Gq/11α G-proteins together protect stem-like chondrocytes from apoptosis and preserve chondrocyte quiescence in mouse growth plates. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4673 Biological Sciences  Cell biology  Developmental biology  Highly efficient carrier multiplication in PbS nanosheets OPEN Michiel Aerts, Thomas Bielewicz, Christian Klinke, Ferdinand C. Grozema, Arjan J. Houtepen, Juleon M. Schins and Laurens D. A. Siebbeles Carrier multiplication processes, where photons are converted into multiple charge carriers, promise higher efficiencies for solar cells based on quantum dots and nanorods. Here, the authors demonstrate carrier multiplication in PbS nanosheets, extending this effect to two-dimensional materials. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4789 Physical Sciences  Nanotechnology  Optical physics  Optofluidic laser for dual-mode sensitive biomolecular detection with a large dynamic range Xiang Wu, Maung Kyaw Khaing Oo, Karthik Reddy, Qiushu Chen, Yuze Sun and Xudong Fan Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays are common biological analyses, but they can be hindered by non-specific binding and background interference. Here, the authors present an optofluidic laser-based ELISA technique with low detection limits and in the presence of significant non-specific binding. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4779 Biological Sciences  Immunology  Optical physics  Information on quantum states pervades the visible spectrum of the ubiquitous Au144(SR)60 gold nanocluster H.-Ch. Weissker, H. Barron Escobar, V. D. Thanthirige, K. Kwak, D. Lee, G. Ramakrishna, R. L. Whetten and X. López-Lozano The transition from discrete molecular-like to smooth optical spectra in gold nanostructures of increasing size is important to the understanding of emergent bulk properties. Here, the authors observe discrete features even for intermediate gold clusters believed to have necessarily smooth spectra. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4785 Physical Sciences  Nanotechnology  Optical physics  Spin Hall voltages from a.c. and d.c. spin currents OPEN Dahai Wei, Martin Obstbaum, Mirko Ribow, Christian H. Back and Georg Woltersdorf A spin current is injected from a ferromagnet into a nonmagnetic metal at magnetic resonance. Here, the authors show that this current has both a direct-current and a much larger alternating-current component, indicating that these structures could be useful for high-frequency spintronics. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4768 Physical Sciences  Condensed matter  Robust and versatile ionic liquid microarrays achieved by microcontact printing Christian A. Gunawan, Mengchen Ge and Chuan Zhao Ionic liquids are widely used in diverse applications as solvents with high thermal and chemical stability. Gunawan et al. develop a protocol for fabrication of an ionic liquid microdroplet array using a soft lithography technique, and demonstrate its utility as a membrane-free high-performance gas sensor. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4744 Chemical Sciences  Materials science  Nanotechnology  Physical chemistry  Coherence and modality of driven interlayer-coupled magnetic vortices J. F. Pulecio, P. Warnicke, S. D. Pollard, D. A. Arena and Y. Zhu Magnetic vortices could be utilized in high-frequency applications but greater understanding of the coupling dynamics is required. Here, the authors use in situ Lorentz microscopy to directly image the dynamics of strongly coupled vortices under resonant excitations. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4760 Physical Sciences  Condensed matter  FoxO proteins restrain osteoclastogenesis and bone resorption by attenuating H2O2 accumulation OPEN Shoshana M. Bartell, Ha-Neui Kim, Elena Ambrogini, Li Han, Srividhya Iyer, S. Serra Ucer, Peter Rabinovitch, Robert L. Jilka, Robert S. Weinstein, Haibo Zhao, Charles A. O'Brien, Stavros C. Manolagas and Maria Almeida Osteoclasts are bone-resorbing cells responsible for the loss of bone mass in diseases such as osteoporosis. Here the authors show that osteoclast proliferation and survival is regulated by FoxO family transcription factors, which control levels of the signalling molecule hydrogen peroxide. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4773 Biological Sciences  Medical research  Carbon enters silica forming a cristobalite-type CO2–SiO2 solid solution Mario Santoro, Federico A. Gorelli, Roberto Bini, Ashkan Salamat, Gaston Garbarino, Claire Levelut, Olivier Cambon and Julien Haines Novel materials synthesized under extreme conditions can challenge long-held views of fundamental chemistry. Santoro et al. combine fluid CO2 and solid SiO2 to create a new crystalline compound, via experimentation at ultra-high pressures and temperatures, which is stable at ambient conditions. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4761 Chemical Sciences  Inorganic chemistry  Materials science  Tuning the surface Fermi level on p-type gallium nitride nanowires for efficient overall water splitting M. G. Kibria, S. Zhao, F. A. Chowdhury, Q. Wang, H. P. T. Nguyen, M. L. Trudeau, H. Guo and Z. Mi One of the obstacles in implementing solar water splitting is the requirement for materials with high internal quantum efficiency. Here, the authors investigate the effects of magnesium doping on the Fermi levels of gallium nitride nanowires, and tune this value to maximize redox efficiency. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4825 Chemical Sciences  Catalysis  Inorganic chemistry  Few-femtosecond time-resolved measurements of X-ray free-electron lasers C. Behrens, F.-J. Decker, Y. Ding, V. A. Dolgashev, J. Frisch, Z. Huang, P. Krejcik, H. Loos, A. Lutman, T. J. Maxwell, J. Turner, J. Wang, M.-H. Wang, J. Welch and J. Wu Characterizing femtosecond X-ray pulses that vary from shot to shot is important for data interpretation. Here, Behrens et al. measure time-resolved lasing effects on the electron beam and extract the temporal profile of X-ray pulses using an X-band radiofrequency transverse deflector. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4762 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Regulation of focal adhesion formation by a vinculin-Arp2/3 hybrid complex Dror S. Chorev, Oren Moscovitz, Benjamin Geiger and Michal Sharon Arp2/3 is a seven-subunit actin-nucleating complex. Here, Chorev et al. identify a novel 'hybrid complex' consisting of the actin-nucleating three-subunit core of Arp2/3 and the focal adhesion adapter, vinculin, that localizes to, and modulates the growth of, focal adhesions. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4758 Biological Sciences  Biochemistry  Cell biology  Generation of 1020 W cm-2 hard X-ray laser pulses with two-stage reflective focusing system Hidekazu Mimura, Hirokatsu Yumoto, Satoshi Matsuyama, Takahisa Koyama, Kensuke Tono, Yuichi Inubushi, Tadashi Togashi, Takahiro Sato, Jangwoo Kim, Ryosuke Fukui, Yasuhisa Sano, Makina Yabashi, Haruhiko Ohashi, Tetsuya Ishikawa and Kazuto Yamauchi X-ray-free electron lasers produce X-ray pulses for use in applications such as the determination of molecular structures or the study of materials. Here, Mimura and colleagues demonstrate a two-stage focusing scheme to achieve unprecedented laser power densities of over 1020 W cm-2. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4539 Physical Sciences  Optical physics  Mutations in the PQBP1 gene prevent its interaction with the spliceosomal protein U5–15kD Mineyuki Mizuguchi, Takayuki Obita, Tomohito Serita, Rieko Kojima, Yuko Nabeshima and Hitoshi Okazawa Frameshift mutations in the protein polyglutamine tract-binding protein 1 (PQBP1) are believed to cause X-linked mental retardation. Here, Mizuguchi et al. present the crystal structure of a C-terminal fragment of PQBP1 in complex with the spliceosomal protein U5–15kD, and show details of this interaction that can lead to mechanistic insights into the disease. 30 April 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4822 Biological Sciences  Molecular biology  Neuroscience    Nature Communications JOBS of the week Research technician King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) Postdoc Standford University Post-doctoral fellow FAPESP - São Paulo Research Foundation 10 PhD and postdoc positions ETH Zurich Postdoctoral fellow University of Cologne Research Technician Imperial College London PhD studenteship Newcastle University Poatdoctoral fellow Case Western Reserve University PhD in Chemistry Cardiff University Group Leader Position Lund University More Science jobs from Nature Communications EVENT Palliative Medicine Symposium 18.09.14 Nevada, USA More science events from       Latest Corrigendum     Corrigendum: Experience enhances gamma oscillations and interhemispheric asymmetry in the hippocampus Yoshiaki Shinohara, Aki Hosoya and Hajime Hirase 06 May 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms4693 Biological Sciences  Neuroscience        Natureevents is a fully searchable, multi-disciplinary database designed to maximise exposure for events organisers. 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