Nature Communications - 20 August 2014

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Weekly Content Alert 20 August 2014  Featured image: Palacio et al. show that Helianthemum squamatum can access water locked up within the crystalline structure of gypsum. Latest content: Articles Journal homepage Recommend to library Web feed   Advertisement Nature Milestones in Crystallography Nature Milestones in Crystallography is a collaboration from Nature, Nature Materials, Nature Nanotechnology and Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, and celebrates the International Year of Crystallography 2014.  Access the Milestones supplement FREE online for six months.  Associated Society International Union of Crystallography Produced with support from the worldwide network of neutron and X-ray sources     Latest Articles View all Articles     Fumigant methyl iodide can methylate inorganic mercury species in natural waters Yongguang Yin, Yanbin Li, Chao Tai, Yong Cai and Guibin Jiang Methyl iodide is a fumigant registered for use in many countries and its usage is increasing. Here, the authors identify a new pathway of mercury methylation via methyl iodide in sunlit water, suggesting the necessity for a more comprehensive risk assessment for the use of methyl iodide as a fumigant. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5633 Earth Sciences  Biogeochemistry  Reconstructing Austronesian population history in Island Southeast Asia OPEN Mark Lipson, Po-Ru Loh, Nick Patterson, Priya Moorjani, Ying-Chin Ko, Mark Stoneking, Bonnie Berger and David Reich Populations speaking Austronesian languages are numerous and widespread, but their history remains controversial. Here, the authors analyse genetic data from Southeast Asia and show that all populations harbour ancestry most closely related to aboriginal Taiwanese, while some also contain a component closest to Austro-Asiatic speakers. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5689 Biological Sciences  Genetics  A trapped-ion-based quantum byte with 10-5 next-neighbour cross-talk C. Piltz, T. Sriarunothai, A.F. Varón and C. Wunderlich Quantum computers require precise control and addressing of individual qubits in a register, but this is impeded by cross-talk between them. Here, in an eight-qubit trapped-ion register, Piltz et al. present an approach to obtain cross-talk of the order of 10-5, surpassing current thresholds for quantum gates. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5679 Physical Sciences  Atomic and molecular physics  Interplay between phosphorylation and SUMOylation events determines CESTA protein fate in brassinosteroid signalling Mamoona Khan, Wilfried Rozhon, Simon Josef Unterholzner, Tingting Chen, Marina Eremina, Bernhard Wurzinger, Andreas Bachmair, Markus Teige, Tobias Sieberer, Erika Isono and Brigitte Poppenberger Brassinosteroid hormones control plant growth by regulating phosphorylation of a family of transcription factors. Here Khan et al. find that the stability and nuclear localization of the brassinosteroid-sensitive transcription factor CESTA is regulated by antagonistic SUMOylation and phosphorylation. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5687 Biological Sciences  Cell biology  Plant sciences  Dendritic cell subsets require cis-activation for cytotoxic CD8 T-cell induction A Nicole Desch, Sophie L. Gibbings, Eric T. Clambey, William J. Janssen, Jill E. Slansky, Ross M. Kedl, Peter M. Henson and Claudia Jakubzick Differentiation into cytotoxic lymphocytes requires T-cell instruction by appropriately activated dendritic cells (DCs). Here the authors show that two DC lineages in the lung are selectively activated by either Toll-like receptor 3 or 7 to induce cytotoxic T-cell function. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5674 Biological Sciences  Immunology  Molecular determinants of magnesium-dependent synaptic plasticity at electrical synapses formed by connexin36 Nicolás Palacios-Prado, Sandrine Chapuis, Alejandro Panjkovich, Julien Fregeac, James I. Nagy and Feliksas F. Bukauskas Electrical synaptic transmission is known to be modulated by intracellular magnesium. Here, Palacios-Prado et al. show that electrical synapses formed by connexin36 in the thalamic reticular nucleus are bidirectionally modulated by changes in magnesium concentration via pore-lining sensitive domains. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5667 Biological Sciences  Biophysics  Neuroscience  Understanding functional miRNA–target interactions in vivo by site-specific genome engineering OPEN Andrew R. Bassett, Ghows Azzam, Lucy Wheatley, Charlotte Tibbit, Timothy Rajakumar, Simon McGowan, Nathan Stanger, Philip Andrew Ewels, Stephen Taylor, Chris P. Ponting, Ji-Long Liu, Tatjana Sauka-Spengler and Tudor A. Fulga Identifying miRNA response elements (MREs) within target mRNAs can be done computationally but the functional validation of putative MREs remains challenging. Here, Bassett et al. describe applications of genome engineering to target and assess the functional significance of MREs in different organisms and stages of development. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5640 Biological Sciences  Molecular biology  Temporal spying and concealing process in fibre-optic data transmission systems through polarization bypass OPEN P.Y. Bony, M. Guasoni, P. Morin, D. Sugny, A. Picozzi, H.R. Jauslin, S. Pitois and J. Fatome Recent temporal cloaking schemes hid or revealed temporal events and data using spectral modifications in a continuous wave probe. Here, Bony et al. propose using reversible manipulation of the polarization state of transmitted data to perpetually copy or conceal data in a fibre-optic transmission system. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5678 Physical Sciences  Optical physics  The deubiquitinating enzyme CYLD controls apical docking of basal bodies in ciliated epithelial cells Thibaut Eguether, Maria A. Ermolaeva, Yongge Zhao, Marion C. Bonnet, Ashish Jain, Manolis Pasparakis, Gilles Courtois and Anne-Marie Tassin Mutations in the deubiquitinase gene CYLD are associated with cylindromatosis, a disease characterized by the development of skin appendage tumours. Eguether et al. discover that CYLD localizes to centrosomes and is required for basal body migration and docking, providing insight into its tumour suppressor activity. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5585 Biological Sciences  Cell biology  Interpreting carbonate and organic carbon isotope covariance in the sedimentary record Amanda M. Oehlert and Peter K. Swart To date, covariance of carbonate and organic carbon isotope records has been assumed to denote fidelity of the original signal. This study shows that post-depositional alteration can create strong correlations, raising doubts about the use of correlated records to imply important changes in past global carbon cycling. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5672 Earth Sciences  Biogeochemistry  Geology and geophysics  Toll-like receptor 4 and MAIR-II/CLM-4/LMIR2 immunoreceptor regulate VLA-4-mediated inflammatory monocyte migration OPEN Naoya Totsuka, Yun-Gi Kim, Kazumasa Kanemaru, Kouta Niizuma, Eiji Umemoto, Kei Nagai, Satoko Tahara-Hanaoka, Chigusa Nakahasi-Oda, Shin-ichiro Honda, Masayuki Miyasaka, Kazuko Shibuya and Akira Shibuya Inflammatory monocytes play an important role in host defense against infections. Here the authors provide insights into the mechanism behind the recruitment of inflammatory monocytes to sites of infection by demonstrating the involvement of Toll-like receptor 4 and MAIR-II immunoreceptors in this process. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5710 Biological Sciences  Immunology  Holocene variations in peatland methane cycling associated with the Asian summer monsoon system OPEN Yanhong Zheng, Joy S. Singarayer, Peng Cheng, Xuefeng Yu, Zhao Liu, Paul J. Valdes and Richard D. Pancost Although it has been widely suggested that the mid-Holocene minimum methane emissions are associated with hydrological change, direct evidence is missing. Here, the authors present evidence from the Tibetan Plateau using tracers of methanogenesis and methanotrophy, in combination with climate simulations. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5631 Earth Sciences  Biogeochemistry  Climate science  Genome-wide association study identifies new susceptibility loci for epithelial ovarian cancer in Han Chinese women Kexin Chen, Hongxia Ma, Lian Li, Rongyu Zang, Cheng Wang, Fengju Song, Tingyan Shi, Dianke Yu, Ming Yang, Wenqiong Xue, Juncheng Dai, Shuang Li, Hong Zheng, Chen Wu, Ying Zhang, Xiaohua Wu, Dake Li, Fengxia Xue, Haixin Li, Zhi Jiang et al. Ovarian cancer is common among women and is the leading cause of death from gynaecological malignancies. Here the authors identify two previously unknown genetic variants that increase the risk of epithelial ovarian cancer in Han Chinese women. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5682 Biological Sciences  Genetics  The MK2/3 cascade regulates AMPAR trafficking and cognitive flexibility OPEN Katherine L. Eales, Oleg Palygin, Thomas O'Loughlin, Seyed Rasooli-Nejad, Matthias Gaestel, Jürgen Müller, Dawn R. Collins, Yuriy Pankratov and Sonia A.L. Corrêa MK2/3 kinases are both highly expressed in the hippocampus and cortex of the brain, but their role is unclear. Here Eales et al. show that MK2/3 signalling regulates dendritic spine morphology and is required for synaptic plasticity via the regulation of AMPA receptor trafficking, and cognitive processes. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5701 Biological Sciences  Cell biology  Neuroscience  Tailoring the topology of an artificial magnetic skyrmion J. Li, A. Tan, K.W. Moon, A. Doran, M.A. Marcus, A.T. Young, E. Arenholz, S. Ma, R.F. Yang, C. Hwang and Z.Q. Qiu Skyrmions—vortex-like spin textures—are conventionally only seen in materials that exhibit the right magnetic properties. Li et al. now create so-called artificial skyrmions using a cobalt disk embedded in a magnetized nickel film, thus presenting a platform for controlling skyrmions. 19 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5704 Physical Sciences  Condensed matter  Materials science  Reversible nano-structuring of SrCrO3-d through oxidation and reduction at low temperature K. H. L. Zhang, P. V. Sushko, R. Colby, Y. Du, M. E. Bowden and S. A. Chambers Oxygen vacancies can significantly influence the electronic and structural properties of complex oxides. Here, the authors find that by controlling the concentration of oxygen vacancy defects in SrCrO3 thin films, the crystal structure, oxygen diffusivity and electronic properties can be reversibly switched. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5669 Physical Sciences  Condensed matter  Materials science  Echo-acoustic flow dynamically modifies the cortical map of target range in bats Sophia K. Bartenstein, Nadine Gerstenberg, Dieter Vanderelst, Herbert Peremans and Uwe Firzlaff Echolocating bats possess an organized map of echo delay in the auditory cortex. Bartenstein et al. investigate the influence of echo-acoustic flow information on the organization of the cortical map, and find that dynamic adaptation of the map is dependent on situation-specific sensory input. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5668 Biological Sciences  Biophysics  Neuroscience  Myc inhibition is effective against glioma and reveals a role for Myc in proficient mitosis OPEN Daniela Annibali, Jonathan R. Whitfield, Emilia Favuzzi, Toni Jauset, Erika Serrano, Isabel Cuartas, Sara Redondo-Campos, Gerard Folch, Alba Gonzàlez-Juncà, Nicole M. Sodir, Daniel Massó-Vallés, Marie-Eve Beaulieu, Lamorna B. Swigart, Margaret M. Mc Gee, Maria Patrizia Somma, Sergio Nasi, Joan Seoane, Gerard I. Evan and Laura Soucek Myc has been implicated in the development of multiple types of cancer. Here, the authors explore the therapeutic potential and mechanism of action of Myc inhibition in mouse and human models of glioblastoma, an aggressive type of tumour that is often resistant to conventional therapy. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5632 Biological Sciences  Cancer  Medical research  Neuroscience  Photoinitated charge separation in a hybrid titanium dioxide metalloporphyrin peptide material H. Christopher Fry, Yuzi Liu, Nada M. Dimitrijevic and Tijana Rajh Peptides can be used as templates for the synthesis of dye-sensitised semiconducting materials. Here, the authors design two peptides that give excellent and sequence specific control over the spatial arrangement of the semiconducting materials with respect to the dye molecule. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5606 Chemical Sciences  Inorganic chemistry  Nanotechnology  Interface-induced nonswitchable domains in ferroelectric thin films Myung-Geun Han, Matthew S.J. Marshall, Lijun Wu, Marvin A. Schofield, Toshihiro Aoki, Ray Twesten, Jason Hoffman, Frederick J. Walker, Charles H. Ahn and Yimei Zhu Domain walls play an important role in the switching of ferroelectrics. Here, mapping out electric fields within ferroelectric thin films, the authors uncover electronic band bending as the origin of head-to-head domain walls that are difficult to switch and may hamper ferroelectric device performance. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5693 Physical Sciences  Condensed matter  Materials science  Nanotechnology  Safe storage of radical initiators within a polyaromatic nanocapsule Masahiro Yamashina, Yoshihisa Sei, Munetaka Akita and Michito Yoshizawa Radical initiators are useful chemical reagents for synthesis, but rapidly decompose on exposure to light. Here, the authors report a supramolecular nanocapsule capable of encapsulating radical initiators and imparting excellent photochemical stability. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5662 Chemical Sciences  Materials science  Organic chemistry  Sea surface temperature contributes to marine crocodylomorph evolution Jeremy E. Martin, Romain Amiot, Christophe Lécuyer and Michael J. Benton The causes of crocodylomorphs extinction during the Mesozoic and Cenozoic remain unclear. Here, the authors show significant correlations between crocodylomorph diversity and Tethyan sea surface temperatures, which suggests that water temperature was a driver of marine crocodylomorph diversity. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5658 Biological Sciences  Evolution  Palaeontology  The crystallization water of gypsum rocks is a relevant water source for plants Sara Palacio, José Azorín, Gabriel Montserrat-Martí and Juan Pedro Ferrio Some minerals, such as gypsum, hold water in their crystalline structure. Palacio et al. show that shallow-rooted plants growing on gypsum are able to make use of this crystallization water, suggesting an alternative water source for plants under conditions of severe drought. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5660 Biological Sciences  Plant sciences  Mechano-actuated ultrafast full-colour switching in layered photonic hydrogels Youfeng Yue, Takayuki Kurokawa, Md Anamul Haque, Tasuku Nakajima, Takayuki Nonoyama, Xufeng Li, Itsuro Kajiwara and Jian Ping Gong Photonic crystals used for many optical devices are the materials made of nanoscaled periodic structures that diffract light. Yue et al. design and fabricate a soft mechanochromic hydrogel that exhibits a fast colour switching rate at 0.1 ms in a full-colour band. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5659 Physical Sciences  Materials science  Nanotechnology  Interface control of the magnetic chirality in CoFeB/MgO heterostructures with heavy-metal underlayers Jacob Torrejon, Junyeon Kim, Jaivardhan Sinha, Seiji Mitani, Masamitsu Hayashi, Michihiko Yamanouchi and Hideo Ohno The Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction can be harnessed to generate chiral magnetic structures for spintronic applications. Here, the authors show that changing the heavy-metal layer adjacent to an ultrathin magnetic layer can influence the strength and sign of this interaction. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5655 Physical Sciences  Materials science  Quantitative super-resolution imaging of Bruchpilot distinguishes active zone states OPEN Nadine Ehmann, Sebastian van de Linde, Amit Alon, Dmitrij Ljaschenko, Xi Zhen Keung, Thorge Holm, Annika Rings, Aaron DiAntonio, Stefan Hallermann, Uri Ashery, Manfred Heckmann, Markus Sauer and Robert J. Kittel Complex molecular interactions occur in the active zone cytomatrix (CAZ) within the presynaptic terminal to regulate synaptic plasticity. Here, the authors use imaging techniques to show that the CAZ is composed of units containing on average 137 Bruchpilot proteins, many of which are arranged into clusters. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5650 Biological Sciences  Biophysics  Neuroscience  Negative poisson's ratio in single-layer black phosphorus Jin-Wu Jiang and Harold S. Park Auxetic materials display a negative Poisson's ratio and are usually observed in engineered structures. Here, the authors observe intrinsic auxetic behaviour in unmodified two-dimensional black phosphorous by first-principles calculations, with the auxetic behaviour resulting from its puckered structure. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5727 Physical Sciences  Materials science  Switching between humoral and cellular immune responses in Drosophila is guided by the cytokine GBP Seiji Tsuzuki, Hitoshi Matsumoto, Shunsuke Furihata, Masasuke Ryuda, Hirotoshi Tanaka, Eui Jae Sung, Gary S. Bird, Yixing Zhou, Stephen B. Shears and Yoichi Hayakawa Insects combat infection using humoral and cellular immunity but it is not fully understood how these mechanisms are coordinated. Here, using Drosophila as a model, the authors show that the PDGF- and VEGF-receptor homologue (Pvr) can direct the nature of innate immune responses expressed by hematocytes. 18 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5628 Biological Sciences  Cell biology  Immunology  Unveiling viral–host interactions within the 'microbial dark matter' Manuel Martínez-García, Fernando Santos, Mercedes Moreno-Paz, Víctor Parro and Josefa Antón Identification of virus–host pairs requires cultivation, otherwise it is based on tentative assignment using genomic signatures. Here, the authors describe a method that can unambiguously assign viruses to hosts and does not require their cultivation. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5542 Biological Sciences  Ecology  Microbiology  Virology  RasGRP3 limits Toll-like receptor-triggered inflammatory response in macrophages by activating Rap1 small GTPase OPEN Songqing Tang, Taoyong Chen, Zhou Yu, Xuhui Zhu, Mingjin Yang, Bin Xie, Nan Li, Xuetao Cao and Jianli Wang Toll like receptors (TLRs) couple microbial sensing to initiation of immune responses, which are essential for defense against pathogens but may cause immunopathology when activated excessively. Here the authors show that RasGRP3 sets a threshold of TLR activation to prevent immunopathology. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5657 Biological Sciences  Immunology  Molecular biology  Innate immunodeficiency following genetic ablation of Mcl1 in natural killer cells Priyanka Sathe, Rebecca B. Delconte, Fernando Souza-Fonseca-Guimaraes, Cyril Seillet, Michael Chopin, Cassandra J. Vandenberg, Lucille C. Rankin, Lisa A. Mielke, Ingela Vikstrom, Tatiana B. Kolesnik, Sandra E. Nicholson, Eric Vivier, Mark J. Smyth, Stephen L. Nutt, Stefan P. Glaser, Andreas Strasser, Gabrielle T. Belz, Sebastian Carotta and Nicholas D. Huntington Mcl-1 is an important survival factor for several hematopoietic lineages including B and T lymphocytes, but its role in the Natural Killer (NK) cells has not been previously tested. Here, the authors report that deletion of Mcl-1 in the NK cell lineage leads to the loss of NK cells from all tissues. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5539 Biological Sciences  Immunology  Multimode laser cooling and ultra-high sensitivity force sensing with nanowires Mahdi Hosseini, Giovanni Guccione, Harry J. Slatyer, Ben C. Buchler and Ping Koy Lam Light can cool and control the motion of nanoscale resonators to the point that they oscillate with only a single quantum of vibrational energy. Hosseini et al. now demonstrate a technique for optically cooling four mechanical modes of a nanowire that enables highly sensitive force measurements. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5663 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Nanotechnology  Documentation and localization of force-mediated filamin A domain perturbations in moving cells Fumihiko Nakamura, Mia Song, John H. Hartwig and Thomas P. Stossel Biosensors designed to respond to mechanical force in cells have provided insights into the force landscape within a cell. Here, Nakamura et al. design a FRET probe in the actin crosslinking protein filamin A and show that it unfolds under force only in newly protruding regions of the cell. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5656 Biological Sciences  Biophysics  Cell biology  A multitasking functional group leads to structural diversity using designer C–H activation reaction cascades Ying Chen, Dongqi Wang, Pingping Duan, Rong Ben, Lu Dai, Xiaoru Shao, Mei Hong, Jing Zhao and Yong Huang Cascade reactions are a powerful route to rapidly increase molecular complexity. Here, the authors show how a C–H activation step can lead to intermediates capable of partaking in cascade reactions, giving easy access to a number of heterocyclic products. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5610 Chemical Sciences  Catalysis  Organic chemistry  Growing dynamical facilitation on approaching the random pinning colloidal glass transition Shreyas Gokhale, K. Hima Nagamanasa, Rajesh Ganapathy and A. K. Sood It remains a matter of debate whether the glass transition is thermodynamic or dynamic in nature. Here Gokhale et al. examine slow dynamics in a binary colloidal liquid and provide support for the dynamical facilitation approach–a purely dynamic theory of the glass transition. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5685 Physical Sciences  Condensed matter  Enhanced ultra-low-frequency interlayer shear modes in folded graphene layers Chunxiao Cong and Ting Yu Few-layer graphene offers a number of attractive electronic properties, but studying shear modes via Raman is hampered by low vibrational energy and low signal strength. Here, the authors are able to detect enhanced shear modes, via suitable folding of the sample, allowing their full characterization. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5709 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Materials science  Phytochrome-interacting transcription factors PIF4 and PIF5 induce leaf senescence in Arabidopsis Yasuhito Sakuraba, Jinkil Jeong, Min-Young Kang, Junghyun Kim, Nam-Chon Paek and Giltsu Choi In plants, light levels are sensed by phytochromes, and prolonged light deprivation triggers leaf senescence. Here, Sakuraba et al. show that the phytochrome-interacting transcription factors, PIF4 and PIF5, connect light sensing pathways with transcriptional networks that regulate leaf senescence in Arabidopsis. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5636 Biological Sciences  Cell biology  Plant sciences  A small molecule restores function to TRPML1 mutant isoforms responsible for mucolipidosis type IV Cheng-Chang Chen, Marco Keller, Martin Hess, Raphael Schiffmann, Nicole Urban, Annette Wolfgardt, Michael Schaefer, Franz Bracher, Martin Biel, Christian Wahl-Schott and Christian Grimm Mucolipidosis type IV is a lysosomal storage disorder caused by mutations in the endolysosomal cation channel TRPML1 and results in progressive neurodegeneration. Here, Chen et al. demonstrate that small molecules can be used to restore TRPML1 mutant channel function and rescue disease-associated symptoms. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5681 Biological Sciences  Cell biology  miR-195/497 induce postnatal quiescence of skeletal muscle stem cells Takahiko Sato, Takuya Yamamoto and Atsuko Sehara-Fujisawa Skeletal muscle stem cells are in a state of cell cycle arrest in adult skeletal muscles and are stimulated to proliferate and differentiate in response to injury or pathology. Here the authors identify two microRNAs, miR-195 and miR-497, which induce cell cycle arrest in the stem cells and suppress myogenesis. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5597 Biological Sciences  Developmental biology  Controlled stripes of ultrafine ferroelectric domains Ludwig Feigl, Petr Yudin, Igor Stolichnov, Tomas Sluka, Konstantin Shapovalov, Mahamudu Mtebwa, Cosmin S. Sandu, Xian-Kui Wei, Alexander K. Tagantsev and Nava Setter In magnets and ferroelectrics, domains of regions with different ferroic orientation play an important role for the performance of devices based on these materials. Here, the authors create and control ultrafine domains in a ferroelectric that are only 10 nm wide and extend for tens of micrometres. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5677 Physical Sciences  Materials science  Nanotechnology  Identification of a human neonatal immune-metabolic network associated with bacterial infection OPEN Claire L. Smith, Paul Dickinson, Thorsten Forster, Marie Craigon, Alan Ross, Mizanur R. Khondoker, Rebecca France, Alasdair Ivens, David J. Lynn, Judith Orme, Allan Jackson, Paul Lacaze, Katie L. Flanagan, Benjamin J. Stenson and Peter Ghazal Infection remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in neonates worldwide. Here the authors report disproportionate immune stimulatory, co-inhibitory and metabolic pathway responses that specifically mark bacterial infection and can be used to predict sepsis in neonatal patients at the first clinical signs of infection. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5649 Biological Sciences  Immunology  Medical research  Single-molecule electroluminescence and photoluminescence of polyfluorene unveils the photophysics behind the green emission band Yoshihiro Honmou, Shuzo Hirata, Hideaki Komiyama, Junya Hiyoshi, Susumu Kawauchi, Tomokazu Iyoda and Martin Vacha Polyfluorenes emit blue light in organic light-emitting diodes, but their colour purity is always degraded by accompanied green emission band. Here, the authors investigate the physical origin of the green emission using electroluminescence and photoluminescence spectroscopy on a single-molecular level. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5666 Physical Sciences  Materials science  Optical physics  Carbon monoxide inhibits inward rectifier potassium channels in cardiomyocytes Shenghui Liang, Quanyi Wang, Weiwei Zhang, Hailin Zhang, Shengjiang Tan, Asif Ahmed and Yuchun Gu Following myocardial infarction, patients are at risk for reperfusion-induced ventricular fibrillation, a life-threatening condition. Here, Liang et al. show that the known ventricular fibrillation preventive effects of carbon monoxide are mediated through the inhibition of a subset of inward-rectifying potassium channels. 14 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5676 Biological Sciences  Medical research  YAP inhibits squamous transdifferentiation of Lkb1-deficient lung adenocarcinoma through ZEB2-dependent DNp63 repression Yijun Gao, Wenjing Zhang, Xiangkun Han, Fuming Li, Xujun Wang, Rui Wang, Zhaoyuan Fang, Xinyuan Tong, Shun Yao, Fei Li, Yan Feng, Yihua Sun, Yingyong Hou, Zhongzhou Yang, Kunliang Guan, Haiquan Chen, Lei Zhang and Hongbin Ji Lung adenocarcinomas can convert to squamous cell carcinomas, which is associated with cancer progression and therapy resistance. Here, Gao et al. identify YAP as an essential barrier for this phenotypic conversion through ZEB2-mediated DNP63 repression. 13 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5629 Biological Sciences  Cancer  Medical research  Achieving solar overall water splitting with hybrid photosystems of photosystem II and artificial photocatalysts Wangyin Wang, Jun Chen, Can Li and Wenming Tian Solar water splitting is a promising approach for harvesting solar energy but is hindered by sluggish water oxidation. Here, the authors report a hybrid material containing natural photosystem II and an inorganic photocatalyst and evaluate its overall water splitting performance. 13 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5647 Chemical Sciences  Catalysis  Materials science  Revealing the dark side of a bright exciton–polariton condensate OPEN J. -M. Ménard, C. Poellmann, M. Porer, U. Leierseder, E. Galopin, A. Lemaître, A. Amo, J. Bloch and R. Huber Exciton–polaritons are bosonic quasi-particles resulting from strong coupling of excitons and photons but so far only their photon component had been resolved. Here, Menard et al. monitor the intra-excitonic transitions and study how a reservoir of optically dark excitons forms and feeds the degenerate state. 13 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5648 Physical Sciences  Condensed matter  Nanotechnology  Optical physics  Bright and fast multicoloured voltage reporters via electrochromic FRET Peng Zou, Yongxin Zhao, Adam D. Douglass, Daniel R. Hochbaum, Daan Brinks, Christopher A. Werley, D. Jed Harrison, Robert E. Campbell and Adam E. Cohen Genetically encoded voltage sensors are useful tools for the analysis of membrane potential and its influence on cell function. Here, the authors present a range of these sensors with varying colours for rapid and sensitive neuronal voltage imaging. 13 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5625 Biological Sciences  Neuroscience  A reversible conversion between a skyrmion and a domain-wall pair in a junction geometry Yan Zhou and Motohiko Ezawa Skyrmions and domain walls are both nanoscale magnetic entities that could be useful for processing and storing information. Here, the authors propose a device that could convert between these two magnetic objects using a junction between a thick and a thin nanowire. 13 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5652 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Efficient optical extraction of hot-carrier energy S. Saeed, E. M. L. D. de Jong, K. Dohnalova and T. Gregorkiewicz The thermalization of high-energy photons limits the efficient conversion of photon energy in photovoltaic applications. Here, Saeed et al. consider optical extraction of the excess energy of hot carriers by emission of infrared photons, using erbium ions in combination with silicon nanocrystals. 13 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5665 Physical Sciences  Materials science  Nanotechnology  Invertebrate extracellular phagocyte traps show that chromatin is an ancient defence weapon OPEN Calum T. Robb, Elisabeth A. Dyrynda, Robert D. Gray, Adriano G. Rossi and Valerie J. Smith The process of controlled chromatin release from the nuclei of inflammatory cells to entrap and kill bacteria, termed ETosis, is important in innate immunity in vertebrates. Here the authors demonstrate that ETosis, mediated by hematocytes, also contributes to defence mechanisms in invertebrates. 13 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5627 Biological Sciences  Immunology  Telomerase stimulates ribosomal DNA transcription under hyperproliferative conditions Omar Garcia Gonzalez, Robin Assfalg, Sylvia Koch, Adrian Schelling, Jitendra K. Meena, Johann Kraus, Andre Lechel, Sarah-Fee Katz, Vladimir Benes, Karin Scharffetter-Kochanek, Hans A. Kestler, Cagatay Günes and Sebastian Iben Several recent studies suggest that telomerase has key physiologic functions beyond its well-known role telomere maintenance. Here, Garcia Gonzalez et al. implicate telomerase in the regulation of ribosomal DNA transcription by RNA polymerase I. 13 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5599 Biological Sciences  Molecular biology  Spatio–spectral structures in high-order harmonic beams generated with Terawatt 10-fs pulses A. Dubrouil, O. Hort, F. Catoire, D. Descamps, S. Petit, E. Mével, V. V. Strelkov and E. Constant Complex spatio-spectral structures are characteristic of high order harmonics generated with ultrashort high intensity pulses. Here, Dubrouil et al. demonstrate the structures originate from strong spatio-temporal coupling in the generating medium associated to the high nonlinearity of extreme UV generation. 13 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5637 Physical Sciences  Atomic and molecular physics  Optical physics  Multicolour nonlinearly bound chirped dissipative solitons Sergey A. Babin, Evgeniy V. Podivilov, Denis S. Kharenko, Anastasia E. Bednyakova, Mikhail P. Fedoruk, Vladimir L. Kalashnikov and Alexander Apolonski Stimulated Raman scattering limits the energy of dissipative solitons by converting excess energy into noisy Raman pulses. Using delay compensation, Babin et al. demonstrate that these noisy pulses can become coherent Raman dissipative solitons leading to the formation of multicolour bound dissipative soliton complexes. 13 August 2014 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms5653 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Optical physics    Nature Communications JOBS of the week Postdoctoral Research Scientist John Innes Centre (JIC) Postdoctoral Scholar Standford University Postdoctoral Research Assistants University of Dundee Postdoc Oslo University Hospital Doctoral student position Karolinska Institutet (KI) Research Associate University of British Columbia (UBC) Research Associate Michigan State University PhD Student Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics Research Technologist University of Louisville Postdoctoral Research Associate Newcastle University More Science jobs from Nature Communications EVENT Development of Cancer Medicines 27.11.14 London, UK More science events from     Advertisement Nature Genetics in association with the Wellcome Trust are pleased to present: The Genomics of Common Diseases 2014 September 17-20, 2014 Bolger Center, Potomac, MD, USA  Click here for more information or to register for this conference today!      Natureevents is a fully searchable, multi-disciplinary database designed to maximise exposure for events organisers. 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