Nature Communications - 04 March 2015

Advertisement Live Webinar: Gene Knockout with CRISPR, a Complete and Simple Kit. March 11th Wed New to CRISPR? No worries. Register and learn how to knock out any gene with a pre-designed CRISPR kit.  Register the webinar and view a 4-min youtube video.     Weekly Content Alert 04 March 2015  Featured image: Li et al. show that the colouring of the blue-rayed limpet arises from the particular photonic architecture of its shell. Latest content: Articles Corrigendum Errata Advertisement   Genome-CRISP™ CRISPR Products and Services CRISPR sgRNA only $119  Highest probability of making bi-allelic modifications Multiple vector types and selection markers available Stable cell line services Transgenic mouse services Journal homepage Recommend to library Web feed   Advertisement Epigenome Roadmap Nature Publishing Group presents an online portal - the Epigenome Roadmap - which collects key research papers from The NIH Roadmap Epigenomics Program, complemented by thematical 'threads' to help the readers mine the wealth of available information. Access the Epigenome Roadmap for FREE at:  nature.com/epigenomeroadmap Produced with exclusive support from Illumina     Latest Articles View all Articles     Disruption of STAT3 signalling promotes KRAS-induced lung tumorigenesis OPEN Beatrice Grabner, Daniel Schramek, Kristina M. Mueller, Herwig P. Moll, Jasmin Svinka, Thomas Hoffmann, Eva Bauer, Leander Blaas, Natascha Hruschka, Katalin Zboray, Patricia Stiedl, Harini Nivarthi, Edith Bogner, Wolfgang Gruber, Thomas Mohr, Ralf Harun Zwick, Lukas Kenner, Valeria Poli, Fritz Aberger, Dagmar Stoiber et al. STAT3 is an intracellular transducer of cytokine signals that cooperates with Ras in tumour formation and is often activated in lung cancer. Here the authors show that STAT3 acts as a tumour suppressor in a mouse model of Kras-driven lung adenocarcinoma. 03 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7285 Biological Sciences  Cancer  Molecular biology  Molecular magnetic switch for a metallofullerene OPEN Bo Wu, Taishan Wang, Yongqiang Feng, Zhuxia Zhang, Li Jiang and Chunru Wang Endohedral fullerenes are known to stabilize reactive radicals; however, the external magnetic manipulation of these species’ remains challenging. Here, the authors link a nitroxide radical to a paramagnetic fullerene system and are able to alter the spin behaviour of the fullerene via spin–spin interactions. 03 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7468 Chemical Sciences  Inorganic chemistry  Nanotechnology  Physical chemistry  Flexible suspended gate organic thin-film transistors for ultra-sensitive pressure detection OPEN Yaping Zang, Fengjiao Zhang, Dazhen Huang, Xike Gao, Chong-an Di and Daoben Zhu The development of wearable healthcare and intelligence systems require low-cost, large-area flexible electronic sensors. Here, Zang et al. report pressure sensors based on organic thin-film transistors in combination with a suspended-gate device geometry, which show high sensitivity up to 192 kPa−1. 03 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7269 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Materials science  Nanotechnology  Spin-torque-induced dynamics at fine-split frequencies in nano-oscillators with two stacked vortices V. Sluka, A. Kákay, A. M. Deac, D. E. Bürgler, C. M. Schneider and R. Hertel Magnetic vortices in nanodiscs possess potential applications based on their magnetic configuration and spin-torque-driven oscillation. Here, Sluka et al. show how the coupled gyration of two stacked vortices is split into discretized frequencies defined by their relative chirality and polarity. 03 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7409 Physical Sciences  Condensed matter  Nanotechnology  Fabrication of three-dimensionally interconnected nanoparticle superlattices and their lithium-ion storage properties OPEN Yucong Jiao, Dandan Han, Yi Ding, Xianfeng Zhang, Guannan Guo, Jianhua Hu, Dong Yang and Angang Dong Three-dimensional nanoparticle superlattices are interesting, but their fabrication is generally limited to materials attainable as monodisperse colloidal nanoparticles. Here, the authors fabricate interconnected superlattices via self-assembly without the presynthesis of the constituent nanoparticles. 03 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7420 Chemical Sciences  Inorganic chemistry  Materials science  Investigation of femtosecond collisional ionization rates in a solid-density aluminium plasma S. M. Vinko, O. Ciricosta, T. R. Preston, D. S. Rackstraw, C.R.D. Brown, T. Burian, J. Chalupský, B. I. Cho, H.-K. Chung, K. Engelhorn, R. W. Falcone, R. Fiokovinini, V. Hájková, P. A. Heimann, L. Juha, H. J. Lee, R. W. Lee, M. Messerschmidt, B. Nagler, W. Schlotter et al. The electrons in a plasma can further ionize the ions when the two collide. Vinko et al. now study this ultrafast process in an unconventional plasma with a density similar to that of a solid, and show that the rate is several times higher than that predicted by standard theoretical models. 03 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7397 Physical Sciences  Fluids and plasma physics  Insulating state in tetralayers reveals an even–odd interaction effect in multilayer graphene OPEN Anya L. Grushina, Dong-Keun Ki, Mikito Koshino, Aurelien A. L. Nicolet, Clément Faugeras, Edward McCann, Marek Potemski and Alberto F. Morpurgo Electron–electron interactions have a strong influence on the properties of bilayer graphene, but less of an effect on trilayer material. Grushina et al. show that tetralayer graphene has an insulator state, bucking the trend for electron–electron interactions becoming weaker with more layers. 03 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7419 Physical Sciences  Condensed matter  Materials science  FAAH genetic variation enhances fronto-amygdala function in mouse and human Iva Dincheva, Andrew T. Drysdale, Catherine A. Hartley, David C. Johnson, Deqiang Jing, Elizabeth C. King, Stephen Ra, J. Megan Gray, Ruirong Yang, Ann Marie DeGruccio, Chienchun Huang, Benjamin F. Cravatt, Charles E. Glatt, Matthew N. Hill, B. J. Casey and Francis S. Lee Fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) is a key regulator of endocannabinoid signalling. Here, the authors develop a knock-in mouse that recapitulates a common human mutation in the FAAH gene and demonstrate parallel neural and behavioural alterations across species, suggesting a gain-of-function in fear regulation. 03 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7395 Biological Sciences  Molecular biology  Neuroscience  Snake trajectories in ultraclean graphene p–n junctions OPEN Peter Rickhaus, Péter Makk, Ming-Hao Liu, Endre Tóvári, Markus Weiss, Romain Maurand, Klaus Richter and Christian Schönenberger Snake states describe electron trajectories that curve along an interface where the charge is inverted. Here, the authors investigate electronic transport in a ballistic graphene p–n junction and observe striking conductance oscillations that are a signature of these unusual states. 03 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7470 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Materials science  A sublimation heat engine OPEN Gary G. Wells, Rodrigo Ledesma-Aguilar, Glen McHale and Khellil Sefiane Heat engines are designed to convert thermal energy into mechanical work through a thermodynamic cycle. Here, Wells et al. show a cycle based on a sublimation process, where a disk of dry ice that rotates on a hot surface due to the Leidenfrost effect is coupled to a simple electromagnetic generator. 03 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7390 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Fluids and plasma physics  Dysregulation of transition metal ion homeostasis is the molecular basis for cadmium toxicity in Streptococcus pneumoniae OPEN Stephanie L. Begg, Bart A. Eijkelkamp, Zhenyao Luo, Rafael M. Couñago, Jacqueline R. Morey, Megan J. Maher, Cheryl-lynn Y. Ong, Alastair G. McEwan, Bostjan Kobe, Megan L. O’Mara, James C. Paton and Christopher A. McDevitt The molecular basis for the high toxicity of cadmium is unclear. Here, Begg et al. use the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae as a model system, and show that cadmium uptake increases sensitivity to oxidative stress by reducing intracellular concentrations of manganese and zinc through different mechanisms. 03 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7418 Biological Sciences  Biochemistry  Chemical biology  Microbiology  A quantum circuit rule for interference effects in single-molecule electrical junctions David Zsolt Manrique, Cancan Huang, Masoud Baghernejad, Xiaotao Zhao, Oday A. Al-Owaedi, Hatef Sadeghi, Veerabhadrarao Kaliginedi, Wenjing Hong, Murat Gulcur, Thomas Wandlowski, Martin R. Bryce and Colin J. Lambert Quantum interference influences charge transport in molecules that include an aromatic ring. Here, the authors develop a quantum circuit rule for understanding such effects in molecules with three aromatic rings and show that their electronic properties are dominated by interference in the central ring. 03 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7389 Chemical Sciences  Materials science  Visualizing the non-equilibrium dynamics of photoinduced intramolecular electron transfer with femtosecond X-ray pulses OPEN Sophie E. Canton, Kasper S. Kjær, György Vankó, Tim B. van Driel, Shin-ichi Adachi, Amélie Bordage, Christian Bressler, Pavel Chabera, Morten Christensen, Asmus O. Dohn, Andreas Galler, Wojciech Gawelda, David Gosztola, Kristoffer Haldrup, Tobias Harlang, Yizhu Liu, Klaus B. Møller, Zoltán Németh, Shunsuke Nozawa, Mátyás Pápai et al. Photoinduced electron transfer in solvated molecular assemblies occurs on the ultrafast timescale before full electronic and geometric relaxation take place. Here Canton et al. monitor this out-of-equilibrium process in a donor–acceptor bimetallic assembly using an X-ray free-electron laser. 02 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7359 Chemical Sciences  Catalysis  Condensed matter  Structure and function of lysosomal phospholipase A2 and lecithin:cholesterol acyltransferase Alisa Glukhova, Vania Hinkovska-Galcheva, Robert Kelly, Akira Abe, James A. Shayman and John J. G. Tesmer Lysosomal phospholipase A2 (LPLA2) and lecithin:cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT) are important lipid metabolizing enzymes. Here the authors present crystal structures of LPLA2 and LCAT that reveal the unique architecture of this small family of enzymes involved in human physiology and disease. 02 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7250 Biological Sciences  Biochemistry  Biophysics  Controlling the direction of rectification in a molecular diode Li Yuan, Nisachol Nerngchamnong, Liang Cao, Hicham Hamoudi, Enrique del Barco, Max Roemer, Ravi K. Sriramula, Damien Thompson and Christian A. Nijhuis The electronic coupling between the active components and electrodes in molecular electronics determines the device performance. Here, Yuan et al. show that a non-covalent coupling is sufficiently strong to induce molecular-based rectification, while weak enough to minimize leakage current. 02 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7324 Physical Sciences  Materials science  Nanotechnology  Simultaneous observation of the quantization and the interference pattern of a plasmonic near-field OPEN L Piazza, T.T.A. Lummen, E Quiñonez, Y Murooka, B.W. Reed, B Barwick and F Carbone Mapping the field of surface plasmon polaritons is important to understand their fundamental properties and behaviour. Here, the authors show that ultrafast transmission electron microscopy can simultaneously obtain the spatial interference and quantization of nanowire-confined plasmonic fields. 02 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7407 Physical Sciences  Nanotechnology  Optical physics  Self-biased reconfigurable graphene stacks for terahertz plasmonics J.S. Gomez-Diaz, C Moldovan, S Capdevila, J Romeu, L.S. Bernard, A Magrez, A.M. Ionescu and J Perruisseau-Carrier The unusual electronic and optical properties of graphene are finding increasing applications for terahertz and mid-infrared plasmonics. Here, the authors show how monolayers of graphene separated by thin dielectric layers can act as tunable structures for plasmonic device platforms. 02 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7334 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Nanotechnology  Ultrathin platinum nanowires grown on single-layered nickel hydroxide with high hydrogen evolution activity Huajie Yin, Shenlong Zhao, Kun Zhao, Abdul Muqsit, Hongjie Tang, Lin Chang, Huijun Zhao, Yan Gao and Zhiyong Tang There is extensive interest in the design of efficient electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution. Here, the authors show that exfoliated single-layer nickel hydroxide can be used for the controllable surface growth of platinum nanowires, and evaluate the electrocatalytic performance of the composite material. 02 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7430 Chemical Sciences  Materials science  Physical chemistry  IL-10 inhibits neuraminidase-activated TGF-β and facilitates Th1 phenotype during early phase of infection Avijit Dutta, Ching-Tai Huang, Tse-Ching Chen, Chun-Yen Lin, Cheng-Hsun Chiu, Yung-Chang Lin, Chia-Shiang Chang and Yueh-Chia He The role of IL-10 in influenza infection is controversial. Here the authors show that early during infection, IL-10 promotes Th1 immunity by inhibiting viral neuraminidase-mediated release of TGF-β, but later acts as an immunosuppressive cytokine to inhibit immunopathology and promote recovery. 02 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7374 Biological Sciences  Immunology  Methane hydrate formation in confined nanospace can surpass nature Mirian E. Casco, Joaquín Silvestre-Albero, Anibal J. Ramírez-Cuesta, Fernando Rey, Jose L. Jordá, Atul Bansode, Atsushi Urakawa, Inma Peral, Manuel Martínez-Escandell, Katsumi Kaneko and Francisco Rodríguez-Reinoso Methane hydrates may be one of the largest sources of hydrocarbons on Earth, although demanding temperature–pressure conditions are required for their formation. Here the authors exploit the confinement effects on nanopores to rapidly and reversibly produce methane hydrates under mild conditions. 02 March 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7432 Chemical Sciences  Inorganic chemistry  Materials science  AtNIGT1/HRS1 integrates nitrate and phosphate signals at the Arabidopsis root tip Anna Medici, Amy Marshall-Colon, Elsa Ronzier, Wojciech Szponarski, Rongchen Wang, Alain Gojon, Nigel M. Crawford, Sandrine Ruffel, Gloria M. Coruzzi and Gabriel Krouk Nitrogen and phosphorous are both major macronutrients and important signalling molecules that regulate plant growth. Here, Medici et al. show that nitrogen and phosphorous signals converge at the HRS1 transcription factor to regulate the root elongation in response to nutrient deficiency. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7274 Biological Sciences  Plant sciences  Edge dislocation slows down oxide ion diffusion in doped CeO2 by segregation of charged defects Lixin Sun, Dario Marrocchelli and Bilge Yildiz Electrochemical devices based on oxide materials, such as batteries or fuel cells, rely on the transport of ions through the crystal lattice. Here, the authors model ion diffusion through CeO2 and observe that edge dislocations slow down ion diffusion, contrary to similar processes in metals. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7294 Physical Sciences  Materials science  Physical chemistry  North Atlantic storm track changes during the Last Glacial Maximum recorded by Alpine speleothems OPEN Marc Luetscher, R. Boch, H. Sodemann, C. Spötl, H. Cheng, R. L. Edwards, S. Frisia, F. Hof and W. Müller Insights into Late-Pleistocene Northern Hemisphere storm track variability are hampered by a lack of well-dated proxy records. Here, the authors present a precisely dated record of meteoric precipitation between 30 and 14.7 ka, and show that obliquity may have played a vital role in Alpine glacier advance. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7344 Earth Sciences  Atmospheric science  The cholesterol transporter ABCG1 links cholesterol homeostasis and tumour immunity Duygu Sag, Caglar Cekic, Runpei Wu, Joel Linden and Catherine C. Hedrick ABCG1 transporter pumps cholesterol out of the cell. Here, the authors show that ABCG1-deficient mice have reduced tumour growth due to a switch of the tumour-associated macrophages from a tumour-promoting to tumour-suppressing phenotype, and are protected from the pro-tumorigenic effects of a Western-like diet. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7354 Biological Sciences  Cancer  Immunology  Generation of cellular immune memory and B-cell immunity is impaired by natural killer cells Carolyn Rydyznski, Keith A. Daniels, Erik P. Karmele, Taylor R. Brooks, Sarah E. Mahl, Michael T. Moran, Caimei Li, Rujapak Sutiwisesak, Raymond M. Welsh and Stephen N. Waggoner The need to develop vaccines against pathogens such as HIV requires the development of strategies to overcome inhibitory immunoregulatory mechanisms. Here, the authors report that murine natural killer cells inhibit CD4- and follicular helper T cells, leading to a weaker germinal center response and diminished virus-specific immune memory. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7375 Biological Sciences  Immunology  Microbiology  Virology  Cerebrospinal fluid-derived Semaphorin3B orients neuroepithelial cell divisions in the apicobasal axis Elise Arbeille, Florie Reynaud, Isabelle Sanyas, Muriel Bozon, Karine Kindbeiter, Frédéric Causeret, Alessandra Pierani, Julien Falk, Frédéric Moret and Valérie Castellani The spatial orientation of cell divisions is fundamental for tissue architecture and homeostasis but the extracellular cues regulating this process are largely unknown. Here, the authors show that Semaphorin3B released from the floor plate and the nascent choroid plexus controls progenitor division orientation in the developing mouse spinal cord. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7366 Biological Sciences  Developmental biology  Neuroscience  Checkpoints are blind to replication restart and recombination intermediates that result in gross chromosomal rearrangements OPEN Saed Mohebi, Ken’Ichi Mizuno, Adam Watson, Antony M. Carr and Johanne M. Murray Homologous recombination can overcome replication fork inactivation, but this can cause gross chromosomal rearrangements. Here, the authors show that DNA damage and intra-S phase checkpoints are blind to chromosome rearrangement in the first cell cycle, and are only induced in the second cell cycle. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7357 Biological Sciences  Cell biology  Molecular biology  Gate-controlled generation of optical pulse trains using individual carbon nanotubes OPEN M Jiang, Y Kumamoto, A Ishii, M Yoshida, T Shimada and Y. K. Kato The photocurrent and luminescence of carbon nanotubes is governed by excitonic processes with diverse uses in nano-photonics. Here, Jiang et al. generate optical pulses from individual air-suspended carbon nanotubes under an application of square-wave gate voltages with control over pulse timing and duration. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7335 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Nanotechnology  Optical physics  ArabidopsisMSH1 mutation alters the epigenome and produces heritable changes in plant growth OPEN Kamaldeep S. Virdi, John D. Laurie, Ying-Zhi Xu, Jiantao Yu, Mon-Ray Shao, Robersy Sanchez, Hardik Kundariya, Dong Wang, Jean-Jack M. Riethoven, Yashitola Wamboldt, Maria P. Arrieta-Montiel, Vikas Shedge and Sally A. Mackenzie Suppression of MutS HOMOLOGUE 1 (MSH1), a plant protein targeted to mitochondria and plastids, causes a variety of phenotypes. Here Virdi et al. show that MSH1 depletion in Arabidopsis results in heritable changes in nuclear DNA methylation, which can lead to enhanced growth vigour. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7386 Biological Sciences  Plant sciences  Narrowband light detection via internal quantum efficiency manipulation of organic photodiodes Ardalan Armin, Ross D. Jansen-van Vuuren, Nikos Kopidakis, Paul L. Burn and Paul Meredith There is a growing interest in the development of narrowband photodiodes for full-color imaging and visible-blind near-infrared detection. Armin et al. show a sub-100 nm response by tuning the spectral bandwidth through regulating the charge collection efficiency in a thick organic bulk heterojunction. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7343 Physical Sciences  Applied physics  Nanotechnology  Optical physics  3D hotspots of recurrent retroviral insertions reveal long-range interactions with cancer genes OPEN Sepideh Babaei, Waseem Akhtar, Johann de Jong, Marcel Reinders and Jeroen de Ridder Retroviral insertional mutagenesis is used for identifying genes involved in the development of cancer. Here, the authors overlay cancer-causing insertions with genome-wide Hi-C data and find that retroviral elements tend to cluster in 3D hotspots. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7381 Biological Sciences  Cancer  Genetics  Semaphorin7A regulates neuroglial plasticity in the adult hypothalamic median eminence OPEN Jyoti Parkash, Andrea Messina, Fanny Langlet, Irene Cimino, Anne Loyens, Danièle Mazur, Sarah Gallet, Eglantine Balland, Samuel A. Malone, François Pralong, Gabriella Cagnoni, Roberta Schellino, Silvia De Marchis, Massimiliano Mazzone, R. Jeroen Pasterkamp, Luca Tamagnone, Vincent Prevot and Paolo Giacobini Reproduction in mammals is dependent on the function of specific neurons that secrete gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and project their axons to the median eminence (ME) of the hypothalamus. Here the authors show that Semaphorin7A signaling plays a role in mediating the plasticity of GnRH axon terminals and tanycytes in the ME. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7385 Biological Sciences  Developmental biology  Neuroscience  Diverse uncultivated ultra-small bacterial cells in groundwater Birgit Luef, Kyle R. Frischkorn, Kelly C. Wrighton, Hoi-Ying N. Holman, Giovanni Birarda, Brian C. Thomas, Andrea Singh, Kenneth H. Williams, Cristina E. Siegerist, Susannah G. Tringe, Kenneth H. Downing, Luis R. Comolli and Jillian F. Banfield Little is known about certain bacterial phyla because of our current inability to grow them in the lab. Here, Luef et al. combine metagenomics and ultrastuctural analyses to show that some of these bacteria have a very small cell size, tightly packed DNA, few ribosomes and diverse pili-like structures. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7372 Biological Sciences  Cell biology  Ecology  Microbiology  Predicting clinical response to anticancer drugs using an ex vivo platform that captures tumour heterogeneity OPEN Biswanath Majumder, Ulaganathan Baraneedharan, Saravanan Thiyagarajan, Padhma Radhakrishnan, Harikrishna Narasimhan, Muthu Dhandapani, Nilesh Brijwani, Dency D. Pinto, Arun Prasath, Basavaraja U. Shanthappa, Allen Thayakumar, Rajagopalan Surendran, Govind K. Babu, Ashok M. Shenoy, Moni A. Kuriakose, Guillaume Bergthold, Peleg Horowitz, Massimo Loda, Rameen Beroukhim, Shivani Agarwal et al. Efficacy of anticancer treatments vary across patients, imposing a need for personalized approaches. Here the authors show that responsiveness to chemotherapy can be predicted using tumour explant cultures in a patient-matched microenvironment, coupled with a machine-learning algorithm. 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7169 Biological Sciences  Biotechnology  Cancer  Medical research  The NCA sodium leak channel is required for persistent motor circuit activity that sustains locomotion Shangbang Gao, Lin Xie, Taizo Kawano, Michelle D. Po, Sihui Guan and Mei Zhen Persistent neural activity underlies working memories and behaviors that require short-term information retention; the mechanisms enabling this, however, are unclear. Here the authors show that the NCA Na+ leak channel is required for the persistent motor circuit activity that sustains locomotion in C. elegans. 26 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7323 Biological Sciences  Neuroscience  Long-range epigenetic regulation is conferred by genetic variation located at thousands of independent loci OPEN Mathieu Lemire, Syed H.E. Zaidi, Maria Ban, Bing Ge, Dylan Aïssi, Marine Germain, Irfahan Kassam, Mike Wang, Brent W. Zanke, France Gagnon, Pierre-Emmanuel Morange, David-Alexandre Trégouët, Philip S. Wells, Stephen Sawcer, Steven Gallinger, Tomi Pastinen and Thomas J. Hudson There is a functional link between SNPs and epigenetic variations when they are in close range, but the long-range effect is unclear. Here, by analysing methylation quantitative trait loci, the authors demonstrate that methylation levels at CpG sites in lymphocytes are correlated with distal SNPs. 26 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7326 Biological Sciences  Genetics  Molecular biology  Structural basis for self-assembly of a cytolytic pore lined by protein and lipid OPEN Koji Tanaka, Jose M.M. Caaveiro, Koldo Morante, Juan Manuel González-Mañas and Kouhei Tsumoto Actinoporins are water-soluble pore-forming toxins that self-assemble in the membranes of target cells. Here, the authors provide insight into the mechanism of membrane pore formation by solving the structures of several states of the hemolytic protein fragaceatoxin C, including the fully assembled pore. 26 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7337 Biological Sciences  Biochemistry  Biophysics  A highly conspicuous mineralized composite photonic architecture in the translucent shell of the blue-rayed limpet OPEN Ling Li, Stefan Kolle, James C. Weaver, Christine Ortiz, Joanna Aizenberg and Mathias Kolle Mollusks have evolved an exquisite diversity of complex mineralized shells for protection. One such example, the blue-rayed limpet, incorporates a vivid display of blue lines, which originate from the interference of light in a nano-periodic photonic architecture buried within the animal's translucent shell. 26 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7322 Physical Sciences  Bioengineering  Materials science  Optical physics  Complement C1q-induced activation of β-catenin signalling causes hypertensive arterial remodelling OPEN Tomokazu Sumida, Atsuhiko T. Naito, Seitaro Nomura, Akito Nakagawa, Tomoaki Higo, Akihito Hashimoto, Katsuki Okada, Taku Sakai, Masamichi Ito, Toshihiro Yamaguchi, Toru Oka, Hiroshi Akazawa, Jong-Kook Lee, Tohru Minamino, Stefan Offermanns, Tetsuo Noda, Marina Botto, Yoshio Kobayashi, Hiroyuki Morita, Ichiro Manabe et al. The role of macrophages in hypertension-induced arterial remodeling is poorly understood. Here, Sumida et al. show that high blood pressure drives the alternatively activated macrophages to secrete complement C1q protein, which in turn elicits proliferative β-catenin signalling in the arterial smooth muscle cells. 26 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7241 Biological Sciences  Immunology  Medical research  Stable silicon-ionic liquid interface for next-generation lithium-ion batteries Daniela Molina Piper, Tyler Evans, Kevin Leung, Tylan Watkins, Jarred Olson, Seul Cham Kim, Sang Sub Han, Vinay Bhat, Kyu Hwan Oh, Daniel A. Buttry and Se-Hee Lee Silicon is a promising anode material for lithium ion batteries, but suffers from structural degradation during operations. Here, the authors combine silicon with a room temperature ionic liquid to stabilize the electrode-electrolyte interface and achieve long-term cyclability. 25 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7230 Chemical Sciences  Materials science  Nanotechnology  Gene silencing by CRISPR interference in mycobacteria Eira Choudhary, Preeti Thakur, Madhu Pareek and Nisheeth Agarwal Recombination-based tools for generating targeted mutations in Mycobacterium tuberculosis lack efficiency. Here the authors present a CRISPR interference approach that is able to efficiently repress the expression of target genes in mycobacteria, in a rapid and cost-effective manner. 25 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7267 Biological Sciences  Biotechnology  Genetics  Microbiology  An analytical framework for optimizing variant discovery from personal genomes OPEN Gareth Highnam, Jason J. Wang, Dean Kusler, Justin Zook, Vinaya Vijayan, Nir Leibovich and David Mittelman The standardization of clinical sequencing data generation and analysis is of critical importance. Here, the authors develop the Genome Comparison and Analytic Testing platform to facilitate the development of performance metrics and comparisons of analysis tools for clinical sequencing studies. 25 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7275 Biological Sciences  Bioinformatics  Genetics    Nature Communications JOBS of the week Research Fellow University of Edinburgh Research Assistant University of Bristol Research Fellow TU Dresden, Dezernat 6, Sachgebiet Organisation Post doctoral scholar University of California - San Francisco Postdoctoral Position Ecole Normale Superieure (ENS Paris) Postdoctoral Research Assistant Harper Adams University postdoctoral fellow Johns Hopkins University Shcool of Medicine Postdoctoral Researcher Karolinska Institutet (KI) PhD Student Robert Koch-Institut Research Technician Queen Mary University of London More Science jobs from Nature Communications EVENT BIO International Convention 2015 15.06.15 Philadelphia, USA More science events from       Latest Corrigendum     Corrigendum: Duplication of a promiscuous transcription factor drives the emergence of a new regulatory network Ksenia Pougach, Arnout Voet, Fyodor A. Kondrashov, Karin Voordeckers, Joaquin F. Christiaens, Bianka Baying, Vladimir Benes, Ryo Sakai, Jan Aerts, Bo Zhu, Patrick Van Dijck and Kevin J. Verstrepen 26 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7543 Biological Sciences  Evolution  Genetics        Latest Errata     Erratum: 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 27 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7459 Biological Sciences  Cancer  Medical research      Erratum: miR-24 limits aortic vascular inflammation and murine abdominal aneurysm development Lars Maegdefessel, Joshua M. Spin, Uwe Raaz, Suzanne M. Eken, Ryuji Toh, Junya Azuma, Matti Adam, Futoshi Nakagami, Helen M. Heymann, Ekaterina Chernogubova, Hong Jin, Joy Roy, Rebecka Hultgren, Kenneth Caidahl, Sonja Schrepfer, Anders Hamsten, Per Eriksson, Michael V. McConnell, Ronald L. Dalman and Philip S. Tsao et al. 26 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7506 Biological Sciences  Medical research      Erratum: Single-photon sensitive light-in-flight imaging Genevieve Gariepy, Nikola Krstajić, Robert Henderson, Chunyong Li, Robert R. Thomson, Gerald S. Buller, Barmak Heshmat, Ramesh Raskar, Jonathan Leach and Daniele Faccio 25 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7408 Physical Sciences  Optical physics      Erratum: Synthetic retinal analogs modify the spectral and kinetic characteristics of microbial rhodopsin optogenetic tools N AzimiHashemi, K Erbguth, A Vogt, T Riemensperger, E Rauch, D Woodmansee, J Nagpal, M Brauner, M Sheves, A Fiala, L Kattner, D Trauner, P Hegemann, A Gottschalk and J F. Liewald 25 February 2015 | doi: 10.1038/ncomms7458 Biological Sciences  Biochemistry  Neuroscience      Advertisement Nature Communications is now fully open access All new submissions if accepted, will be published open access and an article processing charge will apply. For more information visit the website. Visit our open access funding page  or contact openaccess@funding to learn more on APC funding.     Advertisement NPG Asia Materials is proud to present a web focus on materials for advanced energy conversion and storage. This web focus features a selection of articles that are related to the processes of converting and storing energy, including concepts of novel fuel cells, processing and materials for solar cells, as well as high-performance electrodes for supercapacitors and ion batteries.  Access the Web Focus today!      Natureevents is a fully searchable, multi-disciplinary database designed to maximise exposure for events organisers. The contents of the Natureevents Directory are now live. The digital version is available here. Find the latest scientific conferences, courses, meetings and symposia on natureevents.com. For event advertising opportunities across the Nature Publishing Group portfolio please contact natureevents@nature.com  More Nature Events You have been sent this Table of Contents Alert because you have opted in to receive it. You can change or discontinue your e-mail alerts at any time, by modifying your preferences on your nature.com account at:www.nature.com/myaccount (You will need to log in to be recognised as a nature.com registrant) For further technical assistance, please contact our registration department For other enquiries, please contact our customer feedback department Nature Publishing Group | 75 Varick Street, 9th Floor | New York | NY 10013-1917 | USA Nature Publishing Group's worldwide offices: London - Paris - Munich - New Delhi - Tokyo - Melbourne San Diego - San Francisco - Washington - New York - Boston Macmillan Publishers Limited is a company incorporated in England and Wales under company number 785998 and whose registered office is located at Brunel Road, Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS. © 2013 Nature Publishing Group, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited. All Rights Reserved.