The whitefly Bemisia tabaci is one of the world’s most important invasive crop pests, possibly because it manipulates plant defense signaling. Upon infestation by whiteflies, plants mobilize ...salicylic acid (SA)-dependent defenses, which mainly target pathogens. In contrast, jasmonic acid (JA)-dependent defenses are gradually suppressed in whitefly-infested plants. The down-regulation of JA defenses make plants more susceptible to insects, including whiteflies. Here, we report that this host–plant manipulation extends to neighboring plants via airborne signals. Plants respond to insect attack with the release of a blend of inducible volatiles. Perception of these volatiles by neighboring plants usually primes them to prepare for an imminent attack. Here, however, we show that whitefly-induced tomato plant volatiles prime SA-dependent defenses and suppress JA-dependent defenses, thus rendering neighboring tomato plants more susceptible to whiteflies. Experiments with volatiles from caterpillar-damaged and pathogen-infected plants, as well as with synthetic volatiles, confirm that whiteflies modify the quality of neighboring plants for their offspring via whitefly-inducible plant volatiles.
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BFBNIB, NMLJ, NUK, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
The borocarbonylative coupling of unactivated alkenes with alkyl halides remains a challenge. In this communication, a Cu‐catalyzed borocarbonylative coupling of unactivated alkenes with alkyl ...halides for the synthesis of β‐boryl ketones has been developed. A broad range of β‐boryl ketone derivatives was prepared in moderate to excellent yields with complete regioselectivity.
The borocarbonylative coupling of unactivated alkenes with alkyl halides remains a challenge. A Cu‐catalyzed borocarbonylative coupling of unactivated alkenes with alkyl halides for the synthesis of β‐boryl ketones has been developed. A broad range of β‐boryl ketone derivatives was prepared in moderate to excellent yields with complete regioselectivity.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Amides are one of the most ubiquitous functional groups in synthetic and medicinal chemistry. Novel and rapid synthesis of amides remains in high demand. In this communication, a general and ...efficient procedure for branch‐selective hydroamidation of vinylarenes with hydroxyamine derivatives enabled by copper catalysis has been developed for the first time. The reaction proceeds under mild conditions and tolerates a broad range of functional groups. Applying a chiral phosphine ligand, an enantioselective variant of this transformation was achieved, affording a variety of chiral α‐amides with excellent enantioselectivities (up to 99 % ee) and high yields.
The first Cu‐catalyzed hydroamidation of vinylarenes with hydroxyamine derivatives has been developed. The method displays broad functional‐group tolerance and proceeds under mild conditions to afford branched amides. The asymmetric variant of this transformation was also achieved by applying (R,R)‐Ph‐BPE as the ligand, delivering the α‐chiral amides in good yields with excellent enantioselectivities (up to 99 % ee).
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
We report development and microwave characterization of rf SQUID (Superconducting QUantum Interference Device) qubits, consisting of an aluminium-based Josephson junction embedded in a ...superconducting loop patterned from a thin film of TiN with high kinetic inductance. Here we demonstrate that the systems can offer small physical size, high anharmonicity, and small scatter of device parameters. The work constitutes a non-tunable prototype realization of an rf SQUID qubit built on the kinetic inductance of a superconducting nanowire, proposed in Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 027002 (2010). The hybrid devices can be utilized as tools to shed further light onto the origin of film dissipation and decoherence in phase-slip nanowire qubits, patterned entirely from disordered superconducting films.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
•Xuhuai Basin comprises the Huaihe (1.1–0.9 Ga) and Langan (<0.8 Ga) Groups.•Upper Huaihe Group (Niyuan-Wangshan Fm.) deposited at 0.97–0.89 Ga.•Upper Huaihe Group records a provenance from the ...Grenvillian orogens.•1.1–0.9 Ga basins of the North China and São Francisco-Congo cratons are correlated.
The late Mesoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic sedimentary rocks in the southeast North China Craton (NCC) are significant in paleogeographic reconstruction. An integrated approach of field investigation, detrital zircon U-Pb dating, and Lu-Hf isotope analysis reveals essential information on the tectonic-sedimentary evolution of the Xuhuai Basin. New age constraints show that the Xuhuai Basin comprises a lower (Huaihe Group, 1.1–0.9 Ga) and an upper (Langan Group, <0.82 Ga) successions, with an unconformity between them. The depositional age of the middle to upper part of the Huaihe Group (the Niyuan-Wangshan formations) is limited to 0.97–0.89 Ga. A comparison of regional basin formations suggests that the Xuhuai, Jiaolai, Dalian, and Pyongnam basins belong to the same rift system (the Xuhuai rift system). There was a distinct provenance change from ~2.7–2.5 Ga, ~2.1 Ga and ~1.9 Ga rocks (zircon ages) in the lower part, to 1.8–1.0 Ga in the middle-upper part of the Huaihe Group, and back to ~2.7–2.5 Ga, ~2.1 Ga and ~1.9 Ga rocks in the Langan Group. The ~2.7–2.5 Ga, ~2.1 Ga, ~1.9Ga, and ~1.8–1.4 Ga provenances could be from the NCC, while the 1.2–1.0 Ga provenances were possibly from the Grenvillian orogens which could be far or close neighbors of the NCC before 0.9 Ga. While both the 1.4–1.3 Ga and 1.2–1.0 Ga provenances possibly support a North China-São Francisco-Congo connection hypothesis, in which the Early Neoproterozoic basins such as the Xuhuai rift basins along the southeastern margin of the NCC, the coeval basins along the eastern and western margins of the São Francisco Craton and the west Congo Craton comprise a correlated rift system during 1.1–0.9 Ga.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Searches for electron antineutrino, muon neutrino, and muon antineutrino disappearance driven by sterile neutrino mixing have been carried out by the Daya Bay and MINOS+ collaborations. This Letter ...presents the combined results of these searches, along with exclusion results from the Bugey-3 reactor experiment, framed in a minimally extended four-neutrino scenario. Significantly improved constraints on the θμe mixing angle are derived that constitute the most constraining limits to date over five orders of magnitude in the mass-squared splitting Δm241, excluding the 90% C.L. sterile-neutrino parameter space allowed by the LSND and MiniBooNE observations at 90% CLs for Δm241 < 13 eV2. Furthermore, the LSND and MiniBooNE 99% C.L. allowed regions are excluded at 99% CLs for Δm241 < 1.6 eV2.
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CMK, CTK, FMFMET, IJS, NUK, PNG, UL, UM
In human gene therapy applications, lentiviral vectors may have advantages over gamma-retroviral vectors in several areas, including the ability to transduce nondividing cells, resistance to gene ...silencing and a potentially safer integration site profile. However, unlike gamma-retroviral vectors it has been problematic to drive the expression of multiple genes efficiently and coordinately with approaches such as internal ribosome entry sites or dual promoters. Using different 2A peptides, lentiviral vectors expressing two-gene T-cell receptors directed against the melanoma differentiation antigens gp100 and MART-1 were constructed. We demonstrated that addition of amino-acid spacer sequences (GSG or SGSG) before the 2A sequence is a prerequisite for efficient synthesis of biologically active T-cell receptors and that addition of a furin cleavage site followed by a V5 peptide tag yielded optimal T-cell receptor gene expression. Furthermore, we determined that the furin cleavage site was recognized in lymphocytes and accounted for removal of residual 2A peptides at the post-translational level with an efficiency of 20-30%, which could not be increased by addition of multiple furin cleavage sites. The novel bicistronic lentiviral vector developed herein afforded robust anti-melanoma activities to engineered peripheral blood lymphocytes, including cytokine secretion, cell proliferation and lytic activity. Such optimal vectors may have immediate applications in cancer gene therapy.
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DOBA, EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, IZUM, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Intercalated discs (ICD), specific cell-to-cell contacts that connect adjacent cardiomyocytes, ensure mechanical and electrochemical coupling during contraction of the heart. Mutations in genes ...encoding ICD components are linked to cardiovascular diseases. Here, we show that loss of Xinβ, a newly-identified component of ICDs, results in cardiomyocyte proliferation defects and cardiomyopathy. We uncovered a role for Xinβ in signaling via the Hippo-YAP pathway by recruiting NF2 to the ICD to modulate cardiac function. In Xinβ mutant hearts levels of phosphorylated NF2 are substantially reduced, suggesting an impairment of Hippo-YAP signaling. Cardiac-specific overexpression of YAP rescues cardiac defects in Xinβ knock-out mice-indicating a functional and genetic interaction between Xinβ and YAP. Our study reveals a molecular mechanism by which cardiac-expressed intercalated disc protein Xinβ modulates Hippo-YAP signaling to control heart development and cardiac function in a tissue specific manner. Consequently, this pathway may represent a therapeutic target for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases.
A measurement of electron antineutrino oscillation by the Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment is described in detail. Six 2.9-GWth nuclear power reactors of the Daya Bay and Ling Ao nuclear power ...facilities served as intense sources of ν¯e’s. Comparison of the ν¯e rate and energy spectrum measured by antineutrino detectors far from the nuclear reactors (∼1500–1950 m) relative to detectors near the reactors (∼350–600 m) allowed a precise measurement of ν¯e disappearance. More than 2.5 million ν¯e inverse beta-decay interactions were observed, based on the combination of 217 days of operation of six antineutrino detectors (December, 2011–July, 2012) with a subsequent 1013 days using the complete configuration of eight detectors (October, 2012–July, 2015). The ν¯e rate observed at the far detectors relative to the near detectors showed a significant deficit, R=0.949±0.002(stat)±0.002(syst). The energy dependence of ν¯e disappearance showed the distinct variation predicted by neutrino oscillation. Analysis using an approximation for the three-flavor oscillation probability yielded the flavor-mixing angle sin22θ13=0.0841±0.0027(stat)±0.0019(syst) and the effective neutrino mass-squared difference of |Δmee2|=(2.50±0.06(stat)±0.06(syst))×10−3 eV2. Analysis using the exact three-flavor probability found Δm322=(2.45±0.06(stat)±0.06(syst))×10−3 eV2 assuming the normal neutrino mass hierarchy and Δm322=(−2.56±0.06(stat)±0.06(syst))×10−3 eV2 for the inverted hierarchy.
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Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) nanocomposite films for underwater sound absorption applications are presented. Films were fabricated by a spin coating method and characterized using XPS, FTIR, TGA, SEM, ...tensile testing, and elastic cold-neutron scattering. The XPS results reveal the addition of surfactant and carboxyl-functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT-COOH) increased the components of C and O atoms by 4.12% and 2.81%, respectively, compared to the native PDMS film. The addition of MWCNT-COOH and surfactants to the PDMS also significantly improved the thermal stability (700 °C) of the nanocomposite material compared to pure PDMS. Tensile property measurements of PDMS nanocomposites indicate that the addition of 2 wt% of MWCNT-COOH significantly improves the elastic modulus by 48% compared to the pure PDMS. The addition of surfactant nonetheless decreases the Young’s modulus by 34% compared to pure PDMS, due to changes in the microstructure of the PDMS matrix. The advantage of the decreased Young’s modulus is to avoid acoustic impedance mismatch. The surface morphology detected by SEM indicates that the surfactant can improve the dispersion of MWCNT-COOH in the PDMS films. Further, the elastic cold-neutron scattering results demonstrate the diffusive motions near the glass transition temperatures (
T
g
) of the nanocomposite films, providing in-depth details of the dynamic alignment of the inclusions within the material matrix. The PDMS/MWCNT-COOH/surfactant nanocomposite exhibited a sound absorption coefficient of 0.25, which was far higher than the PDMS control materials. This positive result indicates these PDMS nanocomposite films have promising future underwater sound absorption applications.
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DOBA, EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, IZUM, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
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