Near‐Earth asteroid (101955) Bennu is an active asteroid experiencing mass loss in the form of ejection events emitting up to hundreds of millimeter‐ to centimeter‐scale particles. The close ...proximity of the Origins, Spectral Interpretations, Resource Identification, and Security–Regolith Explorer spacecraft enabled monitoring of particles for a 10‐month period encompassing Bennu's perihelion and aphelion. We found 18 multiparticle ejection events, with masses ranging from near zero to hundreds of grams (or thousands with uncertainties) and translational kinetic energies ranging from near zero to tens of millijoules (or hundreds with uncertainties). We estimate that Bennu ejects ~104 g per orbit. The largest event took place on 6 January 2019 and consisted of ~200 particles. The observed mass and translational kinetic energy of the event were between 459 and 528 g and 62 and 77 mJ, respectively. Hundreds of particles not associated with the multiparticle ejections were also observed. Photometry of the best‐observed particles, measured at phase angles between ~70° and 120°, was used to derive a linear phase coefficient of 0.013 ± 0.005 magnitudes per degree of phase angle. Ground‐based data back to 1999 show no evidence of past activity for Bennu; however, the currently observed activity is orders of magnitude lower than observed at other active asteroids and too low be observed remotely. There appears to be a gentle decrease in activity with distance from the Sun, suggestive of ejection processes such as meteoroid impacts and thermal fracturing, although observational bias may be a factor.
Plain Language Summary
We measured the brightness of pebble‐sized particles in the vicinity of near‐Earth asteroid Bennu to better understand their physical characteristics and the events that launched them from Bennu's surface. Our measurements spanned 10 months, encompassing Bennu's closest and farthest distances from the Sun, so that we could assess how the level of ejection activity changes with solar distance. We observed 18 multiparticle ejection events containing anywhere from a few to 200+ particles. Individual particles ranged from millimeters to centimeters in diameter. The energy of the events and a possible decrease in activity with larger distances from the Sun suggest that meteoroid impacts, fracturing of surface boulders due to solar heating, or both may be responsible for ejecting the particles. We estimate that Bennu releases ~10,000 g of material over one orbit or 1.2 years. Although mass loss has been remotely observed for other asteroids, the comparatively low level of particle ejection activity at Bennu was only observable thanks to the close proximity of the Origins, Spectral Interpretations, Resource Identification, and Security–Regolith Explorer spacecraft.
Key Points
Asteroid (101955) Bennu is active from perihelion through aphelion with a possible decrease in activity further from the Sun
Bennu's activity is less than that detected by telescope for other active asteroids and is only observable up close
The particles' shallow phase functions resemble those of similarly sized individual rocks rather than those of ensemble asteroid surfaces
Normal differentiation and induced reprogramming require the activation of target cell programs and silencing of donor cell programs. In reprogramming, the same factors are often used to reprogram ...many different donor cell types. As most developmental repressors, such as RE1-silencing transcription factor (REST) and Groucho (also known as TLE), are considered lineage-specific repressors, it remains unclear how identical combinations of transcription factors can silence so many different donor programs. Distinct lineage repressors would have to be induced in different donor cell types. Here, by studying the reprogramming of mouse fibroblasts to neurons, we found that the pan neuron-specific transcription factor Myt1-like (Myt1l) exerts its pro-neuronal function by direct repression of many different somatic lineage programs except the neuronal program. The repressive function of Myt1l is mediated via recruitment of a complex containing Sin3b by binding to a previously uncharacterized N-terminal domain. In agreement with its repressive function, the genomic binding sites of Myt1l are similar in neurons and fibroblasts and are preferentially in an open chromatin configuration. The Notch signalling pathway is repressed by Myt1l through silencing of several members, including Hes1. Acute knockdown of Myt1l in the developing mouse brain mimicked a Notch gain-of-function phenotype, suggesting that Myt1l allows newborn neurons to escape Notch activation during normal development. Depletion of Myt1l in primary postmitotic neurons de-repressed non-neuronal programs and impaired neuronal gene expression and function, indicating that many somatic lineage programs are actively and persistently repressed by Myt1l to maintain neuronal identity. It is now tempting to speculate that similar 'many-but-one' lineage repressors exist for other cell fates; such repressors, in combination with lineage-specific activators, would be prime candidates for use in reprogramming additional cell types.
Direct reprogramming of fibroblasts to neurons induces widespread cellular and transcriptional reconfiguration. Here, we characterized global epigenomic changes during the direct reprogramming of ...mouse fibroblasts to neurons using whole-genome base-resolution DNA methylation (mC) sequencing. We found that the pioneer transcription factor Ascl1 alone is sufficient for inducing the uniquely neuronal feature of non-CG methylation (mCH), but co-expression of Brn2 and Mytl1 was required to establish a global mCH pattern reminiscent of mature cortical neurons. Ascl1 alone induced promoter CG methylation (mCG) of fibroblast specific genes, while BAM overexpression additionally targets a competing myogenic program and directs a more faithful conversion to neuronal cells. Ascl1 induces local demethylation at its binding sites. Surprisingly, co-expression with Brn2 and Mytl1 inhibited the ability of Ascl1 to induce demethylation, suggesting a contextual regulation of transcription factor - epigenome interaction. Finally, we found that de novo methylation by DNMT3A is required for efficient neuronal reprogramming.
Histone modifications and DNA methylation represent two layers of heritable epigenetic information that regulate eukaryotic chromatin structure and gene activity. UHRF1 is a unique factor that ...bridges these two layers; it is required for maintenance DNA methylation at hemimethylated CpG sites, which are specifically recognized through its SRA domain and also interacts with histone H3 trimethylated on lysine 9 (H3K9me3) in an unspecified manner. Here we show that UHRF1 contains a tandem Tudor domain (TTD) that recognizes H3 tail peptides with the heterochromatin-associated modification state of trimethylated lysine 9 and unmodified lysine 4 (H3K4me0/K9me3). Solution NMR and crystallographic data reveal the TTD simultaneously recognizes H3K9me3 through a conserved aromatic cage in the first Tudor subdomain and unmodified H3K4 within a groove between the tandem subdomains. The subdomains undergo a conformational adjustment upon peptide binding, distinct from previously reported mechanisms for dual histone mark recognition. Mutant UHRF1 protein deficient for H3K4me0/K9me3 binding shows altered localization to heterochromatic chromocenters and fails to reduce expression of a target gene, p16INK4A, when overexpressed. Our results demonstrate a novel recognition mechanism for the combinatorial readout of histone modification states associated with gene silencing and add to the growing evidence for coordination of, and cross-talk between, the modification states of H3K4 and H3K9 in regulation of gene expression.
The Hippo pathway regulates cell proliferation and organ size through control of the transcriptional regulators YAP (yes-associated protein) and TAZ. Upon extracellular stimuli such as cell-cell ...contact, the pathway negatively regulates YAP through cytoplasmic sequestration. Under conditions of low cell density, YAP is nuclear and associates with enhancer regions and gene promoters. YAP is mainly described as a transcriptional activator of genes involved in cell proliferation and survival. Using a genome-wide approach, we show here that, in addition to its known function as a transcriptional activator, YAP functions as a transcriptional repressor by interacting with the multifunctional transcription factor Yin Yang 1 (YY1) and Polycomb repressive complex member enhancer of zeste homologue 2 (EZH2). YAP colocalized with YY1 and EZH2 on the genome to transcriptionally repress a broad network of genes mediating a host of cellular functions, including repression of the cell-cycle kinase inhibitor p27, whose role is to functionally promote contact inhibition. This work unveils a broad and underappreciated aspect of YAP nuclear function as a transcriptional repressor and highlights how loss of contact inhibition in cancer is mediated in part through YAP repressive function. SIGNIFICANCE: This study provides new insights into YAP as a broad transcriptional repressor of key regulators of the cell cycle, in turn influencing contact inhibition and tumorigenesis.
Main belt asteroid (6478) Gault has been dynamically linked with two overlapping asteroid families: Phocaea, dominated by S-type asteroids, and Tamara, dominated by low-albedo C-types. This object ...has recently become an interesting case for study after images obtained in late 2018 revealed that it was active and displaying a comet-like tail. Previous authors have proposed that the most likely scenarios to explain the observed activity on Gault were rotational excitation or merger of near-contact binaries. Here we use new photometric and spectroscopic data of Gault to determine its physical and compositional properties. Lightcurves derived from the photometric data showed little variation over three nights of observations, which prevented us from determining the rotation period of the asteroid. Using WISE observations of Gault and the near-Earth Asteroid Thermal Model (NEATM) we determined that this asteroid has a diameter <6 km. Near-infrared spectroscopic data obtained with the Infrared Telescope Facility showed a spectrum similar to that of S-complex asteroids, and a surface composition consistent with H chondrite meteorites. These results favor a compositional affinity between Gault and asteroid (25) Phocaea, and rules out a compositional link with the Tamara family. From the spectroscopic data we found no evidence of fresh material that could have been exposed during the outburst episodes.
Linking meteorites to source regions in the main asteroid belt is important for understanding the conditions under which their parent bodies formed. Ordinary chondrites are the most abundant class of ...meteorites on Earth, totaling 86% of all collected samples. Some S-type asteroids/families have been proposed as sources for the three different (H, L, and LL) types of ordinary chondrites with Hebe, Agnia, Merxia, and Koronis families being the source for H chondrites, Gefion for H/L chondrites, and Flora family for LL chondrites. However, the composition and meteorite affinity of several large S-type main belt asteroids remains unconstrained leaving the possibility of additional source regions for ordinary chondrite meteorites. Here we investigate the surface composition of three large S-type asteroids, (3) Juno, (7) Iris, and (25) Phocaea, using their near-infrared spectra (0.7-2.55 m) to identify the parent body of the H chondrites. We use a Bayesian inference model to confirm the meteorite analogs of the three asteroids. Based on our Bayes classifier we find the following analogs and probabilities: Juno is likely H chondrite (89%), Iris is likely LL chondrite (97.5%), and Phocaea is likely H chondrite (98.6%). While Phocaea has the highest probability of being an H chondrite, it is dynamically unlikely to deliver material to near-Earth space. While Juno has spectral properties similar to H chondrites, its family is unlikely to produce sizeable H-chondrite-type near-Earth objects (NEOs). If Juno is the primary source of H chondrite meteorites, it suggests that an additional source is needed to explain the H-chondrite-type NEOs.
Impacts due to near-Earth objects (NEOs) are responsible for causing some of the great mass extinctions on Earth. While nearly all NEOs of diameter > 1 km, capable of causing a global climatic ...disaster, have been discovered and have negligible chance of impacting in the near future, we are far from completion in our effort to detect and characterize smaller objects. In an effort to test our preparedness to respond to a potential NEO impact threat, we conducted a community-led global planetary defense exercise with support from the NASA Planetary Defense Coordination Office. The target of our exercise was 2012 TC4, the ~10 m diameter asteroid that made a close pass by the Earth on 2017 October 12 at a distance of about 50,000 km. The goal of the TC4 observing campaign was to recover, track, and characterize 2012 TC4 as a hypothetical impactor in order to exercise the global planetary defense system involving observations, modeling, prediction, and communication. We made three attempts with the Very Large Telescope (VLT) on 2017 July 27, 31 and on 2017 August 5 and recovered 2012 TC4 within its ephemeris uncertainty at 2.2 arcmin from the nominal prediction. At visual magnitude V = 27, the recovery of 2012 TC4 is the faintest NEA detection thus far. If an impact during the 2017 close approach had been possible based on the 2012 astrometric data, these recovery observations would have been sufficient to confirm or rule out the impact. The first automatic detection by a survey (Pan-STARRS1) was on September 25, which is the earliest that 2012 TC4 would have been discovered in survey mode, if it had not been discovered in 2012. We characterized 2012 TC4 using photometry, spectroscopy and radar techniques. Based on photometric observations, we determined a rotation period of 12.2 min with an amplitude of 0.9 magnitudes. An additional lower amplitude period was detected, indicating that 2012 TC4 was in a state of non-principal axis rotation. The combined visible and near-infrared spectrum puts it in the taxonomic X-class. Radar images at 1.875 m resolution placed only a few range pixels on the asteroid, reveal an angular, asymmetric, and elongated shape, and establish that 2012 TC4 is less than 20 m on its long axis. We estimate a circular polarization ratio of 0.57 + -0.08 that is relatively high among NEAs observed to date by radar. We also performed a probabilistic impact risk assessment exercise for hypothetical impactors based on the 2012 TC4 observing campaign. This exercise was performed as part of ongoing efforts to advance effective impact risk models and assessment processes for planetary defense. The 2012 TC4 close approach provided a valuable opportunity to test the application of these methods using realistically evolving observational data to define the modeling inputs. To this end, risk assessments were calculated at several epochs before and during the close approach, incorporating new information about 2012 TC4 as it became available. Two size ranges were assessed—one smaller size range (H = 26.7) similar to the actual 2012 TC4, and one larger size range (H = 21.9) to produce a greater-damage scenario for risk assessment. Across the epochs, we found that only irons caused significant damage for smaller size. For the larger size case, however, hydrous stones caused the greatest damage, anhydrous stones caused the least damage, and irons caused moderate damage. We note that the extent of damage depends on composition in different size regimes and, after astrometry, size is the most important physical property to determine for an incoming object.
•We conducted a community-led global planetary defense exercise•The goal was to recover, track, and characterize 2012 TC4 as a hypothetical impactor•We found that after astrometric observations, size of the asteroid is the most important property for an impactor
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