Lesson study is a popular professional development approach in Japan whereby teachers collaborate to study content, instruction, and how students solve problems and reach for understanding in order ...to improve elementary mathematics instruction and learning in the classroom. This book is the first comprehensive look at the system and process of lesson study in Japan. It describes in detail the process of how teachers conducted lesson study--how they collaborated in order to develop a lesson, what they talked about during the process, and what they looked at in order to understand deeply how students were learning. Readers see the planning of a mathematics lesson, as well as how much content knowledge the teachers have. They observe students' problem solving strategies and learn how Japanese teachers prepare themselves to identify those strategies and facilitate the students' discussion. Written for mathematics teachers, educational researchers, school administrators interested in teachers' professional development, and professional developers, this landmark volume provides an in-depth understanding of lesson study that can lead to positive changes in teachers' professional development and in teaching and learning in the United States.
In vertebrates, two distinct condensin complexes, condensin I and condensin II, cooperate to drive mitotic chromosome assembly. It remains largely unknown how the two complexes differentially ...contribute to this process at a mechanistic level. We have previously dissected the role of individual subunits of condensin II by introducing recombinant complexes into
egg extracts. Here we extend these efforts by introducing a modified functional assay using extracts depleted of topoisomerase IIα (topo IIα), which allows us to further elucidate the functional similarities and differences between condensin I and condensin II. The intrinsically disordered C-terminal region of the CAP-D3 subunit (the D3 C-tail) is a major target of Cdk1 phosphorylation, and phosphorylation-deficient mutations in this region impair condensin II functions. We also identify a unique helical structure in CAP-D3 (the D3 HEAT docker) that is predicted to directly interact with CAP-G2. Deletion of the D3 HEAT docker, along with the D3 C-tail, enhances the ability of condensin II to assemble mitotic chromosomes. Taken together, we propose a self-suppression mechanism unique to condensin II that is released by mitotic phosphorylation. Evolutionary implications of our findings are also discussed.
In the era of expanding manned space missions, understanding the biomechanical impacts of zero gravity on human movement is pivotal. This study introduces a novel and cost-effective framework that ...demonstrates the application of Microsoft's Azure Kinect body tracking technology as a motion input generator for subsequent OpenSim simulations in weightlessness. Testing rotations, locomotion, coordination, and martial arts movements, we validate the results' realism under the constraints of angular and linear momentum conservation. While complex, full-body coordination tasks face limitations in a zero gravity environment, our findings suggest possible approaches to device-free exercise routines for astronauts and reveal insights into the feasibility of hand-to-hand combat in space. However, some challenges remain in distinguishing zero gravity effects in the simulations from discrepancies in the captured motion input or forward dynamics calculations, making a comprehensive validation difficult. The paper concludes by highlighting the framework's practical potential for the future of space mission planning and related research endeavors, while also providing recommendations for further refinement.
Fungi secrete a set of glycoside hydrolases and oxidoreductases, including lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs), for the degradation of plant polysaccharides. LPMOs catalyze the oxidative ...cleavage of glycosidic bonds after activation by an external electron donor. So far, only flavin-dependent oxidoreductases (from the auxiliary activity AA family AA3) have been shown to activate LPMOs. Here, we present LPMO activation by a pyrroloquinoline-quinone (PQQ)-dependent pyranose dehydrogenase (PDH) from
,
PDH, the founding member of the recently discovered auxiliary activity family AA12.
PDH contains a C-terminal family 1 carbohydrate binding module (CBM1), an N-terminal family AA8 cytochrome domain, and a central AA12 dehydrogenase domain. We have studied the ability of full-length
PDH and its truncated variants to drive catalysis by two
LPMOs. The results show that
PDH indeed can activate the C-1-oxidizing
LPMO 9F (
LPMO9F) and the C-4-oxidizing
LPMO 9C (
LPMO9C), that this activation depends on the cytochrome domain, and that the dehydrogenase and the LPMO reactions are strongly coupled. The two tested
PDH-LPMO systems showed quite different efficiencies, and this difference disappeared upon the addition of free PQQ acting as a diphenol/quinone redox mediator, showing that LPMOs differ when it comes to their direct interactions with the cytochrome domain. Surprisingly, removal of the CBM domain from
PDH had a considerable negative impact on the efficiency of the
PDH-LPMO systems, suggesting that electron transfer in the vicinity of the substrate is beneficial.
PDH does not oxidize cello-oligosaccharides, which makes this enzyme a useful tool for studying cellulose-oxidizing LPMOs.
Lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) are currently receiving increasing attention because of their importance in degrading recalcitrant polysaccharides and their potential roles in biological processes, such as bacterial virulence. LPMO action requires an external electron donor, and fungi growing on biomass secrete various so-called glucose-methanol-choline (GMC) oxidoreductases, including cellobiose dehydrogenase, which can donate electrons to LPMOs. This paper describes how an enzyme not belonging to the GMC oxidoreductase family,
PDH, can activate LPMOs, and it provides new insights into the activation process by (i) describing the roles of individual
PDH domains (a dehydrogenase, a cytochrome, and a carbohydrate-binding domain), (ii) showing that the PDH and LPMO enzyme reactions are strongly coupled, (iii) demonstrating that LPMOs differ in terms of their efficiencies of activation by the same activator, and (iv) providing indications that electron transferring close to the substrate surface is beneficial for the overall efficiency of the
PDH-LPMO system.
Abstract
Background
Telemetry methods that allow low-cost, offshore tracking are required for the effective conservation and sustainable use of migratory fish in large lakes with vast and deep ...offshore areas. Surface drifting buoys, or drifters, are promising platforms for acoustic receiver attachment that have few operational constraints. However, the low recovery rate of drifters in the open ocean presents a challenge. In contrast, closed waters, such as lakes, are more suitable for operating drifters since drifting objects eventually strand on the shore. In this study, we examined the effectiveness of a single GPS-tracked drifter for telemetry surveys of the common carp
Cyprinus carpio
, which migrates throughout the large offshore area of a large lake, Lake Biwa, in Japan. Its performance was assessed regarding the success rate of drifter recovery, detection frequency of tagged individuals, search area of the drifter, and accuracy of detection locations.
Results
We successfully recovered the drifter during all eight deployments. In 6 deployments, tagged individuals were detected 777 times. The drifter successfully detected 48% (10 of 21) of the tagged individuals, exhibiting higher performance (10–33%) than fixed receivers used in other telemetry studies conducted on highly migratory fish species in the lake. The drifter scanned an area of 5.5–8.0 km
2
per day. Based on the data obtained from the field trials, the horizontal location accuracy of detected individuals was estimated to be approximately 400 m in shallow coastal areas and 600 m in deep offshore areas. Furthermore, the horizontal distance of tagged individuals traveled was estimated to be between 2 and 9 km within a day.
Conclusion
Our newly developed method deploys and retrieves a single GPS drifter that allows low-cost, wide-ranging telemetry surveys in offshore areas of large lakes. The lack of boat noise, moderate moving speed, and continuity of observation range of the drifter seemingly enabled the efficient detection of tagged individuals. Thus, the drifter method offers a promising novel approach for acoustic telemetry in offshore waters that can operate in combination with large receiver arrays and other mobile platforms.
Regeneration of Injured Renal Tubules Yoshida, Makoto; Honma, Shigeyoshi
Journal of Pharmacological Sciences,
2014, Volume:
124, Issue:
2
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Acute kidney injury (AKI), clinically defined by high serum creatinine and low urine flow, has many complicated pathophysiological features including tubular and glomerular injury. Although renal ...tubules are thought to be constituted by highly differentiated epithelial cells, it is possible to repair injured nephrons by the healing process. Several studies have revealed that AKI, especially AKI caused by ischemia/reperfusion injury or nephrotoxic medication, depends on a number of factors, including activation of transcriptional factors, endothelial injury of peritubular small vessels, immune responses, and inflammatory processes associated with necrosis and apoptosis of renal tubular epithelium. For regeneration of injured tubules, partly dedifferentiated progenitor-like cells fill the injured site and constitute the tubular structure and function, although the source of these cells is still under debate. It is essential to understand the molecular, cellular, and genetic mechanisms of AKI and tubular regeneration for the development of therapies to prevent and treat kidney injury.
This study examined the effect of N-acetyl cysteine (NAC), a reactive oxygen species (ROS) inhibitor, on renal interstitial fibrosis induced by unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) in mice. UUO led ...to a significant increase in the fibrotic area of obstructed kidneys, which was attenuated by NAC (84.8 mg/kg/d) in the drinking water. Renal expression of type III collagen and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α mRNAs was elevated in UUO mice and inhibited by NAC. Extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2) phosphorylation was significantly elevated by UUO, and NAC significantly attenuated the elevation. UUO inhibited the activity of glutathione peroxidase, while NAC restored its activity. Together, the results of this study suggest that renal interstitial fibrosis induced by UUO was ameliorated by NAC via several mechanisms including increased glutathione peroxidase activity, reduced phosphorylation of ERK1/2, and reduced expression of TNF-α and type III collagen mRNAs.
Brown rot fungi have great potential in biorefinery wood conversion systems because they are the primary wood decomposers in coniferous forests and have an efficient lignocellulose degrading system. ...Their initial wood degradation mechanism is thought to consist of an oxidative radical-based system that acts sequentially with an enzymatic saccharification system, but the complete molecular mechanism of this system has not yet been elucidated. Some studies have shown that wood degradation mechanisms of brown rot fungi have diversity in their substrate selectivity. Gloeophyllum trabeum, one of the most studied brown rot species, has broad substrate selectivity and even can degrade some grasses. However, the basis for this broad substrate specificity is poorly understood. In this study, we performed RNA-seq analyses on G. trabeum grown on media containing glucose, cellulose, or Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) as the sole carbon source. Comparison to the gene expression on glucose, 1,129 genes were upregulated on cellulose and 1,516 genes were upregulated on cedar. Carbohydrate Active enZyme (CAZyme) genes upregulated on cellulose and cedar media by G. trabeum included glycoside hyrolase family 12 (GH12), GH131, carbohydrate esterase family 1 (CE1), auxiliary activities family 3 subfamily 1 (AA3_1), AA3_2, AA3_4 and AA9, which is a newly reported expression pattern for brown rot fungi. The upregulation of both terpene synthase and cytochrome P450 genes on cedar media suggests the potential importance of these gene products in the production of secondary metabolites associated with the chelator-mediated Fenton reaction. These results provide new insights into the inherent wood degradation mechanism of G. trabeum and the diversity of brown rot mechanisms.
DNA topoisomerase II (TOP2) plays a pivotal role in faithful chromosome separation through its strand-passaging activity that resolves tangled genomic DNA during mitosis. Additionally, TOP2 controls ...progression of mitosis by activating cell cycle checkpoints. Recent work showed that the enzymatically inert C-terminal domain (CTD) of TOP2 and its posttranslational modification are critical to this checkpoint regulation. However, the molecular mechanism has not yet been determined. By using Xenopus laevis egg extract, we found that SUMOylation of DNA topoisomerase IIα (TOP2A) CTD regulates the localization of the histone H3 kinase Haspin and phosphorylation of histone H3 at threonine 3 at the centromere, two steps known to be involved in the recruitment of the chromosomal passenger complex (CPC) to kinetochores in mitosis. Robust centromeric Haspin localization requires SUMOylated TOP2A CTD binding activity through SUMO-interaction motifs and the phosphorylation of Haspin. We propose a novel mechanism through which the TOP2 CTD regulates the CPC via direct interaction with Haspin at mitotic centromeres.
A series of trans‐(Cl)‐Ru(L)(CO)2Cl2‐type complexes, in which the ligands L are 2,2′‐bipyridyl derivatives with amide groups at the 5,5′‐positions, are synthesized. The C‐connected amide group bound ...to the bipyridyl ligand through the carbonyl carbon atom is twisted with respect to the bipyridyl plane, whereas the N‐connected amide group is in the plane. DFT calculations reveal that the twisted structure of the C‐connected amide group raises the level of the LUMO, which results in a negative shift of the first reduction potential (Ep) of the ruthenium complex. The catalytic abilities for CO2 reduction are evaluated in photoreactions (λ>400 nm) with the ruthenium complexes (the catalyst), Ru(bpy)32+ (bpy=2,2′‐bipyridine; the photosensitizer), and 1‐benzyl‐1,4‐dihydronicotinamide (the electron donor) in CO2‐saturated N,N‐dimethylacetamide/water. The logarithm of the turnover frequency increases by shifting Ep a negative value until it reaches the reduction potential of the photosensitizer.
Minor adjustments for maximum results: A series of trans‐(Cl)‐Ru(5,5′‐ diamide‐2,2′‐bipyridine)(CO)2Cl2‐type complexes have been synthesized, and their catalytic abilities for CO2 reduction evaluated in photoreactions (see figure). The catalytic activities are dramatically affected by the amide substituents, and are discussed with respect to the first reduction potentials of the catalysts.
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