@article{14795, abstract = {Metazoan development relies on the formation and remodeling of cell-cell contacts. Dynamic reorganization of adhesion receptors and the actomyosin cell cortex in space and time plays a central role in cell-cell contact formation and maturation. Nevertheless, how this process is mechanistically achieved when new contacts are formed remains unclear. Here, by building a biomimetic assay composed of progenitor cells adhering to supported lipid bilayers functionalized with E-cadherin ectodomains, we show that cortical F-actin flows, driven by the depletion of myosin-2 at the cell contact center, mediate the dynamic reorganization of adhesion receptors and cell cortex at the contact. E-cadherin-dependent downregulation of the small GTPase RhoA at the forming contact leads to both a depletion of myosin-2 and a decrease of F-actin at the contact center. At the contact rim, in contrast, myosin-2 becomes enriched by the retraction of bleb-like protrusions, resulting in a cortical tension gradient from the contact rim to its center. This tension gradient, in turn, triggers centrifugal F-actin flows, leading to further accumulation of F-actin at the contact rim and the progressive redistribution of E-cadherin from the contact center to the rim. Eventually, this combination of actomyosin downregulation and flows at the contact determines the characteristic molecular organization, with E-cadherin and F-actin accumulating at the contact rim, where they are needed to mechanically link the contractile cortices of the adhering cells.}, author = {Arslan, Feyza N and Hannezo, Edouard B and Merrin, Jack and Loose, Martin and Heisenberg, Carl-Philipp J}, issn = {1879-0445}, journal = {Current Biology}, number = {1}, pages = {171--182.e8}, publisher = {Elsevier}, title = {{Adhesion-induced cortical flows pattern E-cadherin-mediated cell contacts}}, doi = {10.1016/j.cub.2023.11.067}, volume = {34}, year = {2024}, } @article{14802, abstract = {Frequency-stable lasers form the back bone of precision measurements in science and technology. Such lasers typically attain their stability through frequency locking to reference cavities. State-of-the-art locking performances to date had been achieved using frequency modulation based methods, complemented with active drift cancellation systems. We demonstrate an all passive, modulation-free laser-cavity locking technique (squash locking) that utilizes changes in spatial beam ellipticity for error signal generation, and a coherent polarization post-selection for noise resilience. By comparing two identically built proof-of-principle systems, we show a frequency locking instability of 5×10−7 relative to the cavity linewidth at 10 s averaging. The results surpass the demonstrated performances of methods engineered over the last five decades, potentially enabling an advancement in the precision control of lasers, while creating avenues for bridging the performance gaps between industrial grade lasers with scientific ones due to the afforded simplicity and scalability.}, author = {Diorico, Fritz R and Zhutov, Artem and Hosten, Onur}, issn = {2334-2536}, journal = {Optica}, keywords = {Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics, Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials}, number = {1}, pages = {26--31}, publisher = {Optica Publishing Group}, title = {{Laser-cavity locking utilizing beam ellipticity: accessing the 10−7 instability scale relative to cavity linewidth}}, doi = {10.1364/optica.507451}, volume = {11}, year = {2024}, } @article{14820, abstract = {We consider a natural problem dealing with weighted packet selection across a rechargeable link, which e.g., finds applications in cryptocurrency networks. The capacity of a link (u, v) is determined by how many nodes u and v allocate for this link. Specifically, the input is a finite ordered sequence of packets that arrive in both directions along a link. Given (u, v) and a packet of weight x going from u to v, node u can either accept or reject the packet. If u accepts the packet, the capacity on link (u, v) decreases by x. Correspondingly, v's capacity on increases by x. If a node rejects the packet, this will entail a cost affinely linear in the weight of the packet. A link is “rechargeable” in the sense that the total capacity of the link has to remain constant, but the allocation of capacity at the ends of the link can depend arbitrarily on the nodes' decisions. The goal is to minimise the sum of the capacity injected into the link and the cost of rejecting packets. We show that the problem is NP-hard, but can be approximated efficiently with a ratio of (1+E) . (1+3) for some arbitrary E>0.}, author = {Schmid, Stefan and Svoboda, Jakub and Yeo, Michelle X}, issn = {0304-3975}, journal = {Theoretical Computer Science}, keywords = {General Computer Science, Theoretical Computer Science}, publisher = {Elsevier}, title = {{Weighted packet selection for rechargeable links in cryptocurrency networks: Complexity and approximation}}, doi = {10.1016/j.tcs.2023.114353}, volume = {989}, year = {2024}, } @article{14793, abstract = {Superconductor/semiconductor hybrid devices have attracted increasing interest in the past years. Superconducting electronics aims to complement semiconductor technology, while hybrid architectures are at the forefront of new ideas such as topological superconductivity and protected qubits. In this work, we engineer the induced superconductivity in two-dimensional germanium hole gas by varying the distance between the quantum well and the aluminum. We demonstrate a hard superconducting gap and realize an electrically and flux tunable superconducting diode using a superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID). This allows to tune the current phase relation (CPR), to a regime where single Cooper pair tunneling is suppressed, creating a sin(2y) CPR. Shapiro experiments complement this interpretation and the microwave drive allows to create a diode with ≈ 100% efficiency. The reported results open up the path towards integration of spin qubit devices, microwave resonators and (protected) superconducting qubits on the same silicon technology compatible platform.}, author = {Valentini, Marco and Sagi, Oliver and Baghumyan, Levon and de Gijsel, Thijs and Jung, Jason and Calcaterra, Stefano and Ballabio, Andrea and Aguilera Servin, Juan L and Aggarwal, Kushagra and Janik, Marian and Adletzberger, Thomas and Seoane Souto, Rubén and Leijnse, Martin and Danon, Jeroen and Schrade, Constantin and Bakkers, Erik and Chrastina, Daniel and Isella, Giovanni and Katsaros, Georgios}, issn = {2041-1723}, journal = {Nature Communications}, publisher = {Springer Nature}, title = {{Parity-conserving Cooper-pair transport and ideal superconducting diode in planar germanium}}, doi = {10.1038/s41467-023-44114-0}, volume = {15}, year = {2024}, } @article{14797, abstract = {We study a random matching problem on closed compact 2 -dimensional Riemannian manifolds (with respect to the squared Riemannian distance), with samples of random points whose common law is absolutely continuous with respect to the volume measure with strictly positive and bounded density. We show that given two sequences of numbers n and m=m(n) of points, asymptotically equivalent as n goes to infinity, the optimal transport plan between the two empirical measures μn and νm is quantitatively well-approximated by (Id,exp(∇hn))#μn where hn solves a linear elliptic PDE obtained by a regularized first-order linearization of the Monge-Ampère equation. This is obtained in the case of samples of correlated random points for which a stretched exponential decay of the α -mixing coefficient holds and for a class of discrete-time Markov chains having a unique absolutely continuous invariant measure with respect to the volume measure.}, author = {Clozeau, Nicolas and Mattesini, Francesco}, issn = {1432-2064}, journal = {Probability Theory and Related Fields}, publisher = {Springer Nature}, title = {{Annealed quantitative estimates for the quadratic 2D-discrete random matching problem}}, doi = {10.1007/s00440-023-01254-0}, year = {2024}, } @article{14794, abstract = {Mosaic analysis with double markers (MADM) technology enables the sparse labeling of genetically defined neurons. We present a protocol for time-lapse imaging of cortical projection neuron migration in mice using MADM. We describe steps for the isolation, culturing, and 4D imaging of neuronal dynamics in MADM-labeled brain tissue. While this protocol is compatible with other single-cell labeling methods, the MADM approach provides a genetic platform for the functional assessment of cell-autonomous candidate gene function and the relative contribution of non-cell-autonomous effects. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Hansen et al. (2022),1 Contreras et al. (2021),2 and Amberg and Hippenmeyer (2021).3}, author = {Hansen, Andi H and Hippenmeyer, Simon}, issn = {2666-1667}, journal = {STAR Protocols}, number = {1}, publisher = {Elsevier}, title = {{Time-lapse imaging of cortical projection neuron migration in mice using mosaic analysis with double markers}}, doi = {10.1016/j.xpro.2023.102795}, volume = {5}, year = {2024}, } @article{14826, abstract = {The plant-signaling molecule auxin triggers fast and slow cellular responses across land plants and algae. The nuclear auxin pathway mediates gene expression and controls growth and development in land plants, but this pathway is absent from algal sister groups. Several components of rapid responses have been identified in Arabidopsis, but it is unknown if these are part of a conserved mechanism. We recently identified a fast, proteome-wide phosphorylation response to auxin. Here, we show that this response occurs across 5 land plant and algal species and converges on a core group of shared targets. We found conserved rapid physiological responses to auxin in the same species and identified rapidly accelerated fibrosarcoma (RAF)-like protein kinases as central mediators of auxin-triggered phosphorylation across species. Genetic analysis connects this kinase to both auxin-triggered protein phosphorylation and rapid cellular response, thus identifying an ancient mechanism for fast auxin responses in the green lineage.}, author = {Kuhn, Andre and Roosjen, Mark and Mutte, Sumanth and Dubey, Shiv Mani and Carrillo Carrasco, Vanessa Polet and Boeren, Sjef and Monzer, Aline and Koehorst, Jasper and Kohchi, Takayuki and Nishihama, Ryuichi and Fendrych, Matyas and Sprakel, Joris and Friml, Jiří and Weijers, Dolf}, issn = {1097-4172}, journal = {Cell}, keywords = {General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology}, number = {1}, pages = {130--148.e17}, publisher = {Elsevier}, title = {{RAF-like protein kinases mediate a deeply conserved, rapid auxin response}}, doi = {10.1016/j.cell.2023.11.021}, volume = {187}, year = {2024}, } @article{14828, abstract = {Production of hydrogen at large scale requires development of non-noble, inexpensive, and high-performing catalysts for constructing water-splitting devices. Herein, we report the synthesis of Zn-doped NiO heterostructure (ZnNiO) catalysts at room temperature via a coprecipitation method followed by drying (at 80 °C, 6 h) and calcination at an elevated temperature of 400 °C for 5 h under three distinct conditions, namely, air, N2, and vacuum. The vacuum-synthesized catalyst demonstrates a low overpotential of 88 mV at −10 mA cm–2 and a small Tafel slope of 73 mV dec–1 suggesting relatively higher charge transfer kinetics for hydrogen evolution reactions (HER) compared with the specimens synthesized under N2 or O2 atmosphere. It also demonstrates an oxygen evolution (OER) overpotential of 260 mV at 10 mA cm–2 with a low Tafel slope of 63 mV dec–1. In a full-cell water-splitting device, the vacuum-synthesized ZnNiO heterostructure demonstrates a cell voltage of 1.94 V at 50 mA cm–2 and shows remarkable stability over 24 h at a high current density of 100 mA cm–2. It is also demonstrated in this study that Zn-doping, surface, and interface engineering in transition-metal oxides play a crucial role in efficient electrocatalytic water splitting. Also, the results obtained from density functional theory (DFT + U = 0–8 eV), where U is the on-site Coulomb repulsion parameter also known as Hubbard U, based electronic structure calculations confirm that Zn doping constructively modifies the electronic structure, in both the valence band and the conduction band, and found to be suitable in tailoring the carrier’s effective masses of electrons and holes. The decrease in electron’s effective masses together with large differences between the effective masses of electrons and holes is noticed, which is found to be mainly responsible for achieving the best water-splitting performance from a 9% Zn-doped NiO sample prepared under vacuum.}, author = {Kiran, Gundegowda Kalligowdanadoddi and Singh, Saurabh and Mahato, Neelima and Sreekanth, Thupakula Venkata Madhukar and Dillip, Gowra Raghupathy and Yoo, Kisoo and Kim, Jonghoon}, issn = {2574-0962}, journal = {ACS Applied Energy Materials}, keywords = {Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Materials Chemistry, Electrochemistry, Energy Engineering and Power Technology, Chemical Engineering (miscellaneous)}, number = {1}, pages = {214--229}, publisher = {American Chemical Society}, title = {{Interface engineering modulation combined with electronic structure modification of Zn-doped NiO heterostructure for efficient water-splitting activity}}, doi = {10.1021/acsaem.3c02519}, volume = {7}, year = {2024}, } @article{14834, abstract = {Bacteria divide by binary fission. The protein machine responsible for this process is the divisome, a transient assembly of more than 30 proteins in and on the surface of the cytoplasmic membrane. Together, they constrict the cell envelope and remodel the peptidoglycan layer to eventually split the cell into two. For Escherichia coli, most molecular players involved in this process have probably been identified, but obtaining the quantitative information needed for a mechanistic understanding can often not be achieved from experiments in vivo alone. Since the discovery of the Z-ring more than 30 years ago, in vitro reconstitution experiments have been crucial to shed light on molecular processes normally hidden in the complex environment of the living cell. In this review, we summarize how rebuilding the divisome from purified components – or at least parts of it - have been instrumental to obtain the detailed mechanistic understanding of the bacterial cell division machinery that we have today.}, author = {Radler, Philipp and Loose, Martin}, issn = {0171-9335}, journal = {European Journal of Cell Biology}, keywords = {Cell Biology, General Medicine, Histology, Pathology and Forensic Medicine}, number = {1}, publisher = {Elsevier}, title = {{A dynamic duo: Understanding the roles of FtsZ and FtsA for Escherichia coli cell division through in vitro approaches}}, doi = {10.1016/j.ejcb.2023.151380}, volume = {103}, year = {2024}, } @article{14841, abstract = {De novo heterozygous variants in KCNC2 encoding the voltage-gated potassium (K+) channel subunit Kv3.2 are a recently described cause of developmental and epileptic encephalopathy (DEE). A de novo variant in KCNC2 c.374G > A (p.Cys125Tyr) was identified via exome sequencing in a patient with DEE. Relative to wild-type Kv3.2, Kv3.2-p.Cys125Tyr induces K+ currents exhibiting a large hyperpolarizing shift in the voltage dependence of activation, accelerated activation, and delayed deactivation consistent with a relative stabilization of the open conformation, along with increased current density. Leveraging the cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM) structure of Kv3.1, molecular dynamic simulations suggest that a strong π-π stacking interaction between the variant Tyr125 and Tyr156 in the α-6 helix of the T1 domain promotes a relative stabilization of the open conformation of the channel, which underlies the observed gain of function. A multicompartment computational model of a Kv3-expressing parvalbumin-positive cerebral cortex fast-spiking γ-aminobutyric acidergic (GABAergic) interneuron (PV-IN) demonstrates how the Kv3.2-Cys125Tyr variant impairs neuronal excitability and dysregulates inhibition in cerebral cortex circuits to explain the resulting epilepsy.}, author = {Clatot, Jerome and Currin, Christopher and Liang, Qiansheng and Pipatpolkai, Tanadet and Massey, Shavonne L. and Helbig, Ingo and Delemotte, Lucie and Vogels, Tim P and Covarrubias, Manuel and Goldberg, Ethan M.}, issn = {1091-6490}, journal = {Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America}, number = {3}, publisher = {Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences}, title = {{A structurally precise mechanism links an epilepsy-associated KCNC2 potassium channel mutation to interneuron dysfunction}}, doi = {10.1073/pnas.2307776121}, volume = {121}, year = {2024}, }