@article{12876, abstract = {Motivation: The problem of model inference is of fundamental importance to systems biology. Logical models (e.g. Boolean networks; BNs) represent a computationally attractive approach capable of handling large biological networks. The models are typically inferred from experimental data. However, even with a substantial amount of experimental data supported by some prior knowledge, existing inference methods often focus on a small sample of admissible candidate models only. Results: We propose Boolean network sketches as a new formal instrument for the inference of Boolean networks. A sketch integrates (typically partial) knowledge about the network’s topology and the update logic (obtained through, e.g. a biological knowledge base or a literature search), as well as further assumptions about the properties of the network’s transitions (e.g. the form of its attractor landscape), and additional restrictions on the model dynamics given by the measured experimental data. Our new BNs inference algorithm starts with an ‘initial’ sketch, which is extended by adding restrictions representing experimental data to a ‘data-informed’ sketch and subsequently computes all BNs consistent with the data-informed sketch. Our algorithm is based on a symbolic representation and coloured model-checking. Our approach is unique in its ability to cover a broad spectrum of knowledge and efficiently produce a compact representation of all inferred BNs. We evaluate the method on a non-trivial collection of real-world and simulated data.}, author = {Beneš, Nikola and Brim, Luboš and Huvar, Ondřej and Pastva, Samuel and Šafránek, David}, issn = {1367-4811}, journal = {Bioinformatics}, number = {4}, publisher = {Oxford Academic}, title = {{Boolean network sketches: A unifying framework for logical model inference}}, doi = {10.1093/bioinformatics/btad158}, volume = {39}, year = {2023}, } @article{12880, abstract = {Peripheral heterochromatin positioning depends on nuclear envelope associated proteins and repressive histone modifications. Here we show that overexpression (OE) of Lamin B1 (LmnB1) leads to the redistribution of peripheral heterochromatin into heterochromatic foci within the nucleoplasm. These changes represent a perturbation of heterochromatin binding at the nuclear periphery (NP) through a mechanism independent from altering other heterochromatin anchors or histone post-translational modifications. We further show that LmnB1 OE alters gene expression. These changes do not correlate with different levels of H3K9me3, but a significant number of the misregulated genes were likely mislocalized away from the NP upon LmnB1 OE. We also observed an enrichment of developmental processes amongst the upregulated genes. ~74% of these genes were normally repressed in our cell type, suggesting that LmnB1 OE promotes gene de-repression. This demonstrates a broader consequence of LmnB1 OE on cell fate, and highlights the importance of maintaining proper levels of LmnB1.}, author = {Kaneshiro, Jeanae M. and Capitanio, Juliana S. and Hetzer, Martin W}, issn = {1949-1042}, journal = {Nucleus}, number = {1}, publisher = {Taylor & Francis}, title = {{Lamin B1 overexpression alters chromatin organization and gene expression}}, doi = {10.1080/19491034.2023.2202548}, volume = {14}, year = {2023}, } @article{12914, abstract = {We numerically study two methods of measuring tunneling times using a quantum clock. In the conventional method using the Larmor clock, we show that the Larmor tunneling time can be shorter for higher tunneling barriers. In the second method, we study the probability of a spin-flip of a particle when it is transmitted through a potential barrier including a spatially rotating field interacting with its spin. According to the adiabatic theorem, the probability depends on the velocity of the particle inside the barrier. It is numerically observed that the probability increases for higher barriers, which is consistent with the result obtained by the Larmor clock. By comparing outcomes for different initial spin states, we suggest that one of the main causes of the apparent decrease in the tunneling time can be the filtering effect occurring at the end of the barrier.}, author = {Suzuki, Fumika and Unruh, William G.}, issn = {2469-9934}, journal = {Physical Review A}, number = {4}, publisher = {American Physical Society}, title = {{Numerical quantum clock simulations for measuring tunneling times}}, doi = {10.1103/PhysRevA.107.042216}, volume = {107}, year = {2023}, } @article{12913, abstract = {The coexistence of gate-tunable superconducting, magnetic and topological orders in magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene provides opportunities for the creation of hybrid Josephson junctions. Here we report the fabrication of gate-defined symmetry-broken Josephson junctions in magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene, where the weak link is gate-tuned close to the correlated insulator state with a moiré filling factor of υ = −2. We observe a phase-shifted and asymmetric Fraunhofer pattern with a pronounced magnetic hysteresis. Our theoretical calculations of the junction weak link—with valley polarization and orbital magnetization—explain most of these unconventional features. The effects persist up to the critical temperature of 3.5 K, with magnetic hysteresis observed below 800 mK. We show how the combination of magnetization and its current-induced magnetization switching allows us to realise a programmable zero-field superconducting diode. Our results represent a major advance towards the creation of future superconducting quantum electronic devices.}, author = {Díez-Mérida, J. and Díez-Carlón, A. and Yang, S. Y. and Xie, Y. M. and Gao, X. J. and Senior, Jorden L and Watanabe, K. and Taniguchi, T. and Lu, X. and Higginbotham, Andrew P and Law, K. T. and Efetov, Dmitri K.}, issn = {2041-1723}, journal = {Nature Communications}, publisher = {Springer Nature}, title = {{Symmetry-broken Josephson junctions and superconducting diodes in magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene}}, doi = {10.1038/s41467-023-38005-7}, volume = {14}, year = {2023}, } @article{10550, abstract = {The global existence of renormalised solutions and convergence to equilibrium for reaction-diffusion systems with non-linear diffusion are investigated. The system is assumed to have quasi-positive non-linearities and to satisfy an entropy inequality. The difficulties in establishing global renormalised solutions caused by possibly degenerate diffusion are overcome by introducing a new class of weighted truncation functions. By means of the obtained global renormalised solutions, we study the large-time behaviour of complex balanced systems arising from chemical reaction network theory with non-linear diffusion. When the reaction network does not admit boundary equilibria, the complex balanced equilibrium is shown, by using the entropy method, to exponentially attract all renormalised solutions in the same compatibility class. This convergence extends even to a range of non-linear diffusion, where global existence is an open problem, yet we are able to show that solutions to approximate systems converge exponentially to equilibrium uniformly in the regularisation parameter.}, author = {Fellner, Klemens and Fischer, Julian L and Kniely, Michael and Tang, Bao Quoc}, issn = {1432-1467}, journal = {Journal of Nonlinear Science}, publisher = {Springer Nature}, title = {{Global renormalised solutions and equilibration of reaction-diffusion systems with non-linear diffusion}}, doi = {10.1007/s00332-023-09926-w}, volume = {33}, year = {2023}, } @article{13043, abstract = {We derive a weak-strong uniqueness principle for BV solutions to multiphase mean curvature flow of triple line clusters in three dimensions. Our proof is based on the explicit construction of a gradient flow calibration in the sense of the recent work of Fischer et al. (2020) for any such cluster. This extends the two-dimensional construction to the three-dimensional case of surfaces meeting along triple junctions.}, author = {Hensel, Sebastian and Laux, Tim}, issn = {1463-9971}, journal = {Interfaces and Free Boundaries}, number = {1}, pages = {37--107}, publisher = {EMS Press}, title = {{Weak-strong uniqueness for the mean curvature flow of double bubbles}}, doi = {10.4171/IFB/484}, volume = {25}, year = {2023}, } @article{12912, abstract = {The chemical potential of adsorbed or confined fluids provides insight into their unique thermodynamic properties and determines adsorption isotherms. However, it is often difficult to compute this quantity from atomistic simulations using existing statistical mechanical methods. We introduce a computational framework that utilizes static structure factors, thermodynamic integration, and free energy perturbation for calculating the absolute chemical potential of fluids. For demonstration, we apply the method to compute the adsorption isotherms of carbon dioxide in a metal-organic framework and water in carbon nanotubes.}, author = {Schmid, Rochus and Cheng, Bingqing}, issn = {1089-7690}, journal = {The Journal of Chemical Physics}, number = {16}, publisher = {AIP Publishing}, title = {{Computing chemical potentials of adsorbed or confined fluids}}, doi = {10.1063/5.0146711}, volume = {158}, year = {2023}, } @article{12972, abstract = {Embroidery is a long-standing and high-quality approach to making logos and images on textiles. Nowadays, it can also be performed via automated machines that weave threads with high spatial accuracy. A characteristic feature of the appearance of the threads is a high degree of anisotropy. The anisotropic behavior is caused by depositing thin but long strings of thread. As a result, the stitched patterns convey both color and direction. Artists leverage this anisotropic behavior to enhance pure color images with textures, illusions of motion, or depth cues. However, designing colorful embroidery patterns with prescribed directionality is a challenging task, one usually requiring an expert designer. In this work, we propose an interactive algorithm that generates machine-fabricable embroidery patterns from multi-chromatic images equipped with user-specified directionality fields.We cast the problem of finding a stitching pattern into vector theory. To find a suitable stitching pattern, we extract sources and sinks from the divergence field of the vector field extracted from the input and use them to trace streamlines. We further optimize the streamlines to guarantee a smooth and connected stitching pattern. The generated patterns approximate the color distribution constrained by the directionality field. To allow for further artistic control, the trade-off between color match and directionality match can be interactively explored via an intuitive slider. We showcase our approach by fabricating several embroidery paths.}, author = {Liu, Zhenyuan and Piovarci, Michael and Hafner, Christian and Charrondiere, Raphael and Bickel, Bernd}, issn = {1467-8659}, journal = {Computer Graphics Forum}, keywords = {embroidery, design, directionality, density, image}, location = {Saarbrucken, Germany}, number = {2}, pages = {397--409}, publisher = {Wiley}, title = {{Directionality-aware design of embroidery patterns}}, doi = {10.1111/cgf.14770 }, volume = {42}, year = {2023}, } @article{13033, abstract = {Current methods for assessing cell proliferation in 3D scaffolds rely on changes in metabolic activity or total DNA, however, direct quantification of cell number in 3D scaffolds remains a challenge. To address this issue, we developed an unbiased stereology approach that uses systematic-random sampling and thin focal-plane optical sectioning of the scaffolds followed by estimation of total cell number (StereoCount). This approach was validated against an indirect method for measuring the total DNA (DNA content); and the Bürker counting chamber, the current reference method for quantifying cell number. We assessed the total cell number for cell seeding density (cells per unit volume) across four values and compared the methods in terms of accuracy, ease-of-use and time demands. The accuracy of StereoCount markedly outperformed the DNA content for cases with ~ 10,000 and ~ 125,000 cells/scaffold. For cases with ~ 250,000 and ~ 375,000 cells/scaffold both StereoCount and DNA content showed lower accuracy than the Bürker but did not differ from each other. In terms of ease-of-use, there was a strong advantage for the StereoCount due to output in terms of absolute cell numbers along with the possibility for an overview of cell distribution and future use of automation for high throughput analysis. Taking together, the StereoCount method is an efficient approach for direct cell quantification in 3D collagen scaffolds. Its major benefit is that automated StereoCount could accelerate research using 3D scaffolds focused on drug discovery for a wide variety of human diseases.}, author = {Zavadakova, Anna and Vistejnova, Lucie and Belinova, Tereza and Tichanek, Filip and Bilikova, Dagmar and Mouton, Peter R.}, issn = {2045-2322}, journal = {Scientific Reports}, keywords = {Multidisciplinary}, number = {1}, publisher = {Springer Nature}, title = {{Novel stereological method for estimation of cell counts in 3D collagen scaffolds}}, doi = {10.1038/s41598-023-35162-z}, volume = {13}, year = {2023}, } @article{13095, abstract = {Disulfide bond formation is fundamentally important for protein structure and constitutes a key mechanism by which cells regulate the intracellular oxidation state. Peroxiredoxins (PRDXs) eliminate reactive oxygen species such as hydrogen peroxide through a catalytic cycle of Cys oxidation and reduction. Additionally, upon Cys oxidation PRDXs undergo extensive conformational rearrangements that may underlie their presently structurally poorly defined functions as molecular chaperones. Rearrangements include high molecular-weight oligomerization, the dynamics of which are, however, poorly understood, as is the impact of disulfide bond formation on these properties. Here we show that formation of disulfide bonds along the catalytic cycle induces extensive μs time scale dynamics, as monitored by magic-angle spinning NMR of the 216 kDa-large Tsa1 decameric assembly and solution-NMR of a designed dimeric mutant. We ascribe the conformational dynamics to structural frustration, resulting from conflicts between the disulfide-constrained reduction of mobility and the desire to fulfill other favorable contacts.}, author = {Troussicot, Laura and Vallet, Alicia and Molin, Mikael and Burmann, Björn M. and Schanda, Paul}, issn = {1520-5126}, journal = {Journal of the American Chemical Society}, number = {19}, pages = {10700–10711}, publisher = {American Chemical Society}, title = {{Disulfide-bond-induced structural frustration and dynamic disorder in a peroxiredoxin from MAS NMR}}, doi = {10.1021/jacs.3c01200}, volume = {145}, year = {2023}, }