Mechanisms and convergence of compensatory evolution in mammalian mitochondrial tRNAs

The function of protein and RNA molecules depends on complex epistatic interactions between sites. Therefore, the deleterious effect of a mutation can be suppressed by a compensatory second-site substitution. In relating a list of 86 pathogenic mutations in human tRNAs encoded by mitochondrial genes to the sequences of their mammalian orthologs, we noted that 52 pathogenic mutations were present in normal tRNAs of one or several nonhuman mammals. We found at least five mechanisms of compensation for 32 pathogenic mutations that destroyed a Watson-Crick pair in one of the four tRNA stems: restoration of the affected Watson-Crick interaction (25 cases), strengthening of another pair (4 cases), creation of a new pair (8 cases), changes of multiple interactions in the affected stem (11 cases) and changes involving the interaction between the loop and stem structures (3 cases). A pathogenic mutation and its compensating substitution are fixed in a lineage in rapid succession, and often a compensatory interaction evolves convergently in different clades. At least 10%, and perhaps as many as 50%, of all nucleotide substitutions in evolving mammalian tRNAs participate in such interactions, indicating that the evolution of tRNAs proceeds along highly epistatic fitness ridges.     

Active genes are tri-methylated at K4 of histone H3

Lysine methylation of histones in vivo occurs in three states: mono-, di- and tri-methyl. Histone H3 has been found to be di-methylated at lysine 4 (K4) in active euchromatic regions but not in silent heterochromatic sites. Here we show that the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Set1 protein can catalyse di- and tri-methylation of K4 and stimulate the activity of many genes. Using antibodies that discriminate between the di- and tri-methylated state of K4 we show that di-methylation occurs at both inactive and active euchromatic genes, whereas tri-methylation is present exclusively at active genes. It is therefore the presence of a tri-methylated K4 that defines an active state of gene expression. These findings establish the concept of methyl status as a determinant for gene activity and thus extend considerably the complexity of histone modifications.     

Low-penetrance susceptibility to breast cancer due to CHEK2(*)1100delC in noncarriers of BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations

Mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 confer a high risk of breast and ovarian cancer, but account for only a small fraction of breast cancer susceptibility. To find additional genes conferring susceptibility to breast cancer, we analyzed CHEK2 (also known as CHK2), which encodes a cell-cycle checkpoint kinase that is implicated in DNA repair processes involving BRCA1 and p53 (refs 3,4,5). We show that CHEK2(*)1100delC, a truncating variant that abrogates the kinase activity, has a frequency of 1.1% in healthy individuals. However, this variant is present in 5.1% of individuals with breast cancer from 718 families that do not carry mutations in BRCA1 or BRCA2 (P = 0.00000003), including 13.5% of individuals from families with male breast cancer (P = 0.00015). We estimate that the CHEK2(*)1100delC variant results in an approximately twofold increase of breast cancer risk in women and a tenfold increase of risk in men. By contrast, the variant confers no increased cancer risk in carriers of BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations. This suggests that the biological mechanisms underlying the elevated risk of breast cancer in CHEK2 mutation carriers are already subverted in carriers of BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations, which is consistent with participation of the encoded proteins in the same pathway.     

The role of the thermohaline circulation in abrupt climate change

The possibility of a reduced Atlantic thermohaline circulation in response to increases in greenhouse-gas concentrations has been demonstrated in a number of simulations with general circulation models of the coupled ocean-atmosphere system. But it remains difficult to assess the likelihood of future changes in the thermohaline circulation, mainly owing to poorly constrained model parameterizations and uncertainties in the response of the climate system to greenhouse warming. Analyses of past abrupt climate changes help to solve these problems. Data and models both suggest that abrupt climate change during the last glaciation originated through changes in the Atlantic thermohaline circulation in response to small changes in the hydrological cycle. Atmospheric and oceanic responses to these changes were then transmitted globally through a number of feedbacks. The palaeoclimate data and the model results also indicate that the stability of the thermohaline circulation depends on the mean climate state.     

Formation and propagation of matter-wave soliton trains

Attraction between the atoms of a Bose-Einstein condensate renders it unstable to collapse, although a condensate with a limited number of atoms can be stabilized by confinement in an atom trap. However, beyond this number the condensate collapses. Condensates constrained to one-dimensional motion with attractive interactions are predicted to form stable solitons, in which the attractive forces exactly compensate for wave-packet dispersion. Here we report the formation of bright solitons of (7)Li atoms in a quasi-one-dimensional optical trap, by magnetically tuning the interactions in a stable Bose-Einstein condensate from repulsive to attractive. The solitons are set in motion by offsetting the optical potential, and are observed to propagate in the potential for many oscillatory cycles without spreading. We observe a soliton train, containing many solitons; repulsive interactions between neighbouring solitons are inferred from their motion.     

Rapidly recovering hydrogel scaffolds from self-assembling diblock copolypeptide amphiphiles

Protein-based hydrogels are used for many applications, ranging from food and cosmetic thickeners to support matrices for drug delivery and tissue replacement. These materials are usually prepared using proteins extracted from natural sources, which can give rise to inconsistent properties unsuitable for medical applications. Recent developments have utilized recombinant DNA methods to prepare artificial protein hydrogels with specific association mechanisms and responsiveness to various stimuli. Here we synthesize diblock copolypeptide amphiphiles containing charged and hydrophobic segments. Dilute solutions of these copolypeptides would be expected to form micelles; instead, they form hydrogels that retain their mechanical strength up to temperatures of about 90 degrees C and recover rapidly after stress. The use of synthetic materials permits adjustment of copolymer chain length and composition, which we varied to study their effect on hydrogel formation and properties. We find that gelation depends not only on the amphiphilic nature of the polypeptides, but also on chain conformations--alpha-helix, beta-strand or random coil. Indeed, shape-specific supramolecular assembly is integral to the gelation process, and provides a new class of peptide-based hydrogels with potential for applications in biotechnology.