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ningkeqing

木虫 (正式写手)

[交流] Nature Contents 17 August 2006 (Vol. 442 pp719-846)

[自然要览]

(选自英国Nature杂志,2006年8月17日出版)


封面故事:影响核小体定位的因素
A genomic code for nucleosome positioning
真核基因组在活体中不以裸露DNA形式存在,但在被称为染色质的蛋白-DNA复合
物中是以裸露DNA形式存在的。染色质含有核小体,它们是紧紧包裹在一个组蛋
白核心周围的短DNA片段,排斥大多数结合DNA的蛋白,所以起抑制剂的作用。在
一项研究工作中,研究人员将计算方法和实验方法结合起来,用以确定核小体对
DNA序列的偏好,并预测整个基因组范围内核小体的组织。酵母基因组编码一个
内在的核小体组织,这可以解释活体中核小体位置的大约一半。该编码在不同真
核细胞中都高度保留了下来,它的作用是将转录因子引导到它们的结合点,并辅
助很多其他的特定染色体功能。本期一篇配发的News and Views文章讨论了DNA
序列和其他调控因子在核小体定位中所起的作用。(Article p. 772; News and
Views)封面图片(绘图:Helit Sayfan Altman)所示为带有几个核小体的一段
染色质。


禽流感在家禽中的“静静传播”(Bird flu)
Silent spread of H5N1 in vaccinated poultry
有人认为,H5N 禽流感病毒的“静静的传播”可能曾在越南和其他地方的家禽和
野生鸟类中出现,后者感染了不会诱发疾病症状的H5N1抗原变种。这一观点使人
们担心,通过接种让家禽对H5N1病毒产生免疫力,有可能同样会增加发现疫情之
前家禽内的交叉传播。一项数值模拟研究表明,这种担心是很有道理的:由于在
禽群水平上保护措施不全面,“静静的传播”有可能在一个进行了接种预防的禽
群中出现,即便疫苗对禽群中的个体是有效的。这一问题的部分解决办法是,采
用未进行接种预防的“哨兵”。(Brief Communications p. 757)


多铁材料和磁电耦合(The best of both worlds)
Multiferroic and magnetoelectric materials
关于多铁和磁电材料的研究正在重新兴起。多铁材料将铁电晶体稳定的、可切换
的电极化与通过铁磁晶体的量子力学交换现象产生的稳定的、可切换的磁化结合
了起来。真正的“多铁”材料几乎不存在,而磁性和电性的“磁电耦合”更为普
遍。由于这种材料有技术应用前景,所以属于这种类型的一些引人注目的新化合
物正在开发当中。(Review Article p. 759)


设计通用量子逻辑门已万事俱备(Spin qubits ready to roll)
Driven coherent oscillations of a single electron spin in a quantum
dot
实现现实的量子位的最有希望的方法之一是,利用半导体量子点中的单电子自旋
状态。关于这种自旋量子位的一个详细技术建议是在大约10年前发表的,此后,
实现这种自旋量子位所需的全部要素(如长寿命自旋态和电子自旋的初始化)已
被一一报道出来。现在,最后一步,也是最难的一步也已经完成,那就是驱动单
个电子的相干自旋振荡,这是完成量子运算所必需的。这一点是通过施加振荡磁
场做到的,这种磁场与电子自旋的进动频率发生共振,是在一个双量子点系统附
近的芯片上产生的。现在,设计通用量子逻辑门的一切条件都已具备。
(Article p. 766, News and Views)


PML作为药物作用目标的双重身份(Double target)
PML inhibits HIF-1  translation and neoangiogenesis through repression
of mTOR
肿瘤抑制因子PML已知是肿瘤中和正在从缺血状态恢复的组织中血管形成的一个
关键抑制因子。PML的失去与各种不同的人类癌症有关,包括乳腺癌和前列腺肿
瘤。它在控制血管生成中所起的作用,使其成为癌症中的一个药物作用目标(在
癌症中,提高其含量是药物治疗的目标),也使其成为在缺血性心脏病或中风后
鼓励新的血管形成的一个药物作用目标(在这种情况下,可以通过降低其含量来
鼓励新的血管形成)。(Article p. 779)


星系形成过程中一个关键时期的事件观测 (An epoch-making galaxy)
The rapid formation of a large rotating disk galaxy three billion
years after the Big Bang
配备有最新近红外成像分光镜和适应性光学系统的大型陆基望远镜,能够观测发
生在星系形成一个关键时期(“大爆炸”之后约30亿年,当时宇宙只有其现在年
龄的约20%)所发生的事件。对这一时期一个正在形成恒星的高红移(z=2.38)
星系所做的观测显示了该星系的内部结构。一个巨大的、转动的原始盘,在将气
体送往位于中心位置的一个由恒星鼓出的包中的一个正在不断增长的黑洞中。以
前,星系的分级积累中所涉及的时间尺度和过程只是一种猜测;现在,它们是所
观测到的东西。而且,随着这一时期更多星系得到分析,关于星系形成的模型还
可以进一步优化。(Letter p. 786; News and Views)


火星上的冰盖(A levitating ice cap)
No signature of clear CO2 ice from the 'cryptic' regions in Mars'
south seasonal polar cap / CO2 jets formed by sublimation beneath
translucent slab ice in Mars' seasonal south polar ice cap
本期两篇论文讨论了在火星南方所看到的引人注目的季节变化。火星上的冰盖主
要由冷冻的二氧化碳组成,冰盖上有不寻常的暗点,它们被认为是由一块透明
的、近乎纯净的CO2冰形成的。Langevin等人提供了来自搭载在“火星奥德赛”
上的THEMIS照相机所拍摄的红外和可见光图像,它们与火星上存在一块很厚的透
明冰的观点是不一致的。在与该论文相伴的一篇论文中,Kieffer等人报告了他
们的红外和可见光数据,这些数据表明,所观测到的景观在入夏很久之后也能保
持在CO2冰的温度下,而且它们一定是被带到冰表面上的颗粒物质。他们提出了
一个模型,按照该模型,存在一种半透明的、不能渗透的CO2冰盖,在该冰盖的
底部会出现升华现象,产生在冰下流动的高速CO2气体流,使冰盖升起,同时产
生能将沙子大小的颗粒通过喷孔喷出去的喷射流。(Letters pp. 790, 793)


Skyrmion的其他存在形式(The march of the skyrmions)
Spontaneous skyrmion ground states in magnetic metals
现代物理学中一个长期存疑的问题,是按照连续场中可数粒子对“波-粒二象
性”进行描述。我们知道,被称为skyrmion的像粒子一样的状态(这些状态是由
Tony Skyrme设想出来的)是从微观尺度到宇宙尺度的非线性场模型的一个特
点。但迄今为止,我们只确定了skyrmion以激发态存在;当它们被外部场或拓扑
缺陷稳定时,以图灵模式存在;在量子霍尔磁体中以自旋图案存在;或在液晶中
以蓝相存在。新的理论工作表明,skyrmion还能在不同类型磁性金属中形成稳定
的基态,处于这种状态时它们应能够用现代磁性显微镜方法直接观测到。按照这
一新理论,skyrmion基态应普遍存在于大量材料中。(Letter p. 797)


古生菌在土壤氨的氧化中居主导地位(Soil bacteria yield to archaea)
Archaea predominate among ammonia-oxidizing prokaryotes in soils
硝化作用指的是微生物将氨转换成硝酸盐的过程,它是全球氮循环中的一个关键
过程。人们曾经普遍假设,专门进行硝化作用的细菌是土壤中在需氧条件下氧化
氨的主要细菌。对为名叫“氨单氧酶”的关键酶的一个亚单元编码的amoA基因的
丰度所做的分析表明,在来自三个不同气候带的12种不同土壤类型中,来自泉古
菌门(Crenarchaeota)的古生菌的amoA基因数量要比细菌的amoA基因数量多3000
倍。所以,在原始土壤和农业土壤中,古生菌迄今似乎都是居主导地位的氨氧化
剂。(Letter p. 806)


用于物体识别的新算法(Seeing things)
Hierarchy and adaptivity in segmenting visual scenes
即便是在吵杂的视觉图像中,人类通常也能够毫不费力地找到相干区域,这是物
体识别的关键。在自然观看条件下,电脑算法在完成这项任务时一直不是很成
功,部分原因是,早期关于该问题的研究工作只对图像进行了局部计算。现在,
一种新方法已经开发出来,它所靠的是图像分割,即对一个图像的所有突出区域
进行分析,再将这些区域做成一个有层次的结构。该方法比以前的方法更快,更
准确,但所得到的算法使用起来相对比较简单。研究人员通过在由物体构成的一
个大数据库中寻找与一个目标物体相匹配的物体的方式,对这种新方法进行了演
示。(Letter p. 810)


癌症干细胞的身份(Identity of cancer stem cells)
Transformation from committed progenitor to leukaemia stem cell
initiated by MLL–AF9
癌症被认为是来自正常组织细胞或定向祖细胞。关键问题是,在后一种情况下,
能够自行更新(祖细胞缺乏这种能力)的癌症干细胞是怎样出现的。有一组小鼠
白血病干细胞,将少到只有4个的这种细胞注射进小鼠体内,就能诱发白血病。
现在,这样的小鼠白血病干细胞已经从通过定向祖细胞中的一个突变患上白血病
的小鼠身上分离出来。这使得研究人员有可能利用基因表达筛选的方法来确定这
些细胞的共同身份,观察从正常祖细胞向白血病干细胞的转变。 引人注目的
是,白血病干细胞大体上能够保持定向祖细胞的基因表达特点,同时激发正常情
况下在造血干细胞中表达的一个亚组的基因。至少可以说,这些基因中有些对于
白血病干细胞的自行更新是重要的。白血病干细胞和正常干细胞之间的差别,对
于开发一种能够选择性地以癌症干细胞为目标的药物的工作来说也许还是好消
息。(Letter p. 818; News and Views)


Notch受体在控制干细胞的一个通道中所起的作用(Stem cells go up a
Notch)
Notch signalling regulates stem cell numbers in vitro and in vivo
将干细胞用于治疗的一个障碍是,难以控制它们的生长和分化。
Androutsellis-Theotokis等人发现,Notch受体在控制胚胎干细胞、胎儿干细胞
和成年干细胞的一个通道中扮演一个至关重要的角色,而且向成年大鼠的大脑中
施用Notch配体,可帮助大鼠在一次模拟中风之后恢复行动。该发现为以鼓励身
体内生的干细胞去修复损伤、而不是试图生长和移植新细胞为目的的疗法铺平了
道路。(Letter p. 823)


丙肝病毒的NS2自身蛋白酶的晶体结构(Hepatitis C)
Structure of the catalytic domain of the hepatitis C virus NS2-3
protease
全世界超过1.5亿人感染了丙肝病毒,没有针对该病毒的疫苗,目前的治疗方法
只对有限的患者人群有效。 所以,更有效的抗病毒疗法是人们迫切盼望的。因
此,关于丙肝病毒的NS2自身蛋白酶的晶体结构的报告是一项重大进展。该结构
显示,NS2是一种二聚的半胱氨酸蛋白酶。该结构将有助于说明NS2在病毒生命周
期中所起的作用,并且还可能有助于新药设计。(Letter p. 831)
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ningkeqing

木虫 (正式写手)

----------------------
NEWS AND VIEWS
----------------------
Quantum physics: A spin solo
Quantum computers could solve problems insurmountable to conventional
computers. The missing ingredient for quantum computing with electron
spins is now available -- the rotation of a single spin.
Guido Burkard
10.1038/442749a
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v442/n7104/full/442749a.html

Genomics: Predictable packaging
Nuclear factors must access specific sites within genomic DNA to
function, yet the DNA is bundled up into many nucleosomes. Is the DNA
sequence sufficiently informative to predict where each nucleosome
will be?
Timothy J. Richmond
10.1038/442750a
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v442/n7104/full/442750a.html

50 & 100 years ago
10.1038/442751a
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v442/n7104/full/442751a.html

Solid-state physics: Resistance is futile With the right combination
of microwave radiation and magnetic field, two-dimensional electron
systems conduct electricity with zero resistance. But is this zero
really zero, or is it negative resistance in disguise?
Adam C. Durst
10.1038/442752a
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v442/n7104/full/442752a.html

Astronomy: Young spirals get older
These days, galaxies come in very different shapes and sizes.
Cutting-edge technologies allow a detailed peek at how things looked
in the Universe's early days -- 'the same, but different' is the
tentative message.
Robert C. Kennicutt, Jr
10.1038/442753a
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v442/n7104/full/442753a.html

Cancer biology: A game of subversion
Just as stem cells are crucial for tissue development and
regeneration, cancer stem cells underlie tumour formation and
maintenance. But do cancer stem cells invariably arise from normal
stem cells?
Emmanuelle Passegue
10.1038/442754a
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v442/n7104/full/442754a.html

Obituary: George W. Wetherill (1925-2006) Geochemist, planetary
scientist and astrobiologist.
Alan P. Boss
10.1038/442756a
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v442/n7104/full/442756a.html

----------------------
BRIEF COMMUNICATIONS
----------------------
Silent spread of H5N1 in vaccinated poultry A chink in the protection
of a caged flock can dramatically increase the chances of a flu
outbreak.
Nicholas J. Savill, Suzanne G. St Rose, Matthew J. Keeling and Mark E.
J. Woolhouse
10.1038/442757a
Abstract: http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v442/n7104/abs/442757a.
html
Article: http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v442/n7104/full/442757a.
html

BRIEF COMMUNICATIONS ARISING
Cell biology: Nondisjunction, aneuploidy and tetraploidy Beth A. A.
Weaver, Alain D. Silk and Don W. Cleveland
10.1038/nature05139
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature05139.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature05139.html

Cell biology: Nondisjunction, aneuploidy and tetraploidy (Reply)
Qinghua Shi and Randall W. King 10.1038/nature05140
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature05140.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature05140.html

----------------------
REVIEW
----------------------
Multiferroic and magnetoelectric materials W. Eerenstein, N. D. Mathur
and J. F. Scott
10.1038/nature05023
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature05023.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature05023.html

----------------------
ARTICLES
----------------------
Driven coherent oscillations of a single electron spin in a quantum
dot F. H. L. Koppens et al.
10.1038/nature05065
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature05065.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature05065.html

A genomic code for nucleosome positioning A combined computational and
experimental approach is used to determine the DNA sequence
preferences of nucleosomes and predict genome-wide nucleosome
organization. The yeast genome encodes an intrinsic nucleosome
organization, which can explain about 50% of in vivo nucleosome
positions.
Eran Segal et al.
10.1038/nature04979
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature04979.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature04979.html

PML inhibits HIF-1α translation and neoangiogenesis through
repression of mTOR The tumour suppressor gene PML is shown to normally
restrain angiogenesis, both in tumours and under ischaemic conditions.
This involves a new pathway in which during hypoxia, PML regulates
mTOR and the transcription factor HIF-1α Rosa Bernardi et al.
10.1038/nature05029
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature05029.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature05029.html

----------------------
LETTERS
----------------------
The rapid formation of a large rotating disk galaxy three billion
years after the Big Bang Observations of a luminous star-forming
galaxy when the Universe was only 20% of its current age reveal high
gas surface densities, large star formation rate and moderately young
stellar ages, suggesting rapid assembly, fragmentation and conversion
to stars of an initially very gas-rich protodisk.
R. Genzel et al.
10.1038/nature05052
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature05052.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature05052.html

No signature of clear CO2 ice from the 'cryptic' regions in Mars'
south seasonal polar cap
The low albedo region of the seasonal polar ice caps of Mars could
result from absorption by the underlying surface. But the deep and
broad CO2 absorption bands that are expected in the near infrared from
a thick transparent slab of CO2 ice are not observed.
Yves Langevin et al.
10.1038/nature05012
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature05012.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature05012.html

CO2 jets formed by sublimation beneath translucent slab ice in Mars'
seasonal south polar ice cap
Infrared and visible observations show that features on the martian
south polar cap remain at CO2 ice temperatures well into summer, and
must be granular materials that have been brought up to the surface of
the ice.
Hugh H. Kieffer, Philip R. Christensen and Timothy N. Titus
10.1038/nature04945
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature04945.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature04945.html

Spontaneous skyrmion ground states in magnetic metals New theoretical
work shows that skyrmions can form stable ground states in various
types of magnetic metals and may be observed directly with modern
magnetic microscopy techniques. Moreover, it predicts that spontaneous
skyrmion ground states exist generally in a large number of materials.
U. K. Roβler, A. N. Bogdanov and C. Pfleiderer
10.1038/nature05056
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature05056.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature05056.html

Resonant slow fault slip in subduction zones forced by climatic load
stress Anthony R. Lowry
10.1038/nature05055
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature05055.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature05055.html

Archaea predominate among ammonia-oxidizing prokaryotes in soils
Nitrification, the microbial conversion of ammonia to nitrate, is a
key process in the global nitrogen cycle. This reaction is
predominately carried out by archaeal and not bacterial ammonia
oxidizer, as the archaeal ammonia oxidizers are more abundant in soils
than their well-known bacterial counterparts.
S. Leininger et al.
10.1038/nature04983
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature04983.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature04983.html

Hierarchy and adaptivity in segmenting visual scenes Computer
algorithms have not been successful at finding coherent regions in
noisy visual images under natural viewing conditions. A new approach
can now determine all salient regions of an image and build them into
a hierarchical structure faster and more accurately than previous
approaches.
Eitan Sharon et al.
10.1038/nature04977
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature04977.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature04977.html

Phosphorylation of WAVE1 regulates actin polymerization and dendritic
spine morphology Yong Kim et al.
10.1038/nature04976
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature04976.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature04976.html

Transformation from committed progenitor to leukaemia stem cell
initiated by MLL-AF9 Oncogenic transformation of committed blood
progenitor cells can produce leukaemic stem cells with the ability to
self-renew through critical changes in gene expression.
Andrei V. Krivtsov et al.
10.1038/nature04980
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature04980.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature04980.html

Notch signalling regulates stem cell numbers in vitro and in vivo The
Notch receptor plays a pivotal role in a pathway that controls the
survival of embryonic, fetal and adult stem cells, as it activates the
phosphatidylinositol-3-OH kinase/Akt signalling pathway and identifies
a key serine on STAT3.
Andreas Androutsellis-Theotokis et al.
10.1038/nature04940
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature04940.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature04940.html

Protein flexibility acclimatizes photosynthetic energy conversion to
the ambient temperature Examination of the photosystem II reaction
centre shows that changes in locally flexible domains allow enzyme
adaptation to ambient temperature. Mutations in the packing motif of
mesophiles that increase the residue bulkiness and reduce the size of
cavities to promote thermophilic behaviour. Similar mechanisms may
occur in other systems, including globular proteins that require
acclimation to significantly different habitats.
Oksana Shlyk-Kerner et al.
10.1038/nature04947
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature04947.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature04947.html

Structure of the catalytic domain of the hepatitis C virus NS2-3
protease Ivo C. Lorenz, Joseph Marcotrigiano, Thomas G. Dentzer and
Charles M.
Rice
10.1038/nature04975
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature04975.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature04975.html

DNA overwinds when stretched
Physical intuition predicts that DNA should unwind under tension as it
is pulled towards a denatured structure, but this is not the case.
Pulling of a single DNA molecule first leads to overwinding, which
causes it to lengthen, not shorten. These results can be explained by
a coupling between stretch and twist, such that the DNA inner radius
changes under tension.
Jeff Gore et al.
10.1038/nature04974
Abstract:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... bs/nature04974.html
Article:
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature04974.html

Corrigendum: Structure of the Sec13/31 COPII coat cage Scott M. Stagg
et al.
10.1038/nature05141
http://www.nature.com/nature/jou ... ll/nature05141.html

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