资源环境科技发展态势分析平台

The structure of human diacylglycerol O-acyltransferase 1, a membrane protein that synthesizes triacylglycerides, is solved with cryo-electron microscopy, providing insight into its function and mechanism of enzymatic activity.

Diacylglycerol O-acyltransferase 1 (DGAT1) synthesizes triacylglycerides and is required for dietary fat absorption and fat storage in humans(1). DGAT1 belongs to the membrane-bound O-acyltransferase (MBOAT) superfamily, members of which are found in all kingdoms of life and are involved in the acylation of lipids and proteins(2,3). How human DGAT1 and other mammalian members of the MBOAT family recognize their substrates and catalyse their reactions is unknown. The absence of three-dimensional structures also hampers rational targeting of DGAT1 for therapeutic purposes. Here we present the cryo-electron microscopy structure of human DGAT1 in complex with an oleoyl-CoA substrate. Each DGAT1 protomer has nine transmembrane helices, eight of which form a conserved structural fold that we name the MBOAT fold. The MBOAT fold in DGAT1 forms a hollow chamber in the membrane that encloses highly conserved catalytic residues. The chamber has separate entrances for each of the two substrates, fatty acyl-CoA and diacylglycerol. DGAT1 can exist as either a homodimer or a homotetramer and the two forms have similar enzymatic activity. The N terminus of DGAT1 interacts with the neighbouring protomer and these interactions are required for enzymatic activity.

Insights into the interactions between pro- and anti-vaccination clusters on Facebook can enable policies and approaches that attempt to interrupt the shift to anti-vaccination views and persuade undecided individuals to adopt a pro-vaccination stance.

Distrust in scientific expertise(1-14) is dangerous. Opposition to vaccination with a future vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, the causal agent of COVID-19, for example, could amplify outbreaks(2-4), as happened for measles in 2019(5,6). Homemade remedies(7,8) and falsehoods are being shared widely on the Internet, as well as dismissals of expert advice(9-11). There is a lack of understanding about how this distrust evolves at the system level(13,14). Here we provide a map of the contention surrounding vaccines that has emerged from the global pool of around three billion Facebook users. Its core reveals a multi-sided landscape of unprecedented intricacy that involves nearly 100 million individuals partitioned into highly dynamic, interconnected clusters across cities, countries, continents and languages. Although smaller in overall size, anti-vaccination clusters manage to become highly entangled with undecided clusters in the main online network, whereas pro-vaccination clusters are more peripheral. Our theoretical framework reproduces the recent explosive growth in anti-vaccination views, and predicts that these views will dominate in a decade. Insights provided by this framework can inform new policies and approaches to interrupt this shift to negative views. Our results challenge the conventional thinking about undecided individuals in issues of contention surrounding health, shed light on other issues of contention such as climate change(11), and highlight the key role of network cluster dynamics in multi-species ecologies(15).

Absorption lines of iron in the dayside atmosphere of an ultrahot giant exoplanet disappear after travelling across the nightside, showing that the iron has condensed during its travel.

Assembly of a catalytic centre formed by HPF1 bound to PARP1 or PARP2 is essential for protein ADP-ribosylation after DNA damage in human cells.

The anti-cancer drug target poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 (PARP1) and its close homologue, PARP2, are early responders to DNA damage in human cells(1,2). After binding to genomic lesions, these enzymes use NAD(+) to modify numerous proteins with mono- and poly(ADP-ribose) signals that are important for the subsequent decompaction of chromatin and the recruitment of repair factors(3,4). These post-translational modifications are predominantly serine-linked and require the accessory factor HPF1, which is specific for the DNA damage response and switches the amino acid specificity of PARP1 and PARP2 from aspartate or glutamate to serine residues(5-10). Here we report a co-structure of HPF1 bound to the catalytic domain of PARP2 that, in combination with NMR and biochemical data, reveals a composite active site formed by residues from HPF1 and PARP1 or PARP2 . The assembly of this catalytic centre is essential for the addition of ADP-ribose moieties after DNA damage in human cells. In response to DNA damage and occupancy of the NAD(+)-binding site, the interaction of HPF1 with PARP1 or PARP2 is enhanced by allosteric networks that operate within the PARP proteins, providing an additional level of regulation in the induction of the DNA damage response. As HPF1 forms a joint active site with PARP1 or PARP2, our data implicate HPF1 as an important determinant of the response to clinical PARP inhibitors.