G12V, which themselves colocalize to these sites. By deletion analysis, the N terminus of PAK is shown to contain targeting sequences for focal adhesions which indicate that these complexes are the site of kinase function in vivo. Cdc42 and Rac1 cause ␣-PAK autophosphorylation and kinase activation. Mapping ␣-PAK autophosphorylation sites has allowed generation of a constitutively active kinase mutant. By fusing regions of Cdc42 to the C terminus of PAK, activated chimeras were also obtained. Plasmids encoding these different constitutively active ␣-PAKs caused loss of stress fibers when introduced into both HeLa cells and fibroblasts, which was similar to the effect of introducing Cdc42 G12V or Rac1 G12V. Significantly dramatic losses of focal adhesions were also observed. These combined effects resulted in retraction of the cell periphery after plasmid microinjection. These data support our previous suggestions of a role for PAK downstream of both Cdc42 and Rac1 and indicate that PAK functions include the dissolution of stress fibers and reorganization of focal complexes.

The deployment of heterosis in the form of hybrid rice varieties has boosted grain yield, but grain quality improvement still remains a challenge. Here we show that a quantitative trait locus for rice grain quality, qGW7, reflects allelic variation of GW7, a gene encoding a TONNEAU1-recruiting motif protein with similarity to C-terminal motifs of the human centrosomal protein CAP350. Upregulation of GW7 expression was correlated with the production of more slender grains, as a result of increased cell division in the longitudinal direction and decreased cell division in the transverse direction. OsSPL16 (GW8), an SBP-domain transcription factor that regulates grain width, bound directly to the GW7 promoter and repressed its expression. The presence of a semidominant GW7(TFA) allele from tropical japonica rice was associated with higher grain quality without the yield penalty imposed by the Basmati gw8 allele. Manipulation of the OsSPL16-GW7 module thus represents a new strategy to simultaneously improve rice yield and grain quality.

Summary Adenosine-to-inosine RNA editing is crucial for generating molecular diversity, and serves to regulate protein function through recoding of genomic information. Here, we discover editing within CaV1.3 Ca2+ channels, renown for low-voltage Ca2+-influx and neuronal pacemaking. Significantly, editing occurs within the channel’s IQ domain, a calmodulin-binding site mediating inhibitory Ca2+-feedback (CDI) on channels. The editing turns out to require RNA adenosine deaminase ADAR2, whose variable activity could underlie a spatially diverse pattern of CaV1.3 editing seen across the brain. Edited CaV1.3 protein is detected both in brain tissue and within the surface membrane of primary neurons. Functionally, edited CaV1.3 channels exhibit strong reduction of CDI; in particular, neurons within the suprachiasmatic nucleus show diminished CDI, with higher frequencies of repetitive action-potential and calcium-spike activity, in wildtype versus ADAR2 knockout mice. Our study reveals a mechanism for fine-tuning CaV1.3 channel properties in CNS, which likely impacts a broad spectrum of neurobiological functions.

Flexible and transferable TiO(2) nanorods cloths (TNRCs) were synthesized from a fast and catalyst-free microwave heating route by using carbon cloth as an efficiently sacrificial template. The as-synthesized TNRCs were assembled by numerous aligned TiO(2) nanorods with diameters of about 100 nm. The good transferability and flexibility make it possible to be transferred to any substrate for further device applications. As an example, we transferred the TNRCs to a FTO substrate to make dye-sensitized solar cells, which exhibited an improved efficiency of around 2.21% assisted by TiCl(4) treatment. The transferable TNRCs were also configured as high-performance photodetectors. Illuminated by UV light with a wavelength of 365 nm, the current was found significantly enhanced, and an I(UV)/I(dark) of about 60, a rise time of nearly 1.4 s, and a decay time of 6.1 s were obtained. Moreover, they were also configured as flexible and recyclable photocatalysts with good photocatalytic performance for the degradation of methylene blue solution under UV light irradiation.

Background: Alternative splicing generates calcium channel splice variants with altered electrophysiological properties. Results: Exclusion of exons encoding the IQb domain or proximal/distal domains attenuates Ca 2ϩ -dependent inactivation of the Ca V 1.3 channels. Conclusion: Alternative splicing at the C terminus alters the critical Ca 2ϩ inhibitory feedback property of Ca V 1.3 channels. Significance: Alternative splicing is an exquisite mechanism for customizing channel function within diverse biological niches.

Performance of thin film photovoltaics largely relies on photon absorption capability. Here, we introduce a novel substrate with patterned aluminum nanodent arrays with unique light management capability. Hydrogenated amorphous silicon thin film solar cells have been fabricated on the nano-texturized substrate for optical property study and photovoltaic performance evaluation. Our measurements have shown significant enhancement on broadband light absorption using these patterned substrates via both geometrical light trapping and plasmonic coupling. Particularly, the enhancement factor reaches as high as 5-30 times at wavelength near the band edge. Numerical simulations confirm the measurements and uncover the mechanisms of the enhancement. More importantly, photovoltaic measurements on nanodent solar cells present improvements of over 31% and 27% in short circuit current and energy conversion efficiency respectively compared with planar solar cells. Therefore, the novel patterned substrates are promising candidates for low cost and high performance thin film solar cells. Broader contextAmong various alternative energy sources, solar power is of great advantage over other candidates due to its abundance and environmental friendliness. Current solar cells still cannot satisfy people's expectation on performance and cost. Aiming at promoting the ability of harvesting solar power as well as reducing the manufacturing cost, a novel plasmonic substrate was developed using a convenient anodization method for thin lm amorphous silicon solar cells, which convert solar power into electricity within a very thin absorbing layer. According to experimental and nite-difference time-domain simulations, the devices exhibit impressive light trapping capability, due to the coupling of waveguide modes and surface plasmon resonances with the aid of nanoscale patterns. The optimized device conguration delivered 5-30 times absorption enhancement near the band edge. The optical absorption and propagation were systematically investigated in view of photonic guided modes and surface plasmon resonances as well as their coupling effects. In comparison to the device on planar substrates, the plasmonic solar cells achieved signicantly increased short circuit current (31%) with a promising energy conversion efficiency up to 7.11%.

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Zn 3 As 2 is an important p-type semiconductor with the merit of high effective mobility. The synthesis of single-crystalline Zn 3 As 2 nanowires (NWs) via a simple chemical vapor deposition method is reported. High-performance single Zn 3 As 2 NW fi eld-effect transistors (FETs) on rigid SiO 2 /Si substrates and visible-light photodetectors on rigid and fl exible substrates are fabricated and studied. As-fabricated single-NW FETs exhibit typical p-type transistor characteristics with the features of high mobility (305.5 cm 2 V − 1 s − 1 ) and a high I on / I off ratio (10 5 ). Single-NW photodetectors on SiO 2 /Si substrate show good sensitivity to visible light. Using the contact printing process, largescale ordered Zn 3 As 2 NW arrays are successfully assembled on SiO 2 /Si substrate to prepare NW thin-fi lm transistors and photodetectors. The NW-array photodetectors on rigid SiO 2 /Si substrate and fl exible PET substrate exhibit enhanced optoelectronic performance compared with the single-NW devices. The results reveal that the p-type Zn 3 As 2 NWs have important applications in future electronic and optoelectronic devices.