RESEARCH ARTICLES
- Hindsight/RREB-1 functions in both the specification and differentiation of stem cells in the adult midgut of Drosophila
Summary: Hindsight, the Drosophila homolog of RREB-1, can promote and is required for enterocyte differentiation specifically in the adult midgut. Enterocyte differentiation during the larval/pupal transition does not require Hindsight.
- Requirement for PLK1 kinase activity in the maintenance of a robust spindle assembly checkpoint
Summary: Using small molecule kinase inhibitors we find that PLK1 and Aurora B cooperate to avoid mitotic slippage upon microtubule depolymerization and to promote their reciprocal recruitment at kinetochores.
- Automated image analysis reveals the dynamic 3-dimensional organization of multi-ciliary arrays
Summary: We develop an automated computational image analysis routine to quantify basal body organization, which detects subtle spatial phenotypes resulting from environmental and genetic perturbations.
- PTP1B triggers integrin-mediated repression of myosin activity and modulates cell contractility
Summary: Here we show that protein tyrosine phosphatase PTP1B cooperates with β3 integrin to transiently repress RhoA-myosin-dependent contractility, stimulating adhesion and lamellipodium assembly during cell spreading and migration.
- Feel your stride and find your preferred running speed
Summary: Aerial and terrestrial human running patterns self-select different pleasure running speeds. We suggest the existence of an optimization system allowing association of runners' stride with running speed.
- Rac1 controls epithelial tube length through the apical secretion and polarity pathways
Summary: Epithelial tube size regulation sustains organ physiology. Rac1 limits tube elongation in the fly trachea through restriction of apical membrane growth, and by supporting luminal secretion of chitin modifying enzymes.
- Differences in infectivity between endosymbiotic Chlorella variabilis cultivated outside host Paramecium bursaria for 50 years and those immediately isolated from host cells after one year of reendosymbiosis
Summary: This study was undertaken to detect changes in infectivity induced during long-term cultivation of Chlorella variabilis to alga-free Paramecium bursaria, and its auxotrophy for growth outside the host.
- Stable atrogin-1 (Fbxo32) and MuRF1 (Trim63) gene expression is involved in the protective mechanism in soleus muscle of hibernating Daurian ground squirrels (Spermophilus dauricus)
Summary: mRNA expression of atrogin-1 and MuRF1 remains unchanged during hibernation of Daurian ground squirrels, suggesting that stable expression of these genes may facilitate the prevention of SOL atrophy via controlling ubiquitylation of muscle proteins during hibernation.
- Direct lateral maneuvers in hawkmoths
Summary: We show that hawkmoths fly sideways by rolling in the direction of movement, adding a left- or right-ward component to their net lift vector. The underlying roll maneuvers are produced from a suite of asymmetric wing kinematic changes and are heavily damped.
METHODS & TECHNIQUES
- Tissue-specific tagging of endogenous loci in Drosophila melanogaster
Summary: Here we describe an easily applicable method that allows C-terminal protein tagging at endogenous loci in a tissue- or cell type-specific manner in Drosophila melanogaster.
This issue
Other journals from The Company of Biologists
Biology Open and COVID-19
We are aware that the COVID-19 pandemic is having an unprecedented impact on researchers worldwide. The Editors of all The Company of Biologists’ journals have been considering ways in which we can alleviate concerns that members of our community may have around publishing activities during this time. Read about the actions we are taking at this time.
Please don’t hesitate to contact the Editorial Office if you have any questions or concerns.
New funding scheme supports sustainable events
As part of our Sustainable Conferencing Initiative, we are pleased to announce funding for organisers that seek to reduce the environmental footprint of their event. The next deadline to apply for a Scientific Meeting grant is 26 March 2021.
Future Leader Review – early neurodegeneration of Alzheimer’s disease
A new Future Leader Review from Olayemi Olajide, Marcus Suvanto and Clifton Andrew Chapman evaluates the molecular mechanisms that may explain the vulnerability and susceptibility of the entorhinal cortex to early neurodegeneration during the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease.
Find out more about our Future Leader Reviews – they are an exclusive opportunity for early-career researchers who want to establish themselves in their field.
First author interviews
Catch up on our latest first author interviews to go behind the scenes of our latest research, find out more about the authors and hear from early-career researchers themselves how they’re finding life at the bench.
Retinal degeneration in Drosophila
Thank you to Elisabeth Knust and her team for their confocal image of a longitudinal section of an adult Drosophila retina, which brightens the cover of our latest issue. Read the research behind the cover.