PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents This is an RSS file. You can use it to subscribe to this data in your favourite RSS reader or to display this data on your own website or blog.

The parietal cortex has a causal role in ambiguity computations in humans
by Gabriela Valdebenito-Oyarzo, Mar ía Paz Martínez-Molina, Patricia Soto-Icaza, Francisco Zamorano, Alejandra Figueroa-Vargas, Josefina Larraín-Valenzuela, Ximena Stecher, César Salinas, Julien Bastin, Antoni Valero-Cabré, Rafael Polania, Pablo Billeke Humans often face the challenge of making decisions between ambiguous options. The level of ambiguity in decision-making has been linked to activity in the parietal cortex, but its exact computational role remains elusive. To test the hypothesis that the parietal cortex plays a causal role in computing ambiguous probabilities, we conducted consecutive fMRI and TMS-EEG...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - January 10, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Gabriela Valdebenito-Oyarzo Source Type: research

Finding the right power balance: Better study design and collaboration can reduce dependence on statistical power
by Shinichi Nakagawa, Malgorzata Lagisz, Yefeng Yang, Szymon M. Drobniak Power analysis currently dominates sample size determination for experiments, particularly in grant and ethics applications. Yet, this focus could paradoxically result in suboptimal study design because publication biases towards studies with the largest effects can lead to the overestimation of effect sizes. In this Essay, we propose a paradigm shift towards better study designs that focus less on statistical power. We also advocate for (pre)registration and obligatory reporting of all results (regardless of statistical significance), better facilit...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - January 8, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Shinichi Nakagawa Source Type: research

Super-resolution mapping in rod photoreceptors identifies rhodopsin trafficking through the inner segment plasma membrane as an essential subcellular pathway
by Kristen N. Haggerty, Shannon C. Eshelman, Lauren A. Sexton, Emmanuel Frimpong, Leah M. Rogers, Melina A. Agosto, Michael A. Robichaux Photoreceptor cells in the vertebrate retina have a highly compartmentalized morphology for efficient phototransduction and vision. Rhodopsin, the visual pigment in rod photoreceptors, is densely packaged into the rod outer segment sensory cilium and continuously renewed through essential synthesis and trafficking pathways housed in the rod inner segment. Despite the importance of this region for rod health and maintenance, the subcellular organization of rhodopsin and its trafficking re...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - January 8, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Kristen N. Haggerty Source Type: research

The Staphylococcus aureus CamS lipoprotein is a repressor of toxin production that shapes host-pathogen interaction
by Katrin Schilcher, Morgan M. Severn, Christian Jenul, Young-Saeng C. Avina, Rebecca A. Keogh, Alexander R. Horswill Lipoproteins of the opportunistic pathogenStaphylococcus aureus play a crucial role in various cellular processes and host interactions. Consisting of a protein and a lipid moiety, they support nutrient acquisition and anchor the protein to the bacterial membrane. Recently, we identified several processed and secreted small linear peptides that derive from the secretion signal sequence ofS.aureus lipoproteins. Here, we show, for the first time, that the protein moiety of theS.aureus lipoprotein CamS has a ...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - January 5, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Katrin Schilcher Source Type: research

Cell size homeostasis is tightly controlled throughout the cell cycle
by Xili Liu, Jiawei Yan, Marc W. Kirschner To achieve a stable size distribution over multiple generations, proliferating cells require a means of counteracting stochastic noise in the rate of growth, the time spent in various phases of the cell cycle, and the imprecision in the placement of the plane of cell division. In the most widely accepted model, cell size is thought to be regulated at the G1/S transition, such that cells smaller than a critical size pause at the end of G1 phase until they have accumulated mass to a predetermined size threshold, at which point the cells proceed through the rest of the cell cycle. H...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - January 5, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Xili Liu Source Type: research

High prevalence of heteroresistance in Staphylococcus aureus is caused by a multitude of mutations in core genes
by Sheida Heidarian, Andrei Guliaev, Herv é Nicoloff, Karin Hjort, Dan I. Andersson Heteroresistance (HR) is an enigmatic phenotype where, in a main population of susceptible cells, small subpopulations of resistant cells exist. This is a cause for concern, as this small subpopulation is difficult to detect by standard antibiotic susceptibility tests, and upon antibiotic exposure the resistant subpopulation may increase in frequency and potentially lead to treatment complications or failure. Here, we determined the prevalence and mechanisms of HR for 40 clinicalStaphylococcus aureus isolates, against 6 clinically importa...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - January 4, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Sheida Heidarian Source Type: research

Reduced serotonergic transmission alters sensitivity to cost and reward via 5-HT 1A and 5-HT 1B receptors in monkeys
by Yukiko Hori, Koki Mimura, Yuji Nagai, Yuki Hori, Katsushi Kumata, Ming-Rong Zhang, Tetsuya Suhara, Makoto Higuchi, Takafumi Minamimoto Serotonin (5-HT) deficiency is a core biological pathology underlying depression and other psychiatric disorders whose key symptoms include decreased motivation. However, the exact role of 5-HT in motivation remains controversial and elusive. Here, we pharmacologically manipulated the 5-HT system in macaque monkeys and quantified the effects on motivation for goal-directed actions in terms of incentives and costs. Reversible inhibition of 5-HT synthesis increased errors and reaction tim...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - January 1, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Yukiko Hori Source Type: research

When cheating turns into a stabilizing mechanism of plant –pollinator communities
by Fran çois Duchenne, Stéphane Aubert, Elisa Barreto, Emanuel Brenes, María A. Maglianesi, Tatiana Santander, Esteban A. Guevara, Catherine H. Graham Mutualistic interactions, such as plant –mycorrhizal or plant–pollinator interactions, are widespread in ecological communities and frequently exploited by cheaters, species that profit from interactions without providing benefits in return. Cheating usually negatively affects the fitness of the individuals that are cheated on, but th e effects of cheating at the community level remains poorly understood. Here, we describe 2 different kinds of cheating in mutualistic...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - December 27, 2023 Category: Biology Authors: Fran çois Duchenne Source Type: research

FBXO3 stabilizes USP4 and Twist1 to promote PI3K-mediated breast cancer metastasis
In this study, we show that FBXO3 plays a vital role in PI3K-mediated breast cancer metastasis independent of its E3 ligase activity and ΔNp63α in breast cancer cells and in mouse. FBXO3 can bind to and stabilize USP4, leading to Twist1 protein stabilization and increased breast cancer cell migration and tumor metastasis. Mechanistically, FBXO3 disrupts the interaction between USP4 and aspartyl aminopeptidase (DNPEP), thereby protecting USP4 from DNPEP-mediated degradation. Furthermore, p110αH1047R facilitates the phosphorylation and stabilization of FBXO3 in an ERK1-dependent manner. Knockdown of either FBXO3 or USP4 l...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - December 22, 2023 Category: Biology Authors: Jing Xu Source Type: research

Early administration of tecovirimat shortens the time to mpox clearance in a model of human infection
by Bach Tran Nguyen, Aur élien Marc, Clara Suñer, Michael Marks, Maria Ubals, Águeda Hernández-Rodríguez, María Ángeles Melendez, The Movie Group , Dennis E. Hruby, Andrew T. Russo, France Mentré, Oriol Mitjà, Douglas W. Grosenbach, Jérémie Guedj Despite use of tecovirimat since the beginning of the 2022 outbreak, few data have been published on its antiviral effect in humans. We here predict tecovirimat efficacy using a unique set of data in nonhuman primates (NHPs) and humans. We analyzed tecovirimat antiviral activity on viral kinetics in NHP to characterize its concentration –effect relationship in vivo. ...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - December 21, 2023 Category: Biology Authors: Bach Tran Nguyen Source Type: research

A new class of antibodies that overcomes a steric barrier to cross-group neutralization of influenza viruses
We describe here a class of antibodies that overcomes this barrier. These genetically unrestricted antibodies are abundant in the human B cell memory compartment. Analysis of the affinities of selected members of this class for historical H1 and H3 isolates suggest that they were elicited by H3 exposure and broadened or diverted by later exposure(s) to H1 HA. RBS mutations in egg-adapted vaccine strains cause the new H1 specificity of these antibodies to depend on the egg adaptation. The results suggest that suitable immunogens might elicit 133a-independent, H1-H3 cross neutralization by RBS-directed antibodies. (Source: P...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - December 21, 2023 Category: Biology Authors: Holly C. Simmons Source Type: research

Distinct stem-like cell populations facilitate functional regeneration of the Cladonema medusa tentacle
by Sosuke Fujita, Mako Takahashi, Gaku Kumano, Erina Kuranaga, Masayuki Miura, Yu-ichiro Nakajima Blastema formation is a crucial process that provides a cellular source for regenerating tissues and organs. While bilaterians have diversified blastema formation methods, its mechanisms in non-bilaterians remain poorly understood. Cnidarian jellyfish, or medusae, represent early-branching metazoans that exhibit complex morphology and possess defined appendage structures highlighted by tentacles with stinging cells (nematocytes). Here, we investigate the mechanisms of tentacle regeneration, using the hydrozoan jellyfishCladon...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - December 21, 2023 Category: Biology Authors: Sosuke Fujita Source Type: research

A chemical signal in human female tears lowers aggression in males
by Shani Agron, Claire A. de March, Reut Weissgross, Eva Mishor, Lior Gorodisky, Tali Weiss, Edna Furman-Haran, Hiroaki Matsunami, Noam Sobel Rodent tears contain social chemosignals with diverse effects, including blocking male aggression. Human tears also contain a chemosignal that lowers male testosterone, but its behavioral significance was unclear. Because reduced testosterone is associated with reduced aggression, we tested the hypothesis that human tears act like rodent tears to block male aggression. Using a standard behavioral paradigm, we found that sniffing emotional tears with no odor percept reduced human mal...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - December 21, 2023 Category: Biology Authors: Shani Agron Source Type: research

2023 at PLOS Biology 
by The PLOS Biology Staff Editors 2023 saw many important advances in the life sciences. In this editorial, we highlight research from across the breadth of PLOS Biology ’s scope. (Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents)
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - December 20, 2023 Category: Biology Authors: The PLOS Biology Staff Editors Source Type: research

Pituitary-immune bidirectional crosstalk under systemic inflammation
by Qingyun Li The pituitary gland responds to and modulates immune stress through the hypothalamus –pituitary–adrenal axis. A new study in PLOS Biology reveals unconventional bidirectional communication between hormone-producing cells and the immune system upon systemic inflammation. (Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents)
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - December 19, 2023 Category: Biology Authors: Qingyun Li Source Type: research