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Background The Solanaceae family includes several economically important vegetable crops. The tomato ( Solanum lycopersicum ) is regarded as a model plant of the Solanaceae family. Recently, a number of tomato resources have been developed in parallel with the ongoing tomato genome sequencing project. In particular, a miniature cultivar, Micro-Tom, is regarded as a model system in tomato genomics, and a number of genomics resources in the Micro-Tom-background, such as ESTs and mutagenized lines, have been established by an international alliance. Results To accelerate the progress in tomato genomics, we developed a collection of fully-sequenced 13,227 Micro-Tom full-length cDNAs. By checking redundant sequences, coding sequences, and chimeric sequences, a set of 11,502 non-redundant full-length cDNAs (nrFLcDNAs) was generated. Analysis of untranslated regions demonstrated that tomato has longer 5'- and 3'-untranslated regions than most other plants but rice. Classification of functions of proteins predicted from the coding sequences demonstrated that nrFLcDNAs covered a broad range of functions. A comparison of nrFLcDNAs with genes of sixteen plants facilitated the identification of tomato genes that are not found in other plants, most of which did not have known protein domains. Mapping of the nrFLcDNAs onto currently available tomato genome sequences facilitated prediction of exon-intron structure. Introns of tomato genes were longer than those of Arabidopsis and rice. According to a comparison of exon sequences between the nrFLcDNAs and the tomato genome sequences, the frequency of nucleotide mismatch in exons between Micro-Tom and the genome-sequencing cultivar (Heinz 1706) was estimated to be 0.061%. Conclusion The collection of Micro-Tom nrFLcDNAs generated in this study will serve as a valuable genomic tool for plant biologists to bridge the gap between basic and applied studies. The nrFLcDNA sequences will help annotation of the tomato whole-genome sequence and aid in tomato functional genomics and molecular breeding. Full-length cDNA sequences and their annotations are provided in the database KaFTom http://www.pgb.kazusa.or.jp/kaftom/ via the website of the National Bioresource Project Tomato http://tomato.nbrp.jp .

We report on an Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array study of the Class I or II intermediate-mass protostar DK Cha in the Chamaeleon II region. The 12CO(J = 2–1) images have an angular resolution of ∼1″ (∼250 au) and show high-velocity blueshifted (≳70 km s−1) and redshifted (≳50 km s−1) emissions, which have 3000 au scale crescent-shaped structures around the protostellar disk traced in the 1.3 mm continuum. Because the high-velocity components of the CO emission are associated with the protostar, we concluded that the emission traces the pole-on outflow. The blueshifted outflow lobe has a clear layered velocity gradient with a higher-velocity component located on the inner side of the crescent shape, which can be explained by a model of an outflow with a higher velocity in the inner radii. Based on the directly driven outflow scenario, we estimated the driving radii from the observed outflow velocities and found that the driving region extends over 2 orders of magnitude. The 13CO emission traces a complex envelope structure with arc-like substructures with lengths of ∼1000 au. We identified the arc-like structures as streamers because they appear to be connected to a rotating infalling envelope. DK Cha is useful for understanding characteristics that are visible by looking at nearly face-on configurations of young protostellar systems, providing an alternative perspective for studying the star formation process.

Recent Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations have revealed an increasing number of compact protostellar disks with radii of less than a few tens of astronomical units and that young Class 0/I objects have an intrinsic size diversity. To deepen our understanding of the origin of such tiny disks, we have performed highest-resolution configuration observations with ALMA at a beam size of ∼0.″03 (4 au) on the very low-luminosity Class 0 protostar embedded in the Taurus dense core MC 27/L1521F. The 1.3 mm continuum measurement successfully resolved a tiny, faint (∼1 mJy) disk with a major axis length of ∼10 au, one of the smallest examples in the ALMA protostellar studies. In addition, we detected spike-like components in the northeastern direction at the disk edge. Gravitational instability or other fragmentation mechanisms cannot explain the structures, given the central stellar mass of ∼0.2 M ⊙ and the disk mass of ≳10−4 M ⊙. Instead, we propose that these small spike structures were formed by a recent dynamic magnetic flux transport event due to interchange instability that would be favorable to occur if the parental core has a strong magnetic field. The presence of complex arc-like structures on a larger (∼2000 au) scale in the same direction as the spike structures suggests that the event was not single. Such episodic, dynamical events may play an important role in maintaining the compact nature of the protostellar disk in the complex gas envelope during the main accretion phase.

Infall and outflows, coupled with magnetic fields, rapidly structure the gas around newborn protostars. Shocks from interacting components encode the temperature and density distribution, offering a direct probe of the earliest evolution history. However, interferometric observations characterizing warm envelopes using high-excitation lines remain scarce. We present Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array Band 9 observations of the Taurus dense core MC 27/L1521F, which hosts a Class 0 protostar, targeting the CO(J = 6–5) line at an angular resolution of ∼2″ (≈300 au). We detect an off-centered ringlike structure with a diameter of ∼1000 au that was not identifiable in previous low-J CO data, where emission close to the systemic velocity is strongly affected by optical depth. The ring shows a typical peak brightness temperature of ∼3 K at our resolution. Excitation considerations indicate that the detected CO(J = 6–5) emission likely arises from relatively warm (T ≳ 20 K) and dense (n(H2) ≳ 105 cm−3) gas embedded within the surrounding cold, dense core. The morphology and kinematics suggest an energetic and localized shock-heating event, potentially linked to dynamical gas–magnetic-field interactions in the earliest protostellar phase. Our results demonstrate that high-J CO observations provide a powerful new window on warm and dense gas components, enabling a more direct view of the physical processes operating at the onset of star formation.

We report Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array/Atacama Compact Array observations of a high-density region of the Corona Australis cloud forming a young star cluster, and the results of resolving internal structures. In addition to embedded Class 0/I protostars in the continuum, a number of complex dense filamentary structures are detected in the C18O and SO lines by the 7 m array. These are substructures of the molecular clump that are detected by the total power array as extended emission. We identify 101 and 37 filamentary structures with widths of a few thousand astronomical units in C18O and SO, respectively, which are called feathers. The typical column density of the feathers in C18O is about 1022 cm−2, and the volume density and line mass are ∼105 cm−3 and a few M ☉ pc−1, respectively. This line mass is significantly smaller than the critical line mass expected for cold and dense gas. These structures have complex velocity fields, indicating a turbulent interior. The number of feathers associated with Class 0/I protostars is only ∼10, indicating that most of them do not form stars but rather are transient structures. The formation of feathers can be interpreted as a result of colliding gas flow because the morphology is well reproduced by MHD simulations, and this is supported by the presence of H i shells in the vicinity. The colliding gas flows may accumulate gas and form filaments and feathers, and trigger the active star formation of the R CrA cluster.

Urocanic acid is a major ultraviolet (UV)-absorbing chromophore. Chitins are highly crystalline structures that are found predominantly in crustacean shells. Alpha-chitin consists of microfibers that contain nanofibrils embedded in a protein matrix. Acid hydrolysis is a common method used to prepare chitin nanofibrils (NFs). We typically obtain NFs by hydrolyzing chitin with acetic acid. However, in the present study, we used urocanic acid to prepare urocanic acid chitin NFs (UNFs) and examined its protective effect against UVB radiation. Hos: HR-1 mice coated with UNFs were UVB irradiated (302 nm, 150 mJ/cm2), and these mice showed markedly lower UVB radiation-induced cutaneous erythema than the control. Additionally, sunburn cells were rarely detected in the epidermis of UNFs-coated mice after UVB irradiation. Although the difference was not as significant as UNFs, the number of sunburn cells in mice treated with acetic acid chitin nanofibrils (ANFs) tended to be lower than in control mice. These results demonstrate that ANFs have a protective effect against UVB and suggest that the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of NFs influence the protective effect of ANFs against UVB radiation. The combination of NFs with other substances that possess UV-protective effects, such as urocanic acid, may provide an enhanced protective effect against UVB radiation.

Infall and outflows, coupled with magnetic fields, rapidly structure the gas around newborn protostars. Shocks from interacting components encode the temperature and density distribution, offering a direct probe of the earliest evolution history. However, interferometric observations characterizing warm envelopes using high-excitation lines remain scarce. We present ALMA Band 9 observations of the Taurus dense core MC 27/L1521F, which hosts a Class 0 protostar, targeting the CO(\\(J\\)=6-5) line at an angular resolution of \\(\\)2\\ (\\(\\)300 au). We detect an off-centered ring-like structure with a diameter of \\(\\)1000 au that was not identifiable in previous low-\\(J\\) CO data, where emission close to the systemic velocity is strongly affected by optical depth. The ring shows a typical peak brightness temperature of \\(\\)3 K at our resolution. Excitation considerations indicate that the detected CO(\\(J\\)=6-5) emission likely arises from relatively warm (\\(T 20\\) K) and dense (\\(n( H_2) 10^5\\) cm\\(^-3\\)) gas embedded within the surrounding cold, dense core. The morphology and kinematics suggest an energetic and localized shock-heating event, potentially linked to dynamical gas--magnetic-field interactions in the earliest protostellar phase. Our results demonstrate that high-\\(J\\) CO observations provide a powerful new window on warm and dense gas components, enabling a more direct view of the physical processes operating at the onset of star formation.

We report on an Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) study of the Class I or II intermediate-mass protostar DK Cha in the Chamaeleon II region. The 12CO (J=2-1) images have an angular resolution of ~1'' (~250 au) and show high-velocity blueshifted (>70 km s-1) and redshifted (>50 km s-1) emissions which have 3000 au scale crescent-shaped structures around the protostellar disk traced in the 1.3mm continuum. Because the high-velocity components of the CO emission are associated with the protostar, we concluded that the emission traces the pole-on outflow. The blueshifted outflow lobe has a clear layered velocity gradient with a higher velocity component located on the inner side of the crescent shape, which can be explained by a model of an outflow with a higher velocity in the inner radii. Based on the directly driven outflow scenario, we estimated the driving radii from the observed outflow velocities and found that the driving region extends over two orders of magnitude. The 13CO emission traces a complex envelope structure with arc-like substructures with lengths of ~1000au. We identified the arc-like structures as streamers because they appear to be connected to a rotating infalling envelope. DK Cha is useful for understanding characteristics that are visible by looking at nearly face-on configurations of young protostellar systems, providing an alternative perspective for studying the star-formation process.

Recent Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations have revealed an increasing number of compact protostellar disks with radii of less than a few tens of astronomical units and that young Class 0/I objects have an intrinsic size diversity. To deepen our understanding of the origin of such tiny disks, we performed the highest-resolution configuration observations with ALMA at a beam size of \\(\\)0\\(''\\)03 (4 au) on the very low-luminosity Class 0 protostar embedded in the Taurus dense core MC 27/L1521F. The 1.3 mm continuum measurement successfully resolved a tiny, faint (\\(\\)1 mJy) disk with a major axis length of \\(\\)10 au, one of the smallest examples in the ALMA protostellar studies. In addition, we detected spike-like components in the northeastern direction at the disk edge. Gravitational instability or other fragmentation mechanisms cannot explain the structures, given the central stellar mass of \\(\\)0.2 \\(M_\\) and the disk mass of \\(\\)10\\(^-4\\) \\(M_\\). Instead, we propose that these small spike structures were formed by a recent dynamic magnetic flux transport event due to interchange instability that would be favorable to occur if the parental core has a strong magnetic field. The presence of complex arc-like structures on a larger (\\(\\)2000 au) scale in the same direction as the spike structures suggests that the event was not single. Such episodic, dynamical events may play an important role in maintaining the compact nature of the protostellar disk in the complex gas envelope during the main accretion phase.

We report on ALMA ACA observations of a high-density region of the Corona Australis cloud forming a young star cluster, and the results of resolving internal structures. In addition to embedded Class 0/I protostars in continuum, a number of complex dense filamentary structures are detected in the C18O and SO lines by the 7m array. These are sub-structures of the molecular clump that are detected by the TP array as the extended emission. We identify 101 and 37 filamentary structures with a few thousand AU widths in C18O and SO, respectively, called as feathers. The typical column density of the feathers in C18O is about 10^22 cm^-2, and the volume density and line mass are ~ 10^5 cm^-3, and a few times M_sun pc^-1, respectively. This line mass is significantly smaller than the critical line mass expected for cold and dense gas. These structures have complex velocity fields, indicating a turbulent internal property. The number of feathers associated with Class 0/I protostars is only ~ 10, indicating that most of them do not form stars but rather being transient structures. The formation of feathers can be interpreted as a result of colliding gas flow as the morphology well reproduced by MHD simulations, supported by the the presence of HI shells in the vicinity. The colliding gas flows may accumulate gas and form filaments and feathers, and trigger the active star formation of the R CrA cluster.