Explore the vast range of titles available.

There is considerable interest in the occurrence and molecular mechanisms of phenotypic plasticity and genotype-by-environment interactions (G × E) in plant populations. The emergence of genomic tools, including quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping and transcriptome studies, provides opportunities to identify G × E patterns and mechanisms across a diversity of phenotypes, species, and environments. We review progress in evaluating the presence and characterizing the mechanisms of G × E using genomic studies of abiotic responses in plants. Our review reveals that G × E is common, often caused by changes in the magnitude of genetic effects in response to the environment, and associated with diverse genetic factors and molecular variants. We illustrate this diversity with an examination of transcriptome studies and discussion of cloned genes underlying G × E. We discuss the caveats associated with existing studies and outline future directions for better understanding G × E and its impact on local adaptation and plant improvement.

Although posited as an explanation for reproductive endocrine-related mood disorders, differential hormone sensitivity is an elusive concept. In this editorial, we define differential sensitivity, embed it in current understanding of the generation of brain states and discuss its practical utility.

Topoisomerase inhibitors have been in use clinically for the treatment of several diseases for decades. Although those enzymes are significant molecular targets in antibacterial and anticancer chemotherapy very little is known about the possibilities to target fungal topoisomerase II (topo II). Raising concern for the fungal infections, lack of effective drugs and a phenomenon of multidrug resistance underlie a strong need to expand the range of therapeutic options. In this review paper, we discussed the usefulness of fungal topo II as a molecular target for new drug discovery. On the basis of previously published data, we described structural and biochemical differences between fungal and human enzymes as well as a molecular basis of differential sensitivity to known anticancer drugs targeting the latter. This review focuses especially on highlighting the differences that may underlie the selectivity of action of new inhibitors. Distinct sites within fungal topo II in comparison with human counterparts are observed and should be further studied to understand the significance of those sites and their possible usage in design of new drugs.

Control of nonlinear dynamical systems is a complex and multifaceted process. Essential elements of many engineering systems include high-fidelity physics-based modeling, offline trajectory planning, feedback control design, and data acquisition strategies to reduce uncertainties. This article proposes an optimization-centric perspective which couples these elements in a cohesive framework. We introduce a novel use of hyper-differential sensitivity analysis to understand the sensitivity of feedback controllers to parametric uncertainty in physics-based models used for trajectory planning. These sensitivities provide a foundation to define an optimal experimental design which seeks to acquire data most relevant in reducing demand on the feedback controller. Our proposed framework is illustrated on the Zermelo navigation problem and a hypersonic trajectory control problem using data from NASA’s X-43 hypersonic flight tests.

Data privacy is a major concern in the present data‐driven era when sensitive information is being increasingly shared and analyzed across distributed systems. The existing mechanisms for privacy preservation, such as differential privacy (DP), local differential privacy (LDP), homomorphic encryption, and secure multiparty computing (SMPC), often face challenges in maintaining a balance between utility and privacy, especially in dynamic and heterogeneous environments. This paper introduces partial DP as a flexible framework for addressing the above challenges across a variety of data settings, such as federated learning, decentralized systems (blockchain and IoT), graph data, and streaming analytics. Dynamic sensitivity differential privacy (DSDP) employs adaptive noise mechanism and dynamically adjusts the data sensitivity by ensuring the robust privacy without compromising data utility. The experimental evaluations on real‐world datasets prove the superiority of DSDP over traditional approaches with minimal utility loss and high privacy guarantees at efficiency. DSDP is a promising solution in the evolving computer paradigms for data privacy protection. The proposed methods are carried out to evaluate the parameters such as execution time, utility loss, and privacy level. From the experimental results, DSDP achieves up to 15% higher utility than DP in federated learning, 30% reduced latency in decentralized systems, and 25% better structural integrity for graph data for privacy‐preserving guarantees.

Aberrant expression of Myc is one of the most common oncogenic events in human cancers. Scores of Myc inhibitors are currently under development for treating Myc-driven cancers. In addition to directly targeting tumor cells, Myc inhibition has been shown to modulate the tumor microenvironment to promote tumor regression. However, the effect of Myc inhibition on immune cells in the tumor microenvironment remains poorly understood. Here, we show that the adaptive immune system plays a vital role in the antitumor effect of pharmacologic inhibition of Myc. Combining genetic and pharmacologic approaches, we found that Myc inhibition enhanced CD8 T cell function by suppressing the homeostasis of regulatory T (Treg) cells and the differentiation of resting Treg (rTreg) cells to activated Treg (aTreg) cells in tumors. Importantly, we demonstrated that different Myc expression levels confer differential sensitivity of T cell subsets to pharmacologic inhibition of Myc. Although ablation of the Myc gene has been shown to suppress CD8 T cell function, Treg cells, which express much less Myc protein than CD8 T cells, are more sensitive to Myc inhibitors. The differential sensitivity of CD8 T and Treg cells to Myc inhibitors resulted in enhanced CD8 T cell function upon Myc inhibition. Our findings revealed that Myc inhibitors can induce an antitumor immune response during tumor progression.

In this paper, the psychophysical abilities and limitations of the auditory and vibrotactile modality will be discussed. A direct comparison reveals similarities and differences. The knowledge of those is the basis for the design of perceptually optimized auditory-tactile human–machine interfaces or multimodal music applications. Literature data and own results for psychophysical characteristics are summarized. An overview of the absolute perception thresholds of both modalities is given. The main factors which influence these thresholds are discussed: age, energy integration, masking and adaptation. Subsequently, the differential sensitivity (discrimination of intensity, frequency, temporal aspects and location) for suprathreshold signals is compared.

Conventional agriculture has relied extensively on the use of fungicides to prevent or control crop diseases. However, some fungicides, particularly broad-spectrum fungicides, not only eliminate target pathogens but also non-target and beneficial soil microbes. This scenario is not only limited to agricultural soil, but this may also potentially occur when neighboring environments are contaminated by fungicides through spray drift. Although concentrations may be sub-lethal, the chemicals may accumulate in the soil when used continuously resulting in more toxic effects. In this study, the effect on the colony extension rate of 31 filamentous soil saprobic fungi, initially isolated from a protected grassland ecosystem, were analyzed under fungicide treatment. These isolates were considered naive (no deliberate exposure), hence presumed to have not developed resistance. Two currently used fungicides with different modes of action were added to Potato Dextrose Agar at varying concentrations. Results showed a wide range of tolerance and sensitivity to isopyrazam and prothioconazole. Fungi belonging to the phylum Basidiomycota were most negatively affected by both fungicides. Phylum Mucoromycota were the most tolerant to prothioconazole while isolates belonging to phylum Ascomycota differed in their responses to both fungicides. Negative effects on the growth rate were more pronounced at higher concentrations except for a few isolates that were inhibited at 1 mg·L −1 . A slightly positive effect was also observed in three of the isolates under fungicide treatment. Lastly, the negative impact of fungicides was not associated with the growth strategy of the fungi, whether fast growing or slow growing, rather it is isolate-specific and phylogenetically conserved. The results of this study demonstrate that co-occurring fungi differ in their sensitivity to fungicides even without prior exposure. This difference in sensitivity among co-occurring fungi may result in shifts in community composition of the soil fungal community to the detriment of the more sensitive isolates.

The use of P25 TiO 2 NPs in consumer products, their release, and environmental accumulation will have harmful effects on the coastal ecosystems. The sensitivity to TiO 2 NPs may vary depending on the structural property and physiological mechanism of algal species. Therefore, the present study investigates the differences in sensitivity of two marine algae, Dunaliella salina and Chlorella sp., towards P25 TiO 2 NPs. Among the two species, Chlorella sp. was more sensitive to TiO 2 NPs than Dunaliella salina . The different working concentrations of TiO 2 NPs, 0.1, 1, and 10 mg L −1 , were selected based on the EC 50 value. The EC 50 value of TiO 2 NPs for Dunaliella salina was found to be 1.8 and 13.3 mg L −1 under UV-A and dark conditions, respectively. The EC 50 value of TiO 2 NPs for Chlorella sp. was found to be 1.6 and 5.0 mg L −1 under UV-A and dark conditions, respectively. The decrease in cell viability was significantly higher for Chlorella sp. compared to Dunaliella salina at all concentrations except 0.1 mg L −1 . The cellular viability data was in correlation with the oxidative stress markers such as total ROS and LPO. A concentration-dependent increase in ROS and lipid peroxidation was noted under UV-A exposure, which was higher in Chlorella sp. compared to Dunaliella salina . The decrease in the SOD activity with NP concentration was more in Dunaliella salina than Chlorella sp. under both conditions, whereas Chlorella sp. showed increased CAT activity with increasing concentration. The uptake of TiO 2 NPs was more in Chlorella sp. than Dunaliella salina .

Focal cooling modulates cortical computations, yet how principal neurons respond remains unclear. We demonstrate that mild focal cooling of the barrel cortex (S1) while impacting behavior creates a steep translaminar temperature gradient with ∼4°C drop in layer 5 (L5)—a range where conduction velocity changes are minimal. L5 neurons integrate self‐motion and touch by encoding whisker dynamics, and because their apical tuft dendrites lie proximal to the cooled surface, the gradient implicates possible dendritic mechanisms in mediating behavioral disruption. In vitro experiments confirm this: focal cooling (100 µm radius) selectively increases impedance and input‐output transformations in L5 tuft but not basal dendrites, yet paradoxically impairs recovery from inactivation of apical dendritic Na+ channels, reducing somato‐dendritic coupling. These results challenge the view that cooling acts mainly through slowed conduction. Instead, suggesting that cooling decouples basal‐tuft integration and dynamically regulates cortical gain, revealing a potent neuromodulatory mechanism with implications for sensory‐motor computation. Mild cooling of the cortical surface selectively modulates apical dendritic excitability, plasticity, and somato‐dendritic coupling, while uncoupling these effects from basal dendrites, and reshapes apical‐driven responses in barrel cortex during whisker touch.