Human hemoglobin protects the parasite cytoskeleton during Plasmodium falciparum gametocyte development - Nature

We’re sharing this article early to provide faster access to peer-reviewed, accepted research. It is citable and carries a permanent DOI. This version is subject to further edits and will be replaced automatically by the final Version of Record. All legal disclaimers apply. AbstractPre-erythrocytic malaria vaccines aim to prevent infection at the earliest stage of parasite entry by blocking Plasmodium falciparum sporozoites before hepatocyte invasion, thereby halting progression to symptomatic blood-stage disease. The circumsporozoite protein (CSP), the dominant surface antigen of sporozoites, remains the leading target for pre-erythrocytic vaccine development. Here, we investigated the use of an mRNA vaccine platform to express CSP and examined how antigen localisation influences immunogenicity and protective efficacy. We compared mRNA constructs encoding soluble CSP with versions engineered for membrane anchoring using either a mammalian glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) sequence derived from placental alkaline phosphatase or a heterologous transmembrane (TM) domain from influenza H1N1 haemagglutinin.

We’re sharing this article early to provide faster access to peer-reviewed, accepted research. It is citable and carries a permanent DOI. This version is subject to further edits and will be replaced automatically by the final Version of Record. All legal disclaimers apply. AbstractCardiometabolic multimorbidity (CMM) develops through the accumulation of cardiometabolic conditions but is often analyzed as a single endpoint. The hemoglobin glycation index (HGI) reflects interindividual variation in HbA1c relative to that predicted by fasting glucose, but its role in stage-specific CMM progression remains unclear. This prospective cohort study included 8,075 middle-aged and older adults from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study with baseline HGI, covariates, and follow-up data from 2011 to 2018. HGI was calculated as observed HbA1c minus fasting plasma glucose–predicted HbA1c. Four states were defined: no cardiometabolic disease (NCMD), single cardiometabolic disease (SCMD), CMM (at least two of diabetes, heart disease, and stroke), and death. Continuous-time multistate Markov models estimated transition intensity ratios (TIRs) for six transitions.

Researchers at the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences (LMS) have developed a new way to make glowing biological reporters more accurate, allowing scientists to track gene activity in living plants over days, weeks and potentially even months and years. The approach could help researchers study how plants respond to disease, pests and environmental stress, while opening the door to similar applications in animal and human disease models.

The latest in space science: We look back at the Big Bang In this edition of Spacing Out, the team from Short Wave shares the latest developments in space science, including the theory on why the universe is made of matter In this edition of Spacing Out, the team from Short Wave discusses the latest space science news

A molecular modeling approach identifies boron- and oxygen-containing diamond defects as promising candidates for quantum technologies. The calculations focus on small atomic clusters while retaining the surrounding crystal’s influence, making sophisticated quantum chemistry more manageable. The predictions help screen candidates, but practical qubit performance still requires tests of coherence, stability and other properties. Tiny imperfections in diamond could offer new ways to store and read quantum information. The challenge is deciding which defects deserve the time and expense of experimental testing. A computational study now brings tools from molecular chemistry to that search, identifying promising boron- and oxygen-containing candidates. John Mark P. Martirez, a staff research scientist at the U. S. Department of Energy’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, reports the work in ACS Central Science. His approach concentrates demanding calculations on a small group of atoms surrounding a defect. Crucially, the model still accounts for the influence of the diamond crystal beyond that group.