Phonon Anharmonicity and Spin-Phonon Coupling in CrI3.

We report on the far-infrared, temperature-dependent optical properties of a CrI3 transition metal halide single crystal, a van der Waals ferromagnet (FM) with a Curie temperature of 61 K. In addition to the expected phonon modes determined by the crystalline symmetry, the optical reflectance and transmittance spectra of CrI3 single crystals show many other excitations as a function of temperature as a consequence of the combination of a strong lattice anharmonicity and spin-phonon coupling. This complex vibrational spectrum highlights the presence of entangled interactions among the different degrees of freedom in CrI3.

Influence of Orbital Character on the Ground State Electronic Properties in the van Der Waals Transition Metal Iodides VI3 and CrI3.

Two-dimensional van der Waals magnetic semiconductors display emergent chemical and physical properties and hold promise for novel optical, electronic and magnetic "few-layers" functionalities. Transition-metal iodides such as CrI3 and VI3 are relevant for future electronic and spintronic applications; however, detailed experimental information on their ground state electronic properties is lacking often due to their challenging chemical environment. By combining X-ray electron spectroscopies and first-principles calculations, we report a complete determination of CrI3 and VI3 electronic ground states. We show that the transition metal-induced orbital filling drives the stabilization of distinct electronic phases: a wide bandgap in CrI3 and a Mott insulating state in VI3. Comparison of surface-sensitive (angular-resolved photoemission spectroscopy) and bulk-sensitive (X-ray absorption spectroscopy) measurements in VI3 reveals a surface-only V2+ oxidation state, suggesting that ground state electronic properties are strongly influenced by dimensionality effects. Our results have direct implications in band engineering and layer-dependent properties of two-dimensional systems.

Low energy electrodynamics of CrI3 layered ferromagnet.

We report on the optical properties from terahertz (THz) to Near-Infrared (NIR) of the layered magnetic compound CrI3 at various temperatures, both in the paramagnetic and ferromagnetic phase. In the NIR spectral range, we observe an insulating electronic gap around 1.1 eV which strongly hardens with decreasing temperature. The blue shift observed represents a record in insulating materials and it is a fingerprint of a strong electron-phonon interaction. Moreover, a further gap hardening is observed below the Curie temperature, indicating the establishment of an effective interaction between electrons and magnetic degrees of freedom in the ferromagnetic phase. Similar interactions are confirmed by the disappearance of some phonon modes in the same phase, as expected from a spin-lattice interaction theory. Therefore, the optical properties of CrI3 reveal a complex interaction among electronic, phononic and magnetic degrees of freedom, opening many possibilities for its use in 2-Dimensional heterostructures.

Hexagonal Perovskites as Quantum Materials.

Hexagonal perovskites, in contrast to the more familiar perovskites, when oxides, allow for face-sharing of metal-oxygen octahedra or trigonal prisms within their structural frameworks. This results in dimers, trimers, tetramers, or longer fragments of chains of face-sharing octahedra in the crystal structures, and consequently in much shorter metal-metal distances and lower metal-oxygen-metal bond angles than are seen in the more familiar perovskites. The presence of the face-sharing octahedra can have a dramatic impact on magnetic properties of these compounds, and dimer-based materials, in particular, have been the subjects of many quantum-materials-directed studies in materials physics. Hexagonal oxide perovskites are also of contemporary interest due to their potential for geometrical frustration of the ordering of magnetic moments or orbital occupancies at low temperatures, which is especially relevant to their significance as quantum materials. As such, several hexagonal oxide perovskites have been identified as potential candidates for hosting the quantum-spin-liquid state at low temperatures. In our view, hexagonal oxide perovskites are fertile ground for finding new quantum materials. This review briefly describes the solid state chemistry of many of these materials.

A threonyl-tRNA synthetase-mediated translation initiation machinery.

A fundamental question in biology is how vertebrates evolved and differ from invertebrates, and little is known about differences in the regulation of translation in the two systems. Herein, we identify a threonyl-tRNA synthetase (TRS)-mediated translation initiation machinery that specifically interacts with eIF4E homologous protein, and forms machinery that is structurally analogous to the eIF4F-mediated translation initiation machinery via the recruitment of other translation initiation components. Biochemical and RNA immunoprecipitation analyses coupled to sequencing suggest that this machinery emerged as a gain-of-function event in the vertebrate lineage, and it positively regulates the translation of mRNAs required for vertebrate development. Collectively, our findings demonstrate that TRS evolved to regulate vertebrate translation initiation via its dual role as a scaffold for the assembly of initiation components and as a selector of target mRNAs. This work highlights the functional significance of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases in the emergence and control of higher order organisms.

Mycobacterium abscessus ESX-3 plays an important role in host inflammatory and pathological responses during infection.

Mycobacterial ESX systems are often related to pathogenesis during infection. However, little is known about the function of ESX systems of Mycobacterium abscessus (Mab). This study focuses on the Mab ESX-3 cluster, which contains major genes such as esxH (Rv0288, low molecular weight protein antigen 7; CFP-7) and esxG (Rv0287, ESAT-6 like protein). An esx-3 (MAB 2224c-2234c)-deletional mutant of Mab (Δesx) was constructed and used to infect murine and human macrophages. We then investigated whether Mab Δesx modulated innate host immune responses in macrophages. Mab Δesx infection resulted in less pathological and inflammatory responses. Additionally, Δesx resulted in significantly decreased activation of inflammatory signaling and cytokine production in macrophages compared to WT. Moreover, recombinant EsxG·EsxH (rEsxGH) proteins encoded by the ESX-3 region showed synergistic enhancement of inflammatory cytokine generation in macrophages infected with Δesx. Taken together, our data suggest that Mab ESX-3 plays an important role in inflammatory and pathological responses during Mab infection.

Shiga Toxins Trigger the Secretion of Lysyl-tRNA Synthetase to Enhance Proinflammatory Responses.

Shiga toxins (Stxs) produced by Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) strains are major virulence factors that cause fatal systemic complications, such as hemolytic uremic syndrome and disruption of the central nervous system. Although numerous studies report proinflammatory responses to Stx type 1 (Stx1) or Stx type 2 (Stx2) both in vivo and in vitro, none have examined dynamic immune regulation involving cytokines and/or unknown inflammatory mediators during intoxication. Here, we showed that enzymatically active Stxs trigger the dissociation of lysyl-tRNA synthetase (KRS) from the multi-aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase complex in human macrophage-like differentiated THP-1 cells and its subsequent secretion. The secreted KRS acted to increase the production of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines. Thus, KRS may be one of the key factors that mediate transduction of inflammatory signals in the STEC-infected host.

Crystal structure of fully oxidized human thioredoxin.

In addition to the active cysteines located at positions 32 and 35 in humans, mammalian cytosolic thioredoxin (TRX) possesses additional conserved cysteine residues at positions 62, 69, and 73. These non-canonical cysteine residues, that are distinct from prokaryotic TRX and also not found in mammalian mitochondrial TRX, have been implicated in biological functions regulating signal transduction pathways via their post-translational modifications. Here, we describe for the first time the structure of a fully oxidized TRX. The structure shows a non-active Cys62-Cys69 disulfide bond in addition to the active Cys32-Cys35 disulfide. The non-active disulfide switches the α3-helix of TRX, composed of residues Cys62 to Glu70, to a bulging loop and dramatically changes the environment of the TRX residues involved in the interaction with its reductase and other cellular substrates. This structural modification may have implications for a number of potential functions of TRX including the regulation of redox-dependent signaling pathways.

Small heterodimer partner interacts with NLRP3 and negatively regulates activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome.

Excessive activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome results in damaging inflammation, yet the regulators of this process remain poorly defined. Herein, we show that the orphan nuclear receptor small heterodimer partner (SHP) is a negative regulator of NLRP3 inflammasome activation. NLRP3 inflammasome activation leads to an interaction between SHP and NLRP3, proteins that are both recruited to mitochondria. Overexpression of SHP competitively inhibits binding of NLRP3 to apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD (ASC). SHP deficiency results in increased secretion of proinflammatory cytokines IL-1ß and IL-18, and excessive pathologic responses typically observed in mouse models of kidney tubular necrosis and peritoneal gout. Notably, the loss of SHP results in accumulation of damaged mitochondria and a sustained interaction between NLRP3 and ASC in the endoplasmic reticulum. These data are suggestive of a role for SHP in controlling NLRP3 inflammasome activation through a mechanism involving interaction with NLRP3 and maintenance of mitochondrial homeostasis.

The structural basis for the negative regulation of thioredoxin by thioredoxin-interacting protein.

The redox-dependent inhibition of thioredoxin (TRX) by thioredoxin-interacting protein (TXNIP) plays a pivotal role in various cancers and metabolic syndromes. However, the molecular mechanism of this regulation is largely unknown. Here, we present the crystal structure of the TRX-TXNIP complex and demonstrate that the inhibition of TRX by TXNIP is mediated by an intermolecular disulphide interaction resulting from a novel disulphide bond-switching mechanism. Upon binding to TRX, TXNIP undergoes a structural rearrangement that involves switching of a head-to-tail interprotomer Cys63-Cys247 disulphide between TXNIP molecules to an interdomain Cys63-Cys190 disulphide, and the formation of a de novo intermolecular TXNIP Cys247-TRX Cys32 disulphide. This disulphide-switching event unexpectedly results in a domain arrangement of TXNIP that is entirely different from those of other arrestin family proteins. We further show that the intermolecular disulphide bond between TRX and TXNIP dissociates in the presence of high concentrations of reactive oxygen species. This study provides insight into TRX and TXNIP-dependent cellular regulation.

Calcitonin gene-related peptide enhances release of native brain-derived neurotrophic factor from trigeminal ganglion neurons.

Activity-dependent plasticity in nociceptive pathways has been implicated in pathomechanisms of chronic pain syndromes. Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), which is expressed by trigeminal nociceptors, has recently been identified as a key player in the mechanism of migraine headaches. Here we show that CGRP is coexpressed with brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in a large subset of adult rat trigeminal ganglion neurons in vivo. Using ELISA in situ, we show that CGRP (1-1000 nM) potently enhances BDNF release from cultured trigeminal neurons. The effect of CGRP is dose-dependent and abolished by pretreatment with CGRP receptor antagonist, CGRP(8-37). Intriguingly, CGRP-mediated BDNF release, unlike BDNF release evoked by physiological patterns of electrical stimulation, is independent of extracellular calcium. Depletion of intracellular calcium stores with thapsigargin blocks the CGRP-mediated BDNF release. Using transmission electron microscopy, our study also shows that BDNF-immunoreactivity is present in dense core vesicles of unmyelinated axons and axon terminals in the subnucleus caudalis of the spinal trigeminal nucleus, the primary central target of trigeminal nociceptors. Together, these results reveal a previously unknown role for CGRP in regulating BDNF availability, and point to BDNF as a candidate mediator of trigeminal nociceptive plasticity.