Plant communication with rhizosphere microbes can be revealed by understanding microbial functional gene composition.

Understanding rhizosphere microbial ecology is necessary to reveal the interplay between plants and associated microbial communities. The significance of rhizosphere-microbial interactions in plant growth promotion, mediated by several key processes such as auxin synthesis, enhanced nutrient uptake, stress alleviation, disease resistance, etc., is unquestionable and well reported in numerous literature. Moreover, rhizosphere research has witnessed tremendous progress due to the integration of the metagenomics approach and further shift in our viewpoint from taxonomic to functional diversity over the past decades. The microbial functional genes corresponding to the beneficial functions provide a solid foundation for the successful establishment of positive plant-microbe interactions. The microbial functional gene composition in the rhizosphere can be regulated by several factors, e.g., the nutritional requirements of plants, soil chemistry, soil nutrient status, pathogen attack, abiotic stresses, etc. Knowing the pattern of functional gene composition in the rhizosphere can shed light on the dynamics of rhizosphere microbial ecology and the strength of cooperation between plants and associated microbes. This knowledge is crucial to realizing how microbial functions respond to unprecedented challenges which are obvious in the Anthropocene. Unraveling how microbes-mediated beneficial functions will change under the influence of several challenges, requires knowledge of the pattern and composition of functional genes corresponding to beneficial functions such as biogeochemical functions (nutrient cycle), plant growth promotion, stress mitigation, etc. Here, we focus on the molecular traits of plant growth-promoting functions delivered by a set of microbial functional genes that can be useful to the emerging field of rhizosphere functional ecology.

Real-time imaging of ipsilateral parathyroid glands by retrograde injection of methylene blue into the superior thyroid artery: a new intraoperative parathyroid protection method.

BACKGROUND: Postoperative hypoparathyroidism caused by parathyroid injury is a problem faced by thyroid surgeons. The current technologies for parathyroid imaging all have some defects. METHODS: Patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) who underwent unilateral thyroidectomy plus ipsilateral central lymph node dissection were recruited. We dissected the main trunk of the superior thyroid artery entering the thyroid gland and placed the venous indwelling tube into the artery. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) were calculated. RESULTS: A total of 132 patients enrolled in this single-arm clinical trial, 105 of them completed retrograde catheterization via the superior artery. The sensitivity was 69.23 and 83.33% respectively. The specificity was 72.91 and 64.89%. The accuracy was 72.91 and 64.89%. The PPV was 85.71 and 81.08%. The NPV was 22.58 and 45.45%. There were no patients with allergic reactions to the methylene blue, or methylene blue toxicity. CONCLUSIONS: Retrograde injection of methylene blue via the superior thyroid artery is an effective and safe method to visualize parathyroid glands. This method can accurately locate the target organ by ultraselecting the blood vessel and injecting the contrast agent while avoiding background contamination and reducing the amount of contrast agent. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Clinical trial registration numbers and date of registration: ChiCTR2300077263、02/11/2023.

Long-baseline quantum sensor network as dark matter haloscope.

Ultralight dark photons constitute a well-motivated candidate for dark matter. A coherent electromagnetic wave is expected to be induced by dark photons when coupled with Standard-Model photons through kinetic mixing mechanism, and should be spatially correlated within the de Broglie wavelength of dark photons. Here we report the first search for correlated dark-photon signals using a long-baseline network of 15 atomic magnetometers, which are situated in two separated meter-scale shield rooms with a distance of about 1700 km. Both the network's multiple sensors and the shields large size significantly enhance the expected dark-photon electromagnetic signals, and long-baseline measurements confidently reduce many local noise sources. Using this network, we constrain the kinetic mixing coefficient of dark photon dark matter over the mass range 4.1 feV-2.1 peV, which represents the most stringent constraints derived from any terrestrial experiments operating over the aforementioned mass range. Our prospect indicates that future data releases may go beyond the astrophysical constraints from the cosmic microwave background and the plasma heating.

Isolated Binary Fe-Ni Metal-Nitrogen Sites Anchored on Porous Carbon Nanosheets for Efficient Oxygen Electrocatalysis through High-Temperature Gas-Migration Strategy.

Atomically dispersed dual-site catalysts can regulate multiple reaction processes and provide synergistic functions based on diverse molecules and their interfaces. However, how to synthesize and stabilize dual-site single-atom catalysts (DACs) is confronted with challenges. Herein, we report a facile high-temperature gas-migration strategy to synthesize Fe-Ni DACs on nitrogen-doped carbon nanosheets (FeNiSAs/NC). FeNiSAs/NC exhibits a high half-wave potential (0.88 V) for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and a low overpotential of 410 mV at 10 mA cm-2 for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). As an air electrode for Zn-air batteries (ZABs), it shows better performances in aqueous ZABs and excellent stability and flexibility in solid-state ZABs. The high specific surface area (1687.32 m2/g) of FeNiSAs/NC is conducive to electron transport. Density functional theory (DFT) reveals that the Fe sites are the active center, and Ni sites can significantly optimize the free energy of the oxygen-containing intermediate state on Fe sites, contributing to the improvement of ORR and the corresponding OER activities. This work can provide guidance for the rational design of DACs and understand the structure-activity relationship of SACs with multiple active sites for electrocatalytic energy conversion.

RNA-seq-based comparative transcriptome analysis reveals the role of CsPrx73 in waterlogging-triggered adventitious root formation in cucumber.

Abiotic stressors like waterlogging are detrimental to cucumber development and growth. However, comprehension of the highly complex molecular mechanism underlying waterlogging can provide an opportunity to enhance cucumber tolerance under waterlogging stress. We examined the hypocotyl and stage-specific transcriptomes of the waterlogging-tolerant YZ026A and the waterlogging-sensitive YZ106A, which had different adventitious rooting ability under waterlogging. YZ026A performed better under waterlogging stress by altering its antioxidative machinery and demonstrated a greater superoxide ion (O 2-) scavenging ability. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis showed that a high number of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were enriched in phenylpropanoid biosynthesis. By pairwise comparison and weighted gene co-expression network analysis analysis, 2616 DEGs were obtained which were categorized into 11 gene co-expression modules. Amongst the 11 modules, black was identified as the common module and yielded a novel key regulatory gene, CsPrx73. Transgenic cucumber plants overexpressing CsPrx73 enhance adventitious root (AR) formation under waterlogging conditions and increase reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging. Silencing of CsPrx73 expression by virus-induced gene silencing adversely affects AR formation under the waterlogging condition. Our results also indicated that CsERF7-3, a waterlogging-responsive ERF transcription factor, can directly bind to the ATCTA-box motif in the CsPrx73 promoter to initiate its expression. Overexpression of CsERF7-3 enhanced CsPrx73 expression and AR formation. On the contrary, CsERF7-3-silenced plants decreased CsPrx73 expression and rooting ability. In conclusion , our study demonstrates a novel CsERF7-3-CsPrx73 module that allows cucumbers to adapt more efficiently to waterlogging stress by promoting AR production and ROS scavenging.

Platycodin D facilitates antiviral immunity through inhibiting cytokine storm via targeting K63-linked TRAF6 ubiquitination.

Influenza virus infection is a worldwide challenge that causes heavy burdens on public health. The mortality rate of severe influenza patients is often associated with hyperactive immunological abnormalities characterized by hypercytokinemia. Due to the continuous mutations and the occurrence of drug-resistant influenza virus strains, the development of host-directed immunoregulatory drugs is urgently required. Platycodon grandiflorum is among the top 10 herbs of traditional Chinese medicine used to treat pulmonary diseases. As one of the major terpenoid saponins extracted from Platycodon grandiflorum, Platycodin D (PD) has been reported to play several roles, including anti-inflammation, analgesia, anti-cancer, hepatoprotection, and immunoregulation. However, the therapeutic roles of PD to treat influenza virus infection remains unknown. Here, we show that PD can protect the body weight loss in severely infected influenza mice, alleviate lung damage, and thus improve the survival rate. More specifically, PD protects flu mice via decreasing the immune cell infiltration into lungs and downregulating the overactivated inflammatory response. Western blot and immunofluorescence assays exhibited that PD could inhibit the activation of TAK1/IKK/NF-κB and MAPK pathways. Besides that, CETSA, SPR and immunoprecipitation assays indicated that PD binds with TRAF6 to decrease its K63 ubiquitination after R837 stimulation. Additionally, siRNA interference experiments exhibited that PD could inhibit the secretion of IL-1ß and TNF-α in TRAF6-dependent manner. Altogether, our results suggested that PD is a promising drug candidate for treating influenza. Our study also offered a scientific explanation for the commonly used Platycodon grandiflorum in many anti-epidemic classic formulas. Due to its host-directed regulatory role, PD may serve as an adjuvant therapeutic drug in conjunction with other antiviral drugs to treat the flu.

Knockdown of the UL-16 binding protein 1 promotes osteoblast differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells by activating the SMAD2/3 pathway.

Osteoporosis is caused by the imbalance of osteoblasts and osteoclasts. The regulatory mechanisms of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in pathogenesis of osteoporosis are of significant and needed to be further investigated. GSE100609 dataset downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database was used to identified DEGs in osteoporosis patients. KEGG analysis was conducted to demonstrate signaling pathways related to enriched genes. Osteoporosis patients and the human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) were obtained for in vivo and in vitro resaerch. Lentivirus construction and viral infection was used to knockdown genes. mRNA expression and protein expression were detected via qRT-PCR and western blot assay separately. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity detection, alizarin Red S (ARS) staining, and expression of bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2), osteocalcin (OCN) and Osterix were evaluated to determine osteoblast differentiation capacity. UL-16 binding protein 1 (ULBP1) gene was upregulated in osteoporosis and downregulated in differentiated hMSCs. Knockdown of ULBP1 increased ALP activity, mineralization ability evaluated by ARS staining, expression of BMP2, OCN and Osterix in differentiated hMSCs. Furthermore, rescue experiment demonstrated that suppressed ULBP1 boosted osteoblast differentiation by activating TNF-ß signaling pathway. Knockdown of ULBP1 gene could promoted osteoblast differentiation by activating TNF-ß signaling pathway in differentiated hMSCs. ULBP1 may be a the Achilles' heel of osteoporosis, and suppression of ULBP1 could be a promising treatment for osteoporosis.

Pleiotropic Role of Rainbow Trout CXCRs in Response to Disease and Environment: Insights from Transcriptional Signatures and Structure Analysis.

Chemokines are cytokines with chemoattractant capacities that exert their physiological functions through the binding of chemokine receptors. Thus, chemokine and receptor complexes exert important roles in regulating development and homeostasis during routine immune surveillance and inflammation. Compared to mammals, the physiology and structure of chemokine receptors in fish have not been systematically studied. Furthermore, the salmonid-specific whole genome duplication has significantly increased the number of functional paralogs of chemokine receptors. In this context, in the current study, trout exhibited 17 cxcr genes, including 12 newly identified and 5 previously identified receptors. Interestingly, gene expression of brain cxcr1 and cxcr4, kidney cxcr3 and cxcr4, and spleen cxcr3, cxcr4, and cxcr5 subtypes were altered by bacterial infection, whereas brain cxcr1, kidney cxcr1 and cxcr7, and liver cxcr2, cxcr3, and cxcr4 subtypes were changed in response to environmental changes. Based on protein structures predicted by ColabFold, the conserved amino acids in binding pockets between trout CXCR4.1 subtypes and human CXCR4 were also analyzed. Our study is valuable from a comparative point of view, providing new insights into the identification and physiology of salmonid chemokine receptors.

Root topological order drives variation of fine root vessel traits and hydraulic strategies in tropical trees.

Vessel traits contribute to plant water transport from roots to leaves and thereby influence how plants respond to soil water availability, but the sources of variation in fine roots anatomical traits remain poorly understood. Here, we explore the variations of fine root vessel traits along topological orders within and across tropical tree species. Anatomical traits were measured along five root topological orders in 80 individual trees of 20 species from a tropical forest in southwestern China. We found large variations for most root anatomical traits across topological orders, but strong covariations between vessel traits. Within species, theoretical specific xylem hydraulic conductivity (Kth) increased with topological order due to increased mean vessel diameter, size heterogeneity and decreased vessel density. Across species, Kth was associated with vessel fraction in low-order roots and correlated with mean vessel diameter and vessel density in high-order roots, suggesting a shift in relative anatomical contributors to Kth from the second- to fifth-order roots. We found no clear relationships between Kth and stele: root diameter ratios. Our study shows strong variations in root vessel traits across topological orders and species, and highlights shifts in the anatomical underpinnings by varying vessel-related anatomical structures for an optimized water supply.

The Sympatric Coexistence Mechanism: A Case Study of Two Penahia Species in the Beibu Gulf, South China Sea.

The study of trophic relationships among closely related species plays an important role in deepening our understanding of the resource utilization characteristics, differentiation patterns, and population dynamics of co-occurring species in the same habitat. This research uses two congeneric fish species, Pennahia pawak and Pennahia anea, as examples. Based on a stomach content analysis and a carbon-nitrogen stable isotope analysis, a comparative analysis of their feeding habits and trophic niches is conducted. Additionally, a spatial niche analysis is employed to explore the coexistence and competitive mechanisms between these two closely related fish species. The results show that specialized feeding habits mitigate intraspecific competition as the population densities increase. The carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis reveals variations in the feeding habits and trophic levels with body length, indicating adaptive shifts in prey selection. Despite similar food resources, niche differentiation arises due to differences in dominant prey, facilitating coexistence. Differences in spatial niche further contribute to niche separation and coexistence. In resource-limited environments, species such as Pennahia utilize trophic and spatial niche differentiation to collectively exploit resources and achieve coexistence, with implications for fishery management favoring Pennahia resource occupancy capabilities.

WSB1/2 target chromatin-bound lysine-methylated RelA for proteasomal degradation and NF-κB termination.

Proteasome-mediated degradation of chromatin-bound NF-κB is critical in terminating the transcription of pro-inflammatory genes and can be triggered by Set9-mediated lysine methylation of the RelA subunit. However, the E3 ligase targeting methylated RelA remains unknown. Here, we find that two structurally similar substrate-recognizing components of Cullin-RING E3 ligases, WSB1 and WSB2, can recognize chromatin-bound methylated RelA for polyubiquitination and proteasomal degradation. We showed that WSB1/2 negatively regulated a subset of NF-κB target genes via associating with chromatin where they targeted methylated RelA for ubiquitination, facilitating the termination of NF-κB-dependent transcription. WSB1/2 specifically interacted with methylated lysines (K) 314 and 315 of RelA via their N-terminal WD-40 repeat (WDR) domains, thereby promoting ubiquitination of RelA. Computational modeling further revealed that a conserved aspartic acid (D) at position 158 within the WDR domain of WSB2 coordinates K314/K315 of RelA, with a higher affinity when either of the lysines is methylated. Mutation of D158 abolished WSB2's ability to bind to and promote ubiquitination of methylated RelA. Together, our study identifies a novel function and the underlying mechanism for WSB1/2 in degrading chromatin-bound methylated RelA and preventing sustained NF-κB activation, providing potential new targets for therapeutic intervention of NF-κB-mediated inflammatory diseases.

Dietary Shifts in the Adaptation to Changing Marine Resources: Insights from a Decadal Study on Greater Lizardfish (Saurida tumbil) in the Beibu Gulf, South China Sea.

Understanding dietary behavior during the individual development of marine predators and its temporal variations elucidates how species adapt to changes in marine resources. This is crucial for predicting marine predators' habitat selection and the natural population's responses to environmental changes. The authors conducted a comparative analysis of dietary shift strategies and trophic level variations in Greater lizardfish (Saurida tumbil) in the Beibu Gulf during two distinct periods (2010 and 2020) using stomach content and stable isotope analysis methods. Possible driving factors for these changes were also explored. Changes in the fishery community structure and the decline in the abundance of primary prey resources have led the S. tumbil population to diversify their prey species, utilize alternative resources, and expand their foraging space. However, the species' foraging strategy, characterized by chasing and preying on schooling and pelagic prey, promoted stability in their feeding behavior across spatial and temporal scales. The main prey items remained demersal and pelagic fish species, followed by cephalopods and crustaceans. Similar to other generalist fish species, ontogenetic dietary shifts (ODSs) indicated a partial transition towards larger prey items. However, the timing and magnitude of the ODSs varied between the two periods, reflecting life-history variations and adaptive adjustments to environmental changes. In comparison to 2010, the population's mean body length (BL) increased in 2020, and the proportion of the population feeding on pelagic-neritic prey significantly increased. However, the δ15N values were lower, indicating that the shift in the ecological niche of preferred prey from demersal to pelagic-neritic was the primary cause of the decrease in trophic levels. In the future, we will conduct further quantitative research integrating the spatiotemporal data of both predators and prey to clarify the relationships between marine predators' feeding behavior, trophic levels, and changes in prey community structure.

Transition from Schottky to Ohmic contacts in 2D Ge/GaAs heterostructures with high tunneling probability.

The metal-semiconductor (M-S) contact is usually an Ohmic contact or a Schottky contact, which greatly affects the electronic properties of devices, and it remains a huge challenge to realize a low-resistance Ohmic contact in a metal-semiconductor junction (MSJ). Herein, we systematically studied the band structures, electrostatic potential, charge transfer, Schottky barrier height of carriers, effective carrier masses, and tunneling probability of carriers of a germanene (Ge)/GaAs MSJ. The transition from the Schottky to the Ohmic contact can be caused by applying certain biaxial strains or electric fields, which weakens the Fermi level pinning (FLP) effect and reduces contact resistance. Meanwhile, the electron injection efficiency of Ge/(GaAs)As MSJ (PTB > 27%) is far superior to that of other two-dimensional (2D) vdW MSJs. This work indicates that Ge/GaAs heterostructures are the most compatible for applying high-effective 2D electronic nanodevices under controllable conditions.

Biaxial strain tuned upconversion photoluminescence of monolayer WS2.

Monolayer tungsten disulfide (1L-WS2) is a direct bandgap atomic-layered semiconductor material with strain tunable optical and optoelectronic properties among the monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides (1L-TMDs). Here, we demonstrate biaxial strain tuned upconversion photoluminescence (UPL) from exfoliated 1L-WS2 flakes transferred on a flexible polycarbonate cruciform substrate. When the biaxial strain applied to 1L-WS2 increases from 0 to 0.51%, it is observed that the UPL peak position is redshifted by up to 60 nm/% strain, while the UPL intensity exhibits exponential growth with the upconversion energy difference varying from - 303 to - 120 meV. The measured power dependence of UPL from 1L-WS2 under biaxial strain reveals the one photon involved multiphonon-mediated upconversion mechanism. The demonstrated results provide new opportunities in advancing TMD-based optical upconversion devices for future flexible photonics and optoelectronics.

A flexible pH sensor based on polyaniline@oily polyurethane/polypropylene spunbonded nonwoven fabric.

To fabricate a two-electrode flexible pH sensor based on polypropylene spunbonded nonwoven fabric (PP SF), oily polyurethane (OPU) was first coated on the surface of PP SF to obtain OPU/PP SF. Then, silver/silver chloride (Ag/AgCl) paste, used as the reference electrode and conductive carbon (C) paste were transferred to the OPU/PP SF surface through screen printing. Polyaniline (PANI) was deposited on the surface of the C paste to form a sensing working electrode via the electro-chemical deposition method. The results showed that the surface of the obtained PANI@OPU/PP SF flexible pH sensor (3D PANI pH sensor) presented a three-dimensional (3D) porous network structure. The 3D PANI pH sensor had good mechanical properties, an excellent Nernst response (-67.67 mV pH-1) and linearity (R2 = 0.99) in the pH range from 2.00 to 8.00 in the normal state. In the bent state, the 3D PANI pH sensor retained similar sensitivity (-68.87 mV pH-1) and linearity (R2 = 0.99). Moreover, the 3D PANI pH sensor exhibited a short response time (8 s), excellent reversibility (1.20 mV), low temperature drift (-0.0872 mV pH-1 °C-1) and long-term stability (0.83 mV h-1) in the normal state. Furthermore, the 3D PANI pH sensor can be effectively applied for pH monitoring of liquids and fruits with irregular curved surfaces. The error margin is no more than 0.16 compared to a commercial pH meter.

Self-Charging Aqueous Zn//COF Battery with UltraHigh Self-Charging Efficiency and Rate.

Self-charging zinc batteries that combine energy harvesting technology with batteries are candidates for reliable self-charging power systems. However, the lack of rational materials design results in unsatisfactory self-charging performance. Here, a covalent organic framework containing pyrene-4,5,9,10-tetraone groups (COF-PTO) is reported as a cathode material for aqueous self-charging zinc batteries. The ordered channel structure of the COF-PTO provides excellent capacity retention of 98% after 18 000 cycles at 10 A g-1 and ultra-fast ion transfer. To visually assess the self-charging performance, two parameters, namely self-charging efficiency (self-charging discharge capacity/galvanostatic discharge capacity, η) and average self-charging rate (total discharge capacity after cyclic self-charging/total cyclic self-charging time, ν), are proposed for performance evaluation. COF-PTO achieves an impressive η of 96.9% and an ν of 30 mAh g-1 self-charge capacity per hour in 100 self-charging cycles, surpassing the previous reports. Mechanism studies reveal the co-insertion of Zn2+ and H+ double ions in COF-PTO of self-charging zinc batteries. In addition, the C═N and C═O (on the benzene) in COF-PTO are ortho structures to each other, which can easily form metal heterocycles with Zn ions, thereby driving the forward progress of the self-charging reaction and enhancing the self-charging performance.

Dynamical characteristics of honeycomb two-dimensional gyroscopic metamaterials.

Suppression of noise and vibration suppression is important in various fields, such as the living environment, industrial development, and national defense and security. The bandgap properties of phononic crystal metamaterials provide an approach for controlling and eliminating harmful vibrations in equipment and noise in the environment. In this study, we used two types of two-dimensional honeycomb gyroscopic metamaterials: free and constrained. The dynamic equations of the two systems were established using angular momentum and Lagrange theorems. The dispersion relations of the two systems were obtained based on the Bloch theorem, and the influence of the gyroscope angular momentum or gyroscope speed on the dispersion relations was analyzed. Numerical simulations were conducted to analyze the wave propagation characteristics and polarization under different excitation conditions in a limited space for both types of metamaterial structures. The constrained-type and free-type metamaterials were compared, and the regularities of the dispersion relations and wave propagation characteristics by the gyroscope effect were summarized. This study provided a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of the bandgap and wave propagation properties of gyroscopic metamaterials and provided ideas for the design of bandgap modulation in metamaterials.

Prevalence of and risk factors for myopia among urban and rural children in Northeast China: protocol for a school-based cross-sectional study.

INTRODUCTION: The worldwide prevalence of myopia is high and continues to increase. In this study, a school screening programme for myopia will be implemented using the whole-process information method. The purpose of this study is to investigate the prevalence of myopia in urban and rural areas of Northeast China and to determine the factors related to myopia. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This is a school-based cross-sectional study. Our study population will include 6000 school-aged children from 2 urban and 2 rural schools in Jinzhou, China. The study will be conducted using our self-developed internet-based intelligent data collection, transmission, storage and analysis system. Examination parameters include uncorrected distance visual acuity, presenting distance visual acuity, non-cycloplegic autorefraction, height, weight, waist circumference, hip circumference, spinal curvature and dental caries. The examination report will be automatically sent to parents, who will complete the questionnaire, and appropriate statistical analysis will be performed. The main outcome is the prevalence of myopia, defined as an equivalent spherical degree ≤-0.5 D. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval was obtained from the Third Affiliated Hospital of Jinzhou Medical University (number: JYDSY-KXYJ-IEC-2023-018). Findings will be published in a peer-reviewed journal. Subjects and their parents (or other authorised agents) give informed consent prior to study participation. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ChiCTR2300072893.

Efficient construction of functionalized pyrroloindolines through cascade radical cyclization/intermolecular coupling.

Pyrroloindolines are important structural units in nature and the pharmaceutical industry, however, most approaches to such structures involve transition-metal or photoredox catalysts. Herein, we describe the first tandem SET/radical cyclization/intermolecular coupling between 2-azaallyl anions and indole acetamides. This method enables the transition-metal-free synthesis of C3a-substituted pyrroloindolines under mild and convenient conditions. The synthetic utility of this transformation is demonstrated by the construction of an array of C3a-methylamine pyrroloindolines with good functional group tolerance and yields. Gram-scale sequential one-pot synthesis and hydrolysis reactions demonstrate the potential synthetic utility and scalability of this approach.