Physiology articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article |

    Glucocorticoid levels in the body are controlled by an intricate feedback system acting on the hypothalamus. Here the authors provide molecular insight into this process, identifying TrkB signalling in cholecystokinin-GABAergic neurons as a key component of hypothalamic glucocorticoid signalling.

    • Mirjam Geibel
    • , Sylvia Badurek
    •  & Liliana Minichiello

  • Article |

    Tools for cardiac physiological mapping are important for basic and clinical cardiac research. Here the authors use 3D printing to create a thin, elastic silicone sheath that fits tightly around the entire epicardium and contains sensors to measure a variety of physiological parameters of the beating heart ex vivo.

    • Lizhi Xu
    • , Sarah R. Gutbrod
    •  & John A. Rogers

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The transcription factor interferon regulatory factor 8 (IRF8) is known to regulate differentiation and function of immune cells. Here the authors show that IRF8 is upregulated in the hypertrophic heart in humans and mice, where it suppresses cardiac remodelling by inhibiting calcineurin signalling.

    • Ding-Sheng Jiang
    • , Xiang Wei
    •  & Hongliang Li

  • Article |

    The milk-ejection reflex in mammals requires the coordinated bursting of oxytocin neurons in the hypothalamus. Here, Israel et al.show that the rhythmic bursting behaviour displayed by these neurons is active in both male and female neonatal rats, but is inactivated in males after the first week of life.

    • Jean-Marc Israel
    • , Jean-Marie Cabelguen
    •  & Philippe Ciofi

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The precise regulation of mammalian body temperature is important for survival. Here the authors show that the peptidase nardilysin represses the transcription factor PGC-1α, and identify nardilysin as a regulator of basal body temperature, cold-induced thermogenesis and body insulation.

    • Yoshinori Hiraoka
    • , Tatsuhiko Matsuoka
    •  & Eiichiro Nishi

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The conversion of testosterone into oestrogen in the brain is implicated in male aggressive behaviour. Ubuka et al.show that gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone inhibits male aggression by increasing oestrogen synthesis in the brain beyond its optimum concentration for the expression of aggressive behaviour.

    • Takayoshi Ubuka
    • , Shogo Haraguchi
    •  & Kazuyoshi Tsutsui

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The human lung contains Lgr6-positive progenitor cells, which have the potential to generate multiple epithelial lineages in cell explant studies. Here, the authors present a role of p38a MAPK signalling in regulating the cross-talk between this lung progenitor cell population and the stromal and endothelial cells comprising their niche microenvironment.

    • E. Josue Ruiz
    • , Feride Oeztuerk-Winder
    •  & Juan-Jose Ventura

  • Article |

    Alterations in hepatocyte metabolism can lead to disorders such as non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Here the authors create a comprehensive model of hepatocyte metabolism and use it to identify metabolic pathways altered in disease, revealing that serine levels are reduced in patients with NASH.

    • Adil Mardinoglu
    • , Rasmus Agren
    •  & Jens Nielsen

  • Article |

    Identifying functionally important features of complex biological networks is computationally challenging. Ganter et al.develop a probabilistic framework that uses recurrent metabolite patterns to predict the properties and existence of reactions within a genome-scale metabolic network.

    • Mathias Ganter
    • , Hans-Michael Kaltenbach
    •  & Jörg Stelling

  • Article |

    Findings from ex vivo studies suggest that gap junctional coupling contributes to hormone release in neuroendocrine/endocrine tissues. Here, the authors provide in vivo evidence that direct communication between adrenal chromaffin cells viagap junctions contributes to catecholamine secretion.

    • Michel G. Desarménien
    • , Carole Jourdan
    •  & Nathalie C. Guérineau

  • Article |

    The mitochondrial calcium uniporter supports oxidative phosphorylation in mammals; however, it is also present in blood-stage trypanosomes, which lack a functional respiratory chain. Huang et al. show that the mitochondrial calcium uniporter is essential for blood-stage survival and metabolism in Trypanosoma brucei.

    • Guozhong Huang
    • , Anibal E. Vercesi
    •  & Roberto Docampo

  • Article |

    Methane is a promising renewable carbon source for chemical synthesis, yet methane bio-gas is currently underutilised as a feedstock. Here the authors examine the metabolic processes of methanotrophic bacteria to assess their use for conversion of methane to value-added chemical products.

    • M. G. Kalyuzhnaya
    • , S. Yang
    •  & M. E. Lidstrom

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Wnt7a regulates various aspects of skeletal muscle function. Here, the authors show that a truncated Wnt7a protein lacking the palmitoylation domain retains its biological activity in skeletal muscle, suggesting that simplified Wnt7a proteins may be viable as Wnt-based therapeutics.

    • Julia von Maltzahn
    • , Radoslav Zinoviev
    •  & Michael A. Rudnicki

  • Article |

    The calcium-selective Orai1 channel regulates cytosolic calcium levels in a variety of cells. Here the authors use transgenic mice with muscle-specific expression of dysfunctional Orai1 to show that Orai1-mediated store-operated calcium entry promotes growth and limits fatigue of adult skeletal muscle.

    • Lan Wei-LaPierre
    • , Ellie M. Carrell
    •  & Robert T. Dirksen

  • Article |

    Nodal signalling has been implicated in the asymmetric positioning of various organs. Here, Noël et al.show that the asymmetry of the embryonic zebrafish heart is also established in the absence of Nodal signalling, suggesting a Nodal-independent mechanism that relies on actomyosin activity.

    • Emily S. Noël
    • , Manon Verhoeven
    •  & Jeroen Bakkers

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The transcription factor Sox17 is required for the development of the vasculature in vertebrates. Here Corada et al. show that Sox17 acts downstream of Wnt signalling and upstream of Notch signalling in the regulation of artery and vein differentiation in mice.

    • Monica Corada
    • , Fabrizio Orsenigo
    •  & Elisabetta Dejana

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Hemichannels and gap junctions containing the connexin Cx37 are required for platelet functions such as aggregation and granule secretion through poorly defined mechanisms. Vaiyapuri et al. show that Cx40 is also required and can act independently of Cx37 in mouse platelets.

    • Sakthivel Vaiyapuri
    • , Leonardo A. Moraes
    •  & Jonathan M. Gibbins

  • Article |

    The kisspeptin receptor GPR54 is implicated in the maintenance of mammalian fertility. Kirilov et al.study GPR54 mutant mice and identify a subset of neurons in the brain expressing gonadotropin-releasing hormone as the critical site for kisspeptin action.

    • Milen Kirilov
    • , Jenny Clarkson
    •  & Allan E. Herbison

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Mutations in the metalloproteinase Zmpste24 preclude prelamin A processing and cause premature ageing. Here, de la Rosaet al.create mosaic Zmpste24 mice, revealing that cell-extrinsic effects are essential for accelerated ageing caused by prelamin A accumulation and that prelamin A reduces invasiveness of cancer cells.

    • Jorge de la Rosa
    • , José M.P. Freije
    •  & Carlos López-Otín

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Endothermy facilitated mammalian species radiation, but the events leading to sustained thermogenesis are not clear. Here, the authors report functional brown adipose tissue in a protoendothermic mammal, linking nonshivering thermogenesis directly to the roots of eutherian endothermic evolution.

    • Rebecca Oelkrug
    • , Nadja Goetze
    •  & Carola W. Meyer

  • Article |

    Energy demand in muscle is largely due to maintaining the membrane potential of muscle fibres. Jimenez et al.study the metabolic cost of maintaining the membrane potential of muscle fibres across different species of crustaceans and fishes, and find that larger fibres are metabolically cheaper to maintain.

    • Ana Gabriela Jimenez
    • , Richard M. Dillaman
    •  & Stephen T. Kinsey

  • Article |

    Haplotypes in CNR1, the gene encoding the cannabinoid receptor CB1, are known to influence HDL cholesterol levels. Here Feng and colleagues identify rs806371 as a novel regulatory element reducing CNR1 gene expression and as the causal allele driving the association between CNR1 and HDL cholesterol levels in humans.

    • Q. Feng
    • , K.C. Vickers
    •  & R.A. Wilke

  • Article |

    The number of primordial follicles, which constitute the ovarian reserve, decreases with age. By overexpressing a constitutively active version of the transcription factor FOXO3, the authors increase the ovarian reserve and fertility in aging female mice.

    • Emanuele Pelosi
    • , Shakib Omari
    •  & Chris Ottolenghi

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The gut microbiota produces metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), which can influence the development of obesity. Here Kimura et al.show that SCFAs act via the receptor GPR43, which acts as a sensor for excessive dietary energy and controls body energy utilization as well as metabolic homoeostasis.

    • Ikuo Kimura
    • , Kentaro Ozawa
    •  & Gozoh Tsujimoto

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The protein spinster is implicated in Drosophilacourtship behaviour. Sakurai and colleagues identify two clusters of spinster-expressing interneurons, and show that these cells are required for female receptivity to male advances.

    • Akira Sakurai
    • , Masayuki Koganezawa
    •  & Daisuke Yamamoto

  • Article |

    Vascular permeability is increased by inflammation and in disorders such as acute respiratory distress syndrome. Mammoto et al. show that lung vascular permeability is controlled by the stiffness of the extracellular matrix and identify lysyl oxidase as a regulator of vascular leakage in pulmonary oedema in mice.

    • Akiko Mammoto
    • , Tadanori Mammoto
    •  & Donald E. Ingber

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Bone is a natural composite of collagen and hydroxyapatite but, surprising, little is known about its characteristics at the molecular scale. Nair et al. conduct molecular-scale simulations of mineralized collagen networks to better understand how bone achieves superior mechanical properties to its constituents.

    • Arun K. Nair
    • , Alfonso Gautieri
    •  & Markus J. Buehler

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Vascular endothelial growth factor is implicated in blood vessel development. In zebrafish, Hayashi et al. find that blood vessel development is dependent on the suppression of vascular endothelial growth factor by the phosphatase VE-PTP, which is recruited by activation of the angiopoietin receptor Tie2.

    • Makoto Hayashi
    • , Arindam Majumdar
    •  & Lena Claesson-Welsh

  • Article |

    Cardiac and endocardial/endothelial cells arise from progenitor cells expressing multiple haematopoietic transcription factors. Nakano and colleagues find that Nkx2–5-positive endocardial cells serve as a de novosource for definitive haematopoietic progenitors during mammalian embryogenesis.

    • Haruko Nakano
    • , Xiaoqian Liu
    •  & Atsushi Nakano

  • Article |

    Changes in the biosynthesis of fatty acids can influence tissue insulin sensitivity and the development of metabolic diseases. Eissing and colleagues show that de novolipogenesis in liver and adipose tissue is linked to metabolic health in humans and can be modulated by bariatric surgery.

    • Leah Eissing
    • , Thomas Scherer
    •  & Ludger Scheja

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