R. Nakamura

Cnidarian pharyngeal nervous system illustrates prebilaterian neurosecretory regulation of feeding

The paper identifies a cnidarian oral/pharyngeal nervous system with features similar to bilaterian neurosecretory brain centers, suggesting an evolutionary precursor for feeding regulation.

Diverse Phosphoserine Phosphatases Exhibit Maximum Activity at an Intermediate Binding Affinity in Accord with the Sabatier Principle of Catalysis

This paper shows that phosphoserine phosphatases exhibit maximum activity at an intermediate binding affinity, supporting the Sabatier principle of catalysis when considering both Km and the product release rate constant.

Universal Design Principle to Enhance Enzymatic Activity using the Substrate Affinity

The paper demonstrates that setting the Michaelis-Menten constant (Km) equal to substrate concentration (S) maximizes enzymatic activity, providing a quantitative guideline for enzyme optimization.

Global observation of plankton communities from space

The paper uses satellite data and machine learning to predict global plankton community distributions with 67% accuracy, outperforming temperature and chlorophyll a alone.

Mesophyll specific expression of a bacterial mercury transporter-based vacuolar sequestration machinery sufficiently enhances mercury tolerance of Arabidopsis.

This paper demonstrates that mesophyll-specific expression of a bacterial mercury transporter-based vacuolar sequestration system enhances Arabidopsis mercury tolerance.

Development of affinity beads-based in vitro metal-ligand binding assay reveals dominant cadmium affinity of thiol-rich small peptides phytochelatins beyond glutathione

The paper develops an in vitro metal-ligand binding assay using affinity beads to show that phytochelatins have stronger cadmium binding affinity than glutathione.

An Experimental Test of the Effects of Redacting Grant Applicant Identifiers on Peer Review Outcomes

This study tests if redacting grant applicant identities reduces bias in peer review, finding that redaction reduces but does not eliminate racial score differences.

A Second Generation Leishmanization Vaccine with a Markerless Attenuated Leishmania major Strain using CRISPR gene editing

This paper describes a CRISPR-edited Leishmania major strain for a second-generation leishmanization vaccine that is marker-free and safe, showing protection in mice comparable to traditional leishmanization.

Exploration of natural red-shifted rhodopsins using a machine learning-based Bayesian experimental design

The paper uses a machine learning model to identify red-shifted rhodopsins, finding 80% of selected candidates show red-shift gains, with some having desirable ion-transporting properties.

CO2 reduction driven by a pH gradient

This study demonstrates CO2 reduction by H2 using pH gradients and Fe(Ni)S precipitates, producing formate and revealing an electrochemical mechanism.

Safety assessment of a novel C-type natriuretic peptide derivative and the mechanism of bone- and cartilage-specific toxicity

This study assesses the safety of ASB20123, a C-type natriuretic peptide derivative, showing bone- and cartilage-specific toxicity linked to growth acceleration and identifying epiphyseal plate thickness and BMD as biomarkers.

Addiction of mesenchymal phenotypes on the FGF/FGFR axis in oral squamous cell carcinoma cells

This study shows that autocrine FGF-FGFR(IIIc) signaling sustains ZEB1/2 expression and mesenchymal phenotypes in oral squamous cell carcinoma cells.