Although centrosomes nucleate and organize microtubules in mitotically-dividing cells, spindles in female reproductive cells (oocytes) form in their absence. In some organisms acentrosomal spindle assembly is mediated by acentriolar microtubule organizing centers (MTOCs) that are thought to functionally replace centrosomes. However, spindle assembly in human oocytes does not require MTOCs;...
Melanopsin-expressing, intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) represent a class of non-canonical, ganglion cell photoreceptors. These cells influence a variety of visual behaviors including contrast sensitivity, circadian photoentrainment, sleep, and even mood. These wide-ranging behavioral influences are attributed to the multiple subtypes (M1-6) that comprise the ipRGC population, with different...
The discovery of abundant reserves of shale gas over this past decade has reshaped the world’s energy landscape. It has renewed interests in the activation and conversion of methane as well as other light alkanes. While the oxidative coupling of methane (OCM) and oxidative dehydrogenation (ODH) of ethane and propane...
Millions of people freelance in the growing online gig economy, making it important to advance pay equity and support freelancers in earning their livelihoods online. Compared to offline employment, freelancing introduces at least two challenges that threaten freelancers’ ability to secure work and the equitability of the gig economy: 1)...
We rely on the properties of our skeletal muscles to traverse our world, interact with objects, and complete everyday tasks. The macroscopic properties of muscles that endow us with these abilities arise from the material properties of muscle fibers and the surrounding extracellular matrix (ECM), as well as how they...
The integration of field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) into large scale computing systems is gaining attention. In these systems, real-time data handling for networking, tasks for scientific computing, and machine learning can be executed with customized datapaths on reconfigurable fabric within heterogeneous compute nodes. At the same time, high-level synthesis (HLS)...
Multistage optimization is a prominent modeling tool to solve a broad range of dynamic decision-making problems in the presence of uncertainty. However, computing optimal policies is intractable, since they are obtained by considering all possible realizations of uncertainties and subsequent future decisions over time. To overcome these challenges, we present...
Chemical modifications of oligonucleotides (ONs) have advanced these molecules towards clinical approvals. On their own, native ONs have poor pharmacokinetic properties, such as rapid degradation by nucleases and poor cell uptake, which limit their potential therapeutic applications. Chemical modifications of ONs can increase their stability, alter their interactions with cells,...
The development of new catalytic methodologies for the precision synthesis of carbon-carbon bonds is central to the advancement of synthetic organic chemistry. Significant focuses of these efforts are made on the enantio- and diastereoselective synthesis of carbon frameworks, especially as chemists and biologists become more aware of the impact of...
After spending most of her flight back to Ghana writing a letter to her estranged lover, Sissie, Ama Ata Aidoo’s protagonist in Our Sister Killjoy, observes the actions of her fellow passengers and reads the atmosphere onboard the airplane as that of “another human market-place.” Sissie’s statement transports into her...