Marc A.

Targeting cells for ablation, gene therapy or drug delivery is an ongoing challenge in development of therapeutics. With the goal of efficiently labeling cell surfaces based on target recognition, we linked the well-established engineered ultraID biotin ligase to cell-surface affinity reagents to enable catalytic installation of tags on the surface of cells. Biotin ligase conjugated to nanobodies against cell surface proteins exhibited an order of magnitude increase in cell labeling compared to nanobody alone. Biotin labeling of cells remained efficient at low nanomolar concentrations of the conjugate, and was stable for at least 4 h. By testing a swath of antibody-biotin ligase conjugates against various targets and cell types, we confirmed the feasibility and generalizability of this approach. Administration of biotin ligase-conjugated antibodies into animals efficiently biotinylated the expected target cells. Biotinylated target cells were subsequently detectable with fluorescent streptavidin injected into the same mice. Enzyme mediated cell targeting thus provides an efficient and modular platform for biotinylation and detection of cells expressing specific surface targets with potential applications for research and therapeutics.

Advances in molecular epidemiology and computational modeling have improved our ability to track pathogen evolution, but accurate reconstruction of...

Iron is a primary constituent of terrestrial planetary cores. Through direct measurements of Fe strength at 310-430 GPa and 3700-5800 K, and simulations, the authors study rheological properties of iron under conditions approaching those of Earth's inner core.

This Review discusses global approaches to infectious disease analysis and modeling, focusing on federated methods and addressing long-standing challenges in data interoperability, equity and trust.

Genomics reveals a major cluster of coadapted loci underpinning repeated ecotype evolution in landlocked freshwater fishes. Migratory ‘jackpot’ individuals carry intact sequences essential for rapid life-history shifts.

Background: Problematic smartphone usage among adolescents and young adults is a growing concern. Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether depressive symptoms mediate the relationship between academic stress and problematic smartphone usage, and, more importantly, whether problem-focused coping moderates the association between academic stress and depressive symptoms. Method: The sample comprised of 316 middle school students (46.8% males, M¼13.74 years old, SD¼0.87) in Southwest China. The results showed that depressive symptoms mediated the association between academic stress and problematic smartphone usage. Results: This indirect relationship was conditioned by the degree of problem-focused coping. Specifically, those with lower or moderate levels of problem-focused coping tended to report more depressive symptoms, which in turn led to a higher score on problematic smartphone usage. However, this indirect relationship was weakened for those with higher levels of problem-focused coping. Conclusions: Thus, problem-focused coping should be cultivated when designing mental health interventions to reduce problematic smartphone usage among adolescents.

R. Edward Freeman and colleagues think of the stakeholder approach as a “genre”: “rather than being a specific theory used for one purpose…, seeing stakeholder theory as a ‘genre’ is to recognize the value and variety of uses one...

While conventional nanocarriers like liposomes are effective for small-molecule delivery, their fabrication often involves complex, multi-step processes.

Challenge High school research pipeline programs heighten the awareness of students to STEM careers. A critical component of these programs is mentorship of these students, often by graduate students. Unfortunately, STEM graduate students are not typically trained in mentorship, limiting their effectiveness in leadership and instruction. This was evident in our high school outreach effort, the Duke Research in Engineering Program (DukeREP), where mentors reported a lack of understanding of mentee expectations/knowledge and a desire to improve their mentor-mentee relationship and teaching capabilities. Novel Initiative DukeREP PhD student leaders and faculty jointly designed a formal mentorship and leadership course. We generated a concept map to coalesce on four themes that encompass mentorship best practices: Mentoring as teaching, leadership and character, community-building, and fostering wellbeing. Active-learning pedagogy and translational deliverables were implemented into the curriculum, culminating in a mentorship portfolio. Reflection We successfully trained 15 graduate student mentors with the course. Thematic and phrase frequency analyses on student reflections identified that the course improved the self-efficacy, professional and technical skills, and knowledge of graduate student mentors. This empowered them to cultivate a healthy, student-focused, and collaborative learning environment. Investigating this impact with Likert surveys, DukeREP contributed to the short- and long-term professional and technical development and STEM interests of mentees. Our course’s ability to develop successful mentors emphasizes the need to introduce mentorship and leadership training to all graduate students.

Arrays of hybrid metal-semiconductor quantum dots offer a new approach to quantum simulation, with key advantages over arrays of conventional quantum dots.