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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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30 records · Page 2

Serum starvation of ARPE-19 changes the cellular distribution of cholesterol and Fibulin3 in patterns reminiscent of age-related macular degeneration

Highlights: • Serum deprivation regulates cholesterol levels in confluent RPE cells. • Serum deprivation leads to specific distributions of cholesterol and Fibulin3. • The patterns of protein and lipid deposition resemble those in AMD eyes. Retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) has been implicated as key source of cholesterol-rich deposits at Bruch's membrane (BrM) and in drusen in aging human eye. We have shown that serum-deprivation of confluent RPE cells is associated with upregulation of cholesterol synthesis and accumulation of unesterified cholesterol (UC). Here we investigate the cellular processes involved in this response. We compared the distribution and localization of UC and esterified cholesterol (EC); the age-related macular degeneration (AMD) associated EFEMP1/Fibulin3 (Fib3); and levels of acyl-coenzyme A (CoA): cholesterol acyltransferases (ACAT) ACAT1, ACAT2 and Apolipoprotein B (ApoB) in ARPE-19 cells cultured in serum-supplemented and serum-free media. The results were compared with distributions of these lipids and proteins in human donor eyes with AMD. Serum deprivation of ARPE-19 was associated with increased formation of FM dye-positive membrane vesicles, many of which co-labeled for UC. Additionally, UC colocalized with Fib3 in distinct granules. By day 5, serum-deprived cells grown on transwells secreted Fib3 basally into the matrix. While mRNA and protein levels of ACTA1 were constant over several days of serum-deprivation, ACAT2 levels increased significantly after serum-deprivation, suggesting increased formation of EC. The lower levels of intracellular EC observed under serum-deprivation were associated with increased formation and secretion of ApoB. The responses to serum-deprivation in RPE-derived cells: accumulation and secretion of lipids, lipoproteins, and Fib3 are very similar to patterns seen in human donor eyes with AMD and suggest that this model mimics processes relevant to disease progression.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Organization of projections from the raphe nuclei to the vestibular nuclei in rats

Previous anatomic and electrophysiological evidence suggests that serotonin modulates processing in the vestibular nuclei. This study examined the organization of projections from serotonergic raphe nuclei to the vestibular nuclei in rats. The distribution of serotonergic axons in the vestibular nuclei was visualized immunohistochemically in rat brain slices using antisera directed against the serotonin transporter. The density of serotonin transporter-immunopositive fibers is greatest in the superior vestibular nucleus and the medial vestibular nucleus, especially along the border of the fourth ventricle; it declines in more lateral and caudal regions of the vestibular nuclear complex. After unilateral iontophoretic injections of Fluoro-Gold into the vestibular nuclei, retrogradely labeled neurons were found in the dorsal raphe nucleus (including the dorsomedial, ventromedial and lateral subdivisions) and nucleus raphe obscurus, and to a minor extent in nucleus raphe pallidus and nucleus raphe magnus. The combination of retrograde tracing with serotonin immunohistofluorescence in additional experiments revealed that the vestibular nuclei receive both serotonergic and non-serotonergic projections from raphe nuclei. Tracer injections in densely innervated regions (especially the medial and superior vestibular nuclei) were associated with the largest numbers of Fluoro-Gold-labeled cells. Differences were observed in the termination patterns of projections from the individual raphe nuclei. Thus, the dorsal raphe nucleus sends projections that terminate predominantly in the rostral and medial aspects of the vestibular nuclear complex, while nucleus raphe obscurus projects relatively uniformly throughout the vestibular nuclei. Based on the topographical organization of raphe input to the vestibular nuclei, it appears that dense projections from raphe nuclei are colocalized with terminal fields of flocculo-nodular lobe and uvula Purkinje cells. It is hypothesized that raphe-vestibular connections are organized to selectively modulate processing in regions of the vestibular nuclear complex that receive input from specific cerebellar zones. This represents a potential mechanism whereby motor activity and behavioral arousal could influence the activity of cerebellovestibular circuits.

NASA Discipline Neuroscience↗

Dynamics and lipid membrane coupling of the RAS-RAF complex revealed via multiscale simulations

To gain molecular and mechanistic insights into initiation of the RAS-RAF signaling cascade, we developed and used a combination of multiscale simulation and experimental approaches. The influence and impact of the membrane on RAS and RAF proteins is a factor we are just beginning to understand and appreciate in more detail. Molecular simulation is an ideal methodology to further study this complicated relationship between the membrane and associated proteins. Our previous work using Multiscale Machine-learned Modeling Infrastructure investigated different lipid compositions solely around the KRAS4b protein and the interplay between protein behavior and these membrane environments. Multiscale Machine-learned Modeling Infrastructure uses machine learning to couple adjacent simulation scales and has been efficiently scaled across some of the world’s largest high-performance computers. Recently, we have expanded this multiresolution framework to include the all-atom simulation scale and to incorporate the RAF RBDCRD domains. Here, we present the overall analysis results from this new simulation campaign comprising a mixture of RAS and RAF RBDCRD proteins. Approximately 35,000 coarse-grained and 10,000 all-atom molecular dynamics simulations were completed, sampled from a variety of protein/lipid composition configurations that were generated from a micron-scale continuum simulation containing hundreds of copies of the proteins. Our studies suggest that orientations of the RAS-RBDCRD complex on the membrane occupy distinct configurational states, and the spatial patterns of lipid arrangements around these different protein states are unique to each state. The extent and size of lipid “fingerprints” imposed on the membrane by the RAS-RBDCRD protein complex are significantly larger than observed for just the RAS protein on its own. These protein complexes strongly associate, but we do not observe statistically significant preferred protein-protein orientations. These observations indicate that spatial colocalization of RAS-RBDCRD proteins in the same vicinity may be assisted by specific membrane environments, acting to increase the probability of signaling complex formation.

Carpenter, Timothy S. [Lawrence Livermore National↗

Coupled management of electric vehicle workplace charging and office building loads

Significant building energy savings are realized through heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) setpoint adjustment and daylighting control. Workplace charging (WPC) enables colocation of electric vehicles (EVs) with office building loads. We proposed managing energy use of workplace EV charging and the office building and determined the number of EVs that building energy savings can facilitate charging. We simulated building energy savings in typical medium offices in Chicago IL, Baltimore MD, and Houston TX, spanning three US climate regions. Considering the EV hosting capacity of the saved building energy and travel patterns of roundtrip commuting, we minimized EV charging costs under time-of-use electricity pricing. Managed WPC can reduce charging electricity bills compared to first-come, first-served charging. The ratio of EVs to chargers, the coincident period of commuters’ dwell time and lower electricity prices, and the number of EVs in the office impacted the economic benefits achieved through charging management.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

An algebraic multigrid method for Q 2 - Q 1 mixed discretizations of the Navier-Stokes equations: AMG for Q 2 - Q 1 discretization

Algebraic multigrid (AMG) preconditioners are considered for discretized systems of partial differential equations (PDEs) where unknowns associated with different physical quantities are not necessarily colocated at mesh points. Specifically, we investigate a Q 2 -Q 1 mixed finite element discretization of the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations where the number of velocity nodes is much greater than the number of pressure nodes. Consequently, some velocity degrees of freedom (DOFs) are defined at spatial locations where there are no corresponding pressure DOFs. Thus, AMG approaches leveraging this colocated structure are not applicable. This article instead proposes an automatic AMG coarsening that mimics certain pressure/velocity DOF relationships of the Q 2 -Q 1 discretization. The main idea is to first automatically define coarse pressures in a somewhat standard AMG fashion and then to carefully (but automatically) choose coarse velocity unknowns so that the spatial location relationship between pressure and velocity DOFs resembles that on the finest grid. To define coefficients within the intergrid transfers, an energy minimization AMG (EMIN-AMG) is utilized. EMIN-AMG is not tied to specific coarsening schemes and grid transfer sparsity patterns, and so it is applicable to the proposed coarsening. Numerical results highlighting solver performance are given on Stokes and incompressible Navier–Stokes problems.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Differential localization patterns of pyruvate kinase isoforms in murine naïve, formative, and primed pluripotent states

Highlights: • PKM1/2 protein abundance is greater in formative mEpiLCs compared to naïve mESCs or primed mEpiSCs. The ratio of PKM1/2 is maintained. • PKM1/2 are localized in both nuclear and cytoplasmic regions relative to GAPDH and OCT4 across the pluripotent continuum. • PKM1 localization is strongly correlated to OCT4 localization, and moderately to GAPDH in formative mEpiLCs. • PKM1/2 localization is moderately correlated to OCT4 and GAPDH localization in naïve mESCs. • PKM1/2 localization are moderately correlated to GAPDH localization in primed mEpiSCs. Mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) and mouse epiblast stem cells (mEpiSCs) represent opposite ends of the pluripotency continuum, referred to as naïve and primed pluripotent states, respectively. These divergent pluripotent states differ in several ways, including growth factor requirements, transcription factor expression, DNA methylation patterns, and metabolic profiles. Naïve cells employ both glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS), whereas primed cells preferentially utilize aerobic glycolysis, a trait shared with cancer cells referred to as the Warburg Effect. Until recently, metabolism has been regarded as a by-product of cell fate, however, evidence now supports metabolism as being a driver of stem cell state and fate decisions. Pyruvate kinase muscle isoforms (PKM1 and PKM2) are important for generating and maintaining pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) and mediating the Warburg Effect. Both isoforms catalyze the final, rate limiting step of glycolysis, generating adenosine triphosphate and pyruvate, however, the precise role(s) of PKM1/2 in naïve and primed pluripotency is not well understood. The primary objective of this study was to characterize the cellular expression and localization patterns of PKM1 and PKM2 in mESCs, chemically transitioned epiblast-like cells (mEpiLCs) representing formative pluripotency, and mEpiSCs using immunoblotting and confocal microscopy. The results indicate that PKM1 and PKM2 are not only localized to the cytoplasm, but also accumulate in differential subnuclear regions of mESC, mEpiLCs, and mEpiSCs as determined by a quantitative confocal microscopy employing orthogonal projections and airyscan processing. Importantly, we discovered that the subnuclear localization of PKM1/2 changes during the transition from mESCs, mEpiLCs, and mEpiSCs. Finally, we have comprehensively validated the appropriateness and power of the Pearson's correlation coefficient and Manders's overlap coefficient for assessing nuclear and cytoplasmic protein colocalization in PSCs by immunofluorescence confocal microscopy. We propose that nuclear PKM1/2 may assist with distinct pluripotency state maintenance and lineage priming by non-canonical mechanisms. These results advance our understanding of the overall mechanisms controlling naïve, formative, and primed pluripotency.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Depot-Based Vehicle Data for National Analysis of Medium- and Heavy-Duty Electric Vehicle Charging

Medium- and heavy-duty vehicles (MHDVs) are a major source of greenhouse gases and local criteria air pollutants. Electrifying MHDVs may reduce these harmful emissions, which disproportionately impact disadvantaged communities. Due to their relatively high per-vehicle energy needs, consistent fleet operations, and frequent colocation of multiple vehicles at depots, MHDVs may have more spatially and temporally concentrated charging demands than light-duty passenger electric vehicles. That charging concentration means their electrification may require careful advance planning and coordination to manage potential impacts to the electrical grid via charge management or infrastructure upgrades. However, MHDV duty cycles and parking schedules are highly variable across vocations of operation, and there is a shortage of nationally representative, vocationally diverse public data describing typical MHDV operations. This report summarizes the methodology - designed with national representativeness in mind - used to create a new set of data describing typical daily driving distances, dwell durations, and normalized electric vehicle depot charging load curves for MHDVs. The dataset reflects the subset of MHDV operating patterns that may originate from a consistent depot each day and rely on the same depot for charging. In addition to trucks with depot-centric vocational patterns, the data describes operations of transit buses and school buses, each with a depot-centric focus. The dataset is available to the public and suitable for national analysis. It can inform research, infrastructure planning, and policymaking regarding the electrification of MHDVs.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗

The Genetic Architecture of Shoot and Root Trait Divergence Between Mesic and Xeric Ecotypes of a Perennial Grass

Environmental heterogeneity can drive patterns of functional trait variation and lead to the formation of locally adapted ecotypes. Plant ecotypes are often differentiated by suites of correlated root and shoot traits that share common genetic, developmental, and physiological relationships. For instance, although plant water loss is largely governed by shoot systems, root systems determine water access and constrain shoot water status. To evaluate the genetic basis of root and shoot trait divergence, we developed a recombinant inbred population derived from mesic and xeric ecotypes of the perennial grass Panicum hallii. Our study sheds light on the genetic architecture underlying the relationships between root and shoot traits. We identified several genomic “hotspots” which control suites of correlated root and shoot traits, thus indicating genetic coordination between plant organ systems in the process of ecotypic divergence. Genomic regions of colocalized quantitative trait locus (QTL) for the majority of shoot and root growth related traits were independent of colocalized QTL for shoot and root resource acquisition traits. The allelic effects of individual QTL underscore ecological specialization for drought adaptation between ecotypes and reveal possible hybrid breakdown through epistatic interactions. These results have implications for understanding the factors constraining or facilitating local adaptation in plants.

epistasis↗

QTL × environment interactions underlie ionome divergence in switchgrass

Abstract Ionomics measures elemental concentrations in biological organisms and provides a snapshot of physiology under different conditions. In this study, we evaluate genetic variation of the ionome in outbred, perennial switchgrass in three environments across the species’ native range, and explore patterns of genotype-by-environment interactions. We grew 725 clonally replicated genotypes of a large full sib family from a four-way linkage mapping population, created from deeply diverged upland and lowland switchgrass ecotypes, at three common gardens. Concentrations of 18 mineral elements were determined in whole post-anthesis tillers using ion coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). These measurements were used to identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) with and without QTL-by-environment interactions (QTLxE) using a multi-environment QTL mapping approach. We found that element concentrations varied significantly both within and between switchgrass ecotypes, and GxE was present at both the trait and QTL level. Concentrations of 14 of the 18 elements were under some genetic control, and 77 QTL were detected for these elements. Seventy-four percent of QTL colocalized multiple elements, half of QTL exhibited significant QTLxE, and roughly equal numbers of QTL had significant differences in magnitude and sign of their effects across environments. The switchgrass ionome is under moderate genetic control and by loci with highly variable effects across environments.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

A global gridded dataset for cloud vertical structure from combined CloudSat and CALIPSO observations

Abstract. The vertical structure of clouds has a profound effect on the global energy budget, the global circulation, and the atmospheric hydrological cycle. The CloudSat and Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO) missions have taken complementary, colocated observations of cloud vertical structure for over a decade. However, no globally gridded dataset is available to the public for the full length of this unique combined data record. Here we present the 3S-GEOPROF-COMB product (Bertrand et al. 2023, https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8057791), a globally gridded (level 3S) community data product summarizing geometrical profiles (GEOPROF) of hydrometeor occurrence from combined (COMB) CloudSat and CALIPSO data. Our product is calculated from the latest release (R05) of per-orbit (level-2) combined cloud mask profiles. We process a set of cloud cover, vertical cloud fraction, and sampling variables at 2.5, 5, and 10° spatial resolutions and monthly and seasonal temporal resolutions. We address the 2011 reduction in CloudSat data collection with Daylight-Only Operations (DO-Op) mode by subsampling pre-2011 data to mimic DO-Op collection patterns, thereby allowing users to evaluate the impact of the reduced sampling on their analyses. We evaluate our data product against CloudSat-only and CALIPSO-only global-gridded data products as well as four comparable surface-based sites, underscoring the added value of the combined product. Interest in the product is anticipated for the study of cloud processes, cloud–climate interactions, and as a candidate baseline climate data record for comparison to follow-up satellite missions, among other uses.

Bertrand, Leah (ORCID:0009000001607558)↗

Inflammatory mediators ATP and S100A12 activate the NLRP3 inflammasome to induce MUC5AC production in airway epithelial cells

Highlights: • S100A12 activates NLPR3 inflammasomes to induce MUC5AC production in epithelial cells. • ATP induces MUC5AC production in a mechanistically similar mode to S100A12. • S100A12-mediated MUC5AC production involves engagement of ATP. Danger-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) play a proinflammatory role in the pathogenesis of airway obstructive diseases such as severe asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The NLRP3 inflammasome is a cytosolic multiprotein platform that activates the caspase-1 pathway in response to inflammatory stimuli such as DAMPs. ATP and S100 proteins are newly identified DAMPs that accumulate in inflamed airways. We previously demonstrated that S100A8, S100A9, and S100A12 induce production and secretion of MUC5AC, a major mucin in the conducting airway mucosa. The purpose of this study was to determine the involvement of NLRP3 inflammasome in, and the contribution of ATP to, S100 protein-induced MUC5AC production by NCI-H292 mucoepidermoid carcinoma cells. Stimulation with either S100A12 or ATP led to MUC5AC production at comparable levels. Simultaneous treatment with both stimuli resulted in additive increases in NLRP3, active caspase-1, IL-1β, NLRP3/caspase-1 colocalization, and MUC5AC. NLRP3 siRNA or inhibitors of NF-κB, NLRP3 inflammasome oligomerization, or caspase-1 nearly completely inhibited ATP- and S100A12-mediated MUC5AC production. Furthermore, S100A12-as well as ATP-mediated MUC5AC production was almost equally blunted by both nonspecific and specific antagonists of the purinergic receptor P2X7, a principal receptor mediating NLRP3 inflammasome activation by ATP. Thus, these two danger signals contribute to MUC5AC production in airway epithelial cells through overlapping signaling pathways for NLRP3 inflammasome activation.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Case studies of NOAA 6/TIROS N data impact on numerical weather forecasts

The impact of satellite temperatures from systems which predate the launching of the third generation of vertical sounding instruments aboard TIROS N (13 Oct 1978) and NOAA 6 (27 June 1979) is reported. The first evaluation of soundings from TIROS N found that oceanic, cloudy retrievals over NH mid latitudes show a cold bias in winter. It is confirmed for both satellite systems using a larger data base. It is shown that RMS differences between retrievals and colocated radiosonde observations within the swath 30-60N during the 1979-80 winter were generally 2-3K in clear air and higher for cloudy columns. A positive impact of TIROS N temperatures on the analysis of synoptic weather systems is shown. Analyses prepared from only satellite temperatures seemed to give a better definition to weather systems' thermal structure than that provided by corresponding NMC analyses without satellite data. The results of a set of 14 numerical forecast experiments performed with the PE model of the Israel Meteorological Service (IMS) are summarized; these were designed to test the impact of TIROS N and NOAA 6 temperatures within the IMS analysis and forecast cycle. The satellite data coverage over the NH, the mean area/period S1 and RMS verification scores and the spatial distribution of SAT versus NO SAT forecast differences are discussed and it is concluded that positive forecast impact occurs over ocean areas where the extra data improve the specification which is otherwise available from conventional observations. The forecast impact for three cases from the same set of experiments was examined and it is found that satellite temperatures, observed over the Atlantic Ocean contribute to better forecasts over Iceland and central Europe although a worse result was verified over Spain. It is also shown that the better scores of a forecast based also on satellite data and verified over North America actually represent a mixed impact on the forecast synoptic patterns. A superior 48 hr 500 mb forecast over the western US due to the better initial specification afforded by satellite observed temperatures over the North Pacific Ocean is shown.

Druyan, L. M.↗