The complexity of microbial communities suggests prevalent interactions involving more than just pairs of species. These so-called higher-order interactions may reveal new molecules that enable bacteria to deal with complex environments. This forum article discusses how higher-order interactions can be detected and why molecular biologists might care.

The gut microbiota can affect how animals respond to ingested toxins, such as ethanol, which is prevalent in the diets of diverse animals and often leads to negative health outcomes in humans. Ethanol is a complex dietary factor because it acts as a toxin, behavioral manipulator, and nutritional source, with both direct effects on the host as well as indirect ones through the microbiome. Here, we developed a model for chronic, non-intoxicating ethanol ingestion in the adult fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, and paired this with the tractability of the fly gut microbiota, which can be experimentally removed. We linked numerous physiological, behavioral, and transcriptional variables to fly fitness, including a combination of intestinal barrier integrity, stored triglyceride levels, feeding behavior, and the immunodeficiency pathway. Our results reveal a complex tradeoff between lifespan and fecundity that is microbiome-dependent and modulated by dietary ethanol and feeding behavior.

Protein production by the ribosome is an essential process that accounts for nearly 50% of the energy demand in rapidly dividing cells. This complex process is not perfect and can be perturbed by various factors such as defects on the mRNA or the ribosome, starvation, stress, and others. If protein synthesis stops before the ribosome reaches a stop codon, the cell needs to employ a network of quality control factors that release the stalled ribosome, degrade the mRNA and the partially synthesized polypeptide. In eukaryotes this surveillance system is collectively called Ribosome Quality Control (RQC), and in this review we will focus on the function, targets, and evolution of RQC from yeast to human.

Ribosome-associated quality control (RQC) pathways protect cells from toxicity caused by incomplete protein products resulting from translation of damaged or problematic mRNAs. Extensive work in yeast has identified highly conserved mechanisms that lead to degradation of faulty mRNA and partially synthesized polypeptides. Here we used CRISPR-Cas9-based screening to search for additional RQC strategies in mammals. We found that failed translation leads to specific inhibition of translation initiation on that message. This negative feedback loop is mediated by two translation inhibitors, GIGYF2 and 4EHP. Model substrates and growth-based assays established that inhibition of additional rounds of translation acts in concert with known RQC pathways to prevent buildup of toxic proteins. Inability to block translation of faulty mRNAs and subsequent accumulation of partially synthesized polypeptides could explain the neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric disorders observed in mice and humans with compromised GIGYF2 function.

GLO-Bot data for analysis For both the six accessions (HL-##) and the diversity panel (GWA#) we provide: The full inverted images input to GLO-RIAv2 6accessions_images.zip and GWA#.zip Filesfor detailed information about the accessions and ID numbers 6accessions-rhizotrons.csv and diversiry-rhizotrons.csv The raw root data from GLO-RIAv2 ####-all-root-data-[local/global/roi].csv for the full root system analysis ####-tip-root-data-[local/global/roi].csv for the per day tip tracking analysis The calculated traits 6accessions-all_traits.csv and diversity-calculated_traits.csv The fitted traits (diversity only) diversity-bv_fitted_phenotypes.csv Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Open Access

GLO-Bot data for analysis For both the six accessions and the diversity panel we provide: The full inverted images input to GLO-RIAv2 A `_rhizotrons.csv` file for detailed information about the accessions and ID numbers The raw root data from GLO-RIAv2 The calculated traits The fitted traits (diversity only) Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Open Access

Agricultural intensification in India has increased nitrogen pollution, leading to water quality impairments. The fate of reactive nitrogen applied to the land is largely unknown, however. Long-term records of riverine nitrogen fluxes are nonexistent and drivers of variability remain unexamined, limiting the development of nitrogen management strategies. Here, we leverage dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) and discharge data to characterize the seasonal, annual, and regional variability of DIN fluxes and their drivers for seven major river basins from 1981 to 2014. We find large seasonal and interannual variability in nitrogen runoff, with 68% to 94% of DIN fluxes occurring in June through October and with the coefficient of variation across years ranging from 44% to 93% for individual basins. This variability is primarily explained by variability in precipitation, with year-and basin-specific annual precipitation explaining 52% of the combined regional and interannual variability. We find little correlation with rising fertilizer application rates in five of the seven basins, implying that agricultural intensification has thus far primarily impacted groundwater and atmospheric emissions rather than riverine runoff. These findings suggest that riverine nitrogen runoff in India is highly sensitive to projected future increases in precipitation and intensification of the seasonal monsoon, while the impact of projected continued land use intensification is highly uncertain.

The tectonic and geologic setting of eastern Oregon includes the volcanically active High Lava Plains (HLP) province and the accreted terrains of the Blue and Wallowa Mountains and is bounded by the Columbia River flood basalts to the north, Basin and Range extension to the south, the Cascade arc to the west, and stable North America to the east. Several models have been proposed to explain the tectonic evolution of eastern Oregon and, in particular, the voluminous volcanic activity in the HLP. but a consensus on which model fully describes the complex range of processes remains elusive. Measurements of the seismic anisotropy that results from active mantle flow beneath the region can provide a crucial test of such models. To constrain this anisotropy, here we present new SKS splitting results obtained at approximately 200 broadband seismic stations in eastern Oregon and the surrounding region. Data come from the USArray Transportable Array (TA) and two temporary experiments carried out in the HLP and in the Wallowa Mountains. Our splitting data set includes similar to 2900 individual splitting measurements from SKS phases recorded between 2006 and 2008. Stations in eastern Oregon exhibit significant shear wave splitting, with average delay times at individual stations between similar to 0.8 s and similar to 2.7 s. In the HLP, nearly all observed fast directions are approximately E-W, while to the north in the Blue and Wallowa Mountains there is more variability in the splitting patterns. The average delay time observed at stations located in the heart of the HILP province is similar to 2 s, well above the global average of similar to 1 s for continental regions. We infer from the large split times and homogeneous fast directions that there must be significant active flow in a roughly E-W direction in the asthenosphere beneath the HLP; this inferred flow field places a strong constraint on models that seek to explain the young tectonomagmatic activity in the region. In the Wallowa region, the anisotropic signature is more complicated and there may be a significant contribution from fossil fabrics in the crust or mantle lithosphere. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The tectonic and geologic setting of eastern Oregon includes the volcanically active High Lava Plains (HLP) province and the accreted terrains of the Blue and Wallowa Mountains and is bounded by the Columbia River flood basalts to the north, Basin and Range extension to the south, the Cascade arc to the west, and stable North America to the east. Several models have been proposed to explain the tectonic evolution of eastern Oregon and, in particular, the voluminous volcanic activity in the HLP. but a consensus on which model fully describes the complex range of processes remains elusive. Measurements of the seismic anisotropy that results from active mantle flow beneath the region can provide a crucial test of such models. To constrain this anisotropy, here we present new SKS splitting results obtained at approximately 200 broadband seismic stations in eastern Oregon and the surrounding region. Data come from the USArray Transportable Array (TA) and two temporary experiments carried out in the HLP and in the Wallowa Mountains. Our splitting data set includes similar to 2900 individual splitting measurements from SKS phases recorded between 2006 and 2008. Stations in eastern Oregon exhibit significant shear wave splitting, with average delay times at individual stations between similar to 0.8 s and similar to 2.7 s. In the HLP, nearly all observed fast directions are approximately E-W, while to the north in the Blue and Wallowa Mountains there is more variability in the splitting patterns. The average delay time observed at stations located in the heart of the HILP province is similar to 2 s, well above the global average of similar to 1 s for continental regions. We infer from the large split times and homogeneous fast directions that there must be significant active flow in a roughly E-W direction in the asthenosphere beneath the HLP; this inferred flow field places a strong constraint on models that seek to explain the young tectonomagmatic activity in the region. In the Wallowa region, the anisotropic signature is more complicated and there may be a significant contribution from fossil fabrics in the crust or mantle lithosphere. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.