Biology subjects

Srivastava, V.

Publications and source records attributed to Srivastava, V..

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Male Age and Sexual Maturity: Lipopolysaccharide-induced tumor necrosis factor influences sperm quality and reproduction in Anopheles culicifacies

Elucidating the biological and molecular mechanisms that govern male fertility and mating behavior in mosquitoes is critical for optimizing genetic and sterile insect technique-based vector control strategies. Here, we examined age-related changes in male reproductive capacity in Anopheles culicifacies, using female egg output as an indirect indicator of male fertility. Our results demonstrated that male reproductive age follows a non-linear pattern of fertility. Morphometric analysis from emergence to day 13 post-eclosion revealed a strong correlation between seminal vesicle capacity and female fecundity, suggesting that age-dependent gonadal development directly influences reproductive potential. At the molecular level, we identified AcLITAF6 as a key regulator of male reproductive homeostasis. RNAi-mediated knockdown of AcLITAF6 impaired apoptosis-associated and phagocytic clearance, reduced sperm viability, and decreased female productive outcomes. Conclusively, we reveal a previously unrecognized role of LITAF in sperm quality control and male reproductive fitness, highlighting AcLITAF6 as a potential target for mosquito population suppression strategies.

developmental biology↗

bioRxiv2026

WaterFlow: Prediction of Ordered Water Molecule Positions on Protein Structures

Ordered water molecules mediate many protein functions, including stability, ligand binding, and catalysis. Predicting their positions with sub-angstrom accuracy would support protein design, binding affinity prediction, and automated model building in X-ray crystallography and cryo-EM. However, water molecule prediction lags behind protein and other molecule structure predictions. Here, we introduce WaterFlow, a flow-matching-based generator model and confidence model for predicting the positions of ordered water molecules in protein structures. WaterFlow outperforms the existing state of the art at every precision level. We demonstrate that WaterFlow can accurately predict ground truth modeled water molecules, including those around protein-ligand interactions and on predicted structures. We also show that WaterFlow predictions fit well directly to experimental data, and therefore propose that it may be used for both prediction and modeling water molecules. This includes novel predictions that are often associated with positive electron difference density, meaning the model places water molecules at sites the original structure depositions omitted. We use this improved model to address the data constraint. By mapping the Pareto front of achievable accuracy of water molecule prediction, alongside analysis of different training data schemas, we quantified the trade-off between data quantity and data quality, demonstrating that the diversity of high-quality structures is limiting the possible results. Overall, WaterFlow predicts ordered water to serve as a solvent module for structure-based drug design and for water molecule placement during crystallographic refinement.

biophysics↗

bioRxiv2026

Environmental Stochasticity Reshapes Persistence and Extinction Dynamics in a Fear-Mediated Two-Species Competitive System

Environmental variability can strongly alter coexistence among competing species and their extinction risk, particularly when population dynamics are shaped by behavioral interactions, such as fear. In this work, we develop a novel stochastic differential equation competition model that incorporates both non-consumptive fear effects and environmental variability to investigate how behavioral interactions influence species coexistence under random fluctuations. Our result reveals that environmental stochasticity can drive species to extinction even when the corresponding deterministic system admits coexistence. In particular, under an explicit stability condition on the fear and competition parameters and sufficiently strong averaged noise intensities, we prove that both competing species become extinct exponentially almost surely. Conversely, we derive a stochastic persistence criterion in terms of fear, competition, and noise-induced suppression parameters for the fearful species. We further demonstrate that environmental noise may reverse classical competition-exclusion outcomes, leading to qualitatively different long-term dynamics from those predicted deterministically. These results provide rigorous thresholds separating stochastic extinction from persistence and highlight the critical role of environmental variability in fear-mediated competitive ecosystems. From an applied perspective, these results provide insight into how behavioral interactions and environmental variability influence species survival, with potential applications in ecological management and conservation.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2025

Dissecting the root-fungal interface in 3D reveals spatially distinct signalling landscapes

Plant rhizospheric interactions represent intricate relationships that determine plant fitness and are crucial for interrogating host-pathogen dynamics, with significant fundamental and translational implications. Most fungal-plant interactions occur in soil - a disordered and granular 3D environment - and hence remain challenging to unravel due to complex regulatory networks. Our current body of evidence characterizing these molecular dialogues largely stems from experimental systems employing soil or in vitro 2D flat plates, hydroponics and gnotobiotic systems. Soil itself features widely varying visco-elasto-plastic material properties, and its inherent opacity precludes direct visualization of the infection progression in complex diseases such as wilts and root rots. Here, we introduce the first such optically transparent, 3D granular growth matrix to recapitulate complex properties of the soil microenvironment, which enables direct, cellular-level visualization of the plant-fungal interface. Our mechanically tunable 3D matrices support long-term co-culture of plants and fungi with compatibility to classical molecular and physiological assays for unravelling the early signalling events and inter-kingdom crosstalk. By leveraging the optical transparency of this matrix, we track fungal development in response to host signals ex-planta with 3D resolution, to report pioneering evidence of hyphal reprogramming preferentially towards the root tips during the early stages of infection. Crucially, we integrate spatiotemporal transcriptomic analyses and discover distinct pathogen-host ex- and in-planta modules during early signalling, which are likely associated with biomimetic soil-like environments. Together, our findings establish an integrable and versatile 3D platform offering an unprecedented view of the pathogen infection processes, which enables fundamental discoveries into the biological regulation of growth and infection. These insights hold immense potential for advancing our understanding of host immune responses and adaptation of filamentous pathogens, as well as open avenues to decipher drought and disease-resistance mechanisms with major agricultural benefits.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2025

Integrative transcriptomic and phosphoproteomic analysis reveals key components of SnRK1 signaling network in rice

SnRK1 is an evolutionarily conserved protein kinase belonging to SNF1/AMPK family of protein kinases that is central to adjusting growth in response to the energy status. Numerous studies have shown adaptive and developmental roles of SnRK1, but the understanding of SnRK1 signaling network in monocots is limited. Using CRISPR/Cas9 mutagenesis to target the functional kinase subunits in rice, we carried out a comprehensive phenotypic, transcriptomic, proteomic, and phosphoproteomic analyses of rice snrk1 mutants displaying growth defects under normal and starvation conditions. These analyses revealed the role of SnRK1 signaling in controlling growth and stress-related processes in both energy-sufficient and energy-limited conditions and pointed to sub-functionalization of SnRK1 kinase subunit genes. In addition to the classical protein targets of SnRK1, phosphoproteomics revealed novel targets including the key components of intracellular membrane trafficking, ethylene signaling, and ion transport. The upregulation of stress-related processes and suppression of growth-related processes in snrk1 mutants correlated with their phenotypic defects. Overall, this study highlights the dual role of SnRK1 as promoter of growth under favorable conditions and critical regulator of adaptive response under stress conditions.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2025

Transcriptional plasticity of fast core chromosomes governs establishment of a fungal pathogen on evolutionarily distant plant lineages

The Fusarium oxysporum (Fo) species complex encompasses a diverse range of filamentous plant pathogens, some of which provoke systemic infections in angiosperms, leading to vascular wilt disease. Current understanding of the Fo pathogenicity mechanisms is primarily centered on vascular plants, where individual isolates of Fo exhibit contrasting lifestyles across the endophyte-pathogen continuum on different host species. Although, Fo isolates were recently shown to cause disease on the non-vascular liverwort Marchantia polymorpha (Mp), the transcriptional control of Fo effectors during infection of this bryophytic host is largely unknown. Here, we took a comparative transcriptomic approach to ask how different Fo isolates with contrasting interaction outcomes on angiosperms (pathogenic versus endophytic) adapt to a distantly related plant lineage lacking xylem. We found that the core effector complement encoded on genomic regions shared across all Fo isolates are actively transcribed in Mp, whereas effectors encoded on lineage-specific (LS) genomic regions that contribute towards host-specific pathogenicity in angiosperms are not. Moreover, we observed enhanced transcriptional activation of effector clusters located on the three highly syntenic fast core chromosomes during growth on Mp, as well as divergent lineages and lifestyles, suggesting a conserved role in plant associations. Loss of a compatibility-associated effector encoded in a core effector cluster led to misregulation of other effectors in core clusters. Our findings reveal an unexpected role of fast core chromosomes in determining compatibility of Fo across a broad spectrum of plant lineages and establishes evolutionarily conserved gene networks essential for fungus-plant associations.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2025

Swirling motion of breast cancer cells radially aligns collagen fibers to enable collective invasion

In breast cancer (BC), radial alignment of collagen fibers at the tumor-matrix interface facilitates collective invasion of cancer cells into the surrounding stromal matrix, a critical step toward metastasis. Collagen remodeling is driven by proteases and cellular forces, mediated by matrix mechanical plasticity, or irreversible matrix deformation in response to force. However, the specific mechanisms causing collagen radial alignment remain unclear. Here, we study collective invasion of BC tumor spheroids in collagen-rich matrices. Increasing plasticity to BC-relevant ranges facilitates invasion, with increasing stiffness potentiating a transition from single cell to collective invasion. At enhanced plasticity, cells radially align collagen at the tumor-matrix interface prior to invasion. Surprisingly, cells migrate tangentially to the tumor-matrix interface in a swirling-like motion, perpendicular to the direction of alignment. Mechanistically, swirling generates local shear stresses, leading to distally propagating contractile radial stresses due to negative normal stress, an underappreciated property of collagen-rich matrices. These contractile stresses align collagen fibers radially, facilitating collective invasion. The basement membrane (BM), which separates epithelia from stroma in healthy tissues, acts as a mechanical insulator by preventing swirling cells from aligning collagen. Thus, after breaching the BM, swirling of BC cells at the tumor-stroma interface radially aligns collagen to facilitate invasion.

biophysics↗

bioRxiv2025

Sensory Appendage Protein triggers alarm to pyrethroid in Indian malarial vector Anopheles culicifacies

Sensory appendage proteins (SAPs) serve as molecular arms of odorant-binding protein family members and mediate chemical communication from the external to the internal environment of the insect body. We recently reported that SAP members might have an important role in blood-feeding and/or insecticide resistance-associated behavioral physiologies, but the mechanism remains unclear. Here we show how SAP contributes (i) to the host attraction during navigation for blood-feeding, and (ii) triggers an alert via integrated actions of eyes and peripheral sensory organs to circumvent the toxic effect of insecticide in the susceptible strain of An. culicifacies. Among the six identified SAP members, AcSAP1 and AcSAP2 are abundantly expressed in the olfactory and legs, and their expression is significantly modulated at night in naive adult female mosquitoes. We noticed that AcSAP1 silencing significantly impairs the host-attraction properties of the mosquitoes. Its strong binding affinity to the synthetic pyrethroid prompted us to evaluate the AcSAP1 response to insecticide exposure. Confocal microscopy and molecular profiling data reveal a heightened modulation in the expression of AcSAP1 in eyes, and other peripheral sensory organs including the olfactory (****p<0.00001), legs (**p < 0.004), wings (***p < 0.0004). These findings collectively suggest a crucial role of AcSAP1 in facilitating mosquito navigation, and/or insecticide avoidance. Unraveling the basis of SAP interactions with peripheral sensory systems could pave the way for the development of novel vector control tools.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2024

Transcriptomic analysis of Picea abies tissue culture reveals the impact of culture conditions and the presence of glucuronoxylan on extracellular lignin production

Tissue cultures are an important study model for woody plant tissue and can be used to study lignin biosynthesis. The greatest disadvantage of protocols based on extraction of lignin from wood biomass is the almost inevitable alteration of the native structure of lignin. Using a Norway spruce tissue culture with the ability to secrete monolignols into a liquid culture medium, fundamental aspects of lignin have been studied in the past, such as its structure, the enzyme activity related to its polymerization, and its interactions with a secondary cell wall hemicellulose. In this study, parameters that can induce monolignol production and secretion in the tissue culture are investigated via gene expression analysis. The impact of the composition of the solid growth medium, which was in some cases supplemented with xylan, was studied in depth through transcriptomic investigation. We find that the state (i.e. liquid or solid) and the xylan content of the medium can impact gene expression, although microscopic analysis suggests that cellular morphology is consistent. Extracellular lignin was collected from a formulation of liquid medium with the same composition as that used for cellular growth, which was previously presumed to be "non-inducing" of lignin biosynthesis. Chemical analysis of this lignin was performed using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and size exclusion chromatography, which revealed changes in its structure compared to the polymer produced in the previously developed "inducing" liquid medium. These experiments show that there is still much we do not understand about an oft-used tissue culture system, but show the way to a deeper understanding of the genetic control of lignin biosynthesis.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2024

MAGIC matrices: freeform bioprinting materials to support complex and reproducible organoid morphogenesis

Complex and robust self-organization requires defined initial conditions and dynamic boundaries - neighboring tissues and extracellular matrix (ECM) that actively evolve to guide morphogenesis. A major challenge in tissue engineering is identifying material properties that mimic dynamic tissue boundaries but that are compatible with the engineering tools necessary for controlling the initial conditions of culture. Here we describe a highly tunable granular biomaterial, MAGIC matrix, that supports long-term bioprinting and gold-standard tissue self-organization. MAGIC matrix is designed for two temperature regimes: at 4 {degrees}C it exhibits reversible yield-stress behavior to support hours-long high-fidelity 3D printing without compromising cell viability; when transferred to cell culture at 37 {degrees}C, the material cross-links and exhibits viscoelasticity and stress relaxation that can be tuned to match numerous conditions, including that of reconstituted basement membrane matrices like Matrigel. We demonstrate that the timescale of stress relaxation and loss tangent are decoupled in MAGIC matrices, allowing us to test the role of stress relaxation rate and strain-dependence across formulations with identical storage and loss moduli. We find that fast absolute stress relaxation rates and large relative deformation magnitudes are required to optimize for morphogenesis. We apply optimized MAGIC matrices toward precise extrusion bioprinting of saturated cell suspensions directly into 3D culture. The ability to carefully control initial conditions for tissue growth yields dramatic increases in organoid reproducibility and complexity across multiple tissue types. We also fabricate perfusable 3D microphysiological systems that experience large strains in response to pressurization due to the compliant and dynamic tissue boundaries. Combined, our results both identify key parameters for optimal organoid morphogenesis in an engineered material and lay the foundation for fabricating more complex and reproducible tissue morphologies by canalizing their self-organization in both space and time.

bioengineering↗

bioRxiv2023

Epidermal IL-33 drives inflammation in necroptosis-induced skin inflammation by recruiting TNF-producing immune cells.

Caspase-8 deficiency in the epidermis (caspase-8EKO) results in cutaneous inflammation resembling pustular psoriasis, triggered by necroptotic cell death of keratinocytes. Necroptosis is a highly proinflammatory form of programmed necrosis due to the release of intracellular molecules called alarmins, which can act as inflammatory mediators. However, their role in necroptosis-induced skin inflammation remains unexplored. Here, we demonstrate that alarmin IL-33 and its receptor ST2 are essential early mediators of necroptosis-induced skin inflammation. Genetic ablation of Il-33 or St2 dramatically delays lesion development and improves survival of caspase-8EKO animals. IL-33 is highly expressed in necroptotic epidermis of caspase-8EKO mice and induces immune cell recruitment in the skin upon keratinocyte necroptosis. Impairment of the IL33-ST2 axis does not affect epidermal necroptosis but reduces the recruitment of TNF-producing infiltrating immune cells and subsequent amplification of cutaneous inflammation. Collectively, our findings highlight a pivotal role for IL-33 and ST2 in necroptosis-induced skin inflammation. TeaserInhibition of IL-33/ST2 axis alleviates necroptosis-induced skin inflammation by reducing TNF production in the dermis.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2023

Increasing chemotherapeutic efficacy using doxorubicin and sodium bicarbonate releasing injectable chitosan-polyethylene glycol hydrogels

Modulation of pH is crucial to maintaining the chemical homeostasis of biological environments. The irregular metabolic pathways exhibited by cancer cells result in the production of acidic byproducts that are excreted and accumulate in the extracellular tumor microenvironment, reducing its pH. As a consequence of the lower pH in tumors, cancer cells increase the expression of metastatic phenotypes and chemotherapeutic resistance. A significant limitation in current cancer therapies is the inability to locally deliver the chemotherapy, leading to significant damage to healthy cells in systemic administration. To overcome these challenges, we present an injectable chitosan-polyethylene glycol hydrogel that is dual-loaded with doxorubicin and sodium bicarbonate providing alkaline buffering of extracellular acidity and simultaneous chemotherapeutic delivery to increase chemotherapeutic efficacy. We conducted in vitro studies of weak base chemotherapeutic and alkaline buffer release from the hydrogel. The release of doxorubicin from hydrogels increased in a low pH environment and was dependent on the encapsulated sodium bicarbonate concentration. We investigated the influence of pH on doxorubicin efficacy and viability of MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell lines. The results show a 2 to 3 fold increase in IC50 values from neutral pH to low pH, showing decreased cancer cell viability at neutral pH as compared to acidic pH. The IC50 results were shown to correlate with a decrease in intracellular uptake of doxorubicin at low pH. The proposed hydrogels were confirmed to be non-toxic to healthy MCF-10A mammary epithelial cells. Rheological studies were performed to verify that the dual loaded hydrogels were injectable. The mechanical and release properties of the hydrogels were maintained after extended storage. The chemotherapeutic activity of doxorubicin was evaluated in the presence of the proposed pH regulating hydrogels. The findings suggest a promising non-toxic, biodegradable hydrogel buffer delivery system that can achieve two simultaneous important goals of local acidosis neutralization and chemotherapeutic release.

bioengineering↗

bioRxiv2023

Configurational entropy is an intrinsic driver of tissue structural heterogeneity

Tissues comprise ordered arrangements of cells that can be surprisingly disordered in their details. How the properties of single cells and their microenvironment contribute to the balance between order and disorder at the tissue-scale remains poorly understood. Here, we address this question using the self-organization of human mammary organoids as a model. We find that organoids behave like a dynamic structural ensemble at the steady state. We apply a maximum entropy formalism to derive the ensemble distribution from three measurable parameters - the degeneracy of structural states, interfacial energy, and tissue activity (the energy associated with positional fluctuations). We link these parameters with the molecular and microenvironmental factors that control them to precisely engineer the ensemble across multiple conditions. Our analysis reveals that the entropy associated with structural degeneracy sets a theoretical limit to tissue order and provides new insight for tissue engineering, development, and our understanding of disease progression.

bioengineering↗

bioRxiv2023

Patterning and folding of intestinal villi by active mesenchymal dewetting

Tissue folding generates structural motifs critical to organ function. In the intestine, bending of a flat epithelium into a periodic pattern of folds gives rise to villi, the numerous finger-like protrusions that are essential for nutrient absorption. However, the molecular and mechanical mechanisms driving the initiation and morphogenesis of villi remain a matter of debate. Here, we identify an active mechanical mechanism that simultaneously patterns and folds intestinal villi. We find that PDGFRA+ subepithelial mesenchymal cells generate myosin II-dependent forces sufficient to produce patterned curvature in neighboring tissue interfaces. At the cell-level, this occurs through a process dependent upon matrix metalloproteinase-mediated tissue fluidization and altered cell-ECM adhesion. By combining computational models with in vivo experiments, we reveal these cellular features manifest at the tissue-level as differences in interfacial tensions that promote mesenchymal aggregation and interface bending through a process analogous to the active de-wetting of a thin liquid film.

developmental biology↗

bioRxiv2022

Cd-induced cytosolic proteome changes in the cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC7120 are mediated by LexA as one of the regulatory proteins

LexA, a well-characterized transcriptional repressor of the SOS genes in heterotrophic bacteria, has been shown to regulate diverse genes in cyanobacteria. An earlier study showed that LexA overexpression in a cyanobacterium, Anabaena sp. PCC7120 reduces its tolerance to Cd stress. This was later shown to be due to modulation of photosynthetic redox poising by LexA under Cd stress. However, in light of the global regulatory nature of LexA and the prior prediction of AnLexA-box in a few heavy metal-responsive genes, we speculated that LexA has a broad role in Cd stress tolerance, with regulation over a variety of Cd stress-responsive genes in addition to the regulation on genes related with photosynthetic redox poising. Thus, to further expand the knowledge on the regulatory role of LexA in Cd stress tolerance, a cytosolic proteome profiling of Anabaena constitutively overexpressing LexA upon Cd stress was performed. The proteomic study revealed 25 differentially accumulated proteins (DAPs) in response to the combined effect of LexA overexpression and Cd stress, and the other 11 DAPs exclusively in response to either LexA overexpression or Cd stress. The 36 identified proteins were related with a variety of functions, including photosynthesis, carbon metabolism, antioxidative defence, protein turnover, chaperones, post-transcriptional modifications, and a few unknown and hypothetical proteins. The regulation of LexA on corresponding genes, as well as six previously reported Cd efflux transporters, was further validated by the presence of AnLexA-boxes, transcript, and/or promoter analyses. In a nutshell, this study identifies the regulation of LexA on several genes and proteins of various functional categories in Anabaena that are responsive to Cd stress, hence expanding the regulatory role of LexA under Cd stress. HighlightsO_LILexA overexpression was earlier shown to decrease Cd stress tolerance in Anabaena. C_LIO_LIWe examined the combined effect of LexA overexpression and Cd on Anabaena proteome. C_LIO_LIUpon LexA overexpression or Cd stress or both, 36 differential proteins were found. C_LIO_LIIn silico, transcript and EMSA proved LexA regulation on them and few transporters. C_LIO_LIThe findings of this study extended the regulatory role of LexA in Cd tolerance. C_LI

molecular biology↗

bioRxiv2022

Cell wall carbohydrate dynamics during the differentiation of infection structures by the apple scab fungus, Venturia inaequalis

Scab, caused by the biotrophic fungal pathogen Venturia inaequalis, is the most economically important disease of apples. During infection, V. inaequalis colonizes the subcuticular host environment, where it develops specialized infection structures called runner hyphae and stromata. These structures are thought to be involved in nutrient acquisition and effector (virulence factor) delivery, but also give rise to conidia that further the infection cycle. Despite their importance, very little is known about how these structures are differentiated. Likewise, nothing is known about how these structures are protected from host defences or recognition by the host immune system. To better understand these processes, we first performed a glycosidic linkage analysis of sporulating tubular hyphae from V. inaequalis developed in culture. This analysis revealed that the V. inaequalis cell wall is mostly composed of glucans (44%) and mannans (37%), whereas chitin represents a much smaller proportion (4%). Next, we used transcriptomics and confocal laser scanning microscopy to provide insights into the cell wall carbohydrate composition of runner hyphae and stromata. These analyses revealed that, during subcuticular host colonization, genes of V. inaequalis putatively associated with the biosynthesis of immunogenic carbohydrates, such as chitin and {beta}-1,6-glucan, are down-regulated relative to growth in culture, while on the surface of runner hyphae and stromata, chitin is deacetylated to the less immunogenic carbohydrate, chitosan. These changes are anticipated to enable the subcuticular differentiation of runner hyphae and stromata by V. inaequalis, as well as to protect these structures from host defences and recognition by the host immune system. ImportancePlant-pathogenic fungi are a major threat to food security. Among these are subcuticular pathogens, which often cause latent asymptomatic infections, making them difficult to control. A key feature of these pathogens is their ability to differentiate specialized subcuticular infection structures that, to date, remain largely understudied. This is typified by Venturia inaequalis, which causes scab, the most economically important disease of apples. In this study, we show that, during subcuticular host colonization, V. inaequalis down-regulates genes associated with the biosynthesis of two immunogenic cell wall carbohydrates, chitin and {beta}-1,6-glucan, and coats its infection structures with a less-immunogenic carbohydrate, chitosan. These changes are anticipated to enable subcuticular host colonization by V. inaequalis and provide a foundation for understanding subcuticular host colonization by other plant-pathogenic fungi. Such an understanding is important, as it may inform the development of novel control strategies against subcuticular plant-pathogenic fungi.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2022

Gamma (γ)-radiation stress response of the cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC7120: Regulatory role of LexA and photophysiological changes

High radioresistance of the cyanobacterium, Anabaena sp. PCC7120 has been attributed to efficient DNA repair, protein recycling, and oxidative stress management. However, the regulatory network involved in these batteries of responses remains unexplored. In the present study, the role of a global regulator, LexA in modulating gamma ({gamma})-radiation stress response of Anabaena was investigated. Comparison of the cytosolic proteome profiles upon {gamma}-radiation in recombinant Anabaena strains, AnpAM (vector-control) and AnlexA+ (LexA-overexpressing), revealed 41 differentially accumulated proteins, corresponding to 29 distinct proteins. LexA was found to be involved in the regulation of 27 of the corresponding genes based on the presence of AnLexA-Box, EMSA, and/or qRT-PCR studies. The majority of the regulated genes were found to be involved in C-assimilation either through photosynthesis or C-catabolism and oxidative stress alleviation. Photosynthesis, measured in terms of PSII photophysiological parameters and thylakoid membrane proteome was found to be affected by {gamma}-radiation in both AnpAM and AnlexA+ cells, with LexA affecting them even under control growth conditions. Thus, LexA functioned as one of the transcriptional regulators involved in modulating {gamma}-radiation stress response in Anabaena. This study could pave the way for a deeper understanding of the regulation of {gamma}-radiation-responsive genes in cyanobacteria at large. HighlightsO_LI{gamma}-radiation alters PSII photophysiology and thylakoid proteome profile in Anabaena. C_LIO_LILexA modulates the cytosolic and thylakoid proteome of Anabaena under {gamma}-radiation. C_LIO_LILexA functions as one of the regulators of radiation-responsive genes in Anabaena. C_LI

molecular biology↗

bioRxiv2022

Asynchrony rescues statistically-optimal group decisions from information cascades through emergent leaders

It is usually assumed that information cascades are most likely to occur when an early but incorrect opinion spreads through the group. Here we analyse models of confidence-sharing in groups and reveal the opposite result: simple but plausible models of naive Bayesian decision-making exhibit information cascades when group decisions are synchronous; however, when group decisions are asynchronous, the early decisions reached by Bayesian decision makers tend to be correct, and dominate the group consensus dynamics. Thus early decisions actually rescue the group from making errors, rather than contribute to it. We explore the likely realism of our assumed decision-making rule with reference to the evolution of mechanisms for aggregating social information, and known psychological and neuroscientific mechanisms.

animal behavior and cognition↗