Editorials
イタリアの保健大臣は、効果が疑われている幹細胞治療の臨床試験を、これ以上続けさせてはならない。
Stem-cell fiasco must be stopped p.331
In the public interest, the Italian health minister should resolve the ongoing uncertainty over a government trial of a controversial therapy.
doi: 10.1038/504331a
地球温暖化への影響を評価できるよう、土地利用の変化の監視方法を改善する必要がある。
Sink or swim? p.331
A rethink on monitoring land-use change is needed to estimate effects on global warming.
doi: 10.1038/504331b
本誌で人気の高いSF小説投稿欄Futuresでは、名作集の発行を記念して、200文字以内のSF小説を募集する。
Futures redux p.332
Can you tell a sci-fi tale in just 200 characters? Then the Nature Futures competition is for you.
doi: 10.1038/504332a
News
北極海への二酸化炭素貯蔵計画について、北極海の海底には割れ目が多く、漏出を招くとの懸念が。
Seabed scars raise questions over carbon-storage plan p.339
Unexpected fractures above the world’s biggest storage site could provide path for leaks.
doi: 10.1038/504339a
EUが底引き網漁の規制強化が見送られることになり、科学者からは脆弱な生態系が脅かされると、怒りの声が。
EU fishing vote foments anger p.341
Failure to impose a ban on deep-sea fishing jeopardizes the future of vulnerable ecosystems, say researchers.
doi: 10.1038/504341a
ロシアの放棄農地をめぐり、再耕作するか、二酸化炭素吸収地にすべきか、ジレンマが。
Quandary over Soviet croplands p.342
Researchers ponder whether Eastern Europe’s large areas of abandoned land should be replanted or left as a carbon sink.
doi: 10.1038/504342a
米国の生物医学研究への財団系の助成は増えているが、間接経費の捻出には苦労が。
Charitable grants found lacking p.343
Foundations increasingly fund biomedical research, but are reluctant to pay overhead costs.
doi: 10.1038/504343a
米政府機関閉鎖、危険なウイルス、巨大台風、隕石衝突など、暗いニュースも多かったが、宇宙探査や脳研究の推進、幹細胞治療、HIV治療の進歩など、明るい話題にも事欠かなかった。
365 days: 2013 in review p.344
From the US shutdown to breakthroughs in stem-cell therapies, the past 12 months have seen fluctuating fortunes for science.
doi: 10.1038/504344a
写真で見る2013年
365 days: Images of the year p.350
Clear brains, hydrogen bonds and gas expelled from galaxies are among the most striking images of 2013.
doi: 10.1038/504350a
Feature
この12か月、最も印象に残った10人とは、どんな顔ぶれだろうか。
365 days: Nature's 10 p.357
Ten people who mattered this year.
doi: 10.1038/504357a
News & Views
地球科学：寒冷化による浸食
Earth science: Erosion by cooling p.380
数千個の岩石試料の熱履歴の解析から、気候の寒冷化が地球表面における浸食を加速することが疑いの余地なく確証された。これには、氷河の寄与が特に大きいようである。
doi: 10.1038/504380a
がん：薬剤感受性における不一致
Cancer: Discrepancies in drug sensitivity p.381
がんの治療薬の探索を促進する目的で、非常に多くのがん細胞系列についてDNAおよびRNAレベル、そして薬理学的レベルでのプロファイリングが2つの研究によって行われた。だが、これら研究結果の比較から、こうした3種類の大規模データセットのうちの2種類が部分的にしか一致しないことが明らかになった。
doi: 10.1038/nature12839
宇宙物理学：磁気圏の高速車線
Space physics: A fast lane in the magnetosphere p.383
衛星観測とモデリングの組み合わせることで、コーラス波と呼ばれるプラズマ振動によって電子が散乱されていると考えれば、磁気圏での電子の加速を説明できると分かった。
doi: 10.1038/504383a
植物科学：魔法と破壊
Plant biology: Witchcraft and destruction p.384
ストリゴラクトンと呼ばれる「魔法」ホルモンによる破壊の標的となるタンパク質が見つかり、イネで苗条の構成が制御される仕組みが明らかになった。
doi: 10.1038/nature12843
本年度に掲載されたNews & Viewsの中から編集部が精選した8編。
2013 Editors' choice p.386
本年度に掲載されたNews & Viewsの中から編集部が精選した8編。
doi: 10.1038/504386a
Analysis
がん：大規模な薬理ゲノミクス研究における不一致
Inconsistency in large pharmacogenomic studies p.389
Two large-scale pharmacogenomic studies were published recently in this journal. Genomic data are well correlated between studies; however, the measured drug response data are highly discordant. Although the source of inconsistencies remains uncertain, it has potential implications for using these outcome measures to assess gene–drug associations or select potential anticancer drugs on the basis of their reported results.
doi: 10.1038/nature12831
Articles
神経科学：アストロサイトはMEGF10およびMERTK経路を介してシナプス除去を仲介する
Astrocytes mediate synapse elimination through MEGF10 and MERTK pathways p.394
This study describes comprehensive synaptic engulfment by astrocytes, mediating synapse elimination in an activity-dependent manner; this elimination process involves the MEGF10 and MERTK phagocytic pathways and persists into adulthood, with mutant mice that lack these pathways in astrocytes exhibiting a failure to refine retinogeniculate connections during development.
doi: 10.1038/nature12776
植物科学：DWARF 53はイネでストリゴラクトンシグナル伝達のリプレッサーとして働く
DWARF 53 acts as a repressor of strigolactone signalling in rice p.401
Strigolactones (SLs), key regulators of plant growth, are believed to mediate their responses through a proposed receptor (D14) that interacts with an F-box protein (D3) to form a D14–SCFD3 protein complex; here the perception of SLs by the D14–SCFD3 complex and the control of gene expression are linked by the finding that DWARF 53, a repressor protein of SL signalling, interacts with the D14–SCFD3 complex and is ubiquitinated and degraded in a SL-dependent manner.
doi: 10.1038/nature12870
植物科学：D14–SCFD3に依存したD53の分解がストリゴラクトンシグナル伝達を調節する
D14–SCFD3-dependent degradation of D53 regulates strigolactone signalling p.406
Strigolactones (SLs), key regulators of plant growth, are believed to mediate their responses through a proposed receptor (D14) that interacts with an F-box protein (D3) to form a D14–SCFD3 protein complex; here the perception of SLs by the D14–SCFD3 complex and the control of gene expression are linked by the finding that DWARF 53, a repressor protein of SL function, interacts with the D14–SCFD3 complex and is ubiquitinated and degraded in a SL-dependent manner.
doi: 10.1038/nature12878
Letters
宇宙：磁気圏コーラスによる相対論的な放射線帯電子の急速な局所的加速
Rapid local acceleration of relativistic radiation-belt electrons by magnetospheric chorus p.411
Recent analysis of satellite data obtained during the 9 October 2012 geomagnetic storm identified the development of peaks in electron phase space density, which are compelling evidence for local electron acceleration in the heart of the outer radiation belt, but are inconsistent with acceleration by inward radial diffusive transport. However, the precise physical mechanism responsible for the acceleration on 9 October was not identified. Previous modelling has indicated that a magnetospheric electromagnetic emission known as chorus could be a potential candidate for local electron acceleration, but a definitive resolution of the importance of chorus for radiation-belt acceleration was not possible because of limitations in the energy range and resolution of previous electron observations and the lack of a dynamic global wave model. Here we report high-resolution electron observations obtained during the 9 October storm and demonstrate, using a two-dimensional simulation performed with a recently developed time-varying data-driven model, that chorus scattering explains the temporal evolution of both the energy and angular distribution of the observed relativistic electron flux increase. Our detailed modelling demonstrates the remarkable efficiency of wave acceleration in the Earth’s outer radiation belt, and the results presented have potential application to Jupiter, Saturn and other magnetized astrophysical objects.
doi: 10.1038/nature12889
量子情報科学：2個の量子ビットの最大限にもつれた定常状態の散逸的生成
Dissipative production of a maximally entangled steady state of two quantum bits p.415
Entangled states are a key resource in fundamental quantum physics, quantum cryptography and quantum computation. Introduction of controlled unitary processes—quantum gates—to a quantum system has so far been the most widely used method to create entanglement deterministically. These processes require high-fidelity state preparation and minimization of the decoherence that inevitably arises from coupling between the system and the environment, and imperfect control of the system parameters. Here we combine unitary processes with engineered dissipation to deterministically produce and stabilize an approximate Bell state of two trapped-ion quantum bits (qubits), independent of their initial states. Compared with previous studies that involved dissipative entanglement of atomic ensembles or the application of sequences of multiple time-dependent gates to trapped ions, we implement our combined process using trapped-ion qubits in a continuous time-independent fashion (analogous to optical pumping of atomic states). By continuously driving the system towards the steady state, entanglement is stabilized even in the presence of experimental noise and decoherence. Our demonstration of an entangled steady state of two qubits represents a step towards dissipative state engineering, dissipative quantum computation and dissipative phase transitions. Following this approach, engineered coupling to the environment may be applied to a broad range of experimental systems to achieve desired quantum dynamics or steady states. Indeed, concurrently with this work, an entangled steady state of two superconducting qubits was demonstrated using dissipation.
doi: 10.1038/nature12801
量子情報科学：2個の超伝導量子ビット間で自律的に安定化した量子もつれ
Autonomously stabilized entanglement between two superconducting quantum bits p.419
Quantum error correction codes are designed to protect an arbitrary state of a multi-qubit register from decoherence-induced errors, but their implementation is an outstanding challenge in the development of large-scale quantum computers. The first step is to stabilize a non-equilibrium state of a simple quantum system, such as a quantum bit (qubit) or a cavity mode, in the presence of decoherence. This has recently been accomplished using measurement-based feedback schemes. The next step is to prepare and stabilize a state of a composite system. Here we demonstrate the stabilization of an entangled Bell state of a quantum register of two superconducting qubits for an arbitrary time. Our result is achieved using an autonomous feedback scheme that combines continuous drives along with a specifically engineered coupling between the two-qubit register and a dissipative reservoir. Similar autonomous feedback techniques have been used for qubit reset, single-qubit state stabilization, and the creation and stabilization of states of multipartite quantum systems. Unlike conventional, measurement-based schemes, the autonomous approach uses engineered dissipation to counteract decoherence, obviating the need for a complicated external feedback loop to correct errors. Instead, the feedback loop is built into the Hamiltonian such that the steady state of the system in the presence of drives and dissipation is a Bell state, an essential building block for quantum information processing. Such autonomous schemes, which are broadly applicable to a variety of physical systems, as demonstrated by the accompanying paper on trapped ion qubits, will be an essential tool for the implementation of quantum error correction.
doi: 10.1038/nature12802
古気候学：寒冷化した気候における山地浸食の全球スケールでの加速
Worldwide acceleration of mountain erosion under a cooling climate p.423
Climate influences the erosion processes acting at the Earth’s surface. However, the effect of cooling during the Late Cenozoic era, including the onset of Pliocene–Pleistocene Northern Hemisphere glaciation (about two to three million years ago), on global erosion rates remains unclear. The uncertainty arises mainly from a lack of consensus on the use of the sedimentary record as a proxy for erosion and the difficulty of isolating the respective contributions of tectonics and climate to erosion. Here we compile 18,000 bedrock thermochronometric ages from around the world and use a formal inversion procedure to estimate temporal and spatial variations in erosion rates. This allows for the quantification of erosion for the source areas that ultimately produce the sediment record on a timescale of millions of years. We find that mountain erosion rates have increased since about six million years ago and most rapidly since two million years ago. The increase of erosion rates is observed at all latitudes, but is most pronounced in glaciated mountain ranges, indicating that glacial processes played an important part. Because mountains represent a considerable fraction of the global production of sediments, our results imply an increase in sediment flux at a global scale that coincides closely with enhanced cooling during the Pliocene and Pleistocene epochs.
doi: 10.1038/nature12877
神経科学：後に自閉症と診断される2～6か月齢の乳児では、目への注目は存在するが、低下している
Attention to eyes is present but in decline in 2–6-month-old infants later diagnosed with autism p.427
Deficits in eye contact have been a hallmark of autism since the condition’s initial description. They are cited widely as a diagnostic feature and figure prominently in clinical instruments; however, the early onset of these deficits has not been known. Here we show in a prospective longitudinal study that infants later diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) exhibit mean decline in eye fixation from 2 to 6 months of age, a pattern not observed in infants who do not develop ASD. These observations mark the earliest known indicators of social disability in infancy, but also falsify a prior hypothesis: in the first months of life, this basic mechanism of social adaptive action—eye looking—is not immediately diminished in infants later diagnosed with ASD; instead, eye looking appears to begin at normative levels prior to decline. The timing of decline highlights a narrow developmental window and reveals the early derailment of processes that would otherwise have a key role in canalizing typical social development. Finally, the observation of this decline in eye fixation—rather than outright absence—offers a promising opportunity for early intervention that could build on the apparent preservation of mechanisms subserving reflexive initial orientation towards the eyes.
doi: 10.1038/nature12715
医学：一酸化窒素シグナル伝達の機能不全は心筋梗塞リスクを増大させる
Dysfunctional nitric oxide signalling increases risk of myocardial infarction p.432
Two private, heterozygous mutations in two functionally related genes, GUCY1A3 and CCT7, are identified in an extended family with myocardial infarction; these genes encode proteins that work together to inhibit platelet activation after nitric oxide stimulation, suggesting a link between impaired nitric oxide signalling and myocardial infarction risk.
doi: 10.1038/nature12722
医学：グルコキナーゼ調節タンパク質複合体を破壊する低分子化合物の抗糖尿病作用
Antidiabetic effects of glucokinase regulatory protein small-molecule disruptors p.437
Glucose homeostasis is a vital and complex process, and its disruption can cause hyperglycaemia and type II diabetes mellitus. Glucokinase (GK), a key enzyme that regulates glucose homeostasis, converts glucose to glucose-6-phosphate in pancreatic β-cells, liver hepatocytes, specific hypothalamic neurons, and gut enterocytes. In hepatocytes, GK regulates glucose uptake and glycogen synthesis, suppresses glucose production, and is subject to the endogenous inhibitor GK regulatory protein (GKRP). During fasting, GKRP binds, inactivates and sequesters GK in the nucleus, which removes GK from the gluconeogenic process and prevents a futile cycle of glucose phosphorylation. Compounds that directly hyperactivate GK (GK activators) lower blood glucose levels and are being evaluated clinically as potential therapeutics for the treatment of type II diabetes mellitus. However, initial reports indicate that an increased risk of hypoglycaemia is associated with some GK activators. To mitigate the risk of hypoglycaemia, we sought to increase GK activity by blocking GKRP. Here we describe the identification of two potent small-molecule GK–GKRP disruptors (AMG-1694 and AMG-3969) that normalized blood glucose levels in several rodent models of diabetes. These compounds potently reversed the inhibitory effect of GKRP on GK activity and promoted GK translocation both in vitro (isolated hepatocytes) and in vivo (liver). A co-crystal structure of full-length human GKRP in complex with AMG-1694 revealed a previously unknown binding pocket in GKRP distinct from that of the phosphofructose-binding site. Furthermore, with AMG-1694 and AMG-3969 (but not GK activators), blood glucose lowering was restricted to diabetic and not normoglycaemic animals. These findings exploit a new cellular mechanism for lowering blood glucose levels with reduced potential for hypoglycaemic risk in patients with type II diabetes mellitus.
doi: 10.1038/nature12724
免疫：ThemisはT細胞分化・成熟における正および負の選択のシグナル閾値を設定する
Themis sets the signal threshold for positive and negative selection in T-cell development p.441
Development of a self-tolerant T-cell receptor (TCR) repertoire with the potential to recognize the universe of infectious agents depends on proper regulation of TCR signalling. The repertoire is whittled down during T-cell development in the thymus by the ability of quasi-randomly generated TCRs to interact with self-peptides presented by major histocompatibility complex (MHC) proteins. Low-affinity TCR interactions with self-MHC proteins generate weak signals that initiate ‘positive selection’, causing maturation of CD4- or CD8αβ-expressing ‘single-positive’ thymocytes from CD4+CD8αβ+ ‘double-positive’ precursors. These develop into mature naive T cells of the secondary lymphoid organs. TCR interaction with high-affinity agonist self-ligands results in ‘negative selection’ by activation-induced apoptosis or ‘agonist selection’ of functionally differentiated self-antigen-experienced T cells. Here we show that positive selection is enabled by the ability of the T-cell-specific protein Themis to specifically attenuate TCR signal strength via SHP1 recruitment and activation in response to low- but not high-affinity TCR engagement. Themis acts as an analog-to-digital converter translating graded TCR affinity into clear-cut selection outcome. By dampening mild TCR signals Themis increases the affinity threshold for activation, enabling positive selection of T cells with a naive phenotype in response to low-affinity self-antigens.
doi: 10.1038/nature12718
免疫：共生細菌由来の酪酸は大腸の制御性T細胞の分化を誘導する
Commensal microbe-derived butyrate induces the differentiation of colonic regulatory T cells p.446
Gut commensal microbes shape the mucosal immune system by regulating the differentiation and expansion of several types of T cell. Clostridia, a dominant class of commensal microbe, can induce colonic regulatory T (Treg) cells, which have a central role in the suppression of inflammatory and allergic responses. However, the molecular mechanisms by which commensal microbes induce colonic Treg cells have been unclear. Here we show that a large bowel microbial fermentation product, butyrate, induces the differentiation of colonic Treg cells in mice. A comparative NMR-based metabolome analysis suggests that the luminal concentrations of short-chain fatty acids positively correlates with the number of Treg cells in the colon. Among short-chain fatty acids, butyrate induced the differentiation of Treg cells in vitro and in vivo, and ameliorated the development of colitis induced by adoptive transfer of CD4+ CD45RBhi T cells in Rag1−/− mice. Treatment of naive T cells under the Treg-cell-polarizing conditions with butyrate enhanced histone H3 acetylation in the promoter and conserved non-coding sequence regions of the Foxp3 locus, suggesting a possible mechanism for how microbial-derived butyrate regulates the differentiation of Treg cells. Our findings provide new insight into the mechanisms by which host–microbe interactions establish immunological homeostasis in the gut.
doi: 10.1038/nature12721
免疫：共生細菌の代謝産物は末梢での制御性T細胞の発生を促進する
Metabolites produced by commensal bacteria promote peripheral regulatory T-cell generation p.451
Intestinal microbes provide multicellular hosts with nutrients and confer resistance to infection. The delicate balance between pro- and anti-inflammatory mechanisms, essential for gut immune homeostasis, is affected by the composition of the commensal microbial community. Regulatory T cells (Treg cells) expressing transcription factor Foxp3 have a key role in limiting inflammatory responses in the intestine. Although specific members of the commensal microbial community have been found to potentiate the generation of anti-inflammatory Treg or pro-inflammatory T helper 17 (TH17) cells, the molecular cues driving this process remain elusive. Considering the vital metabolic function afforded by commensal microorganisms, we reasoned that their metabolic by-products are sensed by cells of the immune system and affect the balance between pro- and anti-inflammatory cells. We tested this hypothesis by exploring the effect of microbial metabolites on the generation of anti-inflammatory Treg cells. We found that in mice a short-chain fatty acid (SCFA), butyrate, produced by commensal microorganisms during starch fermentation, facilitated extrathymic generation of Treg cells. A boost in Treg-cell numbers after provision of butyrate was due to potentiation of extrathymic differentiation of Treg cells, as the observed phenomenon was dependent on intronic enhancer CNS1 (conserved non-coding sequence 1), essential for extrathymic but dispensable for thymic Treg-cell differentiation. In addition to butyrate, de novo Treg-cell generation in the periphery was potentiated by propionate, another SCFA of microbial origin capable of histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibition, but not acetate, which lacks this HDAC-inhibitory activity. Our results suggest that bacterial metabolites mediate communication between the commensal microbiota and the immune system, affecting the balance between pro- and anti-inflammatory mechanisms.
doi: 10.1038/nature12726
発生生物学：内臓逆位遺伝子GALNT11はNotchをグリコシル化して繊毛型と側性を調整する
The heterotaxy gene GALNT11 glycosylates Notch to orchestrate cilia type and laterality p.456
Heterotaxy is a disorder of left–right body patterning, or laterality, that is associated with major congenital heart disease. The aetiology and mechanisms underlying most cases of human heterotaxy are poorly understood. In vertebrates, laterality is initiated at the embryonic left–right organizer, where motile cilia generate leftward flow that is detected by immotile sensory cilia, which transduce flow into downstream asymmetric signals. The mechanism that specifies these two cilia types remains unknown. Here we show that the N-acetylgalactosamine-type O-glycosylation enzyme GALNT11 is crucial to such determination. We previously identified GALNT11 as a candidate disease gene in a patient with heterotaxy, and now demonstrate, in Xenopus tropicalis, that galnt11 activates Notch signalling. GALNT11 O-glycosylates human NOTCH1 peptides in vitro, thereby supporting a mechanism of Notch activation either by increasing ADAM17-mediated ectodomain shedding of the Notch receptor or by modification of specific EGF repeats. We further developed a quantitative live imaging technique for Xenopus left–right organizer cilia and show that Galnt11-mediated Notch1 signalling modulates the spatial distribution and ratio of motile and immotile cilia at the left–right organizer. galnt11 or notch1 depletion increases the ratio of motile cilia at the expense of immotile cilia and produces a laterality defect reminiscent of loss of the ciliary sensor Pkd2. By contrast, Notch overexpression decreases this ratio, mimicking the ciliopathy primary ciliary dyskinesia. Together our data demonstrate that Galnt11 modifies Notch, establishing an essential balance between motile and immotile cilia at the left–right organizer to determine laterality, and reveal a novel mechanism for human heterotaxy.
doi: 10.1038/nature12723
エピジェネティクス：ゲノムインプリンティングの消去におけるTet1の役割
Role of Tet1 in erasure of genomic imprinting p.460
Genomic imprinting is an allele-specific gene expression system that is important for mammalian development and function. The molecular basis of genomic imprinting is allele-specific DNA methylation. Although it is well known that the de novo DNA methyltransferases Dnmt3a and Dnmt3b are responsible for the establishment of genomic imprinting, how the methylation mark is erased during primordial germ cell (PGC) reprogramming remains unclear. Tet1 is one of the ten-eleven translocation family proteins, which have the capacity to oxidize 5-methylcytosine (5mC), specifically expressed in reprogramming PGCs. Here we report that Tet1 has a critical role in the erasure of genomic imprinting. We show that despite their identical genotype, progenies derived from mating between Tet1 knockout males and wild-Peg10 and Peg3, which exhibit aberrant hypermethylation in the paternal allele of differential methylated regions (DMRs). RNA-seq reveals extensive dysregulation of imprinted genes in the next generation due to paternal loss of Tet1 function. Genome-wide DNA methylation analysis of embryonic day 13.5 PGCs and sperm of Tet1 knockout mice revealed hypermethylation of DMRs of imprinted genes in sperm, which can be traced back to PGCs. Analysis of the DNA methylation dynamics in reprogramming PGCs indicates that Tet1 functions to wipe out remaining methylation, including imprinted genes, at the late reprogramming stage. Furthermore, we provide evidence supporting the role of Tet1 in the erasure of paternal imprints in the female germ line. Thus, our study establishes a critical function of Tet1 in the erasure of genomic imprinting.
doi: 10.1038/nature12805
構造生物学：高分解能のXist結合マップで明らかになったX染色体不活性化における二段階のXist拡散
High-resolution Xist binding maps reveal two-step spreading during X-chromosome inactivation p.465
The Xist long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) is essential for X-chromosome inactivation (XCI), the process by which mammals compensate for unequal numbers of sex chromosomes. During XCI, Xist coats the future inactive X chromosome (Xi) and recruits Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) to the X-inactivation centre (Xic). How Xist spreads silencing on a 150-megabases scale is unclear. Here we generate high-resolution maps of Xist binding on the X chromosome across a developmental time course using CHART-seq. In female cells undergoing XCI de novo, Xist follows a two-step mechanism, initially targeting gene-rich islands before spreading to intervening gene-poor domains. Xist is depleted from genes that escape XCI but may concentrate near escapee boundaries. Xist binding is linearly proportional to PRC2 density and H3 lysine 27 trimethylation (H3K27me3), indicating co-migration of Xist and PRC2. Interestingly, when Xist is acutely stripped off from the Xi in post-XCI cells, Xist recovers quickly within both gene-rich and gene-poor domains on a timescale of hours instead of days, indicating a previously primed Xi chromatin state. We conclude that Xist spreading takes distinct stage-specific forms. During initial establishment, Xist follows a two-step mechanism, but during maintenance, Xist spreads rapidly to both gene-rich and gene-poor regions.
doi: 10.1038/nature12719
