Interchromosomal interaction of homologous Stat92E alleles regulates transcriptional switch during stem-cell differentiation

The strength of pairing of homologous chromosomes differs in a locus-specific manner and is correlated to gene expression states. However, the functional impact of homolog pairing on local transcriptional activity is still unclear. Drosophila male germline stem cells (GSCs) constantly divide asymmetrically to produce one GSC and one differentiating gonialblast (GB). The GB then enters the differentiation program in which stem cell specific genes are quickly downregulated. Here we demonstrate that a change in local pairing state of Stat92E locus is required for the downregulation of the Stat92E gene during differentiation. Using OligoPaint fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH), we show that the interaction between homologous loci of Stat92E is always tight in GSCs and immediately loosened in GBs. When one of the Stat92E locus was absent or relocated to another chromosome, Stat92E did not pair and failed to downregulate, suggesting that the pairing is required for switching of transcriptional activity. The defect in downregulation of Stat92E was also observed upon knockdown of global pairing or anti-pairing factors. Moreover, the Stat92E enhancer element, but not cis-transcription, is required for the change in pairing state, indicating that it is not a consequence of transcriptional changes. GSCs are known to inherit pre-existing histones H3 and H4, while newly synthesized histones are distributed in GBs. When this histone inheritance was compromised, the change in Stat92E pairing did not occur, suggesting that it is an intrinsically programmed process during asymmetric stem cell division. We propose that the change of local pairing state may be a common process to reprogram gene activity during cell-differentiation.

Nodal superconductivity and superconducting domes in the topological Kagome metal CsV3Sb5

Recently superconductivity was discovered in the Kagome metal AV3Sb5 (A = K, Rb, and Cs), which has an ideal Kagome lattice of vanadium1-4. These V-based superconductors also host charge density wave (CDW)5 and topological nontrivial band structure2,6, thus provide a great platform to study the interplay of superconductivity, CDW, frustration, and topology. Here we report the ultralow-temperature thermal conductivity and high pressure resistance measurements on CsV3Sb5 with Tc ≈ 2.5 K, the highest among AV3Sb5. A finite residual linear term of thermal conductivity at zero magnetic field and its rapid increase in fields suggest nodal superconductivity. By applying pressure, the Tc of CsV3Sb5 increases first, then decreases to lower than 0.3 K at 11.4 GPa, demonstrating a clear first superconducting dome peaked around 0.8 GPa. Above 11.4 GPa, superconductivity re-emerges, showing a second superconducting dome. Both nodal superconductivity and superconducting domes point to unconventional superconductivity in this V-based superconductor. While our finding of nodal superconductivity puts a strong constrain on the pairing state of the first dome, which should be related to the CDW instability, the superconductivity of the second dome may present another exotic pairing state in this ideal Kagome lattice of vanadium.

Critical temperature of pair condensation in a dilute Bose gas with spin–orbit coupling

We study the Bardeen–Cooper–Shrieffer (BCS) pairing state of a two-component Bose gas with a symmetric spin–orbit coupling (SOC). In the dilute limit at low temperature, this system is essentially a dilute gas of diatomic molecules. We compute the effective mass of the molecule and find that it is anisotropic in momentum space. The critical temperature of the pairing state is about eight times smaller than the Bose–Einstein condensation (BEC) transition temperature of an ideal Bose gas with the same density.