EDITED BY STELLA HURTLEY
with similar specificities in multiple, unrelated
HIV-infected individuals. These antibodies were
derived from a small number of germline
immunoglobulin genes, and bound their epit-
ope on the gp120 envelope protein of HIV in a
similar fashion.
the Perspective by Kulmala and Petäjä) show
that HONO can be produced from biogenic
nitrite in soils, which can fill the hole in the
atmospheric budget. Fertilized soils with low
pH are particularly strong sources of HONO.
Thus, agricultural activity and changes in land
use could be causing enhanced production of
HONO and thereby increasing the concentra-
tion of hydroxyl radicals.
A Planet Around
Two Stars
Based on data from the Kepler
space telescope, Doyle et al. (p.
1602) report the detection of a
planet orbiting two stars in a binary
system. The planet transits both
stars, which eclipse each other,
allowing the precise determi-
nation of the mass, radius,
and orbital parameters of all
three bodies. The stars are less
massive than the Sun, and the
planet resembles Saturn but
with a higher mean density. It is
likely that the planet and stars
formed together within a disk
of gas and dust.
Rise of the
Jellyfishes
Human-induced changes to
marine systems, such as
overfishing, habitat de-
struction, and climate
change, have resulted
in large declines in
top fish predators. In
some such systems, a
correlated increase in
large jellyfishes has
occurred, leading
Feather Features
Feathers in the fossil record provide morpho-
logical clues to help understand selection
or behavior of extinct birds and dinosaurs.
Determining the coloring and structure of
fossil feathers could add further insight,
but preservation issues often cloud inter-
pretations (see the Perspective by Norell).
Wogelius et al. (p. 1622, published online
30 June) mapped the distribution of trace
metals likely to be associated with melanin
pigments in fossilized feathers in several
species of birds and nonavian theropods,
revealing distinct correlation patterns. In a
Confuciusornis sactus fossil, the metal pat-
terns suggest that its flight feathers were
mostly white with dark tips. McKellar et al.
(p. 1619) found an assemblage of amber-
preserved feathers from the Late Cretaceous
that preserves feather structure and hints of
feather pigmentation.
some to suggest
that anthropogenic
impacts on marine sys-
tems may result in a shift
Of Alkenes and Alcohols
Alkenes and alcohols are versatile building
blocks of more complex organic molecules
and polymers. In acid, the two are rather
easily interconverted—fragmentation of water
across the carbon-carbon double bond of an
alkene produces an alcohol—but the OH group
nearly always ends up on the carbon with fewer
hydrogens in asymmetrical alkenes. Dong et al.
(p. 1609) present a tandem set of three cata-
lysts that act together to invert this regiose-
lectivity, adding the OH group of water to the
from planktivorous fish–dominated to jellyfish-
dominated trophic webs. This shift seems para-
doxical because actively swimming and hunting
fish appear much more efficient than slow, drifting
jellyfish. Acuña et al. (p. 1627), however, show
that in terms of relative prey consumption rates,
fish and jellyfish are similar. It seems that jellyfish
make up for their inability to track prey actively
by being large and thus encounter a greater
number of prey items.
less-substituted carbon of an alkene. Lee et al. Modulating Myelination
(p. 1613) focus on a different transformation— How neural impulse activity can regulate my-
Antibodies’ Long and
Winding Road
Over time, some HIV-infected individuals develop departing as water.
antibodies that show great potency against
diverse strains of the virus. Passive transfer of
pairing up different alkenes and alcohols to
make carbon–carbon bonds with the alcohol’s
OH group and one of the alkene’s H atoms
elin formation is unclear. Wake et al. (p. 1647,
published online 4 August; see the Perspective
by Araque and Navarrete) cultured neurons
taken from mouse dorsal root ganglia with rat
oligodendrocyte precursor cells. After inhibi-
tion of neuronal neurotransmitter release, my-
elination was also inhibited. Neuronal activity
affected localized translation of myelin basic
protein at the periphery of the myelinating
cell. This interaction would stimulate myelin
formation preferentially on individual axons
that are electrically active—the critical require-
ment for myelin participation in activity-de-
pendent development, information processing,
and learning.
such antibodies can protect against infection in Filling a Hole
monkeys, so there is great interest in creating
a vaccine that could elicit such antibodies in
vaccinated individuals (see the Perspective by
Korber and Gnanakaran). Wu et al. (p. 1593,
published online 11 August; see the cover) and
Scheid et al. (p. 1633, published online 14
July) used different approaches to demonstrate
the presence of broadly neutralizing antibodies
Hydroxyl radicals have been called the “atmo-
spheric broom” because of their central role in
eliminating many airborne pollutants. They are
produced in large part by the photolysis of at-
mospheric HONO. However, observations have
been unable to account for a significant frac-
tion of atmospheric HONO production. Su et
al. (p. 1616, published online 18 August; see
Published by AAAS
1547
Dong, Guangbin
