Summer Writing Workshop Lindsay Winkenbach Nishimura Lab

Review papers contain an introduction and general discussion, but otherwise have more freedom in how they can be organized, so I will focus on paragraphs, narrowing to sentences, and finally brevity. Classic structure of a journal article is IMRaD

Paragraphs General to specific A uniform paragraph relates the content to the declared topic sentence Adopting a standard of organization in your paragraphs adds fluency General to specific Specific to general Familiar to unfamiliar Like many of the RNA binding proteins discussed in this review, Vas appears to have more than one function. It is a component of nuage, organelles that are involved in piRNA-mediated transposon silencing, and it has recently been implicated in regulating mitotic chromosome condensation in the Drosophila germline (Pek and Kai 2011). Dependent on the activities of aub and spn-E, two piRNA pathway genes, Vas accumulates in perichromosomal foci during mitosis, and facilitates the recruitment of Barren, which in turn is required for correct chromosome condensation and segregation. This function of Vas appears to be independent of translation, as the VasD617 mutant form operates normally in this regard. Like many of the RNA binding proteins discussed in this review, Vas appears to have more than one function. It is a component of nuage, organelles that are involved in piRNA-mediated transposon silencing, and it has recently been implicated in regulating mitotic chromosome condensation in the Drosophila germline (Pek and Kai 2011). Dependent on the activities of aub and spn-E, two piRNA pathway genes, Vas accumulates in perichromosomal foci during mitosis, and facilitates the recruitment of Barren, which in turn is required for correct chromosome condensation and segregation. This function of Vas appears to be independent of translation, as the VasD617 mutant form operates normally in this regard. Like many of the RNA binding proteins discussed in this review, Vas appears to have more than one function. It is a component of nuage, organelles that are involved in piRNA-mediated transposon silencing, and it has recently been implicated in regulating mitotic chromosome condensation in the Drosophila germline (Pek and Kai 2011). Dependent on the activities of aub and spn-E, two piRNA pathway genes, Vas accumulates in perichromosomal foci during mitosis, and facilitates the recruitment of Barren, which in turn is required for correct chromosome condensation and segregation. This function of Vas appears to be independent of translation, as the VasD617 mutant form operates normally in this regard. General to specific

Sentences Write in the active voice as much as possible Reduce complexity when you can Rules of English grammar apply “As will be discussed in more detail below, formation of the anterior-to-posterior Bcd gradient is primarily achieved through localization of its mRNA at the anterior pole, whereas formation of the posterior-to-anterior Nos gradient is achieved through translational repression of its mRNA by Bcd, and enrichment of its mRNA at the posterior where it is translationally active.” Localization of bcd mRNA at the anterior pole establishes the anterior-to-posterior Bcd gradient. Conversely, the posterior-to-anterior Nos gradient forms through translational repression of nos mRNA by Bcd and enrichment of translationally active nos mRNA at the posterior. Reducing complexity often is related to brevity, which will be discussed next Words = 56 Words = 37

Brevity- ”reduce content, or reduce the text used to convey content” Avoid the following: Passive voice Nominalization Unnecessary technical jargon Roundabout phrases Parentheticals Empty modifiers Padding The germ line cyst is surrounded by a single layer of follicle cells A single layer of follicle cells surrounds the germ line cyst. Is surrounded by vs surrounds “A recent genetic screen has identified short stop, which encodes a spectroplakin protein that binds both actin and microtubules, and Su(Mir)2, whose identity is unknown, as encoding other potential factors involved in bcd anchoring.” ”On first glance it seems perhaps…” Nominalization- turning verbs into nouns – achieve a reduction vs reduction Roundabout phrases- notwithstanding the fact that = although Parentheticals- a phrase that interrupts an otherwise complete sentence. Empty modifiers- really, quite, actually, very Padding- phrases to add bulk- it obviously follows that Really, very, quite, actually ”On first glance it seems perhaps…” ”What must be remembered, however,…”

Summary Paragraphs Sentences Brevity A uniform paragraph relates the content to the declared topic sentence Adopt a standard of organization Sentences Write in the active voice as much as possible Reduce complexity when you can Rules of English grammar apply Vary sentence length to keep the reader’s attention Brevity