Article
Biology
David Berger, Josefine Stangberg, Julian Baur, Richard J. Walters
Summary: Research suggests that rising global temperatures will intensify natural selection throughout the genome. While environmental stress per se did not increase mean selection on de novo mutation, elevated temperature increased the mean strength of selection on genome-wide polymorphism.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Zhizeng Sun, Timothy Palzkill
Summary: The study identified essential active-site residues of the MCR-1 enzyme using deep sequencing, which are critical for its polymyxin resistance function. Approximately 75% of the residues examined were found to be essential for the enzyme's function, suggesting inhibitors binding near these sites will broadly inhibit MCR-1 and similar enzymes.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Helena B. Cooper, Kurt L. Krause, Paul P. Gardner
Summary: Ribosome-targeting antibiotics are widely used in medicine, but our knowledge of their binding sites mainly comes from non-pathogenic species. Recent advancements in electron cryomicroscopy have revealed species-specific differences in ribosome structures from pathogenic bacteria. More novel ribosome structures, especially from pathogens, are needed for a better understanding of the entire bacterial ribosome diversity and for innovative advancements in antibiotic research. This study used advanced models to analyze ribosomal sequences and found that current non-pathogenic structures do not represent certain pathogenic bacteria or whole phyla.
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Octav Caldararu, Tom L. Blundell, Kasper P. Kepp
Summary: The study analyzed the structural sensitivity of stability prediction methods for proteins and found that the methods can be grouped into two categories with varying sensitivity. Accuracy correlates with precision for mutation-type-balanced data sets, highlighting the importance of balance in mutation types. Machine-learning methods may underestimate the significance of protein structure compared to side-chain-sensitive methods.
BMC BIOINFORMATICS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Organic
Daniel Joaquin, Samuel A. Mansfield, Joseph C. Chanthakhoun, Austin K. LeSueur, Tiffani A. Blackburn, Steven L. Castle
Summary: Three new bulky cycloalkyl alpha, beta-dehydroamino acids have been synthesized, which enhance the rigidity of model peptides and their stability to proteolysis. Larger ring sizes have greater effects. Peptides containing these bulky cycloalkyl Delta AAs are inert to conjugate addition by a nucleophilic thiol, suggesting their potential as effective tools for improving the proteolytic stability of bioactive peptides.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Nehad Noby, Rachel L. Johnson, Jonathan D. Tyzack, Amira M. Embaby, Hesham Saeed, Ahmed Hussein, Sherine N. Khattab, Pierre J. Rizkallah, D. Dafydd Jones
Summary: The study on cold active esterase EstN7 reveals that its substrate range is limited but can be broadened through mutations, providing new insights for enzyme engineering.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2022)
Review
Microbiology
Min Jiao, Wenbo He, Zhenlin Ouyang, Qindong Shi, Yurong Wen
Summary: Phenylacetic acid (PAA) plays a crucial role in bacterial metabolism, and its pathway consists of several enzymes and a transcriptional regulator. These components are widely present in bacterial genomes and are involved in biofilm formation and antimicrobial activity. The enzymes of the PAA pathway have potential as antimicrobial drug targets in metabolic engineering.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Osamu Komagata, Shinji Kasai, Kentaro Itokawa, Keiko Minagawa, Toru Kazuma, Kiyoshi Mizutani, Atsuhiko Muto, Tsutomu Tanikawa, Masaya Adachi, Noriyuki Komatsu, Takashi Tomita
Summary: Bed bug control heavily relies on insecticides, with Japanese populations primarily resistant to pyrethroids. Research on resistance mechanisms and mutations in acetylcholinesterase inhibitors has shown decreased sensitivity to organophosphates and carbamates. Further studies are needed to determine the efficacy of alternative insecticides on resistant bed bug populations.
INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biology
Lea Pradier, Stephanie Bedhomme
Summary: Antibiotic consumption alone does not fully explain the persistence of antibiotic resistance, as shown by the widespread presence of aminoglycoside-modifying enzyme (AME) genes in bacteria from various ecological contexts. This study demonstrates that the prevalence of AME-carrying bacteria is influenced by ecological factors more than antibiotic use. Analysis of resistome compositions reveals the importance of exchanges between soil, wildlife, and human samples in the dissemination of AME genes. Intervention strategies should consider both reducing antibiotic use and controlling exchanges between ecosystems.
Article
Biology
Emma Mendelsohn, Noam Ross, Carlos Zambrana-Torrelio, T. P. Van Boeckel, Ramanan Laxminarayan, Peter Daszak
Summary: This study examines the factors related to antimicrobial resistance (AMR) emergence in humans using global data. It finds a positive correlation between AMR emergence and antibiotic consumption in humans. The study also suggests that human travel may contribute to the spread of novel AMR strains.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Xiping Chen, Olawale G. Raimi, Andrew T. Ferenbach, Daan M. F. van Aalten
Summary: The mutation UAP1 (A229T) decreases the stability and activity of the UAP1 isoform AGX1, and may be a contributory factor to the patient’s phenotype.
Editorial Material
Microbiology
Santiago Castillo-Ramirez
Summary: A recent study published in mBio sequenced the genomes of 313 carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii isolates from over 100 hospitals in almost 50 countries, providing an updated view of the global distribution of major international clones and their carbapenemase genes. Future global genomic epidemiology studies can be enhanced by considering both human and non-human isolates and their antibiotic resistance profiles.
Article
Infectious Diseases
Kai Lucassen, Carina Mueller, Julia Wille, Kyriaki Xanthopoulou, Meredith Hackel, Harald Seifert, Paul G. Higgins
Summary: The most prevalent tigecycline resistance mechanisms in carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii isolates were caused by alterations in the regulators of RND-type efflux pumps, with disruption of the adeN gene being the most common. Mutations and IS element disruptions in the adeRS regulatory system from Southern European countries were associated with higher tigecycline MICs, although less commonly observed.
JOURNAL OF ANTIMICROBIAL CHEMOTHERAPY
(2021)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Carlotta Gamberini, Sabine Donders, Salwan Al-Nasiry, Alena Kamenshchikova, Elena Ambrosino
Summary: This study explores how healthcare practitioners make decisions about antibiotic prescriptions for pregnant women and what factors play a role in this process. A cross-sectional exploratory survey was conducted, and both quantitative and qualitative data were collected to identify trends and challenges in antibiotic prescription practices. The findings emphasize the importance of clinical guidelines and hospital protocols and highlight the need for tailored interventions to address emerging resistance.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Anna Abramova, Thomas U. Berendonk, Johan Bengtsson-Palme
Summary: The environment plays a crucial role in the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), yet monitoring efforts outside of clinical and veterinary settings have been limited. This is partly due to a lack of comprehensive reference data for most environments. To establish a baseline of AMR in various settings, a literature survey was conducted, identifying 150 papers with relevant qPCR data on antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) in environments associated with potential routes for AMR dissemination. The collected data, spanning from 2001 to 2020 and representing 1594 samples from 30 countries and 12 sample types, revealed that the abundances of most ARGs in human impacted environments fell within a range of 10-5 to 10-3 copies per 16S rRNA, approximately one ARG copy in a thousand bacteria. Overall, these findings provide a comprehensive overview of ARG occurrence and levels in different environments, contributing to the development of risk assessment models in AMR monitoring frameworks.
ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL
(2023)
Article
Oncology
Lisa K. Mullany, Kwong-Kwok Wong, David C. Marciano, Panagiotis Katsonis, Erin R. King-Crane, Yi Athena Ren, Olivier Lichtarge, JoAnne S. Richards
Article
Physics, Multidisciplinary
David C. Marciano, Rhonald C. Lua, Christophe Herman, Olivier Lichtarge
PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS
(2016)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Toon Swings, David C. Marciano, Benu Atri, Rachel E. Bosserman, Chen Wang, Marlies Leysen, Camille Bonte, Thomas Schalck, Ian Furey, Bram Van den Bergh, Natalie Verstraeten, Peter J. Christie, Christophe Herman, Olivier Lichtarge, Jan Michiels
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2018)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Angela D. Wilkins, Eric Venner, David C. Marciano, Serkan Erdin, Benu Atri, Rhonald C. Lua, Olivier Lichtarge
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Rhonald C. Lua, David C. Marciano, Panagiotis Katsonis, Anbu K. Adikesavan, Angela D. Wilkins, Olivier Lichtarge
PROGRESS IN BIOPHYSICS & MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
(2014)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
David C. Marciano, Nicholas G. Brown, Timothy Palzkill
Article
Cell Biology
David C. Marciano, Rhonald C. Lua, Panagiotis Katsonis, Shivas R. Amin, Christophe Herman, Olivier Lichtarge
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Anbu K. Adikesavan, Panagiotis Katsonis, David C. Marciano, Rhonald Lua, Christophe Herman, Olivier Lichtarge
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
David C. Marciano, Chen Wang, Teng-Kuei Hsu, Thomas Bourquard, Benu Atri, Ralf B. Nehring, Nicholas S. Abel, Elizabeth A. Bowling, Taylor J. Chen, Pamela D. Lurie, Panagiotis Katsonis, Susan M. Rosenberg, Christophe Herman, Olivier Lichtarge
Summary: By quantifying the impact of mutations through evolutionary action, known resistance drivers can be identified and new antibiotic resistance genes can be discovered. This method provides a more robust approach for finding antibiotic resistance genes compared to traditional methods.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
David C. Marciano, Omid Y. Karkouti, Timothy Palzkill
Article
Immunology
TT Knowles, AR Alleman, HL Sorenson, DC Marciano, EB Breitschwerdt, S Harrus, AF Barbet, M Bélanger
CLINICAL AND DIAGNOSTIC LABORATORY IMMUNOLOGY
(2003)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ankita Chadda, Alexander G. Kozlov, Binh Nguyen, Timothy M. Lohman, Eric A. Galburt
Summary: In this study, it was found that the DNA damage response in Mycobacterium tuberculosis differs from well-studied model bacteria. The DNA repair helicase UvrD1 in Mtb is activated through a redox-dependent process and is closely associated with the homo-dimeric Ku protein. Additionally, Ku protein is shown to stimulate the helicase activity of UvrD1.
JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
(2024)