Article
Infectious Diseases
Paulo Ranaivomanana, Marie Sylvianne Rabodoarivelo, Mame Diarra Bousso Ndiaye, Niaina Rakotosamimanana, Voahangy Rasolofo
Summary: The genetic diversity of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex influences the immune response of the host. This study found that mycobacterial-antigen-stimulated cytokine responses vary with the genotype of the MTBC infecting the patient, with lineage 4 strains inducing a decreased whole-blood pro-inflammatory cytokine response.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Xi Chen, Xiaojian Cao, Yingying Lei, Aikebaier Reheman, Wei Zhou, Bing Yang, Weipan Zhang, Weize Xu, Shuang Dong, Rohit Tyagi, Zhen F. Fu, Gang Cao
Summary: Mycobacterium tuberculosis can inhibit lysosome acidification in certain cell lines, but in others, it is targeted to acidified phagolysosomes. The gene profile analysis identified the role of ITGB3 in promoting M. tuberculosis clearance in endothelial cells, suggesting a new defense mechanism against the pathogen.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Marta Alberti, Stefano Sainas, Erika Ronchi, Marco L. Lolli, Donatella Boschi, Menico Rizzi, Davide M. Ferraris, Riccardo Miggiano
Summary: Researchers have characterized the full-length MTB DHODH and discovered the first selective inhibitor. This study has significant implications for drug treatment of tuberculosis.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Shivangi, Mary Krishna Ekka, Laxman S. Meena
Summary: This study explores the essential factors affecting the enzymatic activity of FtsY, including its hydrolysis kinetics of GTP, the influence of cations like Mg2+ and Mn2+ on activity, and the structural changes of FtsY in response to ligand binding. Mutational analysis showed that mutations at key residues significantly reduce FtsY's GTPase activity, while MD simulation indicated effective binding and stabilization of FtsY with GTP, GDP and ATP.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL MACROMOLECULES
(2021)
Article
Cell Biology
Louis Debar, Layal Ishak, Amandine Moretton, Saber Anoosheh, Frederic Morel, Louise Jenninger, Isabelle Garreau-Balandier, Patrick Vernet, Anders Hofer, Siet Van den Wildenberg, Geraldine Farge
Summary: The NUDIX hydrolase superfamily consisting of 22 members can hydrolyze various phosphorylated molecules. In this study, NUDT6 and NUDT9 were found to play roles in mitochondria, and their deficiency led to increased respiratory chain activity and altered expression of mitochondrial respiratory chain complexes. Furthermore, NUDT6 showed higher activity towards NADH, while NUDT9 displayed higher activity towards ADPR.
Article
Biology
Muhammad Hassam, Jawwad A. Shamsi, Ajmal Khan, Ahmed Al-Harrasi, Reaz Uddin
Summary: This study utilizes computational methods to predict highly active drug molecules, using machine learning models to optimize the screening of active molecules. The best performing model is selected for data screening experiments, aiding in enhancing the drug discovery process against Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
COMPUTERS IN BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Anna Bieluszewska, Phillip Wulfridge, John Doherty, Wenqing Ren, Kavitha Sarma
Summary: This study investigates how ATRX mutations affect neurodifferentiation using engineered mouse embryonic stem cells. The results show that ATRX mutations lead to delayed and compromised neurodifferentiation through separate regulatory pathways, highlighting the important roles of ATRX in neurodevelopment.
NUCLEIC ACIDS RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ingie Elchennawi, Philippe Carpentier, Christelle Caux, Marine Ponge, Sandrine Ollagnier de Choudens
Summary: Iron-sulfur (Fe-S) clusters are essential for cellular pathways and require proteins to mobilize sulfur and iron for their assembly. The SUF system in Mycobacterium tuberculosis is the primary Fe-S biogenesis system and a potential target for fighting tuberculosis. In this study, two proteins of the Mtb SUF system, Rv1464(sufS) and Rv1465(sufU), were characterized and their interaction and activities in Fe-S biogenesis were investigated.
Article
Microbiology
Xia Yu, Rui Zhu, Zhi Geng, Yaoyao Kong, Fen Wang, Lingling Dong, Liping Zhao, Yi Xue, Xiaochi Ma, Hairong Huang
Summary: This study evaluated the potential of nosiheptide (NOS) as a new drug candidate for treating tuberculosis, including multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). The results showed that NOS has potent inhibitory activities against Mycobacterium tuberculosis and a partial synergistic effect with isoniazid (INH). In addition, NOS has a long postantibiotic effect, making it a promising drug for tuberculosis treatment.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Geng Lu, XinRui Jiang, Anni Wu, Jiawei Zhou, Hengjun Liu, Fei He, Qiuling Zhang, Ke Zen, Shuangshuang Gu, Jun Wang
Summary: The study identified potential diagnostic biomarkers for tuberculosis by targeting sRNA encoded by M. tuberculosis in small extracellular vesicles.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Ritu Sharma, Travis E. Hartman, Tiago Beites, Jee-Hyun Kim, Hyungjin Eoh, Curtis A. Engelhart, Linnan Zhu, Daniel J. Wilson, Courtney C. Aldrich, Sabine Ehrt, Kyu Young Rhee, Dirk Schnappinger
Summary: The current treatment for tuberculosis (TB) infections is lengthy and requires multiple antibiotics. The development of shorter, simpler treatment regimens is critical to eradicating TB. NadE, an enzyme essential for the synthesis of the cofactor NAD, is considered a promising drug target. Through gene silencing and metabolomics, it has been shown that NADP deficiency is bacteriostatic, while NAD deficiency is bactericidal due to its role in Mtb's respiratory capacity. These findings suggest prioritizing NAD biosynthesis inhibitors in anti-TB drug development.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ali A. Rabaan, Saad Alhumaid, Hawra Albayat, Mohammed Alsaeed, Fadwa S. Alofi, Mawaheb H. Al-Howaidi, Safaa A. Turkistani, Salah M. Alhajri, Hejji E. Alahmed, Abdulwahab B. Alzahrani, Mutaib M. Mashraqi, Sara Alwarthan, Mashael Alhajri, Fatimah S. Alshahrani, Souad A. Almuthree, Roua A. Alsubki, Abdulmonem A. Abuzaid, Mubarak Alfaresi, Mona A. Al Fares, Abbas Al Mutair
Summary: Tuberculosis (TB) caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is a bacterial disease that has caused billions of deaths in the past two centuries. Drug resistance has become a major obstacle in the eradication of TB, highlighting the need for new drugs. Small molecule-based treatments, such as flavonoids, show potential in overcoming drug resistance and inhibiting non-tubercular mycobacterial organisms.
Article
Infectious Diseases
Eva Sodja, Simon Koren, Natasa Toplak, Sara Truden, Manca Zolnir-Dovc
Summary: This study investigated the feasibility of full-length analysis of a gene linked with pyrazinamide (PZA) resistance using Ion Torrent technology and its comparison with phenotypic drug susceptibility testing (DST) in clinical tuberculosis (TB) isolates from the Balkan Peninsula. The results showed high agreement and sensitivity between NGS and conventional DST methods in detecting PZA resistance.
JOURNAL OF GLOBAL ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Huiru An, Wenna Sun, Xiao Liu, Tianhao Wang, Juan Qiao, Jianqin Liang
Summary: This study evaluated the activity of oxazolidinone analogue MRX-I against Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The results showed that MRX-I exhibited anti-Mycobacterium tuberculosis activity, with an advantage against drug-resistant isolates.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Huiru An, Wenna Sun, Xiao Liu, Tianhao Wang, Juan Qiao, Jianqin Liang
Summary: This study found that contezolid has strong anti-tuberculosis activity against both drug-sensitive and drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates, with a similar activity to linezolid.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2023)
Article
Dentistry, Oral Surgery & Medicine
T. Beikler, K. Bunte, Y. Chan, B. Weiher, S. Selbach, U. Peters, A. Klocke, R. M. Watt, T. F. Flemmig
Summary: The study evaluated the safety and efficacy of oral microbiota transplant (OMT) for treating periodontitis in dogs. Results showed that OMT may modulate the microbiota composition in dogs with naturally occurring periodontitis and can be applied safely.
JOURNAL OF DENTAL RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Antonio Minopoli, Emanuela Scardapane, Bartolomeo Della Ventura, Julian A. Tanner, Andreas Offenhaeusser, Dirk Mayer, Raffaele Velotta
Summary: A novel double-resonant plasmonic substrate for fluorescence amplification in a chip-based apta-immunoassay was reported. The substrate relies on the plasmon-enhanced fluorescence (PEF) effect to amplify the fluorescence signal. It can potentially be used for multiplexing applications. In a malaria apta-immunoassay, the substrate successfully detected Plasmodium falciparum lactate dehydrogenase (PfLDH) in human whole blood with high sensitivity and without complex pretreatments.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2022)
Article
Virology
Ye-Fan Hu, Jing-Chu Hu, Hin Chu, Thomas Yau, Bao-Zhong Zhang, Jian-Dong Huang
Summary: The impact of the Omicron variant on antibodies and vaccines is still unknown. However, analysis suggests that it may weaken the neutralizing potential of current therapeutic antibodies to varying degrees and could have a similar impact on COVID-19 vaccines.
Article
Cell Biology
Mengping Liu, Lin Wang, Young Lo, Simon Chi-Chin Shiu, Andrew B. Kinghorn, Julian A. Tanner
Summary: The interdisciplinary field of nanomaterials and aptamer science has significant potential for biomedical applications in drug delivery, imaging, and therapy. However, there are challenges to be addressed for their future development.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Kwing Yeung Chan, Andrew Brian Kinghorn, Marcel Hollenstein, Julian Alexander Tanner
Summary: In the past three decades, in vitro systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX) has been used to select many aptamers for translational applications. However, the low success rate of SELEX has hindered the further development of aptamers, with one major obstacle being the lack of chemical diversity in nucleic acids. To overcome this, exotic chemical groups have been introduced to expand the chemical repertoire of aptamers.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yuanyuan Yu, Mengping Liu, Vanessa N. T. Choi, Yee-Wai Cheung, Julian A. Tanner
Summary: There is a critical need for more potent inhibitors for osteoarthritis therapy. In this study, two new DNA aptamer inhibitors of ADAMTS-5, apt21 and apt25, were developed and characterized. These aptamers showed high affinity and specificity against ADAMTS-5 and formed G-quadruplex structures. They demonstrated inhibitory effects on ADAMTS-5 and have the potential for osteoarthritis therapy.
Article
Biophysics
Gabriela Figueroa-Miranda, Yuanying Liang, Mohit Suranglikar, Matthias Stadler, Nagesh Samane, Marcel Tintelott, Young Lo, Julian A. Tanner, Xuan T. Vu, Joachim Knoch, Sven Ingebrandt, Andreas Offenhaeusser, Vivek Pachauri, Dirk Mayer
Summary: This article introduces a quantitative electrical biosensor based on 2DBioFETs and rGO for high sensitivity screening of malaria biomarkers. Through systematic optimization, the sensor demonstrates high performance and diagnostic potential in human serum.
BIOSENSORS & BIOELECTRONICS
(2022)
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Kunza Latif, Shagufta Naz, Imran Altaf, Jian-Dong Huang, Rasheeda Bashir, Farheen Aslam, Shaozhen Xing
Summary: We optimized the expression and purification of outer membrane proteins SpaO and LamB from Salmonella typhi. By PCR amplification, gene cloning, and stepwise purification, we successfully obtained recombinant proteins for potential vaccine development.
BIOSCIENCE JOURNAL
(2022)
Review
Chemistry, Analytical
Simon Chi-Chin Shiu, William L. Whitehouse, Julian A. Tanner
Summary: Aptamers and DNA nanostructures are valuable tools in the fields of medicine and biology. This article reviews the integration of aptamers into DNA nanostructures, providing key concepts, proof-of-principle examples, and a three-step strategy for translating ideas into actual DNA sequences for structure assembly and aptamer integration.
TRAC-TRENDS IN ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Soubhagya K. Bhuyan, Lin Wang, Chandra Jinata, Andrew B. Kinghorn, Mengping Liu, Weisi He, Rakesh Sharma, Julian A. Tanner
Summary: Here, we developed a new peroxidase DNAzyme mSBDZ-X-3 through directed evolution, which has a parallel G-quadruplex structure and superior catalytic properties compared to previous variants. We used mSBDZ-X-3 in an aptamer-coupled proximity-based labeling proteomic assay to identify proteins binding to cancer biomarkers. The assay successfully labeled the proteins associated with EpCAM and nucleolin within a short time frame and the labeled proteins were identified using mass spectrometry.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY
(2023)
Review
Virology
Siva Sundara Kumar Durairajan, Abhay Kumar Singh, Udhaya Bharathy Saravanan, Mayurikaa Namachivayam, Moorthi Radhakrishnan, Jian-Dong Huang, Rahul Dhodapkar, Hongjie Zhang
Summary: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) can invade the gastrointestinal system, causing symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. Understanding the mechanisms of infection and transmission in the gastrointestinal tract is crucial for early detection and targeted therapeutics against COVID-19-induced gastrointestinal infection and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Bao-Zhong Zhang, Yee-Man Au-Yeung, Terrence Tsz-Tai Yuen, Xiaoyun Xu, Hua-Rui Gong, Zheng Zeng, Renhao Li, Jinlian Hu, Hin Chu, Jian-Dong Huang
ADVANCED MATERIALS TECHNOLOGIES
(2023)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Jiawen Chen, Ting Li, Chun Ye, Jiasheng Zhong, Jian-Dong Huang, Yiquan Ke, Haitao Sun
Summary: Traditionally, the lung in a healthy state is considered sterile, but the development of non-culture-dependent techniques has revealed the presence of low-biomass microbiomes in the lungs. The lung microbiome is similar to the oral microbiome, suggesting a passive transfer of microorganisms from the oral cavity to the lungs. The composition of the lung microbiome is influenced by elimination, immigration, and relative growth within its communities. The lung microbiome plays a role in lung diseases and the lung-brain axis, but the causal connection between specific diseases and the lung microbiome is not well understood.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Biophysics
Yuanying Liang, Gabriela Figueroa-Miranda, Julian Alexander Tanner, Fei Huang, Andreas Offenhaeusser, Dirk Mayer
Summary: In this research, integrated organic electrochemical transistors (iOECTs) with different channel geometries were designed for point-of-care diagnosis of malaria using aptamer as receptor. The experiment showed that iOECTs with thin channels exhibited superior sensitivity for malaria detection, with a detection limit as low as 3.2 aM.
BIOSENSORS & BIOELECTRONICS
(2023)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Lin Wang, Jingyu Cui, Julian A. Tanner, Simon Chi-Chin Shiu
Summary: DNA tiles can form nanoscale structures through self-assembly and can be used for biosensing or diagnostic applications. Two-dimensional DNA tiles with split quadruplexes were designed as diagnostic tools for nucleic acid sensing without the use of protein enzymes.
ACS APPLIED BIO MATERIALS
(2022)