Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Keita Shigedomi, Satoshi Osada, Masoud Jelokhani-Niaraki, Hiroaki Kodama
Summary: Aromatic interactions such as pi-pi interaction and cation-pi interaction play crucial roles in the structure and function of membrane proteins. Peptides designed with tryptophan residues demonstrate enhanced stability and ion channel forming capabilities, with Trp-Lys interactions significantly contributing to channel stabilization. Proper incorporation and positioning of Trp residues can lead to more stable channels in membrane proteins.
Article
Food Science & Technology
Xudong Luo, Li Ding, Xiangdong Ye, Wen Zhu, Kaiyue Zhang, Fangyan Li, Huiwen Jiang, Zhiwen Zhao, Zongyun Chen
Summary: The study designed and analyzed a 14-residue fragment of the long-chain noncysteine-containing antimicrobial peptide Smp43 from scorpion venom, showing high antimicrobial activity against bacteria and non-toxicity to mammalian cells. The unique primary structure of the designed peptide suggests potential for novel drug development against bacterial infectious diseases.
Review
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Nurul Hana Zainal Baharin, Nur Fadhilah Khairil Mokhtar, Mohd Nasir Mohd Desa, Banulata Gopalsamy, Nor Nadiha Mohd Zaki, Mohd Hafis Yuswan, AbdulRahman Muthanna, Nurul Diana Dzaraly, Sahar Abbasiliasi, Amalia Mohd Hashim, Muhamad Shirwan Abdullah Sani, Shuhaimi Mustafa
Summary: The emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria poses a significant threat to global public health due to overuse and inappropriate use of antibiotics. Novel antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are considered a potential alternative therapy for treating antibiotic-resistant pathogens, although there are still limitations to their effectiveness.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Edward Ntim Gasu, John Kenneth Mensah, Lawrence Sheringham Borquaye
Summary: New antimicrobial peptides were designed using the chemophysical properties of a peptide extracted from Olivancillaria hiatula and computational tools. These peptides have antibacterial and antivirulence activities and may combat infections by interfering with quorum sensing.
JOURNAL OF BIOMOLECULAR STRUCTURE & DYNAMICS
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Christian Mink, Erik Strandberg, Parvesh Wadhwani, Manuel N. Melo, Johannes Reichert, Irene Wacker, Miguel A. R. B. Castanho, Anne S. Ulrich
Summary: BP100 is a short, designer-made membrane-active peptide with antimicrobial, cell-penetrating, and fusogenic properties. Its amphipathic helical structure resembles that of pore forming magainin-like peptides, showing high antimicrobial activity.
FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR AND INFECTION MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Hyunhee Lee, Sungtae Yang, Sung-Heui Shin
Summary: This study compared KL18 with KL-PxxP to investigate the effects of the central PxxP motif in AHPs on their structure, antibiotic activity, and mode of action. It was found that KL-PxxP exhibited higher antibacterial activity and lower hemolytic activity compared to KL18. Furthermore, KL-PxxP showed strong binding to anionic liposomes and weak binding to zwitterionic liposomes, suggesting its selectivity for bacteria. These findings are important for the development of novel peptide antibiotics.
JOURNAL OF ANALYTICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Sathish Kumar Marimuthu, Krishnanand Nagarajan, Sathish Kumar Perumal, Selvamani Palanisamy, Latha Subbiah
Summary: Host defense peptides or antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are short sequences of amino acids with positive or negative charges that exhibit broad-spectrum antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal activity. AMPs rich in tryptophan, arginine, and proline are considered promising sources for the development of next-generation antibiotics. This study analyzed and classified 2924 AMPs based on their amino acid sequences and investigated their structures and stability using modeling and simulations.
JOURNAL OF BIOMOLECULAR STRUCTURE & DYNAMICS
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Afsaneh Moslemi Mehni, Mohammad Rahnamaeian, Nader Hassanzadeh, Hamid Forootan Far
Summary: Pseudomonas tolaasii is a harmful bacteria that causes brown blotch in mushrooms, and there is currently no definitive and effective protection method. In this study, the efficacy of seven insect antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) against P. tolaasii was evaluated. The results showed that cecropins had potent inhibitory effects on P. tolaasii, while other peptides had no significant inhibition. The use of insect cecropins could be considered as complementary anti-infective agents in mushroom disease management programs.
JOURNAL OF PLANT PATHOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Hualong Song, Miles Postings, Peter Scott, Nicola J. Rogers
Summary: Natural peptides have limitations in clinical applications due to low metabolic stability and high costs, but self-assembled helical metal complexes offer a synthetic platform that can mimic some properties of short cationic alpha-helical peptides. There is increasing evidence that these supramolecular architectures exhibit bioactivity similar to natural systems, driving advances in the field for potential biomedical applications.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Charles Bayly-Jones, Christopher J. Lupton, Claudia Fritz, Hariprasad Venugopal, Daniel Ramsbeck, Michael Wermann, Christian Jaeger, Alex de Marco, Stephan Schilling, Dagmar Schlenzig, James C. Whisstock
Summary: Meprin alpha, a zinc-dependent metalloprotease, is mainly expressed in the brush border membrane of proximal tubules in the kidney and enterocytes in the small intestine and colon. It plays important roles in inflammation, immunity, and extracellular matrix remodelling. Dysregulated meprin alpha is associated with various diseases. Cryo-electron microscopy reveals the unique structure of meprin alpha, including its giant helical assembly and the distinctive active site.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Donghee Ham, Donghoon Ahn, Chiwoon Chung, Ka Young Chung
Summary: Heterotrimeric G proteins (G proteins) are key downstream signaling molecules of G protein-coupled receptors. The α-helical domain (AHD) of G alpha subunits, however, has not been well characterized. In this study, we isolated the AHD from G alpha s, G alpha i1, and G alpha q and compared its conformational dynamics with GDP-bound G alpha. The results revealed that the isolated G alpha AHD exhibits higher local conformational dynamics, consistent with the receptor-bound nucleotide-free state of G alpha AHD.
BIOCHEMICAL AND BIOPHYSICAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Anna Hagemann, Sandro Tasillo, Aykut Aydin, Miriam Caroline Alice Kehrenberg, Hagen Sjard Bachmann
Summary: The N-terminal proline-rich region (PRR) of FT alpha in mammals is highly conserved, but its specific function has not been elucidated. Truncation of the PRR does not affect the activity and inhibitory properties of FT alpha, but this region contains binding motifs for other proteins involved in cell-signalling, trafficking, and phosphorylation, suggesting potential additional functions in mammals.
CELL COMMUNICATION AND SIGNALING
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Semra Kilic, Yasemin Coskun, Ragbet Ezgi Duran
Summary: Melatonin has a positive impact on the morphology and content of leaf trichomes of lemon balm, with effects varying with concentration. Within a specific concentration range, Melatonin can promote the formation of glandular trichomes and affect the quality and quantity of secondary metabolites.
PLANT PHYSIOLOGY AND BIOCHEMISTRY
(2021)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Derek N. Woolfson
Summary: Protein science is undergoing a transformation with the aid of computational methods like AlphaFold2 that can predict protein structures and AI methods that enable the design of new structures. This perspective focuses on the understanding of the sequence-to-structure/function relationships in alpha-helical coiled coils. The challenge lies in differentiating the many possible coiled-coil states determined by the sequence repeats of hydrophobic and polar residues.
JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Vignesh Athiyarath, Mithun C. Madhusudhanan, Sooraj Kunnikuruvan, Kana M. Sureshan
Summary: This study demonstrates a novel approach for tuning the secondary structure of a polymer in the solid-state using topochemical synthesis of a pseudoprotein. By utilizing TAAC polymerization, the pseudoprotein undergoes a structural transformation from beta-meander to alpha-helical form when dissolved in methanol. This work opens up new possibilities for controlling the secondary structure of proteins and polymers in the solid-state.
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION
(2022)