Article
Immunology
Wenping Li, Fulian Wang, Yu Li, Lei Yan, Lili Liu, Wei Zhu, Peixiang Ma, Xiaojie Shi, Guang Yang
Summary: The majority of neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) against SARS-CoV-2 recognize the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the spike (S) protein. However, targeting non-RBD regions of the S protein provides an alternative approach to generating robust NAbs. In this study, 11 non-RBD-targeting antibodies were identified using a pre-pandemic combinatorial antibody library. One of these antibodies, SA3, showed compatible neutralization with an RBD-targeting NAb, S-E6, against the wild type and variant of concern B.1.351 of SARS-CoV-2.
Article
Oncology
Nicolo Rigamonti, Niina Veitonmaeki, Clara Domke, Sophie Barsin, Sarah Jetzer, Omar Abdelmotaleb, Ralph Bessey, Tamara Lekishvili, Francesca Malvezzi, Mariam Gachechiladze, Martin Behe, Victor Levitsky, Pamela A. Trail
Summary: The CD40 receptor is an attractive target for cancer immunotherapy. Researchers have developed a multispecific DARPin construct, alpha-FAPxCD40, which selectively activates CD40 at the site of disease and potently activates human antigen-presenting cells. In a mouse model, this construct showed significant anti-tumor activity without causing elevated blood cytokines or hepatotoxicity. These findings suggest that it may have a favorable therapeutic index in humans.
CANCER IMMUNOLOGY RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Emily E. Harrison, Marcey L. Waters
Summary: This study created a sensor array using an improved imprint-and-report fluorescent sensing method to detect four metabolites and successfully differentiated between healthy and high TMAO levels in plasma samples.
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
David Komaromy, Theodora Tiemersma-Wegman, Johan Kemmink, Giuseppe Portale, Paul R. Adamski, Alex Blokhuis, Friso S. Aalbers, Ivana Maric, Guillermo Monreal Santiago, Jim Ottele, Ankush Sood, Vittorio Saggiomo, Bin Liu, Pieter van der Meulen, Sijbren Otto
Summary: Researchers have demonstrated the ability to access structures beyond those with the lowest individual Gibbs energy through self-assembly, while using dynamic combinatorial libraries to achieve selective self-assembly. Mixing different building blocks can lead to different self-assembled products, enhancing the versatility of self-assembly.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Chen Wang, Michael P. O'Hagan, Ehud Neumann, Rachel Nechushtai, Itamar Willner
Summary: This study introduces nucleic acid-based constitutional dynamic networks (CDNs) that enable control of various catalytic processes, but achieving intercommunication between different CDNs to mimic complex cell biology networks is challenging.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yi-Jing Li, Lingze Zhang, Pei-Pei Yang, Kuo Zhang, Xue-Feng Gong, Da-Yong Hou, Hui Cao, Xiao-Chun Wu, Ruiwu Liu, Kit S. Lam, Lei Wang
Summary: In this study, anti-adhesion peptides (AAPs) were screened using a combinatorial peptide library method, and these peptides were then coated on gold nanorods to enhance their circulation half-life and alter their biodistribution profile in mice. The bioinspired screening strategy and resulting peptides show great potential for enhancing the delivery efficiency and targeting ability of nanomaterials.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Min Qiang, Peixiang Ma, Yu Li, Hejun Liu, Adam Harding, Chenyu Min, Fulian Wang, Lili Liu, Meng Yuan, Qun Ji, Pingdong Tao, Xiaojie Shi, Zhean Li, Teng Li, Xian Wang, Yu Zhang, Nicholas C. Wu, Chang-Chun D. Lee, Xueyong Zhu, Javier Gilbert-Jaramillo, Chuyue Zhang, Abhishek Saxena, Xingxu Huang, Hou Wang, William James, Raymond A. Dwek, Ian A. Wilson, Guang Yang, Richard A. Lerner
Summary: Combinatorial antibody libraries streamline antibody discovery and have been more widely utilized in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The discovery of highly potent antibodies with unique somatic hypermutation in a pre-pandemic library raises questions about the origin and evolution of their reactivity with SARS-CoV-2.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Ping Xie, Weitao Su, Bin Li, Gang Chen, Weimin Zheng, Xiaofeng Ma, Haihan Luo, Dingquan Liu
Summary: The study reveals that Bi-based chalcogenide semiconductor alloys, through composition modulation, exhibit wide tunability in mid-infrared plasmonic properties. This research contributes to the development of highly important technologies.
Article
Chemistry, Medicinal
Alexander L. Satz, Letian Kuai, Xuanjia Peng
Summary: The use of DNA-encoded libraries (DELs) has become popular in the pharmaceutical industry, but standard technology has limitations. Creative methods such as DEL selections of cell surfaces and inside of living cells have been reported to expand the scope of DEL targets. Additionally, alternatives like one-bead-one-compound (OBOC) DELs using picoliter aqueous droplets or microfabricated wells have been explored to overcome these limitations.
BIOORGANIC & MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY LETTERS
(2021)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Yaqi Yang, Siji Nian, Lin Li, Xue Wen, Qin Liu, Bo Zhang, Yu Lan, Qing Yuan, Yingchun Ye
Summary: Enhanced EphA2 expression is a crucial target for anti-tumor therapy, with high affinity scFvs against EphA2 successfully screened from an immune library constructed using PBMCs from cancer patients. Modified antibodies showed improved affinity and the ability to bind to EphA2, tumor cells, and tissues, inhibiting tumor growth to some extent. This study highlights the potential of immune libraries from cancer patients in screening for high-affinity antibodies with therapeutic effects.
Review
Microbiology
Grace L. L. Allen, Ashley K. K. Grahn, Katerina Kourentzi, Richard C. C. Willson, Sean Waldrop, Jiantao Guo, Brian K. K. Kay
Summary: This article reviews how bioconjugation and the incorporation of ncAAs during translation have expanded the chemistry of peptides and proteins displayed by M13 virions for a variety of purposes.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Thessa Laeremans, Sabine den Roover, Cynthia Lungu, Sigrid D'haese, Rob A. A. Gruters, Sabine D. D. Allard, Joeri L. L. Aerts
Summary: This study evaluated the effects of a therapeutic DC-based vaccine consisting of monocyte-derived DCs electroporated with HIV-1 Tat, Rev and Nef encoding mRNA on NK cell frequency, phenotype and functionality in HIV-1-infected individuals. The results showed a significant increase in cytotoxic NK cells, changes in NK cell phenotype associated with migration and exhaustion, as well as improved NK cell-mediated killing and (poly)functionality following immunisation. These findings highlight the importance of evaluating NK cells in future clinical trials of DC-based immunotherapy in the context of HIV-1 infection.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Deepika Jaiswal, Ujjwal Kumar, Vineet Gaur, Dinakar M. Salunke
Summary: The newly emerged SARS-CoV-2 virus has caused over 500 million infections. Through research, it has been discovered that two sequential proteolytic cleavages of the viral spike protein by host proteases are necessary for virus entry into the host cell. The development of single-chain antibodies (scFvs) targeting the S2' cleavage site has shown potential in blocking virus entry by inhibiting the access of TMPRSS2 protease.
Article
Engineering, Marine
Hongmao Qin, Xi Wang, Guangcai Wang, Manjiang Hu, Yougang Bian, Xiaohui Qin, Rongjun Ding
Summary: Considering the challenges posed by complex underwater environments and frequent sensor outliers, traditional Kalman filter-based localization methods struggle to achieve precise positioning. In order to address this, a factor graph optimization-based tightly-coupled inertial navigation system/ultra-short baseline system/Doppler velocity log scheme and core fusion algorithm are proposed. The feasibility of this scheme is verified through simulations and field tests, demonstrating improved accuracy and reliability of underwater navigation compared to other methods.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Adam Mcconnell, Benjamin J. Hackel
Summary: The discovery and evolution of new and improved proteins have revolutionized molecular therapeutics, diagnostics, and industrial biotechnology. Efficient screens and effective libraries are necessary for both discovery and evolution processes, with different challenges depending on the presence or absence of an initial protein variant with the desired function. High-throughput technologies, both experimental and computational, enable the efficient identification of performant protein variants, while an informed search of sequence space is essential to overcome the complexity of the sequence-performance landscape. The collaboration between rational design of combinatorial libraries and high-throughput experimental data has led to significant advances in protein engineering, facilitating protein discovery and evolution.