GSTM1-null allele predicts rapid disease progression in nondialysis patients and mortality among South Indian ESRD patients

Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry - Neuroblastoma (NB) is the common pediatric tumor of the sympathetic nervous system characterized by poor prognosis. Owing to the challenges such as high tumor...     

Wide Band Gap Al and In Co-doped ZnO Films for Near-Infrared Plasmonic Application

In transparent conducting oxide films, tuning of plasmonic resonance is directly controlled by free electron concentration and thus by activated dopants. In this study, large area Al_xIn_yZn_1-x-yO thin films at various concentrations were prepared by spray coating using water as a solvent. The effect of Al/In dopant ratio on the structural, electrical, optical, and plasmonic properties was investigated. Tuning of optical response to a well-defined plasmon resonance is correlated to the above properties of Al_xIn_yZn_1-x-yO films. Theoretical fitting based on the Drude-Lorentz (D-L) theory was utilized for extracting the dielectric spectra and cross-over wavelength (ω_c). The studies revealed plasmonic properties in NIR for the films with Al/In ratios of A₅I₅, A_2.5I_7.5, and A₀I₁₀, indicating In as the most activated dopant. Surface plasmon mode simulated using the extracted permittivity values showed the influence of mobility of these films on the broadening of the dip. The minimum plasmonic loss suggests the suitability as an alternative plasmonic material in the near infrared.

     

Glycosylation of Candida albicans Cell Wall Proteins Is Critical for Induction of Innate Immune Responses and Apoptosis of Epithelial Cells

C. albicans is one of the most common fungal pathogen of humans, causing local and superficial mucosal infections in immunocompromised individuals. Given that the key structure mediating host-C. albicans interactions is the fungal cell wall, we aimed to identify features of the cell wall inducing epithelial responses and be associated with fungal pathogenesis. We demonstrate here the importance of cell wall protein glycosylation in epithelial immune activation with a predominant role for the highly branched N-glycosylation residues. Moreover, these glycan moieties induce growth arrest and apoptosis of epithelial cells. Using an in vitro model of oral candidosis we demonstrate, that apoptosis induction by C. albicans wild-type occurs in early stage of infection and strongly depends on intact cell wall protein glycosylation. These novel findings demonstrate that glycosylation of the C. albicans cell wall proteins appears essential for modulation of epithelial immunity and apoptosis induction, both of which may promote fungal pathogenesis in vivo.     

Genetic association of Glutathione peroxidase-1 (GPx-1) and NAD(P)H:Quinone Oxidoreductase 1(NQO1) variants and their association of CAD in patients with type-2 diabetes

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a major health concern and the leading cause of death in individuals with type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Glutathione peroxidase-1 (GPx-1) and NAD(P)H: quinone oxidoreductase (NQO1) are known for its broad range of detoxification. The role of functional variants of these genes in the development of various disorders is proven. Hereby, we investigated the possible role of these variants in the development of CAD in T2DM patients of South Indian population. In this case-control study, a total of 539 patients (T2DM = 241; T2DM-CAD = 298) and 285 controls were included. The C198T GPx-1 and C609T NQO1 single-nucleotide polymorphisms were analyzed by PCR-RFLP. Further, these genotypes were correlated with blood lipid profile. Regression analysis showed that GPx1-C/T genotype is associated with a 1.35-fold increase (95% CI = 1.000-1.824; P = 0.048) and GPx1-T/T genotype is associated with a 1.76-fold increase (95% CI = 1.011 to 3.066; P = 0.046) to the T2DM development. Increased odds ratio showed that NQO1-T/T genotype had a higher occurrence of CAD in diabetic patients with CAD (95% CI = 1.003-2.674, P = 0.049) than T2DM patients without CAD. The level of triglycerides alone showed significant increase for GPx-1-C/T and -T/T genotypes in Tukey's Post hoc analysis (177.1 ± 19.2 vs. 184 ± 23.5; P = 0.039 and 177.1 ± 19.2 vs. 190 ± 22.4; P = 0.006) among the patients with T2DM-CAD. Our work concludes that GPx-1 variants might contribute to the development of diabetes and both GPx-1 and NQO1 variants confirm the association of CAD in people with T2DM of South Indian population.     

Rapid degradation of lindane (��-hexachlorocyclohexane) at low temperature by Sphingobium strains

Bioremediation of anthropogenic organic pollutants in cold climates is often limited by lower microbial or enzyme activity induced by low temperature. The present study addressed this issue through the degradation of ??-hexachlorocyclohexane (??-HCH) by three Sphingobium strains (S. indicum B90A, S. japonicum UT26 and S. francense Sp+) under low temperature (4 °C). After 5 days incubation at 4 °C, 79.7% and 43.8% of 5 and 25 mg L⁻¹ of ??-HCH added were degraded, respectively by the inoculation of 1.75 × 10⁷ cells mL⁻¹ of S. indicum B90A. An increase in inoculum concentration to 1.72 × 10⁸ cells mL⁻¹ significantly increased the degradation to 98.1 ± 1.7% of 5 mg L⁻¹ within 24 h. Further, S. indicum B90A and S. japonicum UT26 can rapidly degrade ??-HCH at 4 °C, while the degradation capability of S. francense Sp+ is relatively low. At 4 °C, ??-HCH is transformed to extremely low amounts of 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene (1,2,4-TCB) and 2,5-dichlorophenol (2,5-DCP) by S. indicum B90A, but most of ??-HCH were transformed to 2,5-Dichloro-2,5-cyclohexadiene-1,4-diol (2,5-DDOL) by S. japonicum UT26. These results revealed that haloalkane dehalogenases in some Sphingobium species are very active at temperature as low as 4 °C and S. indicum B90A might be a good candidate for developing novel bioremediation techniques for cold regions to decontaminate ??-HCH from soils/waters.     

Synthesis and antibacterial activity of some novel imidazole-based dicationic quinolinophanes

Synthesis of novel quinoline based dicationic benzimidazolophanes and imidazolophanes incorporating various spacer units is described. Some of the quinolinophanes 1b, 3a, 3b and 4a exhibit good antibacterial activity against most of the human pathogenic bacteria in the tested concentrations as compared to the other cyclophanes as well as the test control, streptomycin.     

Adaptive and cross resistance to cadmium (II) and zinc (II) by Pseudomonas aeruginosa BC15

Cadmium and zinc appear in the combined forms and they are co-pollutants. Cd is the most hazardous metal ion for human beings and causes renal dysfunction, liver and lungs damage, bone degeneration and blood damage. Though Zn is an essential nutrient, excess of Zn is toxic. Biological process was more important because conventional methods fail to remediate these pollutants due to high costs and less affordability. The screening and understanding of the functioning of microorganism plays an important role in removal and recovery of metals from heavy-metal-polluted water and soil. In our study, the strain Pseudomonas aeruginosa BC15 was isolated from oil-mill-treated waste water and it showed to be highly resistant to 6 mM Cd and 20 mM Zn in the solid and liquid media. The growth studies of BC15 strain in the medium without induction exhibited high tolerable capacity when compared to other microbes. Pretreatment of P. aeruginosa BC15 with sub-lethal concentrations of Cd induced adaptive resistance to lethal doses of Cd. Cadmium-induced cells also showed cross resistance to lethal concentration of zinc. The organism had high resistance against Cd and Zn. This has been clearly proven through biosorption studies: Cd was absorbed up to 62% and Zn about 60% in single solution, whereas in binary solution Cd was biosorbed up to 82% and Zn 85%. In conclusion, this study reveals the significance of using the strain P. aeruginosa BC15 in the bioremediation of Cd and Zn from industrial waste water and contaminated soil.     

Cryptic association of B7‐2 molecules and its implication for clustering

T‐cell co‐stimulation through CD28/CTLA4:B7‐1/B7‐2 axis is one of the extensively studied pathways that resulted in the discovery of several FDA‐approved drugs for autoimmunity and cancer. However, many aspects of the signaling mechanism remain elusive, including oligomeric association and clustering of B7‐2 on the cell surface. Here, we describe the structure of the IgV domain of B7‐2 and its cryptic association into 1D arrays that appear to represent the pre‐signaling state of B7‐2 on the cell membrane. Super‐resolution microscopy experiments on heterologous cells expressing B7‐2 and B7‐1 suggest, B7‐2 form relatively elongated and larger clusters compared to B7‐1. The sequence and structural comparison of other B7 family members, B7‐1:CTLA4 and B7‐2:CTLA‐4 complex structures, support our view that the observed B7‐2 1D zipper array is physiologically important. This observed 1D zipper‐like array also provides an explanation for its clustering, and upright orientation on the cell surface, and avoidance of spurious signaling.     

Molecular modeling studies of repandusinic acid as potent small molecule for hepatitis B virus through molecular docking and ADME analysis

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) has affected over 300 million people worldwide which causes to induce mostly liver disease and liver cancer. It is a member of the family Hepadnaviridae which is a small DNA virus with unusual characters like retroviruses. Generally, hepatoprotective drugs provoke some side effects in human beings. For the reason, this study aims to identify alternative drug molecules from the natural source of medicinal plants with smaller quantity of side effects than those conventional drugs in treating HBV. Methods: We developed computational methods for calculating drug and target binding resemblance using the Maestro v10.2 of Schrodinger suite. The target and ligand molecules were obtained from recognized databases. Ligand molecules of 40 phytoconstituents were retrieved from variety of plants after we executed crucial analyses such as molecular docking and absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME) analysis.Results: In the docking analysis, the natural analogues repandusinic acid showed better docking scores of –14.768 with good binding contacts. The remaining bioactive molecules corilagin, furosin, nirurin, iso-quercetin and gallocatechin also showed better docking scores.Conclusion: This computational analysis reveals that repandusinic acid is a suitable drug candidate for HBV. Therefore, we recommend that this analogue is suitable in further exploration using in vitro studies.