Human Monoclonal Antibodies: On the Menu of Targeted Therapeutics Against COVID-19

Virologica Sinica - Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), reminiscent of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2003, has been a tragic disaster to people all over the world. As...     

Rearrangement of Actin Cytoskeleton by Zika Virus Infection Facilitates Blood–Testis Barrier Hyperpermeability

In recent years,various serious diseases caused by Zika virus (ZIKV) have made it impossible to be ignored.Confirmed existence of ZIKV in semen and sexually transmission of ZIKV suggested that it can break the blood–testis barrier (BTB),or Sertoli cell barrier (SCB).However,little is known about the underlying mechanism.In this study,interaction between actin,an important component of the SCB,and ZIKV envelope (E) protein domain Ⅲ (EDⅢ) was inferred from coimmunoprecipitation (Co-IP) liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) analysis.Confocal microscopy confirmed the role of actin filaments (F-actin) in ZIKV infection,during which part of the stress fibers,the bundles that constituted by paralleled actin filaments,were disrupted and presented in the cell periphery.Colocalization of E and reorganized actin filaments in the cell periphery of transfected Sertoli cells suggests a participation of ZIKV E protein in ZIKV-induced F-actin rearrangement.Perturbation of F-actin by cytochalasin D (CytoD) or Jasplakinolide (Jas)enhanced the infection of ZIKV.More importantly,the transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) of an in vitro mouse SCB (mSCB) model declined with the progression of ZIKV infection or overexpression of E protein.Co-IP and confocal microscopy analyses revealed that the interaction between F-actin and tight junction protein ZO-1 was reduced after ZIKV infection or E protein overexpression,highlighting the role of E protein in ZIKV-induced disruption of the BTB.We conclude that the interaction between ZIKV E and F-actin leads to the reorganization of F-actin network,thereby compromising BTB integrity.     

Structure of the GH1 domain of guanylate kinase-associated protein from Rattus norvegicus

Guanylate-kinase-associated protein (GKAP) is a scaffolding protein that links NMDA receptor-PSD-95 to Shank–Homer complexes by protein–protein interactions at the synaptic junction. GKAP family proteins are characterized by the presence of a C-terminal conserved GKAP homology domain 1 (GH1) of unknown structure and function. In this study, crystal structure of the GH1 domain of GKAP from Rattus norvegicus was determined in fusion with an N-terminal maltose-binding protein at 2.0 Å resolution. The structure of GKAP GH1 displays a three-helix bundle connected by short flexible loops. The predicted helix α4 which was not visible in the crystal structure associates weakly with the helix α3 suggesting dynamic nature of the GH1 domain. The strict conservation of GH1 domain across GKAP family members and the lack of a catalytic active site required for enzyme activity imply that the GH1 domain might serve as a protein–protein interaction module for the synaptic protein clustering.     

A water‐soluble fluorescent pH probe based on perylene dyes and its application to cell imaging

A fluorescent pH probe, N,N′‐bi( l ‐phenylalanine amine)‐perylene‐3,4;9,10‐dicarboxylic diimide (PDCDA) was synthesized and used for pH sensing in living cells. A significant fluorescence intensity change was observed over a pH range from 7.0 to 4.0. Electrostatic potential maps (MEP) suggested that the electronic repulsion between PDCDAs was increased by the high negative electrostatic potential which resulted in a high water solubility of PDCDA. PDCDA was successfully applied as a high‐performance fluorochrome for living HeLa cell imaging. The results demonstrate that the probe PDCDA is a good candidate for monitoring pH fluctuations in living cells with good water solubility, low cytotoxicity, high fluorescence quantum yield and photostability. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Rearrangement of Actin Cytoskeleton by Zika Virus Infection Facilitates Blood–Testis Barrier Hyperpermeability

In recent years, various serious diseases caused by Zika virus (ZIKV) have made it impossible to be ignored. Confirmed existence of ZIKV in semen and sexually transmission of ZIKV suggested that it can break the blood–testis barrier (BTB), or Sertoli cell barrier (SCB). However, little is known about the underlying mechanism. In this study, interaction between actin, an important component of the SCB, and ZIKV envelope (E) protein domain III (EDIII) was inferred from co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP) liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) analysis. Confocal microscopy confirmed the role of actin filaments (F-actin) in ZIKV infection, during which part of the stress fibers, the bundles that constituted by paralleled actin filaments, were disrupted and presented in the cell periphery. Colocalization of E and reorganized actin filaments in the cell periphery of transfected Sertoli cells suggests a participation of ZIKV E protein in ZIKV-induced F-actin rearrangement. Perturbation of F-actin by cytochalasin D (CytoD) or Jasplakinolide (Jas) enhanced the infection of ZIKV. More importantly, the transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) of an in vitro mouse SCB (mSCB) model declined with the progression of ZIKV infection or overexpression of E protein. Co-IP and confocal microscopy analyses revealed that the interaction between F-actin and tight junction protein ZO-1 was reduced after ZIKV infection or E protein overexpression, highlighting the role of E protein in ZIKV-induced disruption of the BTB. We conclude that the interaction between ZIKV E and F-actin leads to the reorganization of F-actin network, thereby compromising BTB integrity.     

Structure of Osh3 Reveals a Conserved Mode of Phosphoinositide Binding in Oxysterol-Binding Proteins

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Interactive effects of multiple vernalization (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Vrn-1</Emphasis>)- and photoperiod (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ppd-1</Emphasis>)-related genes on the growth habit of bread wheat and their association with heading and flowering time

Background

The precise identification of Winterness/Springness (growth habit) for bread wheat, which is determined by genes involved in vernalization and photoperiod, will contribute to the effective utilization of bread wheat varieties. Here, 198 varieties from the Yellow and Huai wheat production region (YHW) in China were collected to identify their vernalization (Vrn-1) and photoperiod (Ppd-1) gene composition via a series of functional markers and their association with vernalization and photoperiod requirements at three locations during two years of experiments. The growth habits were measured during the spring sowing season.

Results

The results showed that the semi-winter varieties (grades1–4) were most prevalent in the population. The relative effects of single Vrn alleles on the growth period, such as heading date (HD) and/or flowering date (FD), were as follows: Vrn-B1b?>?Vrn-B1a?>?Vrn-D1b?>?Vrn-D1a?>?vrn-D1?=?vrn-B1. The interactive effects of Vrn-B1 and Vrn-D1 on HD and FD were identical to those of Vrn-B1b. Approximately 35.3% of the cultivars carried Ppd-B1a (photoperiod-insensitive) and exhibited the earliest HD and FD. The Ppd-D1a-insensitive allele (Hapl II) was carried by just 0.5% of the varieties; however, the other two sensitive alleles were present at a higher frequency, and their effects were slightly weaker than those of Ppd-B1a. In addition, strong interactive effects between Ppd-B1 and Ppd-D1 were detected. In terms of mean values among various genotypes, the effects followed the order of Vrn-1?>?Ppd-1.

Conclusions

According to the results of ANOVA and least significant range (LSR) tests, we can conclude that Vrn-1 rather than Ppd-1 played a major role in controlling vernalization and photoperiod responses in this region. This research will be helpful for precisely characterizing and evaluating the HD, FD and even growth habit of varieties in the YHW at molecular levels.

     

棕色固氮菌固氮酶钼铁蛋白中含钼铁活性小分子组分的解离

棕色固氮菌固氮酶钼铁蛋白结晶,经酒石酸解离后得到一个含钢铁小分子组分,与棕色固氮菌突变株uw_(45)无细胞提取液的重组比活为6.8nM Mo natom~(-1) min~(-1)。它是由二种物质组成的混合物,其分子量分别为2100和1850道尔顿,分子量为2100道尔顿的成分含钼铁。酒石酸处理后的沉淀,再用N—甲基甲酰胺抽提得到的含钼铁组分具有恢复突变株uw_(45)乙炔还原活性的能力。经纸层析鉴定与用Shah法制备的铁钼辅因子相类似。由于Shah和Smith法制备的两种铁钼辅因子还原乙炔和氰化钾的比活不同,而且分子量也有大小,说明这两种铁钼辅因子结构可能不尽相同。