BiP/GRP78 is a pro-viral factor for diverse dsDNA viruses that promotes the survival and proliferation of cells upon KSHV infection.

The Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER)-resident HSP70 chaperone BiP (HSPA5) plays a crucial role in maintaining and restoring protein folding homeostasis in the ER. BiP's function is often dysregulated in cancer and virus-infected cells, conferring pro-oncogenic and pro-viral advantages. We explored BiP's functions during infection by the Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), an oncogenic gamma-herpesvirus associated with cancers of immunocompromised patients.

The mechanics of correlated variability in segregated cortical excitatory subnetworks.

Understanding the genesis of shared trial-to-trial variability in neuronal population activity within the sensory cortex is critical to uncovering the biological basis of information processing in the brain. Shared variability is often a reflection of the structure of cortical connectivity since it likely arises, in part, from local circuit inputs. A series of experiments from segregated networks of (excitatory) pyramidal neurons in the mouse primary visual cortex challenge this view.

Evaluation of self-collected nasal, urine, and saliva samples for molecular detection of SARS-CoV-2 using an EUA approved RT-PCR assay and a laboratory developed LAMP SARS-CoV-2 test.

As the SARS-CoV-2 virus spread throughout the world, millions of positive cases of COVID-19 were registered and, even though there are millions of people already vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2, a large part of the global population remains vulnerable to contracting the virus. Massive nasopharyngeal sample collection in Puerto Rico at the beginning of the pandemic was limited by the scarcity of trained personnel and testing sites. To increase SARS-CoV-2 molecular testing availability, we evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of self-collected nasal, saliva, and urine samples using the TaqPath reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) COVID-19 kit to detect SARS-CoV-2.

The mechanics of correlated variability in segregated cortical excitatory subnetworks.

Understanding the genesis of shared trial-to-trial variability in neural activity within sensory cortex is critical to uncovering the biological basis of information processing in the brain. Shared variability is often a reflection of the structure of cortical connectivity since this variability likely arises, in part, from local circuit inputs. A series of experiments from segregated networks of (excitatory) pyramidal neurons in mouse primary visual cortex challenge this view.

Genetic activation of glucokinase in a minority of pancreatic beta cells causes hypoglycemia in mice.

Aims: Glucokinase (GK) is expressed in the glucose-sensing cells of the islets of Langerhans and plays a critical role in glucose homeostasis. Here, we tested the hypothesis that genetic activation of GK in a small subset of β-cells is sufficient to change the glucose set-point of the whole islet.

Material And Methods: Mouse models of cell-type specific GK deficiency (GKKO) and genetic enzyme activation (GKKI) in a subset of β-cells were obtained by crossing the αGSU (gonadotropin alpha subunit)-Cre transgene with the appropriate GK mutant alleles.