The detection of pathogens is critical for clinical diagnosis and public health surveillance. Detection is usually done with nucleic acid-based tests (NATs) and rapid antigen tests (e.g.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDiagnosis of infectious agents is increasingly done by the detection of unique nucleic acid sequences, typically using methods such as PCR that specifically amplify these sequences. A largely neglected alternative approach is to use antibodies that recognize nucleic acids. The unique monoclonal antibody S9.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHost phagocytes respond to infections by innate defense mechanisms through metabolic shuffling to restrict the invading pathogen. However, this very plasticity of the host provides an ideal platform for pathogen-mediated manipulation. In the human (THP1/THP1 dual/PBMC-derived monocyte-derived macrophages) and mouse (RAW264.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIt was previously demonstrated that anthrax toxin activator (AtxA) binds directly to the σ-like promoter region of (encoding protective antigen, PA) immediately upstream of the RNA polymerase binding site. In this study, using electrophoretic mobility shift assays and analyses, we identified AtxA-binding sites in the promoter regions of the and genes (encoding lethal and edema factors, respectively) and of two Bacillus anthracis small RNAs (XrrA and XrrB). Activities of all four newly studied promoters were enhanced in the presence of CO/bicarbonate and AtxA, as previously seen for the promoter.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFReversible protein phosphorylation at serine/threonine residues is one of the most common protein modifications, widely observed in all kingdoms of life. The catalysts controlling this modification are specific serine/threonine kinases and phosphatases that modulate various cellular pathways ranging from growth to cellular death. Genome sequencing and various omics studies have led to the identification of numerous serine/threonine kinases and cognate phosphatases, yet the physiological relevance of many of these proteins remain enigmatic.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFR-loops are ubiquitous, dynamic nucleic-acid structures that play fundamental roles in DNA replication and repair, chromatin and transcription regulation, as well as telomere maintenance. The DNA-RNA hybrid-specific S9.6 monoclonal antibody is widely used to map R-loops.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFClustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) and CRISPR-associated (Cas) genes are conserved genetic elements in many prokaryotes, including , the causative agent of tuberculosis. Although knowledge of CRISPR locus variability has been utilized in strain genotyping, its evolutionary path in is not well understood. In this study, we have performed a comparative analysis of 141 mycobacterial genomes and identified the exclusive presence of the CRISPR-Cas type III-A system in complex (MTBC).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Centhaquine (Lyfaquin ) showed significant safety and efficacy in preclinical and clinical phase I and II studies.
Methods: A prospective, multicentric, randomized phase III study was conducted in patients with hypovolemic shock having systolic blood pressure (SBP) of ≤90 mm Hg and blood lactate levels of ≥2 mmol/L. Patients were randomized in a 2:1 ratio, 71 patients to the centhaquine group and 34 patients to the control (saline) group.
Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the primary causes of deaths due to infectious diseases. The current TB regimen is long and complex, failing of which leads to relapse and/or the emergence of drug resistance. There is a critical need to understand the mechanisms of resistance development.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAnnu Int Conf IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc
July 2020
Prolonged influence of negative emotions can result in clinical depression or anxiety, and while many prescribed techniques exist, music therapy approaches, coupled with psychotherapy, have shown to help lower depressive symptoms, supplementing traditional treatment approaches. Identifying the appropriate choice of music, therefore, is of utmost importance. Selecting appropriate playlists, however, are challenged by user feedback that may inadvertently select songs that amplify the negative effects.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAs the world tries to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic, dermatologists are left in a lurch as there is a lacuna in dermatologic literature as well as training regarding the cutaneous manifestations of varied viral agents capable of causing epidemics/pandemics or the potential to be bio-weaponised. Such outbreaks have the potential to become a pandemic given this age of globalisation. The quote by George Santayana stands true 'Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it'.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol
October 2020
Timely diagnosis of paucibacillary tuberculosis (TB) which includes smear-negative pulmonary TB (PTB) and extra-pulmonary TB (EPTB) remains a challenge. This study was performed to assess the diagnostic utility of stool as a specimen of choice for detection of mycobacterial DNA in paucibacillary TB patients in a TB-endemic setting. Stool samples were collected from 246 subjects including 129 TB patients (62 PTB and 67 EPTB) recruited at TB hospital in Delhi, India.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFis the causative agent of anthrax in humans, bovine, and other animals. pathogenesis requires differentiation of dormant spores into vegetative cells. The spores inherit cellular components as phenotypic memory from the parent cell, and this memory plays a critical role in facilitating the spores' revival.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBacterial alternative sigma factors are mostly regulated by a partner-switching mechanism. Regulation of the virulence-associated alternative sigma factor SigF of has been an area of intrigue, with SigF having more predicted regulators than other sigma factors in this organism. Rv1364c is one such predicted regulator, the mechanism of which is confounded by the presence of both anti-sigma factor and anti-sigma factor antagonist functions in a single polypeptide.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The stress response adaptability of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is still unresolved. In this study, we ascribe an important function to the MmpS6-MmpL6 (M6) operon in Mtb stress management.
Methods: By using a novel promoter probe in a high-throughput unbiased screen, we identified several quinones as potent inducers of the M6 operon in addition to triclosan.