T and Z, partial seed coat patterning genes in common bean, provide insight into the structure and protein interactions of a plant MBW complex.

Flavonoids are secondary metabolites associated with plant seed coat and flower color. These compounds provide health benefits to humans as anti-inflammatory and antioxidant compounds. The expression of the late biosynthetic genes in the flavonoid pathway is controlled by a ternary MBW protein complex consisting of interfacing MYB, beta-helix-loop-helix (bHLH), and WD40 Repeat (WDR) proteins.

Atrial Fibrillation Occurring After Smoking Marijuana: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

Introduction: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia, occurring primarily in individuals with known risk factors such as advanced age, heart failure, and coronary artery disease. Cannabis use produces several cardiovascular changes resulting in proarrhythmic effects on the heart.

Case Report: A 38-year-old woman with no significant past medical history presented to the emergency department (ED) complaining of palpitations with associated shortness of breath occurring after smoking marijuana.

Epstein-Barr Virus Encoded BCL2, BHRF1, Downregulates Autophagy by Noncanonical Binding of BECN1.

γ-herpesviruses (γHVs) encode BCL2 homologues (vBCL2) that bind the Bcl-2 homology 3 domains (BH3Ds) of diverse proteins, inhibiting apoptosis and promoting host cell and virus survival. vBCLs encoded by Kaposi sarcoma-associated HV (KSHV) and γHV68 downregulate autophagy, a degradative cellular process crucial for homeostasis and innate immune responses to pathogens, by binding to a BH3D in BECN1, a key autophagy protein. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) encodes a vBCL2 called BHRF1.

Blocking bacterial appendage attachment to wastewater treatment membranes using anti-adhesins.

Membrane bioreactors (MBRs) suffer from high operational and cleaning costs due to biofouling. The biofouling begins when the adhesins (an anchor-type epitope made up of polar and charged amino acids) on microbial appendages bind to the surface. Two different compounds-dodecyl-β-D-maltoside (DDM) and methyl α-d-mannopyranoside (MeαMan)-were investigated as possible biofilm mitigation tools due to their documented anti-adhesin properties in the biomedical field.

Medical complications of obesity: heightened importance in a COVID era.

Background: Obesity is a major public health problem associated with significant medical complications.

Main Body: This review examines 8 primary diseases: type 2 diabetes, hypertension, dementia, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, polycystic ovarian syndrome, dyslipidemia, cancer, and their manifestations in obese patients. A total of 39 articles were used for this review.

Structural basis of cell-surface signaling by a conserved sigma regulator in Gram-negative bacteria.

Cell-surface signaling (CSS) in Gram-negative bacteria involves highly conserved regulatory pathways that optimize gene expression by transducing extracellular environmental signals to the cytoplasm via inner-membrane sigma regulators. The molecular details of ferric siderophore-mediated activation of the iron import machinery through a sigma regulator are unclear. Here, we present the 1.

The Trp triad within the V-domain of the receptor for advanced glycation end products modulates folding, stability and ligand binding.

The receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) recognizes damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) and plays a critical role for the innate immune response and sterile tissue inflammation. RAGE overexpression is associated with diabetic complications, neurodegenerative diseases and certain cancers. Yet, the molecular mechanism of ligand recognition by RAGE is insufficiently understood to rationalize the binding of diverse ligands.

Colpocephaly Diagnosed in a Neurologically Normal Adult in the Emergency Department.

Colpocephaly is a form of congenital ventriculomegaly characterized by enlarged occipital horns of the lateral ventricles with associated neurologic abnormalities. The diagnosis of colpocephaly is typically made in infancy. Its diagnosis in adulthood without associated clinical symptoms is exceptionally rare.

Lemierre Syndrome as a Complication of Laryngeal Carcinoma.

Lemierre syndrome is a rare condition characterized by a septic thrombophlebitis of the internal jugular vein with septicemia and metastatic foci of infection. It typically occurs as the result of an infection in the head and neck, most commonly pharyngitis. For reasons that are unclear, the incidence of Lemierre syndrome has been increasing over the past 15 years.

NMR assignments of the N-terminal signaling domain of the TonB-dependent outer membrane transducer PupB.

Outer membrane TonB-dependent transducers (TBDTs) actively transport ferric siderophore complexes from the extracellular environment into Gram-negative bacteria. They also participate in a cell-surface signaling regulatory pathway that results in upregulation of the transducer itself, in response to iron-deplete conditions. The TBDT PupB transports ferric pseudobactin, and signals through its N-terminal signaling domain (NTSD), while the TBDT homolog PupA is signaling-inactive.

Structural insights into the interaction of the conserved mammalian proteins GAPR-1 and Beclin 1, a key autophagy protein.

Mammalian Golgi-associated plant pathogenesis-related protein 1 (GAPR-1) is a negative autophagy regulator that binds Beclin 1, a key component of the autophagosome nucleation complex. Beclin 1 residues 267-284 are required for binding GAPR-1. Here, sequence analyses, structural modeling, mutagenesis combined with pull-down assays, X-ray crystal structure determination and small-angle X-ray scattering were used to investigate the Beclin 1-GAPR-1 interaction.

Structural transitions in conserved, ordered Beclin 1 domains essential to regulating autophagy.

Beclin 1 (BECN1) is a key regulator of autophagy, a critical catabolic homeostasis pathway that involves sequestration of selected cytoplasmic components by multilayered vesicles called autophagosomes, followed by lysosomal fusion and degradation. BECN1 is a core component of class III phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase complexes responsible for autophagosome nucleation. Without heterologous binding partners, BECN1 forms an antiparallel homodimer via its coiled-coil domain (CCD).

BECN2 interacts with ATG14 through a metastable coiled-coil to mediate autophagy.

ATG14 binding to BECN/Beclin homologs is essential for autophagy, a critical catabolic homeostasis pathway. Here, we show that the α-helical, coiled-coil domain (CCD) of BECN2, a recently identified mammalian BECN1 paralog, forms an antiparallel, curved homodimer with seven pairs of nonideal packing interactions, while the BECN2 CCD and ATG14 CCD form a parallel, curved heterodimer stabilized by multiple, conserved polar interactions. Compared to BECN1, the BECN2 CCD forms a weaker homodimer, but binds more tightly to the ATG14 CCD.

Identification of BECN1 and ATG14 Coiled-Coil Interface Residues That Are Important for Starvation-Induced Autophagy.

Autophagy, an essential eukaryotic homeostasis pathway, allows the sequestration of unwanted, damaged, or harmful cytoplasmic components in vesicles called autophagosomes, permitting subsequent lysosomal degradation and nutrient recycling. Autophagosome nucleation is mediated by class III phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase complexes that include two key autophagy proteins, BECN1/Beclin 1 and ATG14/BARKOR, which form parallel heterodimers via their coiled-coil domains (CCDs). Here we present the 1.

Conformational Flexibility Enables the Function of a BECN1 Region Essential for Starvation-Mediated Autophagy.

BECN1 is essential for autophagy, a critical eukaryotic cellular homeostasis pathway. Here we delineate a highly conserved BECN1 domain located between previously characterized BH3 and coiled-coil domains and elucidate its structure and role in autophagy. The 2.

Mechanistic Implications of the Unique Structural Features and Dimerization of the Cytoplasmic Domain of the Pseudomonas Sigma Regulator, PupR.

Gram-negative bacteria tightly regulate intracellular levels of iron, an essential nutrient. To ensure this strict control, some outer membrane TonB-dependent transporters (TBDTs) that are responsible for iron import stimulate their own transcription in response to extracellular binding by an iron-laden siderophore. This process is mediated by an inner membrane sigma regulator protein (an anti-sigma factor) that transduces an unknown periplasmic signal from the TBDT to release an intracellular sigma factor from the inner membrane, which ultimately upregulates TBDT transcription.

Structural insights into the binding of the human receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) by S100B, as revealed by an S100B-RAGE-derived peptide complex.

S100B is a damage-associated molecular pattern protein that, when released into the extracellular milieu, triggers initiation of the inflammatory response through the receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE). Recognition of S100B is accomplished via the amino-terminal variable immunoglobulin domain (V-domain) of RAGE. To gain insights into this interaction, a complex between S100B and a 15-amino-acid peptide derived from residues 54-68 of the V-domain was crystallized.

Characterization of the interaction between Rfa1 and Rad24 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Maintaining the integrity of the genome requires the high fidelity duplication of the genome and the ability of the cell to recognize and repair DNA lesions. The heterotrimeric single stranded DNA (ssDNA) binding complex Replication Protein A (RPA) is central to multiple DNA processes, which are coordinated by RPA through its ssDNA binding function and through multiple protein-protein interactions. Many RPA interacting proteins have been reported through large genetic and physical screens; however, the number of interactions that have been further characterized is limited.

Stoichiometry of the calcineurin regulatory domain-calmodulin complex.

Calcineurin is an essential serine/threonine phosphatase that plays vital roles in neuronal development and function, heart growth, and immune system activation. Calcineurin is unique in that it is the only phosphatase known to be activated by calmodulin in response to increasing intracellular calcium concentrations. Calcium-loaded calmodulin binds to the regulatory domain of calcineurin, resulting in a conformational change that removes an autoinhibitory domain from the active site of the phosphatase.

Targeting γ-herpesvirus 68 Bcl-2-mediated down-regulation of autophagy.

γ-herpesviruses (γHVs) are common human pathogens that encode homologs of the anti-apoptotic cellular Bcl-2 proteins, which are critical to viral reactivation and oncogenic transformation. The murine γHV68 provides a tractable in vivo model for understanding general features of these important human pathogens. Bcl-XL, a cellular Bcl-2 homolog, and the murine γHV68 Bcl-2 homolog, M11, both bind to a BH3 domain within the key autophagy effector Beclin 1 with comparable affinities, resulting in the down-regulation of Beclin 1-mediated autophagy.

Intrinsically disordered regions in autophagy proteins.

Autophagy is an essential eukaryotic pathway required for cellular homeostasis. Numerous key autophagy effectors and regulators have been identified, but the mechanism by which they carry out their function in autophagy is not fully understood. Our rigorous bioinformatic analysis shows that the majority of key human autophagy proteins include intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs), which are sequences lacking stable secondary and tertiary structure; suggesting that IDRs play an important, yet hitherto uninvestigated, role in autophagy.