Structural Insights into the PorK and PorN Components of the Porphyromonas gingivalis Type IX Secretion System.

The type IX secretion system (T9SS) has been recently discovered and is specific to Bacteroidetes species. Porphyromonas gingivalis, a keystone pathogen for periodontitis, utilizes the T9SS to transport many proteins including the gingipain virulence factors across the outer membrane and attach them to the cell surface via a sortase-like mechanism. At least 11 proteins have been identified as components of the T9SS including PorK, PorL, PorM, PorN and PorP, however the precise roles of most of these proteins have not been elucidated and the structural organization of these components is unknown.

Oncogenic epithelial cell-derived exosomes containing Rac1 and PAK2 induce angiogenesis in recipient endothelial cells.

The metastatic cascade describes the escape of primary tumour cells to distant secondary sites. Cells at the leading tumour edge are thought to undergo epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), to enhance their motility and invasion for spreading. Whether EMT cells directly promote tumour angiogenesis, and the role of exosomes (30-150 nm extracellular vesicles) remains largely unknown.

Inhibition of hIAPP Amyloid Aggregation and Pancreatic β-Cell Toxicity by OH-Terminated PAMAM Dendrimer.

Human islet amyloid polypeptide (hIAPP, or amylin) forms amyloid deposits in the islets of Langerhans, a phenomenon that is associated with type-2 diabetes impacting millions of people worldwide. Accordingly, strategies against hIAPP aggregation are essential for the prevention and eventual treatment of the disease. Here, it is shown that generation-3 OH-terminated poly(amidoamine) dendrimer, a polymeric nanoparticle, can effectively halt the aggregation of hIAPP and shut down hIAPP toxicity in pancreatic MIN6 and NIT-1 cells as well as in mouse islets.

Interactions between Plasmodium falciparum skeleton-binding protein 1 and the membrane skeleton of malaria-infected red blood cells.

During development inside red blood cells (RBCs), Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasites export proteins that associate with the RBC membrane skeleton. These interactions cause profound changes to the biophysical properties of RBCs that underpin the often severe and fatal clinical manifestations of falciparum malaria. P.

Thermoflavifilum aggregans gen. nov., sp. nov., a thermophilic and slightly halophilic filamentous bacterium from the phylum Bacteroidetes.

A strictly aerobic, thermophilic, moderately acidophilic, non-spore-forming bacterium, strain P373(T), was isolated from geothermally heated soil at Waikite, New Zealand. Cells were filamentous rods, 0.2-0.