Publications by authors named "F Drepper"

The structure of human coagulation factor XIII (FXIII), a heterotetrameric plasma pro-transglutaminase that covalently crosslinks pre-formed fibrin polymers, remains elusive until today. The heterotetrameric complex is composed of two catalytic FXIII-A and two protective FXIII-B subunits. Structural etiology underlying FXIII deficiency has so far been derived from crystallographic structures, all of which are currently available for the FXIII-A2 homodimer only.

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Ribosome hibernation is a commonly used strategy that protects ribosomes under unfavorable conditions and regulates developmental processes. Multiple ribosome-hibernation factors have been identified in all domains of life, but due to their structural diversity and the lack of a common inactivation mechanism, it is currently unknown how many different hibernation factors exist. Here, we show that the YqjD/ElaB/YgaM paralogs, initially discovered as membrane-bound ribosome binding proteins in E.

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Article Synopsis
  • Sterols are common compounds found in cell membranes and are resistant to breakdown due to their water-insoluble nature; a new pathway for degrading cholesterol has been discovered in the bacterium Sterolibacterium denitrificans.
  • This pathway includes a series of ATP-dependent enzyme reactions that modify sterol structures, specifically targeting cholesterol while being unsuitable for other steroids like stigmasterol.
  • Researchers identified a key enzyme from S. denitrificans that facilitates the oxidation of sterol intermediates, ultimately enabling a process to hydroxylate the isoprenoid side chain without requiring oxygen, thus presenting a novel method for sterol degradation.
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Control of protein stoichiometry is essential for cell function. Mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) presents a complex stoichiometric challenge as the ratio of the electron transport chain (ETC) and ATP synthase must be tightly controlled, and assembly requires coordinated integration of proteins encoded in the nuclear and mitochondrial genome. How correct OXPHOS stoichiometry is achieved is unknown.

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Synthetic biology applies concepts from electrical engineering and information processing to endow cells with computational functionality. Transferring the underlying molecular components into materials and wiring them according to topologies inspired by electronic circuit boards has yielded materials systems that perform selected computational operations. However, the limited functionality of available building blocks is restricting the implementation of advanced information-processing circuits into materials.

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