Detection of Tumor-Associated Autoantibodies in the Sera of Pancreatic Cancer Patients Using Engineered MUC1 Glycopeptide Nanoparticle Probes.

Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers worldwide, mainly due to late diagnosis. Therefore, there is an urgent need for novel diagnostic approaches to identify the disease as early as possible. We have developed a diagnostic assay for pancreatic cancer based on the detection of naturally occurring tumor associated autoantibodies against Mucin-1 (MUC1) using engineered glycopeptides on nanoparticle probes.

Polysaccharides' Structures and Functions in Biofilm Architecture of Antimicrobial-Resistant (AMR) Pathogens.

Bacteria and fungi have developed resistance to the existing therapies such as antibiotics and antifungal drugs, and multiple mechanisms are mediating this resistance. Among these, the formation of an extracellular matrix embedding different bacterial cells, called biofilm, is an effective strategy through which bacterial and fungal cells are establishing a relationship in a unique environment. The biofilm provides them the possibility to transfer genes conferring resistance, to prevent them from desiccation and to impede the penetration of antibiotics or antifungal drugs.

Niosomes as Biocompatible Scaffolds for the Multivalent Presentation of Tumor-Associated Antigens (TACAs) to the Immune System.

Fully synthetic tumor-associated carbohydrate antigen (TACA)-based vaccines are a promising strategy to treat cancer. To overcome the intrinsic low immunogenicity of TACAs, the choice of the antigens' analogues and multivalent presentation have been proved to be successful. Here, we present the preparation, characterization, and screening of niosomes displaying multiple copies of the mucin antigen TnThr (niosomes-) or of TnThr mimetic (niosomes-).

Probing the Efficiency of 13-Pyridylalkyl Berberine Derivatives to Human Telomeric G-Quadruplexes Binding: Spectroscopic, Solid State and In Silico Analysis.

The interaction between the series of berberine derivatives - (NAX071, NAX120, NAX075, NAX077 and NAX079) and human telomeric G-quadruplexes (G4), which are able to inhibit the Telomerase enzyme's activity in malignant cells, was investigated. The derivatives bear a pyridine moiety connected by a hydrocarbon linker of varying length ( = 1-5, with number of aliphatic carbon atoms) to the C13 position of the parent berberine. As for the G4s, both bimolecular 5'-TAGGGTTAGGGT-3' (Tel12) and monomolecular 5'-TAGGGTTAGGGTTAGGGTTAGGG-3' (Tel23) DNA oligonucleotides were considered.

Structurally Constrained MUC1-Tn Mimetic Antigen as Template for Molecularly Imprinted Polymers (MIPs): A Promising Tool for Cancer Diagnostics.

Abnormal glycoconjugates have distinctly been recognized as potential biomarkers for cancer diagnosis. A great deal of attention has been focused on Tn antigen, an oversimplified mucin-1 O-glycan, over-expressed in different cancers. Herein, we investigate the possibility to replace the use of anti-Tn monoclonal antibodies with an innovative class of catecholamine-based Molecularly Imprinted Polymers (MIPs), emerging in recent years as promising tools for bioanalytical applications.