Cytochrome c regulates hyphal morphogenesis by interfering with cAMP-PKA signaling in Candida albicans.

In the human fungal pathogen Candida albicans, invasive hyphal growth is a well-recognized virulence trait. We employed transposon-mediated genome-wide mutagenesis, revealing that inactivating CTM1 blocks hyphal growth. CTM1 encodes a lysine (K) methyltransferase, which trimethylates cytochrome c (Cyc1) at K79.

Exopolysaccharide is the potential effector of PS150, a hypnotic psychobiotic strain.

Psychobiotics are a class of probiotics that confer beneficial effects on the mental health of the host. We have previously reported hypnotic effects of a psychobiotic strain, PS150 (PS150), which significantly shortens sleep latency in experimental mice, and effectively ameliorate sleep disturbances caused by either caffeine consumption or a novel environment. In the present study, we discovered a strain, GR1009, isolated from the same source of PS150, and found that GR1009 is phenotypically distinct but genetically similar to PS150.

Omnidirectional nonreciprocal absorber realized by the magneto-optical hypercrystal.

Photonic bandgap design is one of the most basic ways to effectively control the interaction between light and matter. However, the traditional photonic bandgap is always dispersive (blueshift with the increase of the incident angle), which is disadvantageous to the construction of wide-angle optical devices. Hypercrystal, the photonic crystal with layered hyperbolic metamaterials (HMMs), can strongly modify the bandgap properties based on the anomalous wavevector dispersion of the HMM.

Mammaglobin, GATA-binding protein 3 (GATA3), and epithelial growth factor receptor (EGFR) expression in different breast cancer subtypes and their clinical significance.

Increasing evidence has shown that mammaglobin, GATA-binding protein 3 (GATA3), and epithelial growth factor receptor (EGFR) have unique clinical implications for breast cancer subtyping and classification, as well as for breast cancer targeted therapy. It is particularly important to clarify the correlation between their expression and different molecular breast carcinoma subtypes to better understand the molecular basis of the subtypes and to identify effective therapeutic targets for the disease. This study aimed to evaluate mammaglobin, GATA3, and EGFR expression in different breast cancer subtypes, as well as their clinical significance.

Two new triterpenes isolated from C. Y. Cheng et W. L. Sha and their antiproliferative activities.

Two new triterpenes, 3, 7-dihydroxyolean-12-en-11-one (1) and 3--acetyl-7-hydroxyolean-12-en-11-one (2), along with four known triterpenes 3-hydroxyolean-12-en-11-one (3), -amyrin (4), lup-20(29)-ene-1, 3-diol (5) and 1, 3-dihydroxy-urs-9(11)-12-diene (6), were isolated from the stems and leaves of C. Y. Cheng et W.

Dual-focusing behavior of a one-dimensional quadratically chirped Pearcey-Gaussian beam.

In this paper, we provide analytical solutions describing the dynamic behavior of the Pearcey-Gaussian beams propagating in free space. Based on the analytical solutions, explicit expressions governing the focusing distances of the Pearcey-Gaussian beams are found and verified by numerical simulations. For the linearly chirped Pearcey-Gaussian beam, it exhibits a uni-focusing behavior during propagation.

A Review on Phytochemicals of the Genus and Their Bioactive Studies.

The genus is a member of the Celastraceae family, of which several species have long been used in traditional medicine. Between 1976 and 2021, nearly 270 new compounds have been isolated and elucidated from the genus . Among these, maytansine and its homologues are extremely rare in nature.

Antimicrobial Actions and Applications of Chitosan.

Chitosan is a naturally originating product that can be applied in many areas due to its biocompatibility, biodegradability, and nontoxic properties. The broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity of chitosan offers great commercial potential for this product. Nevertheless, the antimicrobial activity of chitosan varies, because this activity is associated with its physicochemical characteristics and depends on the type of microorganism.

Synergistic Antifungal Activity of Chitosan with Fluconazole against , , and Fluconazole-Resistant Strains.

(1) Background: Few antifungal drugs are currently available, and drug-resistant strains have rapidly emerged. Thus, the aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the antifungal activity from a combinational treatment of chitosan with a clinical antifungal drug on Candida albicans and Candida tropicalis. (2) Methods: Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) tests, checkerboard assays, and disc assays were employed to determine the inhibitory effect of chitosan with or without other antifungal drugs on and .

Evaluation of Biofilm Formation in Using a Silicone-Based Platform with Synthetic Urine Medium.

Molecular mechanisms of biofilm formation in and current methods for biofilm analyses in this fungal pathogen are limited. (2) Methods: Biofilm biomass and crystal violet staining of the wild-type and each gene mutant strain of were evaluated on silicone under synthetic urine culture conditions. (3) Results: Seven media were tested to compare the effects on biofilm growth with or without silicone.

Inhibition of Indoleamine 2,3-Dioxygenase Enhances the Therapeutic Efficacy of Immunogenic Chemotherapeutics in Breast Cancer.

Purpose: Breast cancer has become a major public health threat in the current society. Anthracycline doxorubicin (DOX) is a widely used drug in breast cancer chemotherapy. We aimed to investigate the immunogenic death of breast tumor cells caused by DOX, and detect the effects of combination of DOX and a small molecule inhibitor in tumor engrafted mouse model.

A Potential Antifungal Effect of Chitosan Against Is Mediated via the Inhibition of SAGA Complex Component Expression and the Subsequent Alteration of Cell Surface Integrity.

Due to the high incidence of nosocomial infection, the first-line drugs for infection have been heavily used, and the emergence of drug-resistant strains has gradually increased. Thus, a new antifungal drug or therapeutic method is needed. Chitosan, a product of chitin deacetylation, is considered to be potentially therapeutic for fungal infections because of its excellent biocompatibility, biodegradability and low toxicity.

Identification and characterization of ORF19.1725, a novel gene contributing to the white cell pheromone response and virulence-associated functions in Candida albicans.

An epigenetic transition between white cells and opaque cells influences several properties of Candida albicans biology, including cellular morphology, biofilm formation, virulence, and sexual mating. In particular, these two cell types exhibit marked differences in their ability to undergo sex. A previous study identified the transcriptional regulator of pheromone response in both the white and opaque states as Cph1 because deletion of this gene abolished both pheromone-induced cell adhesion in white cells and sexual mating in opaque cells.

Cpp1 phosphatase mediated signaling crosstalk between Hog1 and Cek1 mitogen-activated protein kinases is involved in the phenotypic transition in Candida albicans.

Cellular signaling pathways involved in cell growth and differentiation mediated by mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascades have been well characterized in fungi. However, the mechanisms of signaling crosstalk between MAPKs to ensure signaling specificity are largely unknown. Previous work showed that activation of the Candida albicans Cek1 MAPK pathway resulted in opaque cell formation and filamentation, which mirrored the phenotypes to hog1Δ.

The conserved dual phosphorylation sites of the Candida albicans Hog1 protein are crucial for white-opaque switching, mating, and pheromone-stimulated cell adhesion.

Candida albicans is an opportunistic human pathogen capable of causing life-threatening infections in immunocompromised patients. C. albicans has a unique morphological transition between white and opaque phases.

Valley-dependent beams controlled by pseudomagnetic field in distorted photonic graphene.

The generation and control of valley pseudospin currents are the core of valleytronics. Here, the photonic analogy for generation and control of valley pseudospin currents using the pseudomagnetic fields induced in strained graphene is investigated in a microwave regime. In photonic graphene with uniaxial distortion, photons in two different valleys experience pseudomagnetic fields with opposite signs, and valley-dependent propagations in bended paths are observed.

Transport properties of disordered photonic crystals around a Dirac-like point.

At the Dirac-like point at the Brillouin zone center, the photonic crystals (PhCs) can mimic a zero-index medium. In the band structure, an additional flat band of longitudinal mode will intersect the Dirac cone. This longitudinal mode can be excited in PhCs with finite sizes at the Dirac-like point.

A novel function for Hog1 stress-activated protein kinase in controlling white-opaque switching and mating in Candida albicans.

Candida albicans is a commensal in heathy people but has the potential to become an opportunistic pathogen and is responsible for half of all clinical infections in immunocompromised patients. Central to understanding C. albicans behavior is the white-opaque phenotypic switch, in which cells can undergo an epigenetic transition between the white state and the opaque state.

Observation of valley-dependent beams in photonic graphene.

Valley-dependent propagation of light in an artificial photonic hexagonal lattice, akin to electrons in graphene, is investigated in microwave regime. Both numerical and experimental results show that the valley degeneracy in the photonic graphene is broken when the frequency is away from the Dirac point. The peculiar anisotropic wave transport property due to distinct valleys is analyzed using the equifrequency contours.

The effect of chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis on patients with thyroid cancer.

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis (CLT) and malignant tumors of the thyroid.

Methods: A retrospective review of 647 patients who underwent thyroid surgery at the Department of Breast and Thyroid Surgery in Anhui Provincial Hospital, China in 2012 was performed. The clinicopathological characteristics of patients with thyroid malignancies and CLT were collected.