The Eurasian griffon vulture (), a widely distributed scavenger, plays a crucial role in ecosystem health by consuming decomposing carcasses. Scavengers have adapted to avoid disease from the rotting carrion they feed on, probably through a specialized gut microbiome. This study aimed to characterize the gut microbiome of (n = 8) present in two rehabilitation centers in mainland Portugal and evaluate their potential as reservoirs of pathogens.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe dissemination of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterial isolates in low- and middle-income countries, including several African countries, is a major concern. The poor sanitary conditions of rural and urban families observed in certain regions may favor the transmission of bacterial infections between animals and humans, including those promoted by strains resistant to practically all available antibiotics. In Angola, in particular, the presence of these strains in human hospitals has already been described.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTransporters of the solute carrier superfamily (SLCs) are responsible for the transmembrane traffic of the majority of chemical substances in cells and tissues and are therefore of fundamental biological importance. As is often the case with membrane proteins that can be heavily glycosylated, a lack of reliable high-affinity binders hinders their functional analysis. Purifying and reconstituting transmembrane proteins in their lipidic environments remains challenging and standard approaches to generate binders for multi-transmembrane proteins, such as SLCs, channels or G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are lacking.
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