Multiparametric platform for profiling lipid trafficking in human leukocytes.

Systematic insight into cellular dysfunction can improve understanding of disease etiology, risk assessment, and patient stratification. We present a multiparametric high-content imaging platform enabling quantification of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) uptake and lipid storage in cytoplasmic droplets of primary leukocyte subpopulations. We validate this platform with samples from 65 individuals with variable blood LDL-cholesterol (LDL-c) levels, including familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) and non-FH subjects.

Introducing inducible fluorescent split cholesterol oxidase to mammalian cells.

Cholesterol oxidase (COase) is a bacterial enzyme catalyzing the first step in the biodegradation of cholesterol. COase is an important biotechnological tool for clinical diagnostics and production of steroid drugs and insecticides. It is also used for tracking intracellular cholesterol; however, its utility is limited by the lack of an efficient temporal control of its activity.

Nuclear targeting of human cytomegalovirus large tegument protein pUL48 is essential for viral growth.

We report the identification of a functional nuclear localization signal (NLS) in the human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) large tegument protein pUL48 that is required for nuclear localization in transfected cells and is essential for viral growth. The NLS was mapped to pUL48 amino acid residues 284 to 302. This sequence contains a bipartite NLS comprising two clusters of basic residues (bC1 and bC2) separated by 9 amino acids.