Cutaneous Neurofibromas and Quality of Life in Adults With Neurofibromatosis Type 1.

Importance: There is a burgeoning interest in therapeutic development for cutaneous neurofibromas (cNFs), a major cause of morbidity in persons with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1). To determine meaningful clinical trial outcomes, deeper understanding is needed regarding how cNFs are associated with quality of life (QoL). However, this understanding has been hampered by challenges in recruiting participants with this rare genetic disease.

A role for LHC1 in higher order structure and complement binding of the Cryptococcus neoformans capsule.

Polysaccharide capsules are important virulence factors for many microbial pathogens including the opportunistic fungus Cryptococcus neoformans. In the present study, we demonstrate an unusual role for a secreted lactonohydrolase of C. neoformans, LHC1 in capsular higher order structure.

Formation of Hirano bodies after inducible expression of a modified form of an actin-cross-linking protein.

Hirano bodies are cytoplasmic inclusions composed mainly of actin and actin-associated proteins. The formation of Hirano bodies during various neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, has been reported. Although the underlying molecular mechanisms that lead to the formation of these inclusions in the brain are not known, expression of the C-terminal fragment (CT) (amino acids 124 to 295) from the endogenous 34-kDa actin-binding protein of Dictyostelium discoideum leads to the formation of actin inclusions in vivo.

The DEAD-box RNA helicase Vad1 regulates multiple virulence-associated genes in Cryptococcus neoformans.

The study of fungal regulatory networks is essential to the understanding of how these pathogens respond to host environmental signals with effective virulence-associated traits. In this study, a virulence-associated DEAD-box RNA helicase-encoding gene (VAD1) was isolated from a mutant defective in the virulence factor laccase. A Deltavad1 mutant exhibited a profound reduction in virulence in a mouse model that was restored after reconstitution with WT VAD1.