High-Throughput Screening of Heterologous Functional Amyloids Using Escherichia coli.

Escherichia coli remains one of the most widely used workhorse microorganisms for the expression of heterologous proteins. The large number of cloning vectors and mutant host strains available for E. coli yields an impressively wide array of folded globular proteins in the laboratory.

A Sarcina bacterium linked to lethal disease in sanctuary chimpanzees in Sierra Leone.

Human and animal infections with bacteria of the genus Sarcina (family Clostridiaceae) are associated with gastric dilation and emphysematous gastritis. However, the potential roles of sarcinae as commensals or pathogens remain unclear. Here, we investigate a lethal disease of unknown etiology that affects sanctuary chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) in Sierra Leone.

SARS-CoV-2 Transmission among Marine Recruits during Quarantine.

Background: The efficacy of public health measures to control the transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has not been well studied in young adults.

Methods: We investigated SARS-CoV-2 infections among U.S.

Engineered Biofilms Produce Adhesive Nanomaterials Shaped by a Patterned 43 kDa Barnacle Cement Protein.

Barnacles integrate multiple protein components into distinct amyloid-like nanofibers arranged as a bulk material network for their permanent underwater attachment. The design principle for how chemistry is displayed using adhesive nanomaterials, and fragments of proteins that are responsible for their formation, remains a challenge to assess and is yet to be established. Here, we use engineered bacterial biofilms to display a library of amyloid materials outside of the cell using full-length and subdomain sequences from a major component of the barnacle adhesive.

Phage-Mediated Molecular Detection (PMMD): A Novel Rapid Method for Phage-Specific Bacterial Detection.

Bacterial infections pose a challenge to human health and burden the health care system, especially with the spread of antibiotic-resistant populations. To provide effective treatment and improved prognosis, effective diagnostic methods are of great importance. Here we present phage-mediated molecular detection (PMMD) as a novel molecular method for the detection and assessment of bacterial antibiotic resistance.

Edge-Localized Biodeterioration and Secondary Microplastic Formation by Unsaturated Biofilm Cells on Polyurethane Films.

Painted environmental surfaces are prone to microbiological colonization with potential coating deterioration induced by the microorganisms. Accurate mechanistic models of these interactions require an understanding of the heterogeneity in which the deterioration processes proceed. Here, unsaturated biofilms (i.

Molecular Recognition of Structures Is Key in the Polymerization of Patterned Barnacle Adhesive Sequences.

The permanent adhesive produced by adult barnacles is held together by tightly folded proteins that form amyloid-like materials distinct among marine foulants. In this work, we link stretches of alternating charged and noncharged linear sequences from a family of adhesive proteins to their role in forming fibrillar nanomaterials. Using recombinant proteins and short barnacle cement derived peptides (BCPs), we find a central sequence with charged motifs of the pattern [Gly/Ser/Val/Thr/Ala-X], where X are charged amino acids, to exert specific control over timing, structure, and morphology of fibril formation.

Development and Use of Personalized Bacteriophage-Based Therapeutic Cocktails To Treat a Patient with a Disseminated Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii Infection.

Widespread antibiotic use in clinical medicine and the livestock industry has contributed to the global spread of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterial pathogens, including We report on a method used to produce a personalized bacteriophage-based therapeutic treatment for a 68-year-old diabetic patient with necrotizing pancreatitis complicated by an MDR infection. Despite multiple antibiotic courses and efforts at percutaneous drainage of a pancreatic pseudocyst, the patient deteriorated over a 4-month period. In the absence of effective antibiotics, two laboratories identified nine different bacteriophages with lytic activity for an isolate from the patient.

Characterization of novel lytic phage and defining their combinatorial virulence using the OmniLog® system.

Skin and soft tissue infections (SSTI) caused by methicillin resistant (MRSA) are difficult to treat. Bacteriophage (phage) represent a potential alternate treatment for antibiotic resistant bacterial infections. In this study, 7 novel phage with broad lytic activity for were isolated and identified.

The role of HuR in the post-transcriptional regulation of interleukin-3 in T cells.

Human Interleukin-3 (IL-3) is a lymphokine member of a class of transiently expressed mRNAs harboring Adenosine/Uridine-Rich Elements (ARE) in their 3' untranslated regions (3'-UTRs). The regulatory effects of AREs are often mediated by specific ARE-binding proteins (ARE-BPs). In this report, we show that the human IL-3 3'-UTR plays a post-transcriptional regulation role in two human transformed cell lines.

Identification and functional analysis of novel phosphorylation sites in the RNA surveillance protein Upf1.

One third of inherited genetic diseases are caused by mRNAs harboring premature termination codons as a result of nonsense mutations. These aberrant mRNAs are degraded by the Nonsense-Mediated mRNA Decay (NMD) pathway. A central component of the NMD pathway is Upf1, an RNA-dependent ATPase and helicase.

The shuttling protein Npl3 promotes translation termination accuracy in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoproteins are multifunctional proteins that bind to newly synthesized mRNAs in the nucleus and participate in many subsequent steps of gene expression. A well-studied Saccharomyces cerevisiae heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein that has several nuclear functions is Npl3p. Here, we provide evidence that Npl3p also has a cytoplasmic role: it functions in translation termination fidelity.

The Rsp5 E3 ligase mediates turnover of low affinity phosphate transporters in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

In an effort to identify novel components of the PHO regulon in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, we have isolated and characterized suppressors of the Pho(-) phenotype associated with deletion of the Pho4 transcriptional activator. Here we report that either a defective form of the Rsp5 E3 ubiquitin ligase or deletion of the End3 component of the endocytic pathway restores growth of the pho4 Delta mutant in the presence of limiting inorganic phosphate (P i). The spa1-1 suppressor allele of RSP5 encodes a phenylalanine-to-valine replacement at position 748 (F748V) within the catalytic HECT domain of Rsp5.