Role of EPS in mitigation of plant abiotic stress: The case of Methylobacterium extorquens PA1.

Methylobacterium extorquens is a facultative methylotrophic Gram-negative bacterium, often associated with plants, that exhibits a unique ability to grow in the presence of high methanol concentrations, which serves as a single carbon energy source. We found that M. extorquens strain PA1 secretes a mixture of different exopolysaccharides (EPSs) when grown in reference medium or in presence of methanol, that induces the secretion of a peculiar and heterogenous mixture of EPSs, with different structure, composition, repeating units, bulk and a variable degree of methylation.

Investigation of protein-ligand complexes by ligand-based NMR methods.

Molecular recognition is at the base of all biological events and its knowledge at atomic level is pivotal in the development of new drug design approaches. NMR spectroscopy is one of the most widely used technique to detect and characterize transient ligand-receptor interactions in solution. In particular, ligand-based NMR approaches, including NOE-based NMR techniques, diffusion experiments and relaxation methods, are excellent tools to investigate how ligands interact with their receptors.

GMMA and Glycoconjugate Approaches Compared in Mice for the Development of a Vaccine against Serotype 6.

infections are one of the top causes of diarrhea throughout the world, with being predominant in developing countries. Currently, no vaccines are widely available and increasing levels of multidrug-resistance make a high priority for vaccine development. The serotype-specific O-antigen moiety of lipopolysaccharide has been recognized as a key target for protective immunity, and many O-antigen based candidate vaccines are in development.