False positive congenital cytomegalovirus saliva screening results with an FDA-approved assay at two institutions.

Background: Congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is a significant cause of childhood hearing loss and developmental delay. Congenital CMV screening was implemented at two large hospital-affiliated laboratories using the FDA-approved Alethia CMV Assay Test System. In July 2022, an increase in suspected false-positive results was noted, leading to implementation of prospective quality management strategies.

Saturated fatty acids regulate retinoic acid signalling and suppress tumorigenesis by targeting fatty acid-binding protein 5.

Long chain fatty acids (LCFA) serve as energy sources, components of cell membranes and precursors for signalling molecules. Here we show that these biological compounds also regulate gene expression and that they do so by controlling the transcriptional activities of the retinoic acid (RA)-activated nuclear receptors RAR and PPARβ/δ. The data indicate that these activities of LCFA are mediated by FABP5, which delivers ligands from the cytosol to nuclear PPARβ/δ.

Genetic ablation of the fatty acid-binding protein FABP5 suppresses HER2-induced mammary tumorigenesis.

The fatty acid-binding protein FABP5 shuttles ligands from the cytosol to the nuclear receptor PPARβ/δ (encoded for by Pparδ), thereby enhancing the transcriptional activity of the receptor. This FABP5/PPARδ pathway is critical for induction of proliferation of breast carcinoma cells by activated epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). In this study, we show that FABP5 is highly upregulated in human breast cancers and we provide genetic evidence of the pathophysiologic significance of FABP5 in mammary tumorigenesis.

Disrupted in schizophrenia 1 regulates neuronal progenitor proliferation via modulation of GSK3beta/beta-catenin signaling.

The Disrupted in Schizophrenia 1 (DISC1) gene is disrupted by a balanced chromosomal translocation (1; 11) (q42; q14.3) in a Scottish family with a high incidence of major depression, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. Subsequent studies provided indications that DISC1 plays a role in brain development.

Rapid prefractionation of complex protein lysates with centrifugal membrane adsorber units improves the resolving power of 2D-PAGE-based proteome analysis.

Background: Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2D-PAGE) has proven over the years to be a reliable and efficient method for separation of hundreds of proteins based on charge and mass. Nevertheless, the complexity of even the simplest proteomes limits the resolving power of 2D-PAGE. This limitation can be partially alleviated by sample prefractionation using a variety of techniques.