Immunogenicity and Neutralization of Recombinant Vaccine Candidates Expressing F and G Glycoproteins against Nipah Virus.

Nipah virus (NiV), of the Paramyxoviridae family, causes highly fatal infections in humans and is associated with severe neurological and respiratory diseases. Currently, no commercial vaccine is available for human use. Here, eight structure-based mammalian-expressed recombinant proteins harboring the NiV surface proteins, fusion glycoprotein (F), and the major attachment glycoprotein (G) were produced.

Humoral Immune Response of Heterologous ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 and mRNA-1273 Prime-Boost Vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Korea.

The immunogenicity of a heterologous vaccination regimen consisting of ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (a chimpanzee adenovirus-vectored vaccine) followed by mRNA-1273 (a lipid-nanoparticle-encapsulated mRNA-based vaccine) against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), specifically the omicron variant (B.1.1.

Neutralizing activity against Omicron BA.5 after tixagevimab/cilgavimab administration comparable to those after Omicron BA.1/BA.2 breakthrough infections.

Introduction: The effect of tixagevimab/cilgavimab (Evusheld™; AstraZeneca, UK) should be evaluated in the context of concurrent outbreak situations.

Methods: For serologic investigation of tixagevimab/cilgavimab during the BA.5 outbreak period, sera of immunocompromised (IC) hosts sampled before and one month after tixagevimab/cilgavimab administration and those of healthcare workers (HCWs) sampled one month after a 3 shot of COVID-19 vaccines, five months after BA.

Morphologically homogeneous, pH-responsive gold nanoparticles for non-invasive imaging of HeLa cancer.

Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have been widely used as nanocarriers in drug delivery to improve the efficiency of chemotherapy treatment and enhance early disease detection. The advantages of AuNPs include their excellent biocompatibility, easy modification and functionalization, facile synthesis, low toxicity, and controllable particle size. This study aimed to synthesize a conjugated citraconic anhydride link between morphologically homogeneous AuNPs and doxorubicin (DOX) (DOX-AuNP).

Development of a Polo-like Kinase-1 Polo-Box Domain Inhibitor as a Tumor Growth Suppressor in Mice Models.

Polo-like kinase-1 (Plk1) plays a key role in mitosis and has been identified as an attractive anticancer drug target. Plk1 consists of two drug-targeting sites, namely, N-terminal kinase domain (KD) and C-terminal polo-box domain (PBD). As KD-targeting inhibitors are associated with severe side effects, here we report on the pyrazole-based Plk1 PBD inhibitor, KBJK557, which showed a remarkable anticancer effect by inducing Plk1 delocalization, mitotic arrest, and apoptosis in HeLa cells.

Vitamin E-Conjugated Phosphopeptide Inhibitor of the Polo-Box Domain of Polo-Like Kinase 1.

Polo-like kinase 1 (Plk1) regulates cell cycle and cell proliferation, and is currently considered a potential biomarker in clinical trials for many cancers. A characteristic feature of Plks is their C-terminal polo-box domain (PBD). Pro-Leu-His-Ser-pThr (PLHS[pT])-the phosphopeptide inhibitor of the PBD of Plk1-induces apoptosis in cancer cells.

Amphiphilic Triazine Polymer Derivatives as Antibacterial And Anti-atopic Agents in Mice Model.

Considering the emergence of bacterial resistance and low proteolytic stability of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), herein we developed a series of ultra-short triazine based amphipathic polymers (TZP) that are connected with ethylene diamine linkers instead of protease sensitive amide bond. The most potent oligomers, TZP3 and TZP5 not only displayed potent antibacterial action on various drug-resistant pathogens but also exhibited a strong synergic antibacterial activity in combination with chloramphenicol against multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MDRPA). Since most of atopic dermatitis (AD) infections are caused by bacterial colonization, we evaluated the potency of TZP3 and TZP5 on AD in vitro and in vivo.

Enhanced cellular uptake of a TAT-conjugated peptide inhibitor targeting the polo-box domain of polo-like kinase 1.

In the last decade, drug delivery systems using biologically active molecules for cellular uptake of therapeutic targets have been studied for application and testing in clinical trials. For instance, the transactivator of transcription (TAT) peptide, or cell-penetrating peptide, was shown to deliver a variety of cargoes, including proteins, peptides, and nucleic acids. Polo-like kinase 1 (Plk1) plays key roles in the regulation of cell cycle events (e.

Characterization of oleanolic acid derivative for colon cancer targeting with positron emission tomography.

Oleanolic acid (OA) is a pentacyclic triterpenoid found in various plant species. Triterpenoid compounds have been shown to inhibit tumor proliferation and to induce apoptosis in cancer cells. We synthesized an OA derivative and evaluated its inhibitory effects on cell proliferation in human colon cancer.

Hybrid PET/MR imaging of tumors using an oleanolic acid-conjugated nanoparticle.

Research into multifunctional nanoparticles is focused on creating an agent for use in an all-in-one multimodal imaging system that includes diagnostic imaging, drug delivery, and therapeutic monitoring. We designed a new dual-modality tumor-targeting agent with a new tumor-targeting molecule, oleanolic acid (OA), which is derived from a natural compound and coupled with a macrocyclic chelating agent such as 1,4,7-triazacyclononane-1,4,7-triacetic acid (NOTA), iron oxide nanoparticles (IONP), and radiolabeling components such as (68)Ga for dual-modality positron emission tomography (PET)/magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We attempted to obtain fusion PET/MR images with the (68)Ga-NOTA-OA-IONP hybrid tumor-targeting imaging agent using colon cancer (HT-29) xenograft mice models.

Targeted delivery of a phosphopeptide prodrug inhibits the proliferation of a human glioma cell line.

Peptides are ideal candidates for developing therapeutics. Polo-like kinase 1 is an important regulatory protein in the cell cycle and contains a C-terminal polo-box domain, which is the hallmark of this protein family. We developed a peptide inhibitor of polo-like kinase 1 that targets its polo-box domain.

In vivo characterization of 68Ga-NOTA-VEGF 121 for the imaging of VEGF receptor expression in U87MG tumor xenograft models.

Purpose: Vascular endothelial growth factor receptors (VEGFRs) are associated with tumor growth and induction of tumor angiogenesis and are known to be overexpressed in various human tumors. In the present study, we prepared and evaluated (68)Ga-1,4,7-triazacyclononane-1,4,7-triacetic acid-benzyl (NOTA)-VEGF(121) as a positron emission tomography (PET) radioligand for the in vivo imaging of VEGFR expression.

Methods: (68)Ga-NOTA-VEGF(121) was prepared by conjugation of VEGF(121) and p-SCN-NOTA, followed by radiolabeling with (68)GaCl(3) and then purification using a PD-10 column.

HMOX1 is an important prognostic indicator of nonmuscle invasive bladder cancer recurrence and progression.

Purpose: HMOX1, which is highly expressed in various solid tumors, has an important role in rapid tumor growth. We investigated the relationship between HMOX1 expression and clinicopathological parameters in patients with NMIBC.

Materials And Methods: We analyzed 211 primary NMIBC tissue specimens by real-time PCR and compared the results with clinicopathological parameters.