CRISPR-Cas9 Mediated Exonic Disruption for HIV-1 Elimination.

Background: A barrier to HIV-1 cure rests in the persistence of proviral DNA in infected CD4+ leukocytes. The high HIV-1 mutation rate leads to viral diversity, immune evasion, and consequent antiretroviral drug resistance. While CRISPR-spCas9 can eliminate latent proviral DNA, its efficacy is limited by HIV strain diversity and precision target cell delivery.

Diagnostics for SARS-CoV-2 infections.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has spread to nearly every corner of the globe, causing societal instability. The resultant coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) leads to fever, sore throat, cough, chest and muscle pain, dyspnoea, confusion, anosmia, ageusia and headache. These can progress to life-threatening respiratory insufficiency, also affecting the heart, kidney, liver and nervous systems.

Pharmacotherapeutics of SARS-CoV-2 Infections.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected more than 38 million people world-wide by person to person transmission of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Therapeutic and preventative strategies for SARS-CoV-2 remains a significant challenge. Within the past several months, effective treatment options have emerged and now include repurposed antivirals, corticosteroids and virus-specific antibodies.

The Natural History, Pathobiology, and Clinical Manifestations of SARS-CoV-2 Infections.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the etiological agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). SARS-CoV-2, is a positive-sense single-stranded RNA virus with epithelial cell and respiratory system proclivity. Like its predecessor, SARS-CoV, COVID-19 can lead to life-threatening disease.

Rilpivirine-associated aggregation-induced emission enables cell-based nanoparticle tracking.

Antiretroviral therapy (ART) has improved the quality and duration of life for people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. However, limitations in drug efficacy, emergence of viral mutations and the paucity of cell-tissue targeting remain. We posit that to maximize ART potency and therapeutic outcomes newer drug formulations that reach HIV cellular reservoirs need be created.

Assembly of a complete genome sequence for Gemmata obscuriglobus reveals a novel prokaryotic rRNA operon gene architecture.

Gemmata obscuriglobus is a Gram-negative bacterium with several intriguing biological features. Here, we present a complete, de novo whole genome assembly for G. obscuriglobus which consists of a single, circular 9 Mb chromosome, with no plasmids detected.

Development of a chemically-defined minimal medium for studies on growth and protein uptake of Gemmata obscuriglobus.

We experimentally determined minimal media requirements for Gemmata obscuriglobus, a Gram-negative Planctomycete bacteria with several unusual physiological features. We find that supplementing media with the usual vitamins solution does not improve viability, but does result in an increased growth rate in liquid cultures and a larger colony size on agar plates. By systematically including individual vitamins, or omitting individual vitamins, from media we find that the addition of only two vitamins, biotin and cyanocobalamin, are sufficient to restore colony growth to comparable rates as other commonly used media.