A high-throughput pipeline for scalable kit-free RNA extraction.

An overreliance on commercial, kit-based RNA extraction in the molecular diagnoses of infectious disease presents a challenge in the event of supply chain disruptions and can potentially hinder testing capacity in times of need. In this study, we adapted a well-established, robust TRIzol-based RNA extraction protocol into a high-throughput format through miniaturization and automation. The workflow was validated by RT-qPCR assay for SARS-CoV-2 detection to illustrate its scalability without interference to downstream diagnostic sensitivity and accuracy.

Biosynthesis of Nature-Inspired Unnatural Cannabinoids.

Natural products make up a large proportion of medicine available today. Cannabinoids from the plant is one unique class of meroterpenoids that have shown a wide range of bioactivities and recently seen significant developments in their status as therapeutic agents for various indications. Their complex chemical structures make it difficult to chemically synthesize them in efficient yields.

Low-dose anti-inflammatory combinatorial therapy reduced cancer stem cell formation in patient-derived preclinical models for tumour relapse prevention.

Background: Emergence of drug-resistant cancer phenotypes is a challenge for anti-cancer therapy. Cancer stem cells are identified as one of the ways by which chemoresistance develops.

Method: We investigated the anti-inflammatory combinatorial treatment (DA) of doxorubicin and aspirin using a preclinical microfluidic model on cancer cell lines and patient-derived circulating tumour cell clusters.

Synthetic Enzymology and the Fountain of Youth: Repurposing Biology for Longevity.

Caloric restriction (CR) is an intervention that can increase maximal lifespan in organisms, but its application to humans remains challenging. A more feasible approach to achieve lifespan extension is to develop CR mimetics that target biochemical pathways affected by CR. Recent studies in the engineering and structural characterization of polyketide synthases (PKSs) have facilitated their use as biocatalysts to produce novel polyketides.

Exploiting the Biosynthetic Potential of Type III Polyketide Synthases.

Polyketides are structurally and functionally diverse secondary metabolites that are biosynthesized by polyketide synthases (PKSs) using acyl-CoA precursors. Recent studies in the engineering and structural characterization of PKSs have facilitated the use of target enzymes as biocatalysts to produce novel functionally optimized polyketides. These compounds may serve as potential drug leads.

Establishing a toolkit for precursor-directed polyketide biosynthesis: exploring substrate promiscuities of acid-CoA ligases.

Polyketides are chemically diverse and medicinally important biochemicals that are biosynthesized from acyl-CoA precursors by polyketide synthases. One of the limitations to combinatorial biosynthesis of polyketides has been the lack of a toolkit that describes the means of delivering novel acyl-CoA precursors necessary for polyketide biosynthesis. Using five acid-CoA ligases obtained from various plants and microorganisms, we biosynthesized an initial library of 79 acyl-CoA thioesters by screening each of the acid-CoA ligases against a library of 123 carboxylic acids.