The Pseudomonas aeruginosa exotoxin A (PEA) protein requires furin-mediated cleavage for manifestation of toxicity. We show here that the small stable furin inhibitor hexa-D-arginine amide effectively blocks PEA-induced cell lysis and is itself noncytotoxic. Administration of hexa-D-arginine to PEA-treated mice significantly improves their survival rate and also decreases circulating levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC133042PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/IAI.70.12.7136-7139.2002DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

furin inhibitor
8
inhibitor hexa-d-arginine
8
pseudomonas aeruginosa
8
aeruginosa exotoxin
8
hexa-d-arginine blocks
4
blocks activation
4
activation pseudomonas
4
exotoxin vivo
4
vivo pseudomonas
4
exotoxin pea
4

Similar Publications

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), influenza, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are significant global health threats. The need for low-cost, easily synthesized oral drugs for rapid deployment during outbreaks is crucial. Broad-spectrum therapeutics, or pan-antivirals, are designed to target multiple viral pathogens simultaneously by focusing on shared molecular features, such as common metal cofactors or conserved residues in viral catalytic domains.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

miR-424/322 attenuates cardiac remodeling by modulating the nuclear factor-activated T-cell 3/furin pathway.

Biomed J

November 2024

Department of Emergency Medicine, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Graduate Institute of Physiology, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan; Taichung Armed Forces General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan. Electronic address:

Background: Cardiac remodeling is implicated in numerous physiologic and pathologic conditions, including scar formation, heart failure, and cardiac arrhythmias. Nuclear factor-activated T-cell cytoplasmic (NFATc) is a crucial transcription factor that regulates cardiac remodeling. MicroRNA (miR)-424/322 has pathophysiological roles in the cardiovascular and respiratory systems by modulating hypoxia and inflammatory pathways.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

SPINK13 acts as a tumor suppressor in hepatocellular carcinoma by inhibiting Akt phosphorylation.

Cell Death Dis

November 2024

Key Laboratory of Screening and Control of Infectious Diseases, Fujian Provincial University, Quanzhou Medical College, Quanzhou, 362011, Fujian, China.

The PI3K/Akt pathway is overexpressed in nearly 50% of hepatocellular carcinomas and inhibits apoptosis by promoting the expression of antiapoptotic genes. Serine protease inhibitors have been shown to induce apoptosis in hepatoma cells by downregulating SPINK13 in the PI3K/Akt pathway. In this study, SPINK13 was expressed in lentiviral vectors.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Diphyllin elicits a doubled-pronged attack on the entry of SARS-CoV-2 by inhibiting cathepsin L and furin.

Virus Res

December 2024

Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Infectious Diseases (Chinese Ministry of Education), Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400016, China. Electronic address:

Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates the natural compound diphyllin's effectiveness against SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, particularly against various variants like Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron.
  • Results show that diphyllin inhibits the virus's entry into cells in a dose-dependent manner by disrupting critical processes required for viral entry.
  • The research highlights diphyllin's potential as a dual-action antiviral agent by targeting both endosomal and cell surface pathways involved in SARS-CoV-2 entry.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Human parainfluenza virus 3 (HPIV3) infection relies on the combined actions of the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase (HN) and fusion protein (F) to facilitate virus-cell membrane fusion for infection.
  • Unlike laboratory-adapted strains, field strains of HPIV3 have different cleavage motifs for the F protein, which are cleaved by specific, unidentified proteases found in limited cell types.
  • The study highlights that extracellular serine proteases, like TMPRSS2 and TMPRSS13, can activate the F protein for infectious virus release, suggesting that the activation process depends on the availability of these proteases in host cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!