The production of β-lactamase enzymes is one of the most distributed resistance mechanisms towards β-lactam antibiotics. Metallo-β-lactamases constitute a worrisome group of these kinds of enzymes, since they present a broad spectrum profile, being able to hydrolyze not only penicillins, but also the latest generation of cephalosporins and carbapenems, which constitute at present the last resource antibiotics. The VIM, IMP, and NDM enzymes comprise the main groups of clinically relevant metallo-β-lactamases. Here we present an update of the features of the natural variants that have emerged and of the ones that have been engineered in the laboratory, in an effort to find sequence and structural determinants of substrate preferences. This knowledge is of upmost importance in novel drug design efforts. We also discuss the advances in knowledge achieved by means of in vitro directed evolution experiments, and the potential of this approach to predict natural evolution of metallo-β-lactamases.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics3030285 | DOI Listing |
Mol Biol Evol
January 2025
Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, George S Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel.
Bats have adapted to pathogens through diverse mechanisms, including increased resistance - rapid pathogen elimination, and tolerance - limiting tissue damage following infection. In the Egyptian fruit bat (an important model in comparative immunology) several mechanisms conferring disease tolerance were discovered, but mechanisms underpinning resistance remain poorly understood. Previous studies on other species suggested that elevated basal expression of innate immune genes may lead to increased resistance to infection.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDiabetes
January 2025
William Harvey Research Institute, Barts Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, Charterhouse Square, London, UK.
Diabetes mellitus (DM) leads to a more rapid development of DM cardiomyopathy (dbCM) and progression to heart failure in women than men. Combination of high-fat diet (HFD) and freshly-injected streptozotocin (STZ) has been widely used for DM induction, however emerging data shows that anomer-equilibrated STZ produces an early onset and robust DM model. We designed a novel protocol utilising a combination of multiple doses of anomer-equilibrated STZ injections and HFD to develop a stable murine DM model featuring dbCM analogous to humans.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDalton Trans
January 2025
Laboratory for Chemical Computation and Modeling, Institute for Computational Science and Artificial Intelligence, Van Lang University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
A theoretical investigation, employing density functional theory with the PBE functional and the Def2-TZVP basis set, comprehensively explores the geometric and electronic structures and properties of the boron doped scandium clusters BSc with = 2-3 and = 3-13. Introduction of B atoms significantly enhances the stability of the resulting clusters with respect to the initial counterparts. As the number of B atoms increases, the stability of the doped clusters improves, following the order: BSc > BSc > BSc > Sc.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAppl Microbiol Biotechnol
January 2025
College of Marine and Bioengineering, Yancheng Institute of Technology, Yancheng, 224051, PR China.
L-valine holds wide-ranging applications in medicine, food, feed, and various industrial sectors. Escherichia coli, a pivotal strain in industrial L-valine production, features a concise fermentation period and a well-defined genetic background. This study focuses on mismatch repair genes (mutH, mutL, mutS, and recG) and genes associated with mutagenesis (dinB, rpoS, rpoD, and recA), employing a high-glucose adaptive culture in conjunction with metabolic modifications to systematically screen for superior phenotypes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNaturwissenschaften
January 2025
LESTES, Entomology and Experimental Biology Center, Federal University of Triângulo Mineiro (UFTM), Uberaba, MG, Brazil.
Polarization is a property of light that describes the oscillation of the electric field vector. Polarized light can be detected by many invertebrate animals, and this visual channel is widely used in nature. Insects rely on light polarization for various purposes, such as water detection, improving contrast, breaking camouflage, navigation, and signaling during mating.
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