The red palm weevil (RPW), Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Oliver) is an important pest of palms that causes significant damage by boring into and feeding within palm stem tissues. Here, we studied the proteolytic process of Cry3Aa in the RPW to understand the mechanism of Cry toxicity. The bioassays showed that Cry3Aa toxin is weakly toxic to the RPW. Proteolytic activation assays indicated the Cry3Aa protein is digested into smaller fragments than the 55-kDa activated fragments under different conditions. In particular, at higher mass ratios of gut protease and Cry3Aa protein (5:1, 2:1, and 1:1, respectively), and at 36.9°C for 16 h in a solution of pH 8.6, the Cry3Aa protoxin is over-digested by the gut proteases of weevil larvae. Moreover, the zymogram analysis of the gut proteases revealed the RPW larvae harbors intestinal digestive enzymes mainly composed of serine proteases. This study describes the proteolytic activation process of Cry3Aa in the midgut of RPW larvae.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jee/toab206 | DOI Listing |
Protease-activated receptor 2 (PAR2) is a central regulator of intestinal barrier function, inflammation and pain. Upregulated intestinal proteolysis and PAR2-signaling are implicated in inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). To identify potential bacterial regulators of PAR2 activity, we developed a functional assay for PAR2 processing and used it to screen conditioned media from a library of diverse gut commensal microbes.
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January 2025
Infectious Diseases Division, CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine, Canal Road, Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir 180001, India.
The insertion of β-amino acids and replacement of the amide bond with a urea bond in antimicrobial peptide sequences are promising approaches to enhance the antibacterial activity and improve proteolytic stability. Herein, we describe the synthesis, characterization, and antibacterial activity of short αβ cationic hybrid peptides LA-Orn-βAcc-PEA, ; LA-Lys-βAcc-PEA, ; and LA-Arg-βAcc-PEA, in which a C12 lipid chain is conjugated at the N terminus of peptide through urea bonds. Further, we evaluated all the peptides against both and methicillin-resistant (MRSA) and their multidrug resistant (MDR) clinical isolates.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFReprod Med Biol
January 2025
Laboratory of Animal Breeding and Reproduction, Division of Animal Science, School of Agriculture Utsunomiya University Utsunomiya Tochigi Japan.
Background: In vitro fertilization (IVF) and embryo transfer (ET) are widely used in reproductive biology. Despite the transfer of high-quality blastocysts, the implantation rate of IVF-derived blastocysts remains low after ET.
Methods: This article provides a comprehensive review of current research on embryo implantation regulators and their application to improve the implantation potential of IVF-derived blastocysts.
Front Plant Sci
January 2025
Department of Integrative Food, Bioscience and Biotechnology, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Republic of Korea.
Kiwifruit ()-derived actinidin, a cysteine protease, is renowned for its meat-tenderizing and milk-clotting activities. Despite its potential in various biotechnological applications, an efficient expression platform for actinidin production has not yet been developed. Instead, actinidin has traditionally been purified directly from the fruits of various plants.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Basic Microbiol
January 2025
Laboratorio de Bioquímica y Genética Molecular, Facultad de Química, Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, Yucatán, México.
Metacaspases (MCA), are cysteine-dependent proteases closely related to caspases. In protozoa, MCA plays an important role in programmed cell death (PCD). In Trichomonas vaginalis, a kind of PCD that resembles apoptosis has been described, but the activators of this mechanism have not been demonstrated.
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