Several methods have been developed to explore interactions among water-soluble proteins or regions of proteins. However, techniques to target transmembrane domains (TMDs) have not been examined thoroughly despite their importance. Here, we developed a computational approach to design sequences that specifically modulate protein-protein interactions in the membrane. To illustrate this method, we demonstrated that BclxL can interact with other members of the B cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl2) family through the TMD and that these interactions are required for BclxL control of cell death. Next, we designed sequences that specifically recognize and sequester the TMD of BclxL. Hence, we were able to prevent BclxL intramembrane interactions and cancel its antiapoptotic effect. These results advance our understanding of protein-protein interactions in membranes and provide a means to modulate them. Moreover, the success of our approach may trigger the development of a generation of inhibitors targeting interactions between TMDs.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2219648120 | DOI Listing |
Pediatr Pulmonol
January 2025
Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA.
Introduction: While the diagnosis of cystic fibrosis (CF) is often straightforward and reliant on correlation between genetic testing and clinical signs and symptoms, there is a subset where the distinction is not nearly as clearcut. This has previously been reported in patients identified through newborn screening but not meeting full CF diagnostic criteria, earning the label of CF Screen Positive, Inconclusive Diagnosis (CFSPID) instead. A homologous diagnostic category in adults is named CF Transmembrane Conductance Regulator-Related Disorder (CFTR-RD).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHepatol Commun
December 2024
Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Liver diseases constitute a major health burden worldwide, accounting for more than 4% of all disease-related mortalities. While the incidence of viral hepatitis is expected to decrease, metabolic liver disorders are increasingly diagnosed. Liver pathology is diverse, with functional and molecular alterations in both parenchymal and mesenchymal cells, including immune cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHepatol Commun
January 2025
Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for Infectious Diseases (Ministry of Education), Department of Infectious Diseases, Institute for Viral Hepatitis, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
Cluster of differentiation 36 (CD36) is a transmembrane glycoprotein with the ability to bind to multiple ligands and perform diverse functions. Through the recognition of long-chain fatty acids, proteins containing thrombospondin structural homology repeat domains such as thrombospondin-1, and molecules with molecular structures consistent with danger- or pathogen-associated molecular patterns, CD36 participates in various physiological and pathological processes of the body. CD36 is widely expressed in various cell types, including hepatocytes and KCs in the liver, where it plays a pivotal role in lipid metabolism, inflammation, and oxidative stress.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAnesth Analg
November 2024
From the Department of Anesthesia Critical Care & Pain Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
Background: R-Glabridin is a major flavonoid of licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) root and known to modulate GABAA receptors, which are targets of many clinical hypnotics. However, R-glabridin hypnotic activity has not been reported in animals.
Methods: Inverted photomotor responses (IPMRs) were used to assess the hypnotic effects of natural R-glabridin and synthetic R/S-glabridin in wild-type zebrafish larvae and transgenic larvae lacking functional GABAA receptor β3 subunits (β30/0).
J Immunother Cancer
January 2025
Otolaryngology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Background: The transmembrane protein T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin-domain containing molecule 3 (TIM-3) is an immune checkpoint receptor that is expressed by a variety of leukocyte subsets, particularly in the tumor microenvironment. An effective TIM-3-targeting therapy should account for multiple biological factors, including the disease setting, the specific cell types involved and their varying sensitivities to the four putative TIM-3 ligands (galectin-9, phosphatidylserine, high mobility group protein B1 and carcinoembryonic antigen cell adhesion molecule 1), each of which engages a unique binding site on the receptor's variable immunoglobulin domain. The primary objectives of this study were to assess the prevalence and function of TIM-3 natural killer (NK) cells in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), determine whether the four TIM-3 ligands differentially affect TIM-3 NK cell functions, identify the most immunosuppressive ligand, and evaluate whether targeting ligand-mediated TIM-3 signaling enhances NK cell effector functions.
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