A primary objective in malaria vaccine design is the generation of high-quality antibody responses against the circumsporozoite protein of the malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum (PfCSP). To enable rational antigen design, we solved a cryo-EM structure of the highly potent anti-PfCSP antibody L9 in complex with recombinant PfCSP. We found that L9 Fab binds multivalently to the minor (NPNV) repeat domain, which is stabilized by a unique set of affinity-matured homotypic, antibody-antibody contacts. Molecular dynamics simulations revealed a critical role of the L9 light chain in integrity of the homotypic interface, which likely impacts PfCSP affinity and protective efficacy. These findings reveal the molecular mechanism of the unique NPNV selectivity of L9 and emphasize the importance of anti-homotypic affinity maturation in protective immunity against P. falciparum.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-38509-2 | DOI Listing |
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
January 2025
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210.
The homo-dodecameric ring-shaped RNA binding attenuation protein (TRAP) from binds up to twelve tryptophan ligands (Trp) and becomes activated to bind a specific sequence in the 5' leader region of the operon mRNA, thereby downregulating biosynthesis of Trp. Thermodynamic measurements of Trp binding have revealed a range of cooperative behavior for different TRAP variants, even if the averaged apparent affinities for Trp have been found to be similar. Proximity between the ligand binding sites, and the ligand-coupled disorder-to-order transition has implicated nearest-neighbor interactions in cooperativity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Adv
January 2025
Hubei Key Laboratory of Cell Homeostasis, College of Life Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China.
The proteasome degrades most superfluous and damaged proteins, and its decline is associated with many diseases. As the proteolytic unit, the 20 proteasome is assembled from 28 subunits assisted by chaperones PAC1/2/3/4 and POMP; then, it undergoes the maturation process, in which the proteolytic sites are activated and the assembly chaperones are cleared. However, mechanisms governing the maturation remain elusive.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCell Rep
January 2025
State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Guangdong Provincial Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Diagnosis and Therapy, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou 510060, China. Electronic address:
Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is an oncogenic virus associated with multiple lymphoid malignancies and autoimmune diseases. During infection in B cells, EBV uses its major glycoprotein gp350 to recognize the host receptor CR2, initiating viral attachment, a process that has lacked direct structural evidence for decades. In this study, we resolved the structure of the gp350-CR2 complex, elucidated their key interactions, and determined the site-specific N-glycosylation map of gp350.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAppl Environ Microbiol
January 2025
Legume Rhizobium Sciences, Food Futures Institute, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia.
Unlabelled: Rhizobia are soil bacteria capable of establishing symbiosis within legume root nodules, where they reduce atmospheric N into ammonia and supply it to the plant for growth. Australian soils often lack rhizobia compatible with introduced agricultural legumes, so inoculation with exotic strains has become a common practice for over 50 years. While extensive research has assessed the N-fixing capabilities of these inoculants, their genomics, taxonomy, and core and accessory gene phylogeny are poorly characterized.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLuminescence
January 2025
State Key Laboratory of Advanced Technology for Materials Synthesis and Processing, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan, China.
Hypochlorous acid (HClO) is released by immune cells in the immune system, and it helps the body fight off infections and inflammation by killing bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens. However, tissue damage or apoptosis may also be induced by excess HClO. On this basis, we designed the probe TPE-NS by choosing tetraphenylethylene (TPE) as the luminescent unit and dimethylthiocarbamoyl chloride as the recognition site.
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