LuxS is required for persistent pneumococcal carriage and expression of virulence and biosynthesis genes.
AuthorsJoyce EA, Kawale A, Censini S, Kim CC, Covacci A, Falkow S,
JournalInfect Immun
PubMed ID15102809
'Streptococcus pneumoniae causes several diseases, including otitis media, pneumonia, and meningitis. Although little is known about the regulation of or how individual pneumococcal factors contribute to these disease states, there is evidence suggesting that some factors are regulated by a cell-density-dependent mechanism (quorum sensing). Quorum sensing allows bacteria to couple ... More
Identification of a novel maturation mechanism and restricted substrate specificity for the SspB cysteine protease of Staphylococcus aureus.
AuthorsMassimi I, Park E, Rice K, Muller-Esterl W, Sauder D, McGavin MJ,
JournalJ Biol Chem
PubMed ID12207024
'The SspB cysteine protease of Staphylococcus aureus is expressed in an operon, flanked by the sspA serine protease, and sspC, encoding a 12.9-kDa protein of unknown function. SspB was expressed as a 40-kDa prepropeptide pSspB, which did not undergo autocatalytic maturation. Activity of pSspB was reduced compared with 22-kDa mature ... More
A dual-specificity aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase in the deep-rooted eukaryote giardia lamblia.
AuthorsBunjun S, Stathopoulos C, Graham D, Min B, Kitabatake M, Wang AL, Wang CC, Vivares CP, Weiss LM, Soll D
JournalProc Natl Acad Sci U S A
PubMed ID11078517
'Cysteinyl-tRNA (Cys-tRNA) is essential for protein synthesis. In most organisms the enzyme responsible for the formation of Cys-tRNA is cysteinyl-tRNA synthetase (CysRS). The only known exceptions are the euryarchaea Methanococcus jannaschii and Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum, which do not encode a CysRS. Deviating from the accepted concept of one aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase per ... More
RNA stem-loop enhanced expression of previously non-expressible genes.
AuthorsPaulus M, Haslbeck M, Watzele M,
JournalNucleic Acids Res
PubMed ID15163763
The key step in bacterial translation is formation of the pre-initiation complex. This requires initial contacts between mRNA, fMet-tRNA and the 30S subunit of the ribosome, steps that limit the initiation of translation. Here we report a method for improving translational initiation, which allows expression of several previously non-expressible genes. ... More
Shielding of the A1 Domain by the D'D3 Domains of von Willebrand Factor Modulates Its Interaction with Platelet Glycoprotein Ib-IX-V.
AuthorsUlrichts H, Udvardy M, Lenting PJ, Pareyn I, Vandeputte N, Vanhoorelbeke K, Deckmyn H,
JournalJ Biol Chem
PubMed ID16373331
Soluble von Willebrand factor (VWF) has a low affinity for platelet glycoprotein (GP) Ibalpha and needs immobilization and/or high shear stress to enable binding of its A1 domain to the receptor. The previously described anti-VWF monoclonal antibody 1C1E7 enhances VWF/GPIbalpha binding and recognizes an epitope in the amino acids 764-1035 ... More
Context-dependent anticodon recognition by class I lysyl-tRNA synthetases.
AuthorsSoll D, Becker HD, Plateau P, Blanquet S, Ibba M
JournalProc Natl Acad Sci
PubMed ID11121028
Lysyl-tRNA synthesis is catalyzed by two unrelated families of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases. In most bacteria and all eukarya, the known lysyl-tRNA synthetases (LysRSs) are subclass IIb-type aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases, whereas many archaea and a scattering of bacteria contain an unrelated class I-type LysRS. Examination of the recognition of partially modified tRNA(Lys) anticodon ... More
Cloning and characterization of the glucooligosaccharide catabolic pathway beta-glucan glucohydrolase and cellobiose phosphorylase in the marine hyperthermophile thermotoga neapolitana.
AuthorsYernool DA, McCarthy JK, Eveleigh DE, Bok JD
JournalJ Bacteriol
PubMed ID10960102
Characterization in Thermotoga neapolitana of a catabolic gene cluster encoding two glycosyl hydrolases, 1,4-beta-D-glucan glucohydrolase (GghA) and cellobiose phosphorylase (CbpA), and the apparent absence of a cellobiohydrolase (Cbh) suggest a nonconventional pathway for glucan utilization in Thermotogales. GghA purified from T. neapolitana is a 52.5-kDa family 1 glycosyl hydrolase with ... More
Evidence for a signaling system in Helicobacter pylori: detection of a luxS-encoded autoinducer.
AuthorsJoyce EA, Bassler BL, Wright A
JournalJ Bacteriol
PubMed ID10850976
Helicobacter pylori possesses a homolog of the luxS gene, initially identified by its role in autoinducer production for the quorum-sensing system 2 in Vibrio harveyi. The genomes of several other species of bacteria, notably Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium, and Vibrio cholerae, also include luxS homologs. All of these ... More
High-throughput engineering of the mouse genome coupled with high-resolution expression analysis.
AuthorsValenzuela DM, Murphy AJ, Frendewey D, Gale NW, Economides AN, Auerbach W, Poueymirou WT, Adams NC, Rojas J, Yasenchak J, Chernomorsky R, Boucher M, Elsasser AL, Esau L, Zheng J, Griffiths JA, Wang X, Su H, Xue Y, Dominguez MG, Noguera I, Torres R, Macdonald LE, Stewart AF, DeChiara TM, Yancopoulos GD,
JournalNat Biotechnol
PubMed ID12730667
One of the most effective approaches for determining gene function involves engineering mice with mutations or deletions in endogenous genes of interest. Historically, this approach has been limited by the difficulty and time required to generate such mice. We describe the development of a high-throughput and largely automated process, termed ... More
Interactions of a hemidesmosome component and actinin family members.
Authors Gonzalez A M; Otey C; Edlund M; Jones J C;
JournalJ Cell Sci
PubMed ID11739652
Hemidesmosomes are multimeric protein complexes that attach epithelial cells to their underlying matrix and serve as cell surface anchorage sites for the keratin cytoskeleton. Two hemidesmosome components, the alpha6beta4 integrin heterodimer and a human autoantigen termed BP180, are transmembrane proteins that link the extracellular matrix to the keratin network in ... More
Rapid genetic analysis of Helicobacter pylori gastric mucosal colonization in suckling mice.
Authors Guo Betty P; Mekalanos John J;
JournalProc Natl Acad Sci U S A
PubMed ID12060779
Previously described animal models for Helicobacter pylori infection have been limited by cumbersome host requirements (e.g., germ-free conditions or unusual species) or are applicable to only special subsets of H. pylori strains (e.g., fresh clinical isolates or animal-adapted derivatives). Here, we report that 5- to 6-day-old outbred CD-1 (ICR) suckling ... More
Characterization of a thermophilic P-type Ag+/Cu+-ATPase from the extremophile Archaeoglobus fulgidus.
The thermophilic, sulfur metabolizing Archaeoglobus fulgidus contains two genes, AF0473 and AF0152, encoding for PIB-type heavy metal transport ATPases. In this study, we describe the cloning, heterologous expression, purification, and functional characterization of one of these ATPases, CopA (NCB accession number AAB90763), encoded by AF0473. CopA is active at high ... More
The tumor-infiltrating B cell response in medullary breast cancer is oligoclonal and directed against the autoantigen actin exposed on the surface of apoptotic cancer cells.
Authors Hansen M H; Nielsen H; Ditzel H J;
JournalProc Natl Acad Sci U S A
PubMed ID11606714
Medullary carcinoma of the breast (MCB) is a morphologically and biologically distinct subtype of human breast cancer that, despite cytologically anaplastic features, has a more favorable prognosis than other types of breast cancer at similar stages of differentiation. It has been proposed that the improved clinical outcome is due, at ... More