Pardaxin is a cationic antimicrobial peptide derived from Red Sea Moses sole. Previous studies have shown that pardaxin selectively triggers the death of cancer cells, initiating the development of a pardaxin-based cancer vaccine; however, the underlying mechanism by which pardaxin kills cancer cells has not yet been elucidated. Here, we ... More
LytA, major autolysin of Streptococcus pneumoniae, requires access to nascent peptidoglycan.
The pneumococcal autolysin LytA is a virulence factor involved in autolysis as well as in fratricidal- and penicillin-induced lysis. In this study, we used biochemical and molecular biological approaches to elucidate which factors control the cytoplasmic translocation and lytic activation of LytA. We show that LytA is mainly localized intracellularly, ... More
Live-cell superresolution imaging by pulsed STED two-photon excitation microscopy.
AuthorsTakasaki KT, Ding JB, Sabatini BL,
JournalBiophys J
PubMed ID23442955
Two-photon laser scanning microscopy (2PLSM) allows fluorescence imaging in thick biological samples where absorption and scattering typically degrade resolution and signal collection of one-photon imaging approaches. The spatial resolution of conventional 2PLSM is limited by diffraction, and the near-infrared wavelengths used for excitation in 2PLSM preclude the accurate imaging of ... More