Current Issues in Molecular Biology

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Open AccessReview

Competence and Transformation in Bacillus subtilis

by Berenike Maier

Curr. Issues Mol. Biol. 2020, 37(1), 57-76; https://doi.org/10.21775/cimb.037.057 - 18 Jan 2020

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 2245

Transformation is the process of import and inheritable integration of DNA from the environment. As such, it is believed to be a major driving force for evolution. Competence for transformation is widespread among bacterial species. Recent findings draw a picture of a conserved molecular machine that binds DNA at the cell surface and subsequently transports it through the cell envelope. Within the cytoplasm the DNA is coated by proteins that mediate recombination or self-annealing. The regulatory mechanisms and environmental signals affecting competence are very diverse between different bacterial species. Competence in Bacillus subtilis has become a paradigm for stochastic determination of cell-fate. Quantitative analysis at the single cell level in conjunction with mathematical modelling allowed understanding of induction and decline of competence at the systems level. Currently, the picture is emerging of stochastic differentiation as a fitness trade-off in fluctuating environments. Full article

657 KiB

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A Review on Salivary Proteomics for Oral Cancer Screening

by Qian Li, Xiangying Ouyang, Jiao Chen, Ping Zhang and Yun Feng

Curr. Issues Mol. Biol. 2020, 37(1), 47-56; https://doi.org/10.21775/cimb.037.047 - 17 Jan 2020

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 1992

Abstract

Oral cancer has emerged as a global health problem due to its relatively high incidence and mortality. Human saliva as a diagnostic fluid can offer an easy, inexpensive, safe and non-invasive approach for disease detection. Direct contact between saliva and oral cancer lesions make detection of salivary biomarkers for oral cancer especially attractive. Proteins are important molecules involved in pathological processes of oral cancer growth, apoptosis and metastasis. Proteins such as hormones, antibodies, enzymes and cytokines in saliva secreted by oral cancer cells or by host cells not only provide comprehensive pathological information of oral cancer but also are considered potential targets for non-invasive screening of oral cancer. This article provides a review of potential salivary proteomic biomarkers in oral cancer screening. Full article

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Porcine Parvovirus

by André Felipe Streck and Uwe Truyen

Curr. Issues Mol. Biol. 2020, 37(1), 33-46; https://doi.org/10.21775/cimb.037.033 - 11 Dec 2019

Cited by 43 | Viewed by 3257

Abstract

Porcine parvovirus (PPV) is considered the main cause of reproductive disorders in pigs, which are summarized under the acronym SMEDI (stillbirth, mummification, embryonic death, and infertility). In this review the biology of the virus and its structure, pathogenic potential and strain variation, as well as the disease induced by the virus, are described. Known aspects of pathogenesis, diagnosis and prevention, particularly by vaccination, are summarized. Furthermore, in recent years 'new' parvoviruses (PPV2 to 7) have been described in pigs. They have been detected in pigs from various parts of the world and their association with clinical signs or disease will be discussed. Full article

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Prion Protein Is a Novel Modulator of Influenza: Potential Implications for Anti-Influenza Therapeutics

by Suehiro Sakaguchi and Junji Chida

Curr. Issues Mol. Biol. 2020, 37(1), 21-32; https://doi.org/10.21775/cimb.037.021 - 09 Dec 2019

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 496

Abstract

Worldwide spread of influenza A virus (IAV) strains, which are resistant to currently available anti- influenza agents such as viral neuraminidase inhibitors, has encouraged identification of new target molecules for anti-influenza agents. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) causing oxidative stress play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of lung injuries induced by infection with IAVs, therefore suggesting that anti-oxidative therapeutics targeting cellular molecules could be beneficial against IAV infection without inducing drug-resistant IAV strains. We recently found that the normal cellular prion protein, PrP^C, whose conformational conversion into the amyloidogenic isoform, PrP^Sc, in the brain is a key pathogenic event in prion diseases, is expressed by lung epithelial cells and exerts a protective role against IAV infection in mice by reducing ROS in infected lungs. The Cu content and activity of anti- oxidative enzyme Cu/Zn-superoxide dismutase, or SOD1, were lower in the lungs of PrP^C-knockout mice, suggesting that the anti-oxidative activity of PrP^C is probably attributable to its function of activating SOD1 through regulating Cu content in lungs. Here, we introduce PrP^C as a novel modulator of influenza and its potential implication for anti-oxidative therapies for IAV infection. We also introduce other candidate targets reported for anti- oxidative anti-influenza therapies. Full article

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Cracking the Ubiquitin Code: The Ubiquitin Toolbox

by Monique P.C. Mulder, Katharina F. Witting and Huib Ovaa

Curr. Issues Mol. Biol. 2020, 37(1), 1-20; https://doi.org/10.21775/cimb.037.001 - 01 Nov 2019

Cited by 36 | Viewed by 1127

Abstract

Ubiquitination, a post-translational modification, regulates a vast array of fundamental biological processes with dysregulation of the dedicated enzymes giving rise to pathologies such as cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. Assembly and its ensuing removal of this post-translational modification, determining a large variety of biological functions, is executed by a number of enzymes sequentially activating, conjugating, ligating, as well as deubiquitinating. Considering the vast impact of ubiquitination on regulating cellular homeostasis, understanding the function of these vast enzyme networks merits the development and innovation of tools. Thus, advances in synthetic strategies for generating ubiquitin, permitted the development of a plethora of ubiquitin assay reagents and numerous activity-based probes (ABPs) enable the study of enzymes involved in the complex system of ubiquitination. With ubiquitination playing such a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of a multitude of diseases, the identification of inhibitors for ubiquitin enzymes as well as the development of ABPs and high-throughput assay reagents is of utmost importance. Accordingly, this chapter will review the current state-of-the-art activity-based probes, reporter substrates, and other relevant tools based on Ub as a recognition element while highlighting the need of innovative technologies and unique concepts to study emerging facets of ubiquitin biology. Full article

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Curr. Issues Mol. Biol., Volume 37, Issue 1 (July 2020) – 5 articles

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