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Available online 4 April 2022, 101902 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbc.2022.101902 Abstract Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra, as well as the accumulation of intra-neuronal proteinaceous inclusions known as Lewy bodies and Lewy neurites. The major protein component of Lewy inclusions is the intrinsically disordered protein α-Synuclein (α-Syn), which can adopt diverse amyloid structures. Different conformational strains of α-Syn have been proposed to be related to the onset of distinct synucleinopathies; however, how specific amyloid fibrils cause distinctive pathological traits is not clear. Here, we generated three different α-Syn amyloid conformations at differe

Biofabrication, Volume 14, Number 2 https://iopscience.iop.org/journal/1758-5090 Abstract One of the most promising approaches in the drug delivery field is the use of naturally occurring self-assembling protein nanoparticles, such as virus-like particles, bacterial microcompartments or vault ribonucleoprotein particles as drug delivery systems (DDSs). Among them, eukaryotic vaults show a promising future due to their structural features, in vitro stability and non-immunogenicity. Recombinant vaults are routinely produced in insect cells and purified through several ultracentrifugations, both tedious and time-consuming processes. As an alternative, this work proposes a new approach and protocols for the production of recombinant vaults in human cells by transient gene...

Marcel Albacar,Diego Velázquez,Antonio Casamayor,Joaquín Ariño https://doi.org/10.1002/1873-3468.14330 Abstract Overexpression of Saccharomyces cerevisiae protein phosphatase Ppz1 strongly impairs cell growth. Ppz1 is negatively regulated by its subunit Hal3, and Hal3 overexpression fully counteracts the toxic effects derived from high levels of the phosphatase. We show that Ppz1 localizes at the plasma membrane, and that co-expression of Hal3 recruits Ppz1 to internal membranes (mostly vacuolar). This effect is not observed in a catalytically impaired mutant of Ppz1. Disruption of intracellular trafficking by deletion of the ESCRT-0 component VPS27 abolishes both Hal3-mediated relocalization of Ppz1 and normalization of cell growth, without affecting Ppz1

Scientific Reports volume 12, Article number: 3374 (2022) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-07018-5 Abstract Dual species interactions in co-isolated pairs of Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa from patients with tracheobronchitis or bronchial colonization were examined. The genetic and phenotypic diversity between the isolates was high making the interactions detected strain-specific. Despite this, and the clinical origin of the strains, some interactions were common between some co-isolated pairs. For most pairs, P. aeruginosa exoproducts affected biofilm formation and reduced growth in vitro in its S. aureus counterpart. Conversely, S. aureus did not impair biofilm formation and stimulated swarming motility in P. aeruginosa. Co-culture in a m

Un estudi liderat per investigadores de la UAB (IBB) aporta noves dades sobre el comportament dels cromosomes sexuals en les cèl·lules precursores dels espermatozoides dels marsupials, inclòs un mecanisme relacionat amb l’allargament dels telòmers inèdit fins ara en els cromosomes d'altres mamífers. Els resultats de l'estudi, publicat a PLOS Genetics, suposen un avanç en el coneixement de la funció de l'organització del genoma de les espècies. Un equip de recerca internacional liderat per la UAB ha descrit nous mecanismes que regulen la formació d'espermatozoides en diverses espècies de marsupials i que difereixen dels descrits prèviament en altres mamífers, com l'ésser humà i el ratolí. L'estudi, publicat a la revista PLoS Genetics, ha estat dirigit per Aurora Ruiz-Herrera, in

Current Opinion in Structural Biology Volume 73, April 2022, 102343 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbi.2022.102343 Abstract In most cases, protein aggregation stems from the establishment of non-native intermolecular contacts. The formation of insoluble protein aggregates is associated with many human diseases and is a major bottleneck for the industrial production of protein-based therapeutics. Strikingly, fibrillar aggregates are naturally exploited for structural scaffolding or to generate molecular switches and can be artificially engineered to build up multi-functional nanomaterials. Thus, there is a high interest in rationalizing and forecasting protein aggregation. Here, we review the available computational toolbox to predict protein aggregation propensities, identify s...

Investigadors de l’IBB i del Departament de Bioquímica i Biologia Molecular de la UAB han publicat un article a Trends in Biochemical Sciences en què proposen una nova via de recerca de la malaltia de Parkinson, basada en la identificació de pèptids endògens humans que bloquegen selectivament els agregats tòxics que la causen i que podria portar al desenvolupament de tractaments innovadors contra el declivi neurodegeneratiu. L’any 2021, un equip de recerca de la UAB liderat per Salvador Ventura, investigador de l’Institut de Biotecnologia i Biomedicina (IBB) i del Departament de Bioquímica i Biologia Molecular, va identificar l’LL-37, un pèptid humà amb una de les majors capacitats descrites per bloquejar la formació d’agregats tòxics de la proteïna alfa-sinucleïna (aSyn) i la neur

Jan Grzelak, Jaume Gázquez, Alba Grayston, Mariana Teles, Fernando Herranz, Nerea Roher, Anna Rosell, Anna Roig, and Martí Gich ACS Applied Nano Materials Article ASAP DOI: 10.1021/acsanm.1c03837 https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsanm.1c03837?ref=pdf Abstract Multifunctional magnetic nanocomposites based on mesoporous silica have a wide range of potential applications in catalysis, biomedicine, or sensing. Such particles combine responsiveness to external magnetic fields with other functionalities endowed by the agents loaded inside the pores or conjugated to the particle surface. Different applications might benefit from specific particle morphologies. In the case of biomedical applications, mesoporous silica nanospheres have been extensively studied while nanorods, wit

Nanoligent SL, empresa especialitzada en el desenvolupament de tractaments contra el càncer basats en nanotecnologia, capta 1M€ en una ronda de finançament inicial per completar el desenvolupament preclínic d’aquesta tecnologia en diferents tipus de tumors i poder-se apropar al mercat per aquells candidats més prometedors.   Nanoligent SL és una empresa spin-off biotecnològica fundada l'any 2017 gràcies a la fructífera col·laboració durant més d'una dècada entre el Grup de Nanobiotecnologia de l'IBB, liderat per Antonio Villaverde, i el Grup d’Investigació en Oncogènesis i Antitumorals de l'IIB Sant Pau, dirigit per Ramon Mangues.  La ronda de finançament ha estat liderada per membres d'Italian Angels for Growth, la xarxa més gran de business angels d'Itàlia, a tr

Journal of Controlled Release https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jconrel.2022.01.017 Abstract Self-assembling non-immunoglobulin scaffold proteins are a promising class of nanoscale carriers for drug delivery and interesting alternatives to antibody-based carriers that are not sufficiently efficient in systemic administration. To exploit their potentialities in clinics, protein scaffolds need to be further tailored to confer appropriate targeting and to overcome their potential immunogenicity, short half-life in plasma and proteolytic degradation. We have here engineered three human scaffold proteins as drug carrier nanoparticles to target the cytokine receptor CXCR4, a tumoral cell surface marker of high clinical relevance. The capability of these scaffolds for the selective delivery...