Search results for "protein"

SARS-CoV-2 infection risk assessment in the endometrium: viral infection-related gene expression across the menstrual cycle

2020

Objective To determine the susceptibility of the endometrium to infection by—and thereby potential damage from—SARS-CoV-2. Design Analysis of SARS-Cov-2 infection-related gene expression from endometrial transcriptomic data sets. Setting Infertility research department affiliated with a public hospital. Patient(s) Gene expression data from five studies in 112 patients with normal endometrium collected throughout the menstrual cycle. Intervention(s) None. Main Outcome Measure(s) Gene expression and correlation between viral infectivity genes and age throughout the menstrual cycle. Result(s) Gene expression was high for TMPRSS4, CTSL, CTSB, FURIN, MX1, and BSG; medium for TMPRSS2; and low for…

Novel therapeutic targets to improve IVF outcomes in endometriosis patients: a review and future prospects

2020

AbstractBACKGROUNDPatients with endometriosis often experience infertility and have poor IVF outcomes, with low fertilization and pregnancy rates. Although many theories have tried to explain the mechanisms underlying infertility in these patients, none of them is conclusive.OBJECTIVE AND RATIONALEIn this review, we discuss the pathologic mechanisms through which endometriosis likely leads to infertility along with the therapeutic options used to date to treat endometriosis-related infertility and, thereby, to improve IVF outcomes in patients with endometriosis.SEARCH METHODSWe performed a comprehensive literature search of clinical outcomes in endometriosis and the molecular mechanisms con…

In Silico Insights towards the Identification of NLRP3 Druggable Hot Spots

2019

NLRP3 (NOD-like receptor family, pyrin domain-containing protein 3) activation has been linked to several chronic pathologies, including atherosclerosis, type-II diabetes, fibrosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and Alzheimer’s disease. Therefore, NLRP3 represents an appealing target for the development of innovative therapeutic approaches. A few companies are currently working on the discovery of selective modulators of NLRP3 inflammasome. Unfortunately, limited structural data are available for this target. To date, MCC950 represents one of the most promising noncovalent NLRP3 inhibitors. Recently, a possible region for the binding of MCC950 to the NLRP3 protein was described but no details were …

Phytochemical inhibitors of the NLRP3 inflammasome for the treatment of inflammatory diseases

2021

The NLRP3 inflammasome holds a crucial role in innate immune responses. Pathogen- and danger-associated molecular patterns may initiate inflammasome activation and following inflammatory cytokine release. The inflammasome formation and its-associated activity are involved in various pathological conditions such as cardiovascular, central nervous system, metabolic, renal, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. Although the mechanism behind NLRP3-mediated disorders have not been entirely illuminated, many phytochemicals and medicinal plants have been described to prevent inflammatory disorders. In the present review, we mainly introduced phytochemicals inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome in addition…

2018

Diabetic retinopathy is a common complication of diabetes mellitus, which appears in one third of all diabetic patients and is a prominent cause of vision loss. First discovered as a microvascular disease, intensive research in the field identified inflammation and neurodegeneration to be part of diabetic retinopathy. Microglia, the resident monocytes of the retina, are activated due to a complex interplay between the different cell types of the retina and diverse pathological pathways. The trigger for developing diabetic retinopathy is diabetes-induced hyperglycemia, accompanied by leukostasis and vascular leakages. Transcriptional changes in activated microglia, mediated via the nuclear f…

Lactobacilli Degrade Wheat Amylase Trypsin Inhibitors to Reduce Intestinal Dysfunction Induced by Immunogenic Wheat Proteins.

2019

Background & Aims Wheat-related disorders, a spectrum of conditions induced by the ingestion of gluten-containing cereals, have been increasing in prevalence. Patients with celiac disease have gluten-specific immune responses, but the contribution of non-gluten proteins to symptoms in patients with celiac disease or other wheat-related disorders is controversial. Methods C57BL/6 (control), Myd88–/–, Ticam1–/–, and Il15–/– mice were placed on diets that lacked wheat or gluten, with or without wheat amylase trypsin inhibitors (ATIs), for 1 week. Small intestine tissues were collected and intestinal intraepithelial lymphocytes (IELs) were measured; we also investigated gut permeability and int…

The molecular epidemiology and evolutionary dynamics of influenza B virus in two Italian regions during 2010-2015: The experience of Sicily and Ligur…

2016

Molecular epidemiology of influenza B virus remained poorly studied in Italy, despite representing a major contributor to seasonal epidemics. This study aimed to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships and genetic diversity of the hemagglutinin gene sequences of 197 influenza B strains circulating in both Southern (Sicily) and Northern (Liguria) Italy between 2010 and 2015. Upper respiratory tract specimens of patients displaying symptoms of influenza-like illness were screened by real-time RT-PCR assay for the presence of influenza B virus. PCR-positive influenza B samples were further analyzed by sequencing. Neighbor-joining phylogenetic trees were constructed and the amino-acid alignm…

Co-circulation of the two influenza B lineages during 13 consecutive influenza surveillance seasons in Italy, 2004-2017

2019

AbstractBackgroundSince 1985, two antigenically distinct lineages of influenza B viruses (Victoria-like and Yamagata-like) have circulated globally. Trivalent seasonal influenza vaccines contain two circulating influenza A strains but a single B strain and thus provide limited immunity against circulating B strains of the lineage not included in the vaccine. In this study, we describe the characteristics of influenza B viruses that caused respiratory illness in the population in Italy over 13 consecutive seasons of virological surveillance, and the match between the predominant influenza B lineage and the vaccine B lineage, in each season.MethodsFrom 2004 to 2017, 26,886 laboratory-confirme…

Chromophore-Protein Interplay During the Phytochrome Photocycle Revealed by Step-Scan FTIR Spectroscopy

2018

Phytochrome proteins regulate many photoresponses of plants and microorganisms. Light absorption causes isomerization of the biliverdin chromophore, which triggers a series of structural changes to activate the signaling domains of the protein. However, the structural changes are elusive, and therefore the molecular mechanism of signal transduction remains poorly understood. Here, we apply two-color step-scan infrared spectroscopy to the bacteriophytochrome from Deinococcus radiodurans. We show by recordings in H2O and D2O that the hydrogen bonds to the biliverdin D-ring carbonyl become disordered in the first intermediate (Lumi-R) forming a dynamic microenvironment, then completely detach …

Subcutaneous injection of exosomes reduces symptom severity and mortality induced by Echinostoma caproni infection in BALB/c mice.

2016

Recent studies have shown the importance of exosomes in the host-parasite relationship. These vesicles are an important part of the excretory/secretory pathway for proteins with the potential to alter immune responses. Therefore, in the present study, we examined the immunomodulatory role of exosomes in BALB/c mice using Echinostoma caproni as an experimental model of intestinal helminth infection. For this purpose, BALB/c mice were injected twice s.c. with purified exosomes of E. caproni, followed by experimental infection. We report a delay in the development of the parasite in mice immunised with exosomes, a concomitant reduced symptom severity and increased survival upon infection. Immu…