Non-bisphosphonate inhibitors of isoprenoid biosynthesis identified via computer-aided drug design.

The relaxed complex scheme, a virtual-screening methodology that accounts for protein receptor flexibility, was used to identify a low-micromolar, non-bisphosphonate inhibitor of farnesyl diphosphate synthase. Serendipitously, we also found that several predicted farnesyl diphosphate synthase inhibitors were low-micromolar inhibitors of undecaprenyl diphosphate synthase. These results are of interest because farnesyl diphosphate synthase inhibitors are being pursued as both anti-infective and anticancer agents, and undecaprenyl diphosphate synthase inhibitors are antibacterial drug leads

Phosphorylation of spore coat proteins by a family of atypical protein kinases

The modification of proteins by phosphorylation occurs in all life forms and is catalyzed by a large superfamily of enzymes known as protein kinases. We recently discovered a family of secretory pathway kinases that phosphorylate extracellular proteins. One member, family with sequence similarity 20C (Fam20C), is the physiological Golgi casein kinase. While examining distantly related protein sequences, we observed low levels of identity between the spore coat protein H (CotH), and the Fam20C-related secretory pathway kinases. CotH is a component of the spore in many bacterial and eukaryotic species, and is required for efficient germination of spores in Bacillus subtilis; however, the mechanism by which CotH affects germination is unclear. Here, we show that CotH is a protein kinase. The crystal structure of CotH reveals an atypical protein kinase-like fold with a unique mode of ATP binding. Examination of the genes neighboring cotH in B. subtilis led us to identify two spore coat proteins, CotB and CotG, as CotH substrates. Furthermore, we show that CotH-dependent phosphorylation of CotB and CotG is required for the efficient germination of B. subtilis spores. Collectively, our results define a family of atypical protein kinases and reveal an unexpected role for protein phosphorylation in spore biology

Modified siRNAs for the study of the PAZ domain

Chemical modifications aimed at stabilizing the interaction between the 3′-end of siRNAs and the PAZ domain of RISC have been tested for their effect on RNAi activity. Such modifications contribute positively to the stability of siRNAs in human serum.Peer reviewe

The 2021 Eurpean Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology/American College of Rheumatology points to consider for diagnosis and management of autoinflammatory type i interferonopathies: CANDLE/PRAAS, SAVI and AGS

Objective: Autoinflammatory type I interferonopathies, chronic atypical neutrophilic dermatosis with lipodystrophy and elevated temperature/proteasome-associated autoinflammatory syndrome (CANDLE/PRAAS), stimulator of interferon genes (STING)-associated vasculopathy with onset in infancy (SAVI) and Aicardi-Goutières syndrome (AGS) are rare and clinically complex immunodysregulatory diseases. With emerging knowledge of genetic causes and targeted treatments, a Task Force was charged with the development of \u27points to consider\u27 to improve diagnosis, treatment and long-term monitoring of patients with these rare diseases. Methods: Members of a Task Force consisting of rheumatologists, neurologists, an immunologist, geneticists, patient advocates and an allied healthcare professional formulated research questions for a systematic literature review. Then, based on literature, Delphi questionnaires and consensus methodology, \u27points to consider\u27 to guide patient management were developed. Results: The Task Force devised consensus and evidence-based guidance of 4 overarching principles and 17 points to consider regarding the diagnosis, treatment and long-term monitoring of patients with the autoinflammatory interferonopathies, CANDLE/PRAAS, SAVI and AGS. Conclusion: These points to consider represent state-of-the-art knowledge to guide diagnostic evaluation, treatment and management of patients with CANDLE/PRAAS, SAVI and AGS and aim to standardise and improve care, quality of life and disease outcomes

The 2021 EULAR and ACR points to consider for diagnosis and management of autoinflammatory type I interferonopathies: CANDLE/PRAAS, SAVI and AGS

Objective: Autoinflammatory type I interferonopathies, chronic atypical neutrophilic dermatosis with lipodystrophy and elevated temperature/proteasome-associated autoinflammatory syndrome (CANDLE/PRAAS), stimulator of interferon genes (STING)-associated vasculopathy with onset in infancy (SAVI) and Aicardi-Goutières syndrome (AGS) are rare and clinically complex immunodysregulatory diseases. With emerging knowledge of genetic causes and targeted treatments, a Task Force was charged with the development of 'points to consider' to improve diagnosis, treatment and long-term monitoring of patients with these rare diseases. Methods: Members of a Task Force consisting of rheumatologists, neurologists, an immunologist, geneticists, patient advocates and an allied healthcare professional formulated research questions for a systematic literature review. Then, based on literature, Delphi questionnaires and consensus methodology, 'points to consider' to guide patient management were developed. Results: The Task Force devised consensus and evidence-based guidance of 4 overarching principles and 17 points to consider regarding the diagnosis, treatment and long-term monitoring of patients with the autoinflammatory interferonopathies, CANDLE/PRAAS, SAVI and AGS. Conclusion: These points to consider represent state-of-the-art knowledge to guide diagnostic evaluation, treatment and management of patients with CANDLE/PRAAS, SAVI and AGS and aim to standardise and improve care, quality of life and disease outcomes

In silico validation of the autoinflammatory disease damage index

Introduction Autoinflammatory diseases can cause irreversible tissue damage due to systemic inflammation. Recently, the Autoinflammatory Disease Damage Index (ADDI) was developed. The ADDI is the first instrument to quantify damage in familial Mediterranean fever, cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes, mevalonate kinase deficiency and tumour necrosis factor receptor-associated periodic syndrome. The aim of this study was to validate this tool for its intended use in a clinical/research setting. Methods The ADDI was scored on paper clinical cases by at least three physicians per case, independently of each other. Face and content validity were assessed by requesting comments on the ADDI. Reliability was tested by calculating the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) using an â observer-nested-within-subject\u27 design. Construct validity was determined by correlating the ADDI score to the Physician Global Assessment (PGA) of damage and disease activity. Redundancy of individual items was determined with Cronbach\u27s alpha. Results The ADDI was validated on a total of 110 paper clinical cases by 37 experts in autoinflammatory diseases. This yielded an ICC of 0.84 (95% CI 0.78 to 0.89). The ADDI score correlated strongly with PGA-damage (r=0.92, 95% CI 0.88 to 0.95) and was not strongly influenced by disease activity (r=0.395, 95% CI 0.21 to 0.55). After comments from disease experts, some item definitions were refined. The interitem correlation in all different categories was lower than 0.7, indicating that there was no redundancy between individual damage items. Conclusion The ADDI is a reliable and valid instrument to quantify damage in individual patients and can be used to compare disease outcomes in clinical studies

The 2021 EULAR and ACR points to consider for diagnosis and management of autoinflammatory type I interferonopathies: CANDLE/PRAAS, SAVI and AGS

Objective: Autoinflammatory type I interferonopathies, chronic atypical neutrophilic dermatosis with lipodystrophy and elevated temperature/proteasome-associated autoinflammatory syndrome (CANDLE/PRAAS), stimulator of interferon genes (STING)-associated vasculopathy with onset in infancy (SAVI) and Aicardi-Goutières syndrome (AGS) are rare and clinically complex immunodysregulatory diseases. With emerging knowledge of genetic causes and targeted treatments, a Task Force was charged with the development of 'points to consider' to improve diagnosis, treatment and long-term monitoring of patients with these rare diseases. Methods: Members of a Task Force consisting of rheumatologists, neurologists, an immunologist, geneticists, patient advocates and an allied healthcare professional formulated research questions for a systematic literature review. Then, based on literature, Delphi questionnaires and consensus methodology, 'points to consider' to guide patient management were developed. Results: The Task Force devised consensus and evidence-based guidance of 4 overarching principles and 17 points to consider regarding the diagnosis, treatment and long-term monitoring of patients with the autoinflammatory interferonopathies, CANDLE/PRAAS, SAVI and AGS. Conclusion: These points to consider represent state-of-the-art knowledge to guide diagnostic evaluation, treatment and management of patients with CANDLE/PRAAS, SAVI and AGS and aim to standardise and improve care, quality of life and disease outcomes

Non-stationary dependent Gaussian processes for data fusion in large-scale terrain modeling

Abstract — Obtaining a comprehensive model of large and complex terrain typically entails the use of both multiple sensory modalities and multiple data sets. This paper demonstrates the use of dependent Gaussian processes for data fusion in the context of large scale terrain modeling. Specifically, this paper derives and demonstrates the use of a non-stationary kernel (Neural Network) in this context. Experiments performed on multiple large scale (spanning about 5 sq km) 3D terrain data sets obtained from multiple sensory modalities (GPS surveys and laser scans) demonstrate the approach to data fusion and provide a preliminary demonstration of the superior modeling capability of Gaussian processes based on this kernel. I