Structural plasticity in I-Ag7 links autoreactivity to hybrid insulin peptides in type I diabetes

We recently provided evidence for promiscuous recognition of several different hybrid insulin peptides (HIPs) by the highly diabetogenic, I-Ag7-restricted 4.1-T cell receptor (TCR). To understand the structural determinants of this phenomenon, we solved the structure of an agonistic HIP/I-Ag7 complex, both in isolation as well as bound to the 4.1-TCR. We find that HIP promiscuity of the 4.1-TCR is dictated, on the one hand, by an amino acid sequence pattern that ensures I-Ag7 binding and, on the other hand, by the presence of three acidic residues at positions P5, P7 and P8 that favor an optimal engagement by the 4.1-TCR's complementary determining regions. Surprisingly, comparison of the TCR-bound and unbound HIP/I-Ag7 structures reveals that 4.1-TCR binding triggers several novel and unique structural motions in both the I-Ag7 molecule and the peptide that are essential for docking. This observation indicates that the type 1 diabetes-associated I-Ag7 molecule is structurally malleable and that this plasticity allows the recognition of multiple peptides by individual TCRs that would otherwise be unable to do so.Copyright © 2022 Erausquin, Serra, Parras, Santamaria and López-Sagaseta

Prospective Study of Infection, Colonization and Carriage of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus in an Outbreak Affecting 990 Patients

In the three years between November 1989 and October 1992, an outbreak of methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus (MRSA) affected 990 patients at a university hospital. The distribution of patients with carriage, colonization or infection was investigated prospectively. Nosocomial acquisition was confirmed in at least 928 patients, 525 of whom were identified from clinical specimens as being infected (n=418) or colonized (n=107) by MRSA. An additional 403 patients were identified from screening specimens, of whom 58 subsequently became infected and 18 colonized. Screening of the nose, throat and perineum detected 98 % of all carriers. Of the 580 infections in 476 patients, surgical wound, urinary tract and skin infections accounted for 58 % of the infections. Of the 476 infected patients, death was attributable to MRSA infection in 13 %. Colonization with MRSA was found in 127 patients and 42 % of 165 colonized sites were the skin. Auto-infection from nasal carriage or cross-infection, probably via staff hands, seemed to be the most common mode of acquisition of MRSA infections

Large-scale characterization of the macrolide resistome reveals high diversity and several new pathogen-associated genes

Macrolides are broad-spectrum antibiotics used to treat a range of infections. Resistance to macrolides is often conferred by mobile resistance genes encoding Erm methyltransferases or Mph phosphotransferases. New erm and mph genes keep being discovered in clinical settings but their origins remain unknown, as is the type of macrolide resistance genes that will appear in the future. In this study, we used optimized hidden Markov models to characterize the macrolide resistome. Over 16 terabases of genomic and metagenomic data, representing a large taxonomic diversity (11 030 species) and diverse environments (1944 metagenomic samples), were searched for the presence of erm and mph genes. From this data, we predicted 28 340 macrolide resistance genes encoding 2892 unique protein sequences, which were clustered into 663 gene families (<70 % amino acid identity), of which 619 (94 %) were previously uncharacterized. This included six new resistance gene families, which were located on mobile genetic elements in pathogens. The function of ten predicted new resistance genes were experimentally validated in Escherichia coli using a growth assay. Among the ten tested genes, seven conferred increased resistance to erythromycin, with five genes additionally conferring increased resistance to azithromycin, showing that our models can be used to predict new functional resistance genes. Our analysis also showed that macrolide resistance genes have diverse origins and have transferred horizontally over large phylogenetic distances into human pathogens. This study expands the known macrolide resistome more than ten-fold, provides insights into its evolution, and demonstrates how computational screening can identify new resistance genes before they become a significant clinical problem

PEG−peptide conjugates

The remarkable diversity of the self-assembly behavior of PEG−peptides is reviewed, including self-assemblies formed by PEG−peptides with β-sheet and α-helical (coiled-coil) peptide sequences. The modes of self-assembly in solution and in the solid state are discussed. Additionally, applications in bionanotechnology and synthetic materials science are summarized

Unveiling the magnetic structure of BaFeO3-y: Shedding light on the elusive magnetic behavior

This work provides a comprehensive examination of the structural and magnetic properties of 6H-BaFeO2.96 over a wide temperature range (10 K < T < 300 K) using neutron and synchrotron X-ray diffraction. Additionally, the local oxidation state of iron is examined using electron energy loss spectroscopy. No structural changes that could indicate a charge-order transition are observed in spite of a reported possible charge disproportionation of Fe4+ into Fe(4+δ)+ and Fe(4-δ)+ phenomenon at low temperature. According to the magnetic characterization, BaFeO2.96 orders antiferromagnetically at TN=156 K. The application of external magnetic fields strongly influences the magnetic behavior; the transition temperature shifts to lower values with the applied magnetic field and the long-range magnetic order melts with an applied field of 14 T. The magnetocaloric effect clearly shows at TN a change from negative to positive magnetic entropy. The Rietveld refinement of the neutron powder diffraction data collected at 10 K, gives a magnetic ordering with propagation vector [0, 0, ½] and three magnetically distinct sites for the Fe atoms. This magnetic structure consists of ferromagnetic Fe-sheets perpendicular to the c-axis with the magnetic moments along the [110] direction coupled both ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetically along the c-axis. The magnetic moment values of the three Fe ions are very different evidencing a delicate equilibrium of competing magnetic interactions

Fatigue bending behavior of cold-sprayed nickel-based superalloy coatings

Cold-sprayed Ni-based superalloy coatings offer new possibilities for manufacturing and repairing damaged components, such as gas turbine blades or other parts of aircraft engines. This development shines a new light on the conventional additive manufacturing technologies and significantly broadens application fields of cold spray. The idea is that cold spray can contribute to improving the fatigue properties of manufacturing and repaired components. This study deals with the analysis of the microstructural and mechanical properties of IN625 cold-sprayed coatings on V-notched carbon steel substrate. Process conditions of 1000 degrees C and 50bar were employed to produce coatings in V-notched (60 degrees and 90 degrees) samples in order to evaluate the fatigue crack behavior of the sprayed material. Bending tests were carried out in order to evaluate the crack propagation in the coatings during cyclic loading. The K factor was quantified for the two different notch geometries. After fatigue tests, the cracking mechanisms were observed through SEM. Optical microscopy, nanoindentation as a function of coating/substrate distance and corrosion tests were performed. Porosity measurements through image analyses were done to characterize the coatings' quality. The results achieved demonstrate that cold spray deposition and repair can contribute to resistance and to the increase in the global fatigue life of cracked structures

Response of the Mediterranean Sea Surface Circulation at Various Global Warming Levels: A Multi-Model Approach

Changes in Mediterranean circulation patterns due to global warming may have strong socio-economic and environmental impacts. We analyze the future evolution of the Mediterranean surface circulation under different levels of global warming by using 28 multi-decadal simulations from a set of fully coupled and high-resolution regional climate models of the Med-CORDEX multi-model initiative. There is no model agreement for a significant basin-scale modification of the surface circulation. However significant and robust local circulation changes are identified. In particular, the circulation is expected to shift from cyclonic to predominantly anticyclonic in the northern Balearic, while a strengthening of the cyclonic circulation is expected in the southern Adriatic. Furthermore, our results show an increase in the Mediterranean circulation variability primarily associated with a general increase of meso-scale activity. Generally, we find a linear increase of the identified changes with global warming levels

Maternal and neonatal immune response to SARS-CoV-2, IgG transplacental transfer and cytokine profile

SARS-CoV-2 infected pregnant women are at increased risk of severe COVID-19 than non-pregnant women and have a higher risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes like intrauterine/fetal distress and preterm birth. However, little is known about the impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection on maternal and neonatal immunological profiles. In this study, we investigated the inflammatory and humoral responses to SARS-CoV-2 in maternal and cord blood paired samples. Thirty-six pregnant women were recruited at delivery at Hospital Sant Joan de Déu, Barcelona, Spain, between April-August 2020, before having COVID-19 available vaccines. Maternal and pregnancy variables, as well as perinatal outcomes, were recorded in questionnaires. Nasopharyngeal swabs and maternal and cord blood samples were collected for SARS-CoV-2 detection by rRT-PCR and serology, respectively. We measured IgM, IgG and IgA levels to 6 SARS-CoV-2 antigens (spike [S], S1, S2, receptor-binding domain [RBD], nucleocapsid [N] full-length and C-terminus), IgG to N from 4 human coronaviruses (OC43, HKU1, 229E and NL63), and the concentrations of 30 cytokines, chemokines and growth factors by Luminex. Mothers were classified as infected or non-infected based on the rRT-PCR and serology results. Sixty-four % of pregnant women were infected with SARS-CoV-2 (positive by rRT-PCR during the third trimester and/or serology just after delivery). None of the newborns tested positive for rRT-PCR. SARS-CoV-2 infected mothers had increased levels of virus-specific antibodies and several cytokines. Those with symptoms had higher cytokine levels. IFN-? was increased in cord blood from infected mothers, and in cord blood of symptomatic mothers, EGF, FGF, IL-17 and IL-15 were increased, whereas RANTES was decreased. Maternal IgG and cytokine levels showed positive correlations with their counterparts in cord blood. rRT-PCR positive mothers showed lower transfer of SARS-CoV-2-specific IgGs, with a stronger effect when infection was closer to delivery. SARS-CoV-2 infected mothers carrying a male fetus had higher antibody levels and higher EGF, IL-15 and IL-7 concentrations. Our results show that SARS-CoV-2 infection during the third trimester of pregnancy induces a robust antibody and cytokine response at delivery and causes a significant reduction of the SARS-CoV-2-specific IgGs transplacental transfer, with a stronger negative effect when the infection is closer to delivery.Copyright © 2022 Rubio, Aguilar, Bustamante, Muñoz, Vázquez-Santiago, Santano, Vidal, Melero, Parras, Serra, Santamaria, Carolis, Izquierdo, Gómez-Roig, Dobaño, Moncunill and Mazarico

AP2γ: a new player on adult hippocampal neurogenesis regulation

Since the recognition that the mammalian brain retains the ability to generate newborn neurons with functional relevance throughout life, the matrix of molecular regulators that govern adult neurogenesis has been the focus of much interest. In a recent study published in Molecular Psychiatry, we demonstrate Activating Protein 2γ (AP2γ), a transcription factor previously implicated in cell fate determination in the developing cortex, as a novel player in the regulation of glutamatergic neurogenesis in the adult hippocampus. Using distinct experimental approaches, we showed that AP2γ is specifically present in a subpopulation of transient amplifying progenitors, where it acts as a crucial promoter of proliferation and differentiation of adult-born glutamatergic granule neurons. Strikingly, deficiency of AP2γ in the adult brain compromises the generation of new glutamatergic neurons, with impact on the function of cortico-limbic circuits. Here, we share our view on how AP2γ integrates the transcriptional orchestration of glutamatergic neurogenesis in the adult hippocampus, and consequently, how it emerges as a novel molecular candidate to study the translation of environmental pressures into alterations of brain neuroplasticity in homeostatic, but also in neuropathological contexts.Bial Foundation (427/14); Northern Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020); European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) (projects NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000013 e NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000023); Competitiveness Factors Operational Programme (COMPETE)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Prototipo de un sistema integral de nariz-lengua-ojo electrónicos para la detección de enfermedades en muestras de orina

Tradicionalmente la nariz, la lengua y el ojo electrónicos han sido tecnologías costosas y al alcance de muy pocos usuarios. Estos dispositivos cuentan con múltiples utilidades, desde el control de calidad en el ámbito industrial hasta el análisis de diferentes muestras en el ámbito médico. En este sentido, surge la necesidad de desarrollar un prototipo capaz de integrar estas tres tecnologías, que sea de bajo coste y completamente funcional. Para el desarrollo de este prototipo se analizaron los tres sistemas en profundidad y se definieron diferentes requerimientos para su diseño: ergonómico, compacto, intuitivo, de fácil limpieza, y con aspectos destacados de estética y funcionalidad. Además, el prototipo desarrollado puede ser capaz de analizar muestras en modo discreto y en modo continuo con la parte de nariz electrónica, tiene alimentación autónoma mediante células fotovoltaicas, conectividad mediante salidas USB y una tarjeta de conexión inalámbrica GPRS. El primer prototipo se ha fabricado mediante impresión 3D por FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) en material PET-G, asegurándose de esta forma un bajo coste de fabricación. Junto con la descriptiva del dispositivo global se muestra un ejemplo de la metodología de análisis de datos posteriores empleada en nariz electrónica, que es genérica para las tres tecnologías citadas. Los resultados muestran ser prometedores y precisan de un mayor entrenamiento de muestras, junto con un avance en la automatización de todos los procedimientos estadísticos y analíticos.Los autores agradecen a la empresa TELENATURA EBT S.L. el apoyo tecnológico prestado en la realización de los experimentos y del prototipo descrito