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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Regulation Of Atg4b Stability By Rnf5 Limits Basal Levels Of Autophagy And Influences Susceptibility To Bacterial Infection, E. Kuang, Cheryl Okumura, S. Sheffy-Levin, T. Varsano, V. Shu, J. Qi, I. Niesman, H. Yang, C. LóPez-OtíN, W. Yang, J. Reed, L. Broday, V. Nizet, Z. Ronai Oct 2012

Regulation Of Atg4b Stability By Rnf5 Limits Basal Levels Of Autophagy And Influences Susceptibility To Bacterial Infection, E. Kuang, Cheryl Okumura, S. Sheffy-Levin, T. Varsano, V. Shu, J. Qi, I. Niesman, H. Yang, C. LóPez-OtíN, W. Yang, J. Reed, L. Broday, V. Nizet, Z. Ronai

Cheryl Okumura

Autophagy is the mechanism by which cytoplasmic components and organelles are degraded by the lysosomal machinery in response to diverse stimuli including nutrient deprivation, intracellular pathogens, and multiple forms of cellular stress. Here, we show that the membrane-associated E3 ligase RNF5 regulates basal levels of autophagy by controlling the stability of a select pool of the cysteine protease ATG4B. RNF5 controls the membranal fraction of ATG4B and limits LC3 (ATG8) processing, which is required for phagophore and autophagosome formation. The association of ATG4B with—and regulation of its ubiquitination and stability by—RNF5 is seen primarily under normal growth conditions. Processing of …


A New Pharmacological Agent (Akb-4924) Stabilizes Hypoxia Inducible Factor (Hif) And Increases Skin Innate Defenses Against Bacterial Infection., Cheryl Okumura, A. Hollands, D. Tran, J. Olson, S. Dahesh, M. Von KöCkritz-Blickwede, W. Thienphrapa, C. Corle, S. Jeung, A. Kotsakis, R. Shalwitz, R. Johnson, V. Nizet Aug 2012

A New Pharmacological Agent (Akb-4924) Stabilizes Hypoxia Inducible Factor (Hif) And Increases Skin Innate Defenses Against Bacterial Infection., Cheryl Okumura, A. Hollands, D. Tran, J. Olson, S. Dahesh, M. Von KöCkritz-Blickwede, W. Thienphrapa, C. Corle, S. Jeung, A. Kotsakis, R. Shalwitz, R. Johnson, V. Nizet

Cheryl Okumura

Hypoxia inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) is a transcription factor that is a major regulator of energy homeostasis and cellular adaptation to low oxygen stress. HIF-1 is also activated in response to bacterial pathogens and supports the innate immune response of both phagocytes and keratinocytes. In this work, we show that a new pharmacological compound AKB-4924 (Akebia Therapeutics) increases HIF-1α levels and enhances the antibacterial activity of phagocytes and keratinocytes against both methicillin-sensitive and -resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus in vitro. AKB-4924 is also effective in stimulating the killing capacity of keratinocytes against the important opportunistic skin pathogens Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinitobacter …


Novel Role Of The Transcription Factor Hif-1Α In The Formation Of Mast Cell Extracellular Traps., K. Branitzki-Heinemann, Cheryl Okumura, L. VöLlger, Y. Kawakami, T. Kawakami, H. Naim, V. Nizet, M. Von KöCkritz-Blickwede Aug 2012

Novel Role Of The Transcription Factor Hif-1Α In The Formation Of Mast Cell Extracellular Traps., K. Branitzki-Heinemann, Cheryl Okumura, L. VöLlger, Y. Kawakami, T. Kawakami, H. Naim, V. Nizet, M. Von KöCkritz-Blickwede

Cheryl Okumura

MCs (mast cells) are critical components of the host innate immune defence against bacterial pathogens, providing a variety of intra- and extra-cellular antimicrobial functions. In the present study we show, for the first time, that the transcriptional regulator HIF-1α (hypoxia-inducible factor-1α) mediates the extracellular antimicrobial activity of human and murine MCs by increasing the formation of MCETs (MC extracellular traps).


Clay Fabric And Mass Physical Properties Of Surficial Marine Sediment Near The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Andrew Head, Richard H. Bennett, Jessica R. Douglas, Kenneth J. Curry Feb 2012

Clay Fabric And Mass Physical Properties Of Surficial Marine Sediment Near The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Andrew Head, Richard H. Bennett, Jessica R. Douglas, Kenneth J. Curry

Kenneth J. Curry

Surficial sediment was obtained on the RV Cape Hatteras Cruise (2010) from the seafloor at a water depth of 1570 meters located at latitude 28°44'20.16"N and longitude 88°20'24.96"W in close proximity to the Deepwater Horizon well, Gulf of Mexico. Preliminary clay nano- and microfabric observation using a transmission electron microscope (TEM) depicted a sediment rich in clays and organic matter (OM) especially in the upper 2 cm subbottom. Initial analysis of TEM micrographs depicted a high porosity clay sediment. Initial study of the mass physical properties revealed water content ωt = 67.32 – 67.28% (percent total mass), porosity n= 84.1 …


Conformations Of The Apo-, Substrate-Bound And Phosphate-Bound Atp-Binding Domain Of The Cu(Ii) Atpase Copb Illustrate Coupling Of Domain Movement To The Catalytic Cycle, José Argüello, Samuel Jayakanthan, Sue Roberts, Andrzej Weichsel, Megan Mcevoy Dec 2011

Conformations Of The Apo-, Substrate-Bound And Phosphate-Bound Atp-Binding Domain Of The Cu(Ii) Atpase Copb Illustrate Coupling Of Domain Movement To The Catalytic Cycle, José Argüello, Samuel Jayakanthan, Sue Roberts, Andrzej Weichsel, Megan Mcevoy

José M. Argüello

Heavy metal P1B-type ATPases play a critical role in cell survival by maintaining appropriate intracellular metal concentrations. Archaeoglobus fulgidus CopB is a member of this family that transports Cu(II) from the cytoplasm to the exterior of the cell using ATP as energy source. CopB has a 264 amino acid ATPBD (ATP-binding domain) that is essential for ATP binding and hydrolysis as well as ultimately transducing the energy to the transmembrane metal-binding site for metal occlusion and export. The relevant conformations of this domain during the different steps of the catalytic cycle are still under discussion. Through crystal structures of the …


Pharmacological Inhibition Of The Clpxp Protease Increases Bacterial Susceptibility To Host Cathelicidin Antimicrobial Peptides And Cell-Envelope Active Antibiotics., S. Mcgillivray, D. Tran, N. Ramadoss, J. Alumasa, Cheryl Okumura, G. Sakoulas, M. Vaughn, D. Zhang, K. Keiler, V. Nizet Dec 2011

Pharmacological Inhibition Of The Clpxp Protease Increases Bacterial Susceptibility To Host Cathelicidin Antimicrobial Peptides And Cell-Envelope Active Antibiotics., S. Mcgillivray, D. Tran, N. Ramadoss, J. Alumasa, Cheryl Okumura, G. Sakoulas, M. Vaughn, D. Zhang, K. Keiler, V. Nizet

Cheryl Okumura

The ClpXP protease is a critical bacterial intracellular protease that regulates protein turnover in many bacterial species. Here we identified a pharmacological inhibitor of the ClpXP protease, F2, and evaluated its action in Bacillus anthracis and Staphylococcus aureus. We found that F2 exhibited synergistic antimicrobial activity with cathelicidin antimicrobial peptides and antibiotics that target the cell well and/or cell membrane such as penicillin and daptomycin in B. anthracis and drug resistant strains of S. aureus. ClpXP inhibition represents a novel therapeutic strategy to simultaneously sensitize pathogenic bacteria to host defenses and pharmaceutical antibiotics.