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2012

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Articles 6721 - 6750 of 7308

Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

Scaffold-Mediated Size Determination Of Bacteriophage Capsids By Mobile Genetic Elements, Altaira Davida Dearborn Jan 2012

Scaffold-Mediated Size Determination Of Bacteriophage Capsids By Mobile Genetic Elements, Altaira Davida Dearborn

All ETDs from UAB

Bacteriophage can mediate the transfer of unrelated mobile genetic elements (MGE) from a carrier bacterial cell to the susceptible population around it. This transfer results in the spread of virulence or other accessory genes encoded on the MGE. During viral particle assembly, the MGE can discourage the formation of viable bacteriophage progeny by limiting the size of the particles to those large enough to encapsidate the MGE, but too small to fit the complete bacteriophage genome which is three times larger. Here, I present models for size determination by an external scaffolding protein which is independent of and dominant over …

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Physical Activity Barriers Following Traumatic Brain Injury: A Cognitive Mapping Study, Anna De Joya Jan 2012

Physical Activity Barriers Following Traumatic Brain Injury: A Cognitive Mapping Study, Anna De Joya

All ETDs from UAB

Background: Despite the strong evidence indicating the benefits of regular physical activity (PA) for health and functioning, individuals with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) do not engage in PA at levels consistent with public health recommendations. To eliminate the health disparities and promote PA in this population, the barriers unique to individuals with TBI should be identified by different stakeholders to establish effective health promotion programs that have sustainable outcomes. There is limited evidence to guide the development and delivery of effective PA interventions in the TBI field. Objectives: The specific aims of this study are: 1) to identify the …

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Evaluation Of The Association Of Low-Level Prenatal Blood Lead Exposure And Auditory Brainstem Response Among Infants, Timothy A. Dignam Jan 2012

Evaluation Of The Association Of Low-Level Prenatal Blood Lead Exposure And Auditory Brainstem Response Among Infants, Timothy A. Dignam

All ETDs from UAB

Hearing loss is one of the most common major abnormalities present among infants. Two to four infants per 1,000 are born in the United States with severe-to-profound newborn hearing loss (Chu 2003). Undetected, hearing loss delays speech, language, and cognitive development. Numerous studies have shown that prenatal lead exposure is associated with a variety of neurobehavioral and electrophysiological abnormalities (Abbate 1995, Bellinger 2004, Koller 2004). Studies focusing on hearing have primarily described pediatric cases or occupationally exposed adults where blood lead levels (BLLs) are much higher than currently seen in the United States (Otto 1985; Bleecker 2003; Schwartz 1987). Hearing …

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Structural And Molecular Studies Of Nucleic Acid Chaperones, Lei Ding Jan 2012

Structural And Molecular Studies Of Nucleic Acid Chaperones, Lei Ding

All ETDs from UAB

Nucleic acids are the storage of genetic information that needs to be expressed and inherited. As abundant cellular macromolecules they are also major players of a wide variety of biological processes. They usually undergo post-transcriptional modifications and/or fold into higher order structures in order to accomplish their distinct functions. Most biological events involving nucleic acids are achieved by proteins that interact with them. The functionality requires specific recognition of nucleic acids by proteins at molecular level. Nucleic acid chaperones are a group of nucleic acids binding proteins that associate with structured RNAs or DNAs and assist correct folding of their …

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The Effect Of Liver X Receptor Α Deficiency In Skeletal Muscle On Lipid Content In Mice, Yishu Ding Jan 2012

The Effect Of Liver X Receptor Α Deficiency In Skeletal Muscle On Lipid Content In Mice, Yishu Ding

All ETDs from UAB

Liver X receptors (LXRs) are important regulators of cholesterol, fatty acid, and glucose homeostasis. Many researchs focus on the liver, but tissue-specific roles of LXRs in other tissues remain elusive. Based on in vitro studies on cultured cells, the roles of LXRs in skeletal muscle have been proposed. Nevertheless, the in vivo roles of LXRs in skeletal muscle remain lacking. Skeletal muscle is an important insulin targeting tissue, which plays a key role in regulating insulin sensitivity. Abnormal lipid metabolism and homeostasis have been demonstrated to play a crucial role in the development of insulin resistance in skeletal muscle. To …

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Modulation Of Autoimmune Diabetes By B Cells Specific For N-Acetyl-D-Glucosamine, Brian L. Dizon Jan 2012

Modulation Of Autoimmune Diabetes By B Cells Specific For N-Acetyl-D-Glucosamine, Brian L. Dizon

All ETDs from UAB

Type I diabetes (T1D) is an autoimmune disease in which ß cells are destroyed by the immune system; however, role of infections in type I diabetes (T1D) pathogenesis is unclear. Reports suggesting that childhood Group A Streptococcal (GAS) infections protected against T1D prompted us to study how antibodies to N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (GlcNAc), which are induced by GAS infection, influenced T1D development. We found that GlcNAc-specific antibodies reacted with ß cell secretory granules, and neonatal NOD mice immunized with GAS or given GAS-immune sera were protected from spontaneous diabetes. Monoclonal GlcNAc-specific IgM blocked activation and effector responses to islet antigens by diabetogenic …

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The Impact Of The State Children's Health Insurance Program's Unborn Child Ruling On Foreign-Born Latina Prenatal Care Utilization And Birth Outcomes, 2000-2007, Jonathan Hawthorne Drewry Jan 2012

The Impact Of The State Children's Health Insurance Program's Unborn Child Ruling On Foreign-Born Latina Prenatal Care Utilization And Birth Outcomes, 2000-2007, Jonathan Hawthorne Drewry

All ETDs from UAB

In 2002 the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) "unborn child ruling" was established to provide prenatal care (PNC) to low income women otherwise without health insurance. The majority of foreign-born (FB) Latinas otherwise ineligible for PNC should have benefited most from the ruling. In late 2003 six states incorporated the UCR into their state plan amendments, providing a natural experiment for policy analysis. This study used cross-sectional pooled natality data from 2000-2007 to estimate the effect of the UCR on prenatal care utilization (PNCU) and birth outcomes. A differences-in-differences econometrics model was employed using policy enacting and non-enacting states, …

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Nasal Encephaloceles Presenting At Later Ages: Experience Of Otorhinolaryngology Department At A Tertiary Care Center In Karachi, Pakistan, Montasir Junaid, Zain-Ul-Abedeen Sobani, Adeel Ahmed Shamim, Maliha Kazi, Mumtaz Jamshed Khan Jan 2012

Nasal Encephaloceles Presenting At Later Ages: Experience Of Otorhinolaryngology Department At A Tertiary Care Center In Karachi, Pakistan, Montasir Junaid, Zain-Ul-Abedeen Sobani, Adeel Ahmed Shamim, Maliha Kazi, Mumtaz Jamshed Khan

Section of Otolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery

Encephaloceles are anomalous herniations of the meninges, with or without brain matter. Globally the incidence of encephalocele is about 1 per 35,000 births, but it is more frequently reported in Southeast Asia. As the defect is more pertinent to embryological development, an encephalocele is a more common entity in an infant with a mean age of presentation ranging between 15.5 and 21 months; making an encephalocele presenting for the first time in a relatively, older individual a rare occurrence. Consequently a surgeon might not consider an encephalocele among his differentials. Here we present a series of encephaloceles that presented at …

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A Case Report: Giant Cystic Parathyroid Adenoma Presenting With Parathyroid Crisis After Vitamin D Replacement, Ali Asghar, Mubasher Ikram, Najmul Islam Jan 2012

A Case Report: Giant Cystic Parathyroid Adenoma Presenting With Parathyroid Crisis After Vitamin D Replacement, Ali Asghar, Mubasher Ikram, Najmul Islam

Section of Otolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery

Background: Parathyroid adenoma with cystic degeneration is a rare cause of primary hyperparathyroidism. The clinical and biochemical presentation may mimic parathyroid carcinoma. Case presentation: We report the case of a 55 year old lady, who had longstanding history of depression and acid peptic disease. Serum calcium eight months prior to presentation was slightly high, but she was never worked up. She was found to be Vitamin D deficient while being investigated for generalized body aches. A month after she was replaced with Vitamin D, she presented to us with parathyroid crisis. Her corrected serum calcium was 23.0 mg/dL. She had …

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Cardiovascular Disease Knowledge And Risk Perception Among Women With Recent Preeclampsia: Interventional Education In Disease Management And Prevention, Patsy M. Spratling Jan 2012

Cardiovascular Disease Knowledge And Risk Perception Among Women With Recent Preeclampsia: Interventional Education In Disease Management And Prevention, Patsy M. Spratling

All ETDs from UAB

There is a growing body of evidence linking preeclampsia to future development of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Although CVD is well-known as the leading cause of death in women, a lack of evidence exists demonstrating that women with preeclampsia are routinely informed of their risks for future CVD. The specific aims of this study were to: (1) examine the levels of CVD knowledge and perception of CVD risk pre-CVD education; (2) explore relationships among age, race, parity, marital status, previous preeclampsia, income, education, CVD knowledge, and perception of CVD risk; and (3) examine the effect of a postpartum CVD educational intervention …

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A Role Of Angiogenin In Models Of Parkinson's Disease, Trent Steidinger Jan 2012

A Role Of Angiogenin In Models Of Parkinson's Disease, Trent Steidinger

All ETDs from UAB

Parkinson's Disease (PD) is the most common neurodegenerative movement disorder and is characterized by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. Gene multiplication of alpha-synuclein causes an autosomal dominant inheritance pattern of PD. A mouse model overexpressing alpha-synuclein demonstrates some of the phenotype seen in PD. In a microarray of these mice, a downregulation of angiogenin was observed prior to symptom onset, demonstrating a potential link of angiogenin to pathology in this model. Angiogenin has also been associated with the onset of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), and is neuroprotective in models of ALS through activation of the Akt …

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The Hypometabolic Actions Of Hydrogen Sulfide In Mammalian Systems, Asaf Stein Jan 2012

The Hypometabolic Actions Of Hydrogen Sulfide In Mammalian Systems, Asaf Stein

All ETDs from UAB

In recent years, hydrogen sulfide (H2S) has been identified as a ubiquitous cell signaling molecule. In addition to its diverse physiological roles, H2S has emerged as a possible drug therapy, with a wide range of applications. Along with cytoprotective effects in pathological states such as ischemia-reperfusion injury, H2S has been shown to decrease aerobic metabolism in a reversible manner. This dissertation is focused on exploring H2S-induced hypometabolism and the implications therein for human health and disease. We have shown that rats exposed to 80 ppm H2S gas in combination with low oxygen (10.5% O2) for 6 hr exhibit decreases in …

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The Role Of St6gal-I Sialylation In Fas (Cd95) Death Receptor Function And Tumorigenesis, Amanda F. Swindall Jan 2012

The Role Of St6gal-I Sialylation In Fas (Cd95) Death Receptor Function And Tumorigenesis, Amanda F. Swindall

All ETDs from UAB

The golgi glycosyltransferase, ST6Gal-I, adds a negatively-charged sialic acid in an alpha-2-6 linkage to N-linked glycans. ST6Gal-I is upregulated in many cancers, and is associated with increased metastasis and poor patient prognosis. ST6Gal-I expression has been shown to be driven by oncogenic-ras signaling. However, mechanistic details of the role ST6Gal-I plays in tumor initiation and progression are not well defined. Historically, studies have focused on contributions of ST6Gal-I to the malignant cell phenotypes of migration and invasion. Emerging evidence including studies contained in this dissertation have begun to elucidate a role for ST6Gal-I as a regulator of apoptotic signaling by …

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Measuring Disease Activity And Use Of Complementary And Alternative Medicine In African-Americans With Rheumatoid Arthritis, Ashutosh Tamhane Jan 2012

Measuring Disease Activity And Use Of Complementary And Alternative Medicine In African-Americans With Rheumatoid Arthritis, Ashutosh Tamhane

All ETDs from UAB

The aims of this project were to: 1) compare disease activity scores 28 joints (DAS28) based on erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) versus that based on C-reactive protein (CRP), and 2) describe prevalence of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use and examine differences of CAM use stratified by disease duration and sex. This analysis included participants from the Consortium for the Longitudinal Evaluation of African Americans with Early Rheumatoid Arthritis (CLEAR) Registry. Using tender and swollen joint counts separate ESR-based and CRP-based DAS28 scores (DAS28-ESR3 and DAS28-CRP3) were calculated, as were DAS28-ESR4 and DAS28-CRP4, which included the patient¡¯s assessment of disease …

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Regulatory T Cells In The Fvb.Mdr1a-/- Model Of Colitis, Scott Tanner Jan 2012

Regulatory T Cells In The Fvb.Mdr1a-/- Model Of Colitis, Scott Tanner

All ETDs from UAB

Regulatory T cells (Treg) are necessary for the maintenance of immune homeostasis, and have been implicated in several autoimmune diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Most murine studies focusing on the function of Tregs have been done on the C57BL/6 or BALB/c background, creating a bias towards these two strains. In addition, it has been shown that C57BL/6 and BALB/c Tregs function in different manners. To further investigate potential strain differences in Treg phenotype and function, we chose to analyze FVB/N Tregs. Several differences were observed, including de-creased FVB/N Treg suppression in a non-cell contact dependent manner, decreased FVB/N and …

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Sleep Duration And Obesity: Longitudinal Study Of Adolescents, Herpreet Kaur Thind Jan 2012

Sleep Duration And Obesity: Longitudinal Study Of Adolescents, Herpreet Kaur Thind

All ETDs from UAB

Prevalence of obesity continues to be high in the United States with about one-third adults being overweight or obese. Among adolescents the rates of overweight/obesity have increased by three times in the past two decades. Moreover, the rates of obesity are disproportionately high among the minority population. Recently, sleep duration has emerged as an independent risk factor for obesity. Several cross-sectional and longitudinal studies worldwide have shown an inverse relationship between sleep duration and obesity. However, some studies do not support this association. Majority of the studies in the United States have been conducted on predominantly White populations. African Americans …

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Glutamate Release And Uptake At Cerebellar Synapses, Ming-Chi Tsai Jan 2012

Glutamate Release And Uptake At Cerebellar Synapses, Ming-Chi Tsai

All ETDs from UAB

Glutamate mediates excitatory synaptic transmission in the central nervous system (CNS). Regulation of glutamate release and uptake shapes the spatiotemporal dynamics of glutamate at and around synapses to influence information transfer between neural cells. This dissertation focuses on the modulation of glutamate release and uptake at excitatory synapses of cerebellar Purkinje cells (PC). In the first project we show that differential expression of PC glutamate transporters controls the amount of glutamate entering the extrasynaptic space, thereby influencing the excitatory responses in surrounding Bergmann glia. This work provides the first evidence that neuronal glutamate uptake affects glial glutamatergic signaling. In the …

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The Effect Of Environmental Ozone Exposure On The Postnatal Lung, Katherine Leah Tuggle Stringer Jan 2012

The Effect Of Environmental Ozone Exposure On The Postnatal Lung, Katherine Leah Tuggle Stringer

All ETDs from UAB

In the U.S., approximately 37 million children reside in geographic locales that experience unhealthy ozone levels. This population is of great concern as they are undergoing active lung growth and cellular differentiation which may alter their susceptibility to inhaled toxicants. Epidemiological and animal studies indicate that early life ozone exposure results in altered lung development, potentially facilitating predisposition to chronic pulmonary conditions in adulthood. The goal of this dissertation was to evaluate short and long-term effects of ozone exposure in the developing lung. The first study evaluated acute effects of ozone exposure in the postnatal and adult lung. The results …

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Examining Spasticity After Spinal Cord Injury Using A Novel Robotic Assessment, Leslie R. Van Hiel Jan 2012

Examining Spasticity After Spinal Cord Injury Using A Novel Robotic Assessment, Leslie R. Van Hiel

All ETDs from UAB

This study investigated a novel robotic assessment of spasticity resulting from a spinal cord injury (SCI). Torque data was analyzed to provide a single measure spasticity score. Three participants with motor incomplete SCI and resultant spasticity were compared to three non-injured participants (NI) using three different angular velocities of passive lower extremity movement in the Lokomat gait orthosis. The mean spasticity scores (NI vs. SCI) at120°/s, 180°/s, and 240°/s were: 0.41 ± 0.30 vs. 3.70 ± 2.07; 0.65 ± 0.49 vs. 4.33 ± 3.57; and 1.55 ± 1.16 vs. 5.26 ± 3.99, respectively. Mean surface electrode electromyography measures (NI vs. …

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Soy And Breast Cancer, Mandeep K. Virk-Baker Jan 2012

Soy And Breast Cancer, Mandeep K. Virk-Baker

All ETDs from UAB

The incidence of breast cancer is lower in Asia as compared to Western countries. However, the breast cancer risk among Asian immigrants living in Western countries reaches nearly as high as the Western country, suggesting environmental factors (e.g. diet and lifestyle) may be important for this geographical disparity. One dietary change of Asian immigrants is a reduction in soy consumption. Soy is rich in isoflavones, which compete with estrogen for receptor (ER) binding, and may protect against breast cancer. S-(-)equol, a metabolite of the soy isoflavone daidzein (DZ) has a higher bioavailability and greater affinity for ER than DZ. The …

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Suppression Of A Nonsense Mutation In A Mouse Model Of Hurler Syndrome, Dan Wang Jan 2012

Suppression Of A Nonsense Mutation In A Mouse Model Of Hurler Syndrome, Dan Wang

All ETDs from UAB

Nonsense suppression therapy utilizes compounds that suppress translation termination at disease-causing premature termination codons (PTCs) to restore full-length, functional protein synthesis. This approach may provide a treatment for many diseases caused by nonsense mutations including Hurler syndrome (mucopolysaccharidosis type I - Hurler, MPS I-H). MPS I-H is a lysosomal storage disease caused by severe &alpha-L-iduronidase deficiency and subsequent lysosomal glycosaminoglycan (GAG) accumulation. In this work, we investigated the effectiveness of nonsense suppression therapy as a treatment for MPS I-H. We first generated a targeted knock-in mouse model that carries the Idua-W392X nonsense mutation homologous to the human IDUA-W402X mutation frequently …

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Mechanisms Of Lrrk2 Regulation, Philip J. Webber Jan 2012

Mechanisms Of Lrrk2 Regulation, Philip J. Webber

All ETDs from UAB

Non-synonymous mutations in LRRK2 are the most common known cause of familial and sporadic Parkinson's disease (PD). The dominant inheritance of these mutations in familial PD suggests a gain-of-function mechanism. Increased kinase activity observed in the most common PD associated LRRK2 mutation G2019S suggests that kinase activity is central to disease. However, not all mutations associated with disease are reported to alter kinase activity and controversy exists in the literature about the effects of mutations appearing in the GTPase domain on kinase activity. The studies conducted as a part of this work aim to characterize the mechanisms that regulate LRRK2 …

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Siderophore-Mediated Iron Acquisition In Mycobacterium Tuberculosis, Ryan Wells Jan 2012

Siderophore-Mediated Iron Acquisition In Mycobacterium Tuberculosis, Ryan Wells

All ETDs from UAB

Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a dangerous human pathogen that has the capacity to adapt to and survive within the harsh phagosomal environment of macrophages. One obstacle that must be overcome by pathogens is to acquire iron, an essential component and cofactor of proteins required for vital cellular processes. M. tuberculosis meets its iron demands in the face of an array of sequestration strategies of the host by synthesizing and secreting two siderophores called mycobactin and carboxymycobactin. Siderophores are low molecular weight high affinity iron binding compounds that steal iron away from host stores and have been shown to be important for …

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C-C-Motif Chemokine Receptor/Ligand Gene Variants And Their Associations With Hiv-1 Transmission And Pathogenesis, Liangyuan Hu Jan 2012

C-C-Motif Chemokine Receptor/Ligand Gene Variants And Their Associations With Hiv-1 Transmission And Pathogenesis, Liangyuan Hu

All ETDs from UAB

Host factors including genes and their variants are important to HIV-1 acquisition, transmission and disease progression. In particular, chemokine (C-C motif) receptors 2 and 5 genes (CCR2 and CCR5) have multiple variants of interest. We first investigated the impact of CCR2-CCR5 haplotypes on several outcomes among 567 HIV-1 discordant Zambian couples. HHF*2 homozygosity was associated with significantly lower VL in seroconverters (mean beta=-0.58 log10 P=0.027) and the HHD/HHE diplotype was associated with significantly higher VL in the seroconverters (mean beta=0.54, log10 P=0.014) adjusted for age and gender in multivariable model. HHD/HHE was associated with more rapid acquisition of infection by …

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Retinoids And Abnormal Alveolar Development, Masheika L. James Jan 2012

Retinoids And Abnormal Alveolar Development, Masheika L. James

All ETDs from UAB

Extremely preterm infants are at high risk for a form of chronic lung disease called bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), which is characterized by impaired alveolar development. Exposure to hyperoxia and deficiency of vitamin A (VA) contribute to the development of BPD in preterm infants. Randomized controlled trials indicate VA supplementation decreases BPD and/or death. However, 25% of preterm infants continue to remain VA deficient despite supplementation, probably due to impairment in VA transport, VA is stored in the liver as retinyl esters which are transported to the lung and irreversibly metabolized into all-trans-retinoic acid (ATRA), the active metabolite. A combination of …

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Wear Of Ceramics And Enamel In A Chewing Simulator, Sridhar Janyavula Jan 2012

Wear Of Ceramics And Enamel In A Chewing Simulator, Sridhar Janyavula

All ETDs from UAB

Dental ceramics are known for their excellent chemical and optical properties. The wear of human enamel and of the restorative material is often a vital and esthetical concern when selecting a restorative material for any given clinical restorative treatment. Objective: The purpose of the study was to evaluate effect of zirconia (polished, glazed, polished then glazed, adjusted, glazed and adjusted, adjusted and polished and aged zirconia) against human enamel antagonist. A comparison was made between different zirconia, veneering porcelain (Ceramco 3) and natural enamel. Additionally, the surface roughness (Ra) of the ceramic surface was measured before and after wear testing …

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The Role Of Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Response In Glioma Cell Death, Guyla G. Johnson Jan 2012

The Role Of Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Response In Glioma Cell Death, Guyla G. Johnson

All ETDs from UAB

Malignant gliomas, including glioblastomas, are the main primary adult brain tumor. Even with current therapies, the median survival time for patients diagnosed with glioblastomas is only about 12 months. Therefore, it is imperative to identify pathways that can induce glioma cell death. This dissertation provides evidence defining how Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Response (ERSR) induction promotes cell death selectively in malignant glioma cells (MGCs). I present data showing a correlation between ER Ca2+ storage abnormalities, ER ribosome-translocon expression and activity, ERSR intensity and cell death in MGCs. These data show ERSR induction with thapsigargin (THAP) results in a larger loss of …

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The Role Of C-Reactive Protein In Arthritic Disease, Nicholas Ryan Jones Jan 2012

The Role Of C-Reactive Protein In Arthritic Disease, Nicholas Ryan Jones

All ETDs from UAB

C-reactive protein (CRP) is an acute phase protein that is commonly used to evaluate systemic inflammation level. Blood CRP level also correlates very well with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) disease severity. However, CRP has many biological actions that lead one to suspect that it may be playing a role in the development or pathology of the disease. We have directly addressed whether this is the case by the use of novel mouse models (CRP deficiency or transgenic overexpression). We have shown that CRP positively affects collagen-induced arthritis development and progression. In order to thoroughly address the question, we have also reported …

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The Use Of Red Rules In Patient Safety Culture, Lisa Kaye Jones Jan 2012

The Use Of Red Rules In Patient Safety Culture, Lisa Kaye Jones

All ETDs from UAB

This study examines the use of Red Rules in patient safety culture. The presence of a strong culture of patient safety has become a critical component in reducing medical errors. Some hospitals are implementing Red Rules as a patient safety strategy with disciplinary consequences if not followed. The use of Red Rules and patient safety culture seem to be inconsistent. The theoretical framework for control-based and commitment-based management was utilized to develop and address four hypotheses. The hypotheses address the impact of Red Rules on 1) staff perceptions of safety, 2) frequency of events reported, 3) number of events reported, …

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Mycobacterial Iron Acquisition Systems, Christopher M. Jones Jan 2012

Mycobacterial Iron Acquisition Systems, Christopher M. Jones

All ETDs from UAB

Iron is an essential nutrient for the vast majority of organisms; yet, the availability of iron is limited to microorganisms due to the insolubility of ferric hydroxides and to pathogens by iron withholding strategies of their hosts. Many bacteria produce small, high-affinity iron chelators called siderophores to scavenge iron from the environment. In addition, many bacterial pathogens have evolved mechanisms to steal host iron contained in heme, hemoglobin, or transferrin. Mycobacteria are unique genera of bacteria represented by the notorious pathogens Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium leprae, the causative agents of tuberculosis (TB) and leprosy, respectively. Tuberculosis remains a global health …

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