Current Medicinal Chemistry - Volume 24, Issue 36, 2017

Trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) is a low molecular weight metabolite whose production is dependent on metabolism of its precursors choline, carnitine, creatinine, betaine or lecithin by host gut microbes resulting in the synthesis of trimethylamine (TMA), which is subsequently oxidized to TMAO via hepatic flavin monooxygenase (FMO). TMAO is associated with microbial dysbiosis and is being studied for its linkage with card Read More

Tuberculosis is a leading killer, especially for people living with HIV. It is a real medical need to tackle this disease, which is made difficult to treat due to the increasing spread of multi-drug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant bacterial strains. Cases of tuberculosis that are resistant to virtually all drugs currently available are increasing at an alarming rate around the world. Here, we review the current knowledge in the Read More

Universal stress proteins are ubiquitously expressed in bacteria, archaea and plants and other eukaryotes. A general property of USPs is their role in adaptation of bacteria to oxidative stress, high temperature, low pH and/or hypoxia. There is increasing evidence that these proteins facilitate the adaption of bacterial pathogens to the human host environment, thereby facilitating colonisation and pathogenicity. USPs in Mycoba Read More

Pattern recognition receptors on the plant cell surface mediate the recognition of microbe-associated molecular patterns, in a process which activates downstream immune signaling. These receptors are plasma membrane-localized kinases which need to be autophosphorylated to activate downstream responses. Perception of attacks from fungi occurs through recognition of chitin, a polymer of an N-acetylglucosa Read More

Bacteriophages (phages or bacterial viruses) are the most abundant biological entities in our planet; their influence reaches far beyond the microorganisms they parasitize. Phages are present in every environment and shape up every bacterial population in both active and passive ways. They participate in the circulation of organic matter and drive the evolution of microorganisms by horizontal gene transfer at unprecede Read More

Understanding how immunity to pathogens develops is crucial for progress in the quest for effective vaccines. Intraspecies and interspecies cross-reacting antibodies are produced in high frequency against immune-relevant and shared microbial epitopes. It has been confirmed that cross-reactive antigens may have a crucial role in natural epidemiology to a particular infection and that cross-protection may influence the o Read More

Background: Penicillin binding proteins (PBPs) and Serine Threonine kinases (STPKs) are two classes of bacterial enzymes whose involvement in a series of vital processes in bacterial growth and division is well assessed. Many PBPs and STPKs show linked an ancillary domain named PASTA, whose functional role is not completely deciphered so far. It has been proposed that PASTAs are sensor modules that by binding opportu Read More

Background: From the simplest bacteria to the highest complex mammals, including humans, every single cell is covered by a dense coat of glycans. Glycans are involved in almost every biological process that takes place in our body, playing a central role in the communication between cells and their environment. Glycans are also involved in infectious diseases, which arise from the specific interaction between glycans o Read More

Background: HCV-linked pathologies represent worldwide health threats. Over the years, an enormous number of independent studies have been devoted to the understanding of the molecular bases of HCV infection. A significant amount of these investigations has been focused on the structural characterization of the virus proteins with the aim of developing structure-based innovative therapeutic approaches. An analy Read More