Research Reports
Exogenous folates stimulate growth and budding of Candida glabrata
Afsaneh Porzoor and Ian G. Macreadie
Folate, vitamin B9, is well recognized as being essential for cell growth. The utilization of folate is common to all cells, but the source of it may be quite different. This article reports a novel response of yeast to folates that may increase the utility of yeast as a model to study folate transport and signaling.
Loss of wobble uridine modification in tRNA anticodons interferes with TOR pathway signaling
Viktor Scheidt1,#, André Jüdes1,#, Christian Bär1,2,#, Roland Klassen1 and Raffael Schaffrath1
The herein presented data suggest that proper TOR signaling requires intact tRNA modifications and that loss of U34 modifications impinges on the TOR-sensitive NCR branch via Gln3 misregulation.
Exogenous addition of histidine reduces copper availability in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Daisuke Watanabe, Rie Kikushima, Miho Aitoku, Akira Nishimura, Iwao Ohtsu, Ryo Nasuno, and Hiroshi Takagi
The herein presented results indicate that in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, histidine cytotoxicity is associated with low copper availability inside cells, not with impaired copper uptake. Furthermore, it suggests that histidine cytotoxicity is involved in deficiency of mitochondrial copper.
Deletion of AIF1 but not of YCA1/MCA1 protects Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Candida albicans cells from caspofungin-induced programmed cell death
Christopher Chin1,2,#, Faith Donaghey1,#, Katherine Helming1,3,#, Morgan McCarthy1,#, Stephen Rogers1, and Nicanor Austriaco1
This work suggests that deleting AIF1 but not YCA1/MCA1 protects S. cerevisiae and Candida albicans from caspofungin-induced cell death. This is not only the first time that AIF1 has been specifically tied to cell death in Candida but also the first time that caspofungin resistance has been linked to the cell death machinery in yeast.
Early manifestations of replicative aging in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
Maksim I. Sorokin1,3, Dmitry A. Knorre2,3, and Fedor F. Severin2,3
The data preseted herein suggest that retrograde signaling starts to malfunction in relatively young cells, leading to accumulation of heterogeneous mitochondria within one cell. The latter may further contribute to a decline in stress resistances.
Detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and its first variants in fourplex real-time quantitative reverse transcription-PCR assays
November 25, 2021
The early diagnosis of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections is required to identify and isolate contagious patients to prevent further transmission of SARS-CoV-2. In this study, we present a multitarget real-time TaqMan reverse transcription PCR (rRT-PCR) assay for the quantitative detection of SARS-CoV-2 and some of its circulating variants harboring mutations that give the virus a selective advantage. Seven different primer-probe sets that included probes containing locked nucleic acid (LNA) nucleotides were designed to amplify specific wild-type and mutant sequences in Orf1ab, Envelope (E), Spike (S), and Nucleocapsid (N) genes (...)
Airborne bacteria in show caves from Southern Spain
July 26, 2021
This study analyzes the factors conditioning the diversity of airborne bacteria recorded in three Andalusian show caves, subjected to different managements.
Proanthocyanidin-enriched cranberry extract induces resilient bacterial community dynamics in a gnotobiotic mouse model
April 29, 2021
This study investigates the effect of a water-soluble, proanthocyanidin-rich cranberry juice extract on the short-term dynamics of a human-derived bacterial community in a gnotobiotic mouse model.
A novel BR-SMAD is required for larval development in barber’s pole worm Haemonchus contortus
December 23, 2020
The herein presented results show a BMP-like receptor-regulated SMAD in Haemonchus contortus that is required for larval differentiation and underscore an adaptive functional repurposing of BMP-signaling in parasitic worms.
Systematic analysis of nuclear gene function in respiratory growth and expression of the mitochondrial genome in S. cerevisiae
June 30, 2020
Using yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the authors identified 254 nuclear genes essential for respiratory growth and 12 required for viability without mtDNA. They also found 176 genes involved in mitochondrial protein synthesis and mtDNA maintenance, offering a comprehensive view of the processes supporting oxidative phosphorylation.
Sulforaphane alters the acidification of the yeast vacuole
March 20, 2020
This study identifies vacuolar pH regulation as a key factor in sulforaphane (SFN) sensitivity, showing that SFN-induced cell death in yeast - and potentially in human cancer cells - is linked to its ability to raise vacuolar or lysosomal pH.
Simultaneous profiling of sexually transmitted bacterial pathogens, microbiome, and concordant host response in cervical samples using whole transcriptome sequencing analysis
January 24, 2019
This study used total RNA sequencing to analyze cervical samples from women at high risk for STIs, revealing that host transcriptional profiles can be linked to microbiome composition and STI infections, with implications for advancing our understanding of PID and identifying potential biomarkers.
The translationally controlled tumor protein TCTP is involved in cell cycle progression and heat stress response in the bloodstream form of Trypanosoma brucei
August 24, 2018
This study reveals the involvement of the translationally controlled tumor protein TCTP in cell cycle regulation and heat stress response in the bloodstream form of Trypanosoma brucei, shedding light on its role in these cellular processes.
Evolution of substrate specificity in the Nucleobase-Ascorbate Transporter (NAT) protein family
March 22, 2018
L-ascorbic acid (vitamin C) is an essential metabolite in animals and plants due to its role as an enzyme co-factor and antioxidant activity. Here, Kourkoulou et al. show further evidence that ascorbate-specific Nucleobase-Ascorbate Transporters (NATs) evolved by optimization of a sub-function of ancestral nucleobase transporters.