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Topic Review
The Weissella Genus: Clinically Treatable Bacteria
Weissella is a genus earlier considered a member of the family Leuconostocaceae, which was reclassified into the family Lactobacillaceae in 1993. There have been studies emphasizing the probiotic and anti-inflammatory potential of various species of Weissella, of which W. confusa and W. cibaria are the most representative. Other species within this genus include: W. paramesenteroides, W. viridescens, W. halotolerans, W. minor, W. kandleri, W. soli, W. ghanensis, W. hellenica, W. thailandensis, W. fabalis, W. cryptocerci, W. koreensis, W. beninensis, W. fabaria, W. oryzae, W. ceti, W. uvarum, W. bombi, W. sagaensis, W. kimchi, W. muntiaci, W. jogaejeotgali, W. coleopterorum, W. hanii, W. salipiscis, and W. diestrammenae.
  • 1.2K
  • 23 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Nanocellulose-Based Membrane Filtration Material
Nanocellulose is among the emerging materials of this century and several studies have proven its use in filtering microbes. Its high specific surface area enables the adsorption of various microbial species, and its innate porosity can separate various molecules and retain microbial objects.
  • 1.2K
  • 08 Oct 2021
Topic Review
The Structure of Diphtheria Toxin
Only three Corynebacterium species are known to produce a lethal exotoxin called diphtheria toxin. These are C. diphtheriae, C. ulcerans and C. pseudotuberculosis. 
  • 1.2K
  • 03 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Black Fungi and Hydrocarbons
Environmental pollution with alkylbenzene hydrocarbons such as toluene is a recurring phenomenon. Their toxicity and harmful effect on people and the environment drive the search for sustainable removal techniques such as bioremediation, which is based on the microbial metabolism of xenobiotic compounds.
  • 1.2K
  • 11 Jun 2021
Topic Review
The Virtuous Galleria mellonella as Scientific Model
The first research on the insect Galleria mellonella was published 85 years ago, and the larva is now widely used as a model to study infections caused by bacterial and fungal pathogens, for screening new antimicrobials, to study the adjacent immune response in co-infections or in host-pathogen interaction, as well as in a toxicity model. The immune system of the G. mellonella model shows remarkable similarities with mammals. Furthermore, results from G. mellonella correlate positively with mammalian models and with other invertebrate models. Unlike other invertebrate models, G. mellonella can withstand temperatures of 37 °C, and its handling and experimental procedures are simpler. Despite having some disadvantages, G. mellonella is a virtuous in vivo model to be used in preclinical studies, as an intermediate model between in vitro and mammalian in vivo studies, and is a great example on how to apply the bioethics principle of the 3Rs (Replacement, Reduction, and Refinement) in animal experimentation. 
  • 1.2K
  • 13 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Microbial Reprogramming in Obsessive–Compulsive Disorders
Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) is a debilitating mental health disorder characterized by intrusive thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviors (compulsions). Dysbiosis, an imbalance in the gut microbial composition, has been associated with various health conditions, including mental health disorders, autism, and inflammatory diseases. While the exact mechanisms underlying OCD remain unclear, researchers present a growing body of evidence suggesting a potential link between dysbiosis and the multifaceted etiology of OCD, interacting with genetic, neurobiological, immunological, and environmental factors.
  • 1.2K
  • 24 Aug 2023
Topic Review
Thymus zygis L. and Thymus willdenowii Boiss. Oils
Essential oils (EOs) are chemical products produced by odoriferous glands from a variety of plants. These essential oils have many health benefits: antiseptic, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activities. So due to these medicinal properties, the present study was designed to analyze essential oils of Thymus zygis L. and Thymus willdenowii Boiss. for their chemical composition and biological activities. These two thyme species were collected from the region of Ifrane, Middle Atlas of Morocco. 
  • 1.2K
  • 24 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Antimicrobial Peptide against Resistant Bacteria
The emergence of bacteria resistant to conventional antibiotics is of great concern in modern medicine because it renders ineffectiveness of the current empirical antibiotic therapies. Infections caused by vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA) and vancomycin-intermediate S. aureus (VISA) strains represent a serious threat to global health due to their considerable morbidity and mortality rates. Therefore, there is an urgent need of research and development of new antimicrobial alternatives against these bacteria. In this context, the use of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) is considered a promising alternative therapeutic strategy to control resistant strains. Therefore, a wide number of natural, artificial, and synthetic AMPs have been evaluated against VRSA and VISA strains, with great potential for clinical application. In this regard, we aimed to present a comprehensive and systematic review of research findings on AMPs that have shown antibacterial activity against vancomycin-resistant and vancomycin-intermediate resistant strains and clinical isolates of S. aureus, discussing their classification and origin, physicochemical and structural characteristics, and possible action mechanisms. This is the first review that includes all peptides that have shown antibacterial activity against VRSA and VISA strains exclusively. 
  • 1.2K
  • 28 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli
Shiga toxins (Stx) of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are generally encoded in the genome of lambdoid bacteriophages, which spend the most time of their life cycle integrated as prophages in specific sites of the bacterial chromosome. Upon spontaneous induction or induction by chemical or physical stimuli, the stx genes are co-transcribed together with the late phase genes of the prophages. After being assembled in the cytoplasm, and after host cell lysis, mature bacteriophage particles are released into the environment, together with Stx. As members of the group of lambdoid phages, Stx phages share many genetic features with the archetypical temperate phage Lambda, but are heterogeneous in their DNA sequences due to frequent recombination events. In addition to Stx phages, the genome of pathogenic STEC bacteria may contain numerous prophages, which are either cryptic or functional. These prophages may carry foreign genes, some of them related to virulence, besides those necessary for the phage life cycle.
  • 1.2K
  • 13 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Surface Glucan Structures in Aeromonas spp.
Aeromonas spp. are generally found in aquatic environments, although they have also been isolated from both fresh and processed food. These Gram-negative, rod-shaped bacteria are mostly infective to poikilothermic animals, although they are also considered opportunistic pathogens of both aquatic and terrestrial homeotherms, and some species have been associated with gastrointestinal and extraintestinal septicemic infections in humans. Several cell-surface glucans have been shown to contribute to colonization and survival of Aeromonas pathogenic strains in different hosts, playing important roles in bacterial–host interactions related to pathogenesis These include lipopolysaccharide (LPS), capsule, α-glucan, and glycosylated polar and lateral flagella.
  • 1.2K
  • 06 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Human Coronavirus
Coronaviruses (CoVs) are a large group of viruses common among many animals, including humans. They can cause respiratory illnesses in humans and gastrointestinal illnesses in animals. Under the electron microscope, virions of CoVs have large peplomers that make it look like a crown, hence the name corona, meaning “crown” or “halo. The emerging coronavirus disease (COVID-19) swept across the world, affecting more than 200 countries and territories.
  • 1.2K
  • 20 May 2022
Topic Review
Antimicrobial Lipids from Plants and Marine Organisms
Medicinal plants and marine organisms are natural sources of many antimicrobial compounds. Plant components with antimicrobial activity include alkaloids, sulfur-containing compounds, diterpenes/terpenoids, fatty acids (FA), some carbohydrates, steroidal glycosides, and phenolic compounds. Both primary and secondary metabolites are “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS) substances and the chance of triggering antimicrobial resistance is low. The most studied antimicrobial compounds of marine origin are peptides and alkaloids, contrarily to lipids. However, lipids are ubiquitously distributed in the different marine phyla, being quite abundant in some of them. Besides, several lipid classes from marine organisms have been recognized by their biological activity with a high potential to discover new antimicrobial compounds.
  • 1.2K
  • 15 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Yersinia species and autophagy
Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, Y. enterocolitica and Y. pestis are pathogenic bacteria capable of causing disease in humans by growing extracellularly in lymph nodes and during systemic infections. While the capacity of these bacteria to invade, replicate, and survive within host cells has been known for long, it is only in recent years that their intracellular stages have been explored in more detail. Current evidence suggests that pathogenic Yersinia are capable of activating autophagy in both phagocytic and epithelial cells, subverting autophagosome formation to create a niche supporting bacterial intracellular replication. In this review, we discuss recent results opening novel perspectives to the understanding of intimate host-pathogens interactions taking place during enteric yersiniosis and plague.
  • 1.2K
  • 07 Jan 2021
Topic Review
Amyloidogenic Regions in bPaS1
Bacterial S1 protein is a functionally important ribosomal protein. It is a part of the 30S ribosomal subunit and is also able to interact with mRNA and tmRNA. An important feature of the S1 protein family is a strong tendency towards aggregation. 
  • 1.2K
  • 20 Jul 2021
Topic Review
African Antivirulence Plants
Antivirulence is the concept of blocking virulence factors produced by pathogenic organism. In regards to bacteria, the idea is to design agents that block virulence rather than kill bacteria population that generate more selective pressure leading to antibiotic resistance. African plants, through their huge biodiversity, present a considerable reservoir of secondary metabolites with a very broad spectrum of biological activities, a potential source of natural products targeting such non-microbicidal mechanisms. 
  • 1.2K
  • 04 Dec 2020
Topic Review
Cold-Loving Microorganisms
Cold-loving microorganisms of all three domains of life have unique and special abilities that allow them to live in harsh environments. They have acquired structural and molecular mechanisms of adaptation to the cold that include the production of anti-freeze proteins, carbohydrate-based extracellular polymeric substances and lipids which serve as cryo- and osmoprotectants by maintaining the fluidity of their membranes. They also produce a wide diversity of pigmented molecules to obtain energy, carry out photosynthesis, increase their resistance to stress and provide them with ultraviolet light protection. Recently developed analytical techniques have been applied as high-throughoutput technologies for function discovery and for reconstructing functional networks in psychrophiles. Among them, omics deserve special mention, such as genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, glycomics, lipidomics and metabolomics. These techniques have allowed the identification of microorganisms and the study of their biogeochemical activities. They have also made it possible to infer their metabolic capacities and identify the biomolecules that are parts of their structures or that they secrete into the environment, which can be useful in various fields of biotechnology.
  • 1.2K
  • 24 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Protein Engineering of Multiheme Cytochromes
Electrogenic microorganisms possess unique redox biological features, being capable of performing Extracellular Electron Transfer (EET) and converting highly toxic compounds into nonhazardous forms. These microorganisms have led to the development of Microbial Electrochemical Technologies (METs), which include applications in the fields of bioremediation and bioenergy production. Geobacter bacteria have served as a model for understanding the mechanisms underlying the phenomenon of EET, which is highly dependent on a multitude of multiheme cytochromes (MCs). MCs are, therefore, logical targets for rational protein engineering to improve the EET rates of these bacteria. In this Review, the main characteristics of electroactive Geobacter bacteria, their potential to develop METs and the main features of MCs are initially highlighted. This is followed by a detailed description of the current methodologies that assist the characterization of the functional redox networks in MCs. Finally, it is discussed how this information can be explored to design optimal Geobacter-mutated strains with improved capabilities in METs.
  • 1.2K
  • 23 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Intestinal Microbiota as a Contributor to Chronic Inflammation
The gut microbiota is a crucial factor in maintaining homeostasis. The presence of commensal microorganisms leads to the stimulation of the immune system and its maturation. In turn, dysbiosis with an impaired intestinal barrier leads to accelerated contact of microbiota with the host’s immune cells. Microbial structural parts, i.e., pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs), such as flagellin (FLG), peptidoglycan (PGN), lipoteichoic acid (LTA), and lipopolysaccharide (LPS), induce inflammation via activation of pattern recognition receptors. Microbial metabolites can also develop chronic low-grade inflammation, which is the cause of many metabolic diseases. 
  • 1.2K
  • 29 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Porphyromonas gingivalis during Periodontitis Pathogenesis
Periodontitis is a non-communicable chronic inflammatory disease characterized by the progressive and irreversible breakdown of the soft periodontal tissues and resorption of teeth-supporting alveolar bone. The etiology of periodontitis involves dysbiotic shifts in the diversity of microbial communities inhabiting the subgingival crevice, which is dominated by anaerobic Gram-negative bacteria, including Porphyromonas gingivalis. Indeed, P. gingivalis is a keystone pathogen with a repertoire of attributes that allow it to colonize periodontal tissues and influence the metabolism, growth rate, and virulence of other periodontal bacteria. The pathogenic potential of P. gingivalis has been traditionally analyzed using classical biochemical and molecular approaches.
  • 1.2K
  • 31 Jan 2023
Topic Review
Antibiofilm Therapeutics Strategies to Overcome Antimicrobial Drug Resistance
Biofilms embrace the capability to resist and survive harsh environmental conditions and defeat the host immune system, so there is a desire for exploring new antibiofilm agents. Antibiofilm agents that can abet the process of dismantling the biofilm has provided research strategies for designing new biofilm dispersal inducers.
  • 1.2K
  • 10 Mar 2022
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