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Topic Review
Transmembrane TNF in Mycobacterial Infections
Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) is one of the main cytokines regulating a pro-inflammatory environment. It has been related to several cell functions, for instance, phagocytosis, apoptosis, proliferation, mitochondrial dynamic. Moreover, during mycobacterial infections, TNF plays an essential role to maintain granuloma formation. Several effector mechanisms have been implicated according to the interactions of the two active forms, soluble TNF (solTNF) and transmembrane TNF (tmTNF), with their receptors TNFR1 and TNFR2.
  • 839
  • 03 Jun 2021
Topic Review
SARS Coronavirus
The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) coronavirus, sometimes shortened to SARS-CoV, is attributed to the naming of the virus that causes the symptom, following the initial outbreak in Guangzhou, People's Republic of China (PRC) in 2002, and secondary cases in Asia and elsewhere in the world. The categorization of the virus behind SARS was heatedly debated and scrutinized between it being paramyxovirus or coronavirus. It was on April 16, 2003, the World Health Organization (WHO) held a press release, stating it being identified as coronavirus by a number of laboratories. Samples of the virus were held in laboratories in New York City, San Francisco, Manila, Hong Kong, and Toronto. Laboratories in Germany and Hong Kong claimed it to be paramyxovirus, and the Spike 2 (S2) protein is homogenous to HIV-1 gp41, while the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention claimed the finding of coronavirus. On April 12, 2003, scientists working at the Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre in Vancouver, British Columbia finished mapping the genetic sequence of a coronavirus believed to be linked to SARS. The team was led by Dr. Marco Marra and worked in collaboration with the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control and the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, Manitoba, using samples from infected patients in Toronto. The map, hailed by the WHO as an important step forward in fighting SARS, is shared with scientists worldwide via the Global Service Centre (GSC) website. Dr. Donald Low of Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto described the discovery as having been made with "unprecedented speed". The sequence of the SARS coronavirus has since been confirmed by other independent groups. The SARS coronavirus was one of several viruses identified by WHO as a likely cause of a future epidemic in a new plan developed after the Ebola epidemic for urgent research and development before and during an epidemic toward new diagnostic tests, vaccines and medicines. The second major mutation SARS-CoV-2 caused COVID-19 pandemic at the end of 2019.
  • 839
  • 07 Jul 2025
Topic Review
Resident Microbiota and Misfolded Proteins
Neurodegenerative pathologies are commonly characterized by the misfolding, oligomerization and accumulation of toxic species such as Aβ in AD, α-Syn in PD, and the prion protein in CJD. In addition, it appears that a major source of pro-inflammatory diffusible signals associated with brain neuroinflammation originates from peripheral organs and systems such as the gastrointestinal (GI) tract microbiome. Bacterial components such as LPS, which can enter the bloodstream, stimulate systemic pro-inflammatory responses in the host including the CNS. At the cellular and molecular levels, LPS is able to induce the release of inflammatory mediators and eventually induce synaptic loss, which can lead to cognitive impairment via microglial activation, generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and oxidative stres. Finally, it appears that signals released by bacteria can modulate amyloid formation and activate pro-inflammatory responses in the brain, suggesting a strong interplay between the microbiome and neuroinflammation in neurodegenerative diseases initiation and progression.  
  • 838
  • 26 Dec 2020
Topic Review
Importance of the Gut Microbiome
“Microbiome” refers to microorganisms inhabiting multicellular organisms, from animals to plants. The microbiome is made up of bacteria, archaea, protists, fungi, and viruses. An overview of several species whose gut microbiota have been evaluated.
  • 838
  • 30 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Diagnosis of Pulmonary Histoplasmosis
Acute pulmonary histoplasmosis (APH) typically presents with fever, chills, shortness of breath, and resembles community acquired pneumonia. APH can range from a mild self-limiting illness to acute respiratory distress syndrome. Subacute pulmonary histoplasmosis (SPH) has a more insidious onset over at least one month and may develop after a smaller inoculum exposure. Chronic pulmonary histoplasmosis (CPH) is classically seen in older males with underlying lung disease. CPH has a similar presentation to tuberculosis with fever, night sweats, weight loss, cough, and dyspnea over at least three months. H capsulatum may also cause pulmonary nodules, mediastinal adenitis, mediastinal granulomas, and mediastinal fibrosis. Progressive disseminated histoplasmosis is a form of histoplasmosis that result from hematogenous spread and can impact multiple organ symptoms including the respiratory tract and cause severe disease.
  • 837
  • 21 Sep 2023
Topic Review
Mycobacteroides abscessus and Its Tigecycline Resistance Mechanisms
Mycobacteroides abscessus (formerly Mycobacterium abscessus) is a clinically important, rapid-growing non-tuberculous mycobacterium notoriously known for its multidrug-resistance phenotype. The intrinsic resistance of M. abscessus towards first- and second-generation tetracyclines is mainly due to the over-expression of a tetracycline-degrading enzyme known as MabTetX (MAB_1496c). Tigecycline, a third-generation tetracycline, is a poor substrate for the MabTetX and does not induce the expression of this enzyme. Recent work on tigecycline resistance or reduced susceptibility in M. abscessus revealed the involvement of the gene MAB_3508c which encodes the transcriptional activator WhiB7, as well as mutations in the sigH-rshA genes which control heat shock and oxidative-stress responses. The deletion of whiB7 has been observed to cause a 4-fold decrease in the minimum inhibitory concentration of tigecycline. In the absence of environmental stress, the SigH sigma factor (MAB_3543c) interacts with and is inhibited by the anti-sigma factor RshA (MAB_3542c). The disruption of the SigH-RshA interaction resulting from mutations and the subsequent up-regulation of SigH have been hypothesized to lead to tigecycline resistance in M. abscessus.
  • 837
  • 07 May 2022
Topic Review
Phascinating Phages
Treatment of infections caused by bacteria has become more complex due to the increasing number of bacterial strains that are resistant to conventional antimicrobial therapy. A highly promising alternative appears to be bacteriophage (phage) therapy, in which natural predators of bacteria, bacteriophages, play a role. Although these viruses were first discovered in 1917, the development of phage therapy was impacted by the discovery of antibiotics, which spread more quickly and effectively in medical practice.
  • 835
  • 25 Jul 2022
Topic Review
Sterically Hindered Quaternary Phosphonium Salts (QPSs)
Structure–activity relationships are important for the design of biocides and sanitizers. The most commonly used biocides are nitrogen-containing compounds; the phosphorus-containing ones have been studied to a lesser extent. In the present study, a broad range of sterically hindered quaternary phosphonium salts (QPSs) based on tri-tert-butylphosphine was tested for their activity against Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, Enterococcus faecalis) and Gram-negative (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) bacteria and fungi (Candida albicans, Trichophyton mentagrophytes var. gypseum). Additionally, the hemolytic and cytotoxic properties of QPSs were determined using blood and a normal liver cell line, respectively.
  • 830
  • 23 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Gut Microbiota Feature of Senile Osteoporosis
Senile osteoporosis is defined as an age-related bone metabolic disorder, which is characterized by bone loss and decreased bone fragility. Gut microbiota (GM) could regulate the bone metabolic process and be closely related to senile osteoporosis. Several genus-level GM were found to increase in osteoporotic animals and patients. However, to reveal the pathogenic bacteria in senile osteoporosis, further studies are still needed to investigate the complete characteristics of bacteria species. GM are defined as the collection of commensal bacteria living in the digestive tract, which regulates host metabolism and performs various functions. GM of humans consist of over 1000 distinct bacterial species, about two-thirds of which are unique to each individual. GM have an impact on many chronic diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, neurological disorders, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and cardiovascular disease. As a member of the chronic disease category, osteoporosis is also associated with GM.
  • 830
  • 01 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Gut Microbiota and Bile Acids in NAFLD
The roles of gut microbiota are highly regarded in the pathogenesis of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The intestinal bacteria regulate the metabolism of bile acids depending on bile salt hydrolase (BSH), 7-dehydroxylation, hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (HSDH), or amide conjugation reaction, thus exerting effects on NAFLD development through bile acid receptors such as farnesoid X receptor (FXR), Takeda G-protein-coupled bile acid protein 5 (TGR5), and vitamin D receptor (VDR), which modulate nutrient metabolism and insulin sensitivity via interacting with downstream molecules. Reversely, the composition of gut microbiota is also affected by the level of bile acids in turn. 
  • 830
  • 25 Aug 2023
Topic Review
Borrelia miyamotoi
Borrelia miyamotoi is a Gram-negative bacteria included in the genus Borrelia from the family Spirochaetaceae, within the phylum Spirochaetes and the order Spirochaetales. B. miyamotoi is spirochete from the relapsing fever (RF) group of Borrelia. In RF-Borrelia complex only B. miyamotoi is transmitted by Ixodes ticks - a vector of B. burgdorferi s.l. complex. The biological feature that distinguishes B. miyamotoi from B. burgdorferi s.l. is transovarial transmission. B. miyamotoi was first isolated from questing I. persulcatus ticks and mouse Apodemus argentus in Japan in 1994. The main vector of B. miyamotoi is I. persulcatus (Asia), I. pacificus, I. scapularis (North America), and I. ricinus (Europe). Worldwide, B. miyamotoi prevalence in questing Ixodes ticks ranges from 0.2 to 10%. A phylogenetic analysis based on selected sequences of B. miyamotoi genome revealed genetic differences between isolates from Asia, North America, and Europe, which are clearly separated into three genotypes. Human symptomatic cases of Borrelia miyamotoi disease (BMD) were first reported in 2011 in Russia and then in North America, Europe, and Asia. BMD is usually manifested by several episodes of fever and flu-like symptoms (chills, headaches, muscle, and joint aches and general fatigue). However, serious symptoms such as meningoencephalitis can be observed.
  • 828
  • 02 Feb 2021
Topic Review
Interactions of Toxic Cyanobacteria with Other Aquatic Microbes
Water resources are critically important, but also pose risks of exposure to toxic and pathogenic microbes. Toxic cyanobacteria have been linked to the death and disease of humans, domesticated animals, and wildlife in freshwater systems worldwide. Management approaches successful at reducing cyanobacterial abundance and toxin production have tended to be short-term solutions applied on small scales (e.g., algaecide application) or solutions that entail difficult multifaceted investments (e.g., modification of landscape and land use to reduce nutrient inputs). 
  • 825
  • 31 Jan 2023
Topic Review
MSI Ionization Techniques to Investigate Plant–Microbe Interactions
Plant–microbe interactions are of rising interest in plant sustainability, biomass production, plant biology, and systems biology. These interactions have been a challenge to detect until recent advancements in mass spectrometry imaging. Plants and microbes interact in four main regions within the plant, the rhizosphere, endosphere, phyllosphere, and spermosphere.
  • 825
  • 25 Aug 2023
Topic Review
Host Cell Antimicrobial Responses against Helicobacter pylori Infection
The colonization of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) in human gastric mucosa is highly associated with the occurrence of gastritis, peptic ulcer, and gastric cancer. Antibiotics, including amoxicillin, clarithromycin, furazolidone, levofloxacin, metronidazole, and tetracycline, are commonly used and considered the major treatment regimens for H. pylori eradication. Evidence has pointed out that a small portion of H. pylori can invade and replicate in the intracellular compartments of different cell types, causing persistent infection by evading host immune defense and antibiotics. Under this circumstance, host cells have developed numerous antimicrobial responses to fight against invading H. pylori, e.g., induction of antimicrobial peptides, activation of cellular autophagy pathway, and increased oxidative stress.
  • 825
  • 18 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Stewart's Wilt
Stewart's wilt is a serious bacterial disease of corn caused by the bacterium Pantoea stewartii. This bacterium affects plants, particularly types of maize such as sweet, flint, dent, flower, and popcorn. The disease is also known as bacterial wilt or bacterial leaf blight and has shown to be quite problematic in sweet corn. The disease is endemic in the mid-Atlantic and Ohio River Valley regions and in the southern portion of the Corn Belt.
  • 824
  • 04 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Mycobacterial Adhesion
Adhesion is crucial for the infective lifestyles of bacterial pathogens. Adhesion to non-living surfaces, other microbial cells, and components of the biofilm extracellular matrix are crucial for biofilm formation and integrity, plus adherence to host factors constitutes a first step leading to an infection. Adhesion is, therefore, at the core of pathogens’ ability to contaminate, transmit, establish residency within a host, and cause an infection. Several mycobacterial species cause diseases in humans and animals with diverse clinical manifestations. Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which enters through the respiratory tract, first adheres to alveolar macrophages and epithelial cells leading up to transmigration across the alveolar epithelium and containment within granulomas. Later, when dissemination occurs, the bacilli need to adhere to extracellular matrix components to infect extrapulmonary sites. Mycobacteria causing zoonotic infections and emerging nontuberculous mycobacterial pathogens follow divergent routes of infection that probably require adapted adhesion mechanisms. New evidence also points to the occurrence of mycobacterial biofilms during infection, emphasizing a need to better understand the adhesive factors required for their formation. 
  • 823
  • 10 Mar 2022
Topic Review
John Snow's Epidemiological Principles on Modern Agricultural Microbiology
This article explores the enduring impact of John Snow's epidemiological principles on modern agricultural microbiology, particularly in the application of beneficial microorganisms for crop health. It discusses how Snow's data-driven approach to identifying cholera outbreaks parallels the methods used in agricultural disease management. The use of microbial solutions offers sustainable alternatives to traditional agrochemicals, promoting soil health and enhancing crop resilience.
  • 823
  • 18 Oct 2024
Topic Review
Clinical Manifestations of Human Exposure to Fungi
Biological particles, along with inorganic gaseous and particulate pollutants, constitute an ever-present component of the atmosphere and surfaces. Among these particles are fungal species colonizing almost all ecosystems, including the human body. Although inoffensive to most people, fungi can be responsible for several health problems, such as allergic fungal diseases and fungal infections. Worldwide fungal disease incidence is increasing, with new emerging fungal diseases appearing yearly. Reasons for this increase are the expansion of life expectancy, the number of immunocompromised patients (immunosuppressive treatments for transplantation, autoimmune diseases, and immunodeficiency diseases), the number of uncontrolled underlying conditions (e.g., diabetes mellitus), and the misusage of medication (e.g., corticosteroids and broad-spectrum antibiotics). 
  • 822
  • 05 May 2023
Topic Review
Longevity Regulation in Yeast
 Mitochondrial energy metabolism is maintained through oxidative degradation of proline and that this process is important in regulating the longevity of yeast cells. 
  • 821
  • 18 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Lipid Droplets in Yeast during Stress and Aging
The baker’s yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a valuable tool for aging research, as many aging- and disease-associated pathways such as DNA repair mechanisms, lipostasis, proteostasis, oxidative stress responses, regulated cell death, nutrient signaling, autophagy, and regulation of the cell cycle are evolutionarily conserved to a high degree. Lipid droplets (LDs) are evolutionary conserved structures that were mentioned for the first time by Van Leeuwenhoek in 1674, but their reassessment as autonomous organelles with important key roles in lipid and energy metabolism occurred many years later. LDs originate from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). In the first step, neutral lipids are synthesized at the ER and are redirected into the bilayer, leading to an aggregation of the highly motile lipids. Emerging evidence suggests that LDs also fulfil impotant functions during aging and in protein homeostasis.
  • 818
  • 12 Oct 2023
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