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| Open AccessSingle-molecule fingerprinting of protein-drug interaction using a funneled biological nanopore
Efficient screening of protein-drug interactions (PDIs) has been impeded by the limitations of current biophysical approaches. Here, the authors present a funneled YaxAB nanopore sensor which allows label-free, single-molecule detection of proteins and PDIs.
- Ki-Baek Jeong
- , Minju Ryu
- & Seung-Wook Chi
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Article
| Open AccessNemacol is a small molecule inhibitor of C. elegans vesicular acetylcholine transporter with anthelmintic potential
Harrington et al report their discovery of Nemacol, which is a small molecule inhibitor of the vesicular acetylcholine transporter (VAChT). VAChT loads synaptic vesicles with acetylcholine and is a key point of vulnerability in animals. Harrington et al show that Nemacol has nematode selectivity and potential utility against nematode parasites.
- Sean Harrington
- , Jacob Pyche
- & Peter J. Roy
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Article
| Open AccessPotent and selective covalent inhibition of the papain-like protease from SARS-CoV-2
The development of direct-acting antivirals to combat COVID-19 remains an important goal. Here the authors design covalent inhibitors that target the papain-like protease from SARS-CoV-2. The most promising inhibitor blocks viral replication in mammalian cells.
- Brian C. Sanders
- , Suman Pokhrel
- & Jerry M. Parks
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Article
| Open AccessP2X3 receptor antagonism attenuates the progression of heart failure
Despite medications, heart failure worsens with time with many patients dying within five years of diagnosis. Here the authors show that blocking purinergic receptors in the carotid body stops heart failure progression, improves its function, reduces sleep apneas and systemic inflammation in male rats.
- Renata M. Lataro
- , Davi J. A. Moraes
- & Julian F. R. Paton
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Article
| Open AccessTime-of-day defines NAD+ efficacy to treat diet-induced metabolic disease by synchronizing the hepatic clock in mice
The timing of NAD + supply determines its efficacy to treat metabolic disease. Here, the authors show that increasing NAD + at the early active phase maximizes weight loss and glucose regulation in mice. NAD + can displace the phase of the liver clock which can cause circadian misalignment.
- Quetzalcoatl Escalante-Covarrubias
- , Lucía Mendoza-Viveros
- & Lorena Aguilar-Arnal
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Article
| Open AccessContinuous Spatiotemporal Therapy of A Full-API Nanodrug via Multi-Step Tandem Endogenous Biosynthesis
Nanomedicine is important in cancer therapy, but loading, drug release, and therapeutic effectiveness issues limit the translation to the clinic. Here, authors report a full-API nanodrug with an ideal API content and pH-responsive release for continuous spatiotemporal cancer therapy based on PpIX-heme-CO/Fe2+/BV-BR metabolic pathway.
- Fang Fang
- , Sa Wang
- & Jinfeng Zhang
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Article
| Open AccessAn in-solution snapshot of SARS-COV-2 main protease maturation process and inhibition
The Main protease of SARS-CoV-2 is key for viral replication, but its maturation process is still not completely understood. Here, the authors not only reveal unique details from the first step of maturation, but also demonstrate how different classes of inhibitor can block this step.
- Gabriela Dias Noske
- , Yun Song
- & Andre Schutzer Godoy
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Article
| Open AccessTrio-pharmacophore DNA-encoded chemical library for simultaneous selection of fragments and linkers
Dual-pharmacophore DNA-Encoded Libraries (DELs) can generate large libraries, but linker optimisation is challenging. Here, the authors report a trio-pharmacophore DEL (T-DEL) for both de novo fragment identification and linker optimization of known fragment pairs.
- Meiying Cui
- , Dzung Nguyen
- & Yixin Zhang
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Article
| Open AccessWavelength engineerable porous organic polymer photosensitizers with protonation triggered ROS generation
Engineering excitation wavelength of photosensitizers allows to enhanced reactive oxygen species but controlling the wavelength corresponding to operating conditions remains challenging. Here, the authors implement a wavelength-engineerable imidazolium-based porous organic polymer and demonstrate tuning of the optimal wavelength for maximum performance by modifying the linker system.
- Jinwoo Shin
- , Dong Won Kang
- & Chang Seop Hong
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Article
| Open AccessCRISPR-induced DNA reorganization for multiplexed nucleic acid detection
Nucleic acid sensing involving CRISPR technologies is powerful but has certain limitations, such as PAM sequence requirements and limited multiplexing. Here, authors report a CRISPR-based barcoding technology which enables multiple outputs from any target sequence, based on cis- and trans-cleavage.
- Margot Karlikow
- , Evan Amalfitano
- & Keith Pardee
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Article
| Open AccessStructural basis of selective cannabinoid CB2 receptor activation
Cannabinoid CB2 receptor (CB2R) agonists are investigated as therapeutic agents in the clinic. Here, authors report the discovery of LEI-102, a CB2R agonist, used in conjunction with three other CBR ligands (APD371, HU308, and CP55,940) to investigate selective CB2R activation.
- Xiaoting Li
- , Hao Chang
- & Tian Hua
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Article
| Open Access1,2,4,5-Tetrazine-tethered probes for fluorogenically imaging superoxide in live cells with ultrahigh specificity
Specific detection of cellular superoxide is challenging. Here, the authors designed 1,2,4,5-tetrazine based fluorogenic probes for specific and sensitive imaging of superoxide, and applied them in high throughput screening of modulators of oxidative stress.
- Xuefeng Jiang
- , Min Li
- & Xin Li
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Article
| Open AccessReference compounds for characterizing cellular injury in high-content cellular morphology assays
Cellular nuisance compounds are a burden in chemical biology and drug screening. Here the authors profile prototypical cytotoxic and nuisance compounds using the cell painting assay to systematically characterise cellular morphologies associated with compound-dependent cellular injury and nuisance activity.
- Jayme L. Dahlin
- , Bruce K. Hua
- & Bridget K. Wagner
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| Open AccessAn anti-HER2 biparatopic antibody that induces unique HER2 clustering and complement-dependent cytotoxicity
The success of HER2-targeted cancer therapy is limited by treatment resistance. Here, the authors engineer an anti-HER2 biparatopic antibody with multiple mechanisms of action including induction of HER2 clustering to trigger complement dependent cytotoxicity, signal inhibition, antibody dependent cellular cytotoxicity and phagocytosis.
- Nina E. Weisser
- , Mario Sanches
- & Surjit Dixit
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Article
| Open AccessClinical and biomarker analyses of sintilimab plus gemcitabine and cisplatin as first-line treatment for patients with advanced biliary tract cancer
Chemotherapeutic agents and immune checkpoint inhibitors have shown modest efficacy in patients with advanced biliary tract cancers (BTCs). Here the authors report the results of a phase II trial of the anti-PD1 antibody sintilimab plus chemotherapy (gemcitabine and cisplatin) as first-line treatment for patients with advanced BTCs.
- Tian-mei Zeng
- , Guang Yang
- & Zhen-gang Yuan
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Article
| Open AccessMultiplexed analysis of EV reveals specific biomarker composition with diagnostic impact
Multiplexed analyses of near single EVs is currently challenging. Here the authors report the method MASEV, multiplexed analysis of EVs, to interrogate thousands of individual EVs during 5 cycles of multi-channel fluorescence staining for 15 EV biomarkers.
- Joshua D. Spitzberg
- , Scott Ferguson
- & Ralph Weissleder
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Article
| Open AccessTandem mass tag-based quantitative proteomic profiling identifies candidate serum biomarkers of drug-induced liver injury in humans
Diagnosis of rare, unpredictable, drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is a significant challenge for patients, clinicians, and drug development. Here, the authors discover, evaluate, and validate potential blood biomarkers to diagnose DILI and distinguish it from alternative causes of liver injury.
- Kodihalli C. Ravindra
- , Vishal S. Vaidya
- & Shashi K. Ramaiah
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Article
| Open AccessPredicting locations of cryptic pockets from single protein structures using the PocketMiner graph neural network
Cryptic pockets enable targeting of proteins currently considered undruggable because they lack pockets in their ground state structures. Here, the authors develop a graph neural network that accurately predicts cryptic pockets in static structures by training using molecular simulation data alone.
- Artur Meller
- , Michael Ward
- & Gregory R. Bowman
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Article
| Open AccessAutomatic and accurate ligand structure determination guided by cryo-electron microscopy maps
As cryo-EM becomes commonplace in drug discovery, tools for automating small molecule structure determination are needed. Here, authors show a map-guided ligand modeling approach to building ligand structures at resolutions common in cryo-EM.
- Andrew Muenks
- , Samantha Zepeda
- & Frank DiMaio
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Article
| Open AccessIdentification of SARS-CoV-2 Mpro inhibitors containing P1’ 4-fluorobenzothiazole moiety highly active against SARS-CoV-2
Effective antivirals are critical for combatting SARS-CoV-2 infections. Here, the authors develop two orally available small molecules, which specifically inhibit the activity of the SARS-CoV-2 main protease and potently block the infectivity and replication of various SARS-CoV-2 strains in cells and mice.
- Nobuyo Higashi-Kuwata
- , Kohei Tsuji
- & Hiroaki Mitsuya
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Article
| Open AccessMolecular imaging of liver inflammation using an anti-VCAM-1 nanobody
Here, the authors present a noninvasive tool to detect liver inflammation using nuclear imaging, as an alternative to biopsy. The prove the diagnostic power of this tool to detect liver inflammation in preclinical models of chronic liver disease.
- Maxime Nachit
- , Christopher Montemagno
- & Pascale Perret
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Article
| Open AccessASGARD is A Single-cell Guided Pipeline to Aid Repurposing of Drugs
The full potential of single-cell RNA-sequencing applied to precision medicine has yet to be reached. Here, we propose a drug recommendation system ASGARD, which predicts drugs by considering cell clusters to address the intercellular heterogeneity within each patient.
- Bing He
- , Yao Xiao
- & Lana X. Garmire
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Article
| Open AccessOn-demand male contraception via acute inhibition of soluble adenylyl cyclase
Half of all pregnancies are unintended; thus, existing family planning options are inadequate. This proof-of-concept study validates an on-demand contraception strategy for men, showing high effectiveness in quickly and temporarily reducing male fertility in mice.
- Melanie Balbach
- , Thomas Rossetti
- & Lonny R. Levin
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Article
| Open AccessCross-protective antibodies against common endemic respiratory viruses
Immunocompromised patients are vulnerable to respiratory viral infections. Here, the authors characterize cross-neutralizing antibodies to respiratory syncytial virus, human metapneumovirus, and human parainfluenza viruses and show effective protection in male hamsters.
- Madelyn Cabán
- , Justas V. Rodarte
- & Jim Boonyaratanakornkit
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Article
| Open AccessSmall molecule inhibitors of 15-PGDH exploit a physiologic induced-fit closing system
Inhibition of 15-prostaglandin dehydrogenase (15-PGDH) is a promising therapeutic target for regenerative medicine. We report the structure of 15-PGDH in complex with two different inhibitors. Unexpectedly, access to the binding pocket is regulated by a dynamic “lid” of the enzyme.
- Wei Huang
- , Hongyun Li
- & Derek J. Taylor
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Article
| Open AccessAngiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor promotes angiogenesis through Sp1/Sp3-mediated inhibition of notch signaling in male mice
ACE inhibitors are widely used to treat cardiovascular diseases and promote angiogenesis. Here, the authors show a central role for endothelial USP7-Sp1/Sp3-Notch1 signalling in pathophysiological angiogenesis in response to ACE inhibitor treatment.
- Hanlin Lu
- , Peidong Yuan
- & Wencheng Zhang
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Article
| Open AccessAccelerating inhibitor discovery for deubiquitinating enzymes
Deubiquitinases (DUBs) are key signaling enzymes, many of which lack selective inhibitors. Chan et al. pair a DUB-focused covalent library to mass spectrometry activity-based protein profiling, leading to selective hits against 23 endogenous DUBs and a first-in-class VCPIP1 probe with nanomolar potency.
- Wai Cheung Chan
- , Xiaoxi Liu
- & Sara J. Buhrlage
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Article
| Open AccessShark nanobodies with potent SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing activity and broad sarbecovirus reactivity
SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern continue to emerge, reducing vaccine efficacy and limiting therapeutic options. Here, Chen and colleagues describe the identification and design of shark nanobodies with pansarbecovirus activity.
- Wei-Hung Chen
- , Agnes Hajduczki
- & M. Gordon Joyce
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| Open AccessA two-faced selectivity solution to target SMARCA2 for cancer therapy
Two new studies exploring PROTAC-mediated degradation of SMARCA2 for cancer therapy solve an apparently intractable selectivity challenge with SMARCA4 by utilising the requirement for a productive ternary complex between the protein, PROTAC and ligase complex.
- John D. Harling
- & Christopher P. Tinworth
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Article
| Open AccessLigand recognition mechanism of the human relaxin family peptide receptor 4 (RXFP4)
Relaxin family peptide receptor 4 (RXFP4) regulates pleiotropic biological processes. Here, authors report cryo-EM structures revealing the ligand-binding modes and key determinants of peptidomimetic agonism and subtype selectivity
- Yan Chen
- , Qingtong Zhou
- & Ming-Wei Wang
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Article
| Open AccessMicrobially produced vitamin B12 contributes to the lipid-lowering effect of silymarin
Silymarin has been used for improving hepatic damage and lipid disorders, but its action mechanism remains to be clarified. Here, the authors reveal a mechanism of action underpinning the lipid-lowering effect of silymarin via the gut microbiota and its vitamin B12 producing capabilities.
- Wen-Long Sun
- , Sha Hua
- & Hong-Fang Ji
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Article
| Open AccessReprogramming systemic and local immune function to empower immunotherapy against glioblastoma
Glioblastoma (GBM) is characterized by local and systemic immunosuppression, showing limited responses to immunotherapies. Here the authors describe the design of a nanoplatform composed of the lymphopenia alleviating agent cannabidiol and the lymphocyte recruiting cytokine LIGHT, promoting anti-tumor immune responses in GBM preclinical models.
- Songlei Zhou
- , Yukun Huang
- & Jun Chen
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Article
| Open AccessLong-term statins administration exacerbates diabetic nephropathy via ectopic fat deposition in diabetic mice
Huang et al. investigated the effects of long-term statins administration in a mouse model for diabetes and found that it can worsen insulin resistance, renal inflammation and fibrosis. Statins increased renal lipid uptake and inhibited fatty acid oxidation, contributing to diabetic nephropathy.
- Tong-sheng Huang
- , Teng Wu
- & Wei-bin Cai
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Article
| Open AccessEndosomal sorting results in a selective separation of the protein corona from nanoparticles
Protein corona formation on nanoparticles and the resultant effects on cellular interactions is well documented, where less is known about the fate of the corona in the cell. Here, the authors track the protein corona and nanoparticles in cells and describe the separation and different processing within different cellular compartments.
- Shen Han
- , Richard da Costa Marques
- & Ingo Lieberwirth
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| Open AccessMolecularly self‐fueled nano-penetrator for nonpharmaceutical treatment of thrombosis and ischemic stroke
Thrombotic cerebro-cardiovascular diseases are the leading causes of disability and death worldwide but current drug therapeutics show important limitations. Here, the authors exploit a selfpropelling nano-penetrator with high fuel loading and controllable motion which is molecularly co-assembled using a photothermal photosensitizer and a photothermal-activable NO donor.
- Hongyuan Zhang
- , Zhiqiang Zhao
- & Cong Luo
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| Open AccessPreclinical development of kinetin as a safe error-prone SARS-CoV-2 antiviral able to attenuate virus-induced inflammation
The search for antivirals against SARS-CoV-2 continue due to the emergence of variants of concerns, able to escape the vaccinal humoral response. In this work, authors pre-clinically explore the potential of kinetin against SARS-CoV-2, which could be used alone or in combination with other antivirals.
- Thiago Moreno L. Souza
- , Vagner D. Pinho
- & Jaime A. Rabi
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Article
| Open AccessCryo-EM structures of orphan GPR21 signaling complexes
In this work, the authors report Cryo-EM structures of the signaling complexes of human GPR21, an orphan GPCR and a potential metabolic disease target, and reveal unique receptor activation conformation when bound to downstream signaling proteins in the absence of any ligand.
- Xi Lin
- , Bo Chen
- & Fei Xu
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Article
| Open AccessStructure-guided peptide engineering of a positive allosteric modulator targeting the outer pore of TRPV1 for long-lasting analgesia
TRPV1 as a drug target suffers from side effects of hypothermia. Here, authors engineer a peptide, sRhTx, as a positive allosteric modulator of TRPV1 channel. It potentiates the activity of TRPV1 to reversibly ablate pain-sensing nerve terminals for long-lasting analgesia without changing mice body temperature.
- Heng Zhang
- , Jia-Jia Lin
- & Fan Yang
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Article
| Open AccessPharmacological inhibition of Lin28 promotes ketogenesis and restores lipid homeostasis in models of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
The Lin28/let-7 axis regulates metabolic pathways in normal and pathological contexts. Here the authors show that pharmacological inhibition of Lin28 protects against lipid accumulation in multiple preclinical models of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
- Evangelia Lekka
- , Aleksandra Kokanovic
- & Jonathan Hall
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Article
| Open AccessTargeting anti-apoptotic pathways eliminates senescent melanocytes and leads to nevi regression
Cutaneous hyperpigmented lesions, including nevi, are populated by senescent melanocytes. Here the authors provide evidence for a novel strategy based on combining inhibition of the BCL-2 and MCL1 anti-apoptotic pathways that selectively eliminates senescent melanocytes in culture and in vivo.
- Jaskaren Kohli
- , Chen Ge
- & Marco Demaria
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Article
| Open AccessTargeting the transcription factor HES1 by L-menthol restores protein phosphatase 6 in keratinocytes in models of psoriasis
Psoriasis is an inflammatory disease which has proven difficult to cure. Prof. Honglin Wang’s team describes L-menthol for treating models of psoriasis and uncovers the dysfunctional HES1- IGBP1-PP6 axis in psoriasis pathology by using L-menthol as a probe.
- Zhikai Wang
- , Yang Sun
- & Honglin Wang
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Article
| Open AccessMolecular models of multiple sclerosis severity identify heterogeneity of pathogenic mechanisms
Multiple sclerosis (MS) changes the composition of the CSF. Here the authors use patient samples and aggregate CSF biomarkers into models that predict disability across all MS phenotypes, and identify potentially causal mechanisms and molecular disease heterogeneity.
- Peter Kosa
- , Christopher Barbour
- & Bibiana Bielekova
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Article
| Open AccessRegulation of bone homeostasis by MERTK and TYRO3
The TAM family of receptor tyrosine kinases exerts pleiotropic functions in health and disease. Here, the authors show that TAM receptors control osteoblastic bone formation and identified MERTK as a novel target for bone anabolic therapy and mitigation of bone metastasis including its associated osteolytic bone disease
- Janik Engelmann
- , Jennifer Zarrer
- & Sonja Loges
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Article
| Open AccessTargeting cardiomyocyte ADAM10 ectodomain shedding promotes survival early after myocardial infarction
Therapeutic interference with the immune response after myocardial infarction holds the potential to close a clinically relevant gap. Here, the authors show that inhibition of a cardiomyocyte-specific ADAM10 / CX3CL1 axis improves post infarction survival and cardiac function by attenuating neutrophil-mediated myocardial damage.
- Erik Klapproth
- , Anke Witt
- & Ali El-Armouche
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Article
| Open AccessCausal inference in medical records and complementary systems pharmacology for metformin drug repurposing towards dementia
Previous observational studies of the diabetes drugs metformin vs. sulfonylureas have yielded mixed results about whether metformin reduces the risk of dementia, relative to the sulfonylureas. Here, the authors apply a novel competing risks approach to emulate dementia-related target trials in electronic health records of diabetic patients and a complementary systems pharmacology evaluation on human neural cells.
- Marie-Laure Charpignon
- , Bella Vakulenko-Lagun
- & Mark W. Albers
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Article
| Open AccessIdentifying antibiotics based on structural differences in the conserved allostery from mitochondrial heme-copper oxidases
Antimicrobial resistance to currently available antibiotics requires innovation of antibiotics. Here, the authors identify a critical inhibitory site in an energy-producing enzyme, which can lead to rational design of antibiotics.
- Yuya Nishida
- , Sachiko Yanagisawa
- & Yasunori Shintani
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Article
| Open AccessEngineered Lactococcus lactis secreting Flt3L and OX40 ligand for in situ vaccination-based cancer immunotherapy
The probiotic Lactococcus lactis has been used for the delivery of therapeutic molecules. Here the authors engineer Lactococcus lactis to express a fusion protein of Flt3L and OX40 ligand, eliciting anti-tumor immune response in preclinical cancer models.
- Junmeng Zhu
- , Yaohua Ke
- & Baorui Liu
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Article
| Open AccessNon-classical ferroptosis inhibition by a small molecule targeting PHB2
Ferroptosis is a promising therapeutic target for a variety of diseases, but a majority of known ferroptosis inhibitors belong to either antioxidants or iron chelators. Here, the authors discover a new non-classical small molecule inhibitor that is a PHB2 binder and show it ameliorates liver damage in an acute liver injury model.
- Wei Yang
- , Bo Mu
- & Shengyong Yang
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Article
| Open AccessSelf-cleaving guide RNAs enable pharmacological selection of precise gene editing events in vivo
Here, authors show that precise integration of an rAAV vector into a chromosomal target locus results in expression of a self-cleaving guide RNA. This recombination event creates genetic resistance to a hepatotoxic compound and enables in vivo expansion of gene-edited hepatocytes using a selection drug.
- Amita Tiyaboonchai
- , Anne Vonada
- & Markus Grompe