The bacterial cell envelope is essential for viability, the environmental gatekeeper and first line of defense against external stresses. For most bacteria, the envelope biosynthesis is also the site of action of some of the most important groups of antibi ...
Bacterial resistance to conventional antibiotics is of major concern. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are considered excellent alternatives. Among them, D-cateslytin (D-Ctl, derivative of a host defense peptide) has shown high efficiency against a broad spec ...
Rod-shaped bacteria frequently localize proteins to one or both cellpoles in order to regulate processes such as chromosome replication or polar organ-elle development. However, the roles of polar factors in responses to extracellularstimuli have been gene ...
The bacteriophage T4 genome contains two genes that code for proteins with lysozyme activity-e and 5. Gene e encodes the well-known T4 lysozyme (commonly called T4L) that functions to break the peptidoglycan layer late in the infection cycle, which is requ ...
Resistance to last-resort carbapenem antibiotics is an increasing threat to human health, as it critically limits therapeutic options. Metallo-beta-lactamases (MBLs) are the largest family of carbapenemases, enzymes that inactivate these drugs. Among MBLs, ...
The characterization of biological interfaces is widely recognized as one of the main challenges for modern biology. In particular, biological membranes are nowadays known to be an active environment that allows membrane proteins to perform their work and ...
Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a slow-growing intracellular bacterium with the ability to induce host cell death and persist indefinitely in the human body. This pathogen uses the specialized ESX-1 secretion system to secrete virulence factors and potent im ...
Myelin protein P2 is a peripheral membrane protein of the fatty acid–binding protein family that functions in the formation and maintenance of the peripheral nerve myelin sheath. Several P2 gene mutations cause human Charcot–Marie–Tooth neuropathy, but the ...
The type VI secretion system (T6SS) is a nanomachine used by many bacteria to drive a toxin-laden needle into other bacterial cells. Although the potential to influence bacterial competition is clear, the fitness impacts of wielding a T6SS are not well und ...
All organisms are made to a large extent of soft matter - macromolecules such as proteins and polysaccharides, or assemblies of small molecules such as lipids embedded in an aqueous environment. Understanding the role of order in soft matter presents a cha ...
The EspB protein of Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a 60 kDa virulence factor, implicated in conjugation and exported by the ESX-1 system of which it may also be a component. Previous attempts to obtain high-resolution maps of EspB by cryo-electron microscop ...
