The Role of the Deubiquitylase MYSM1 During Alphavirus Infection Amer Nubgan The members of the genus Alphavirus are positive-sense RNA viruses and it is one of two within the family Togaviridae. Most alphaviruses are predominantly transmitted to susceptible vertebrates by a mosquito vector. Alphavirus disease in humans can be severely debilitating, and depending on the particular viral species, infection may result in encephalitis and possibly life threatening symptoms. Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is the aetiological agent represents a substantial health burden to affected populations, with clinical symptoms that include severe joint and muscle pain, rashes, and fever, as well as prolonged periods of disability in some patients. In recent years, CHIKV has received significant attention from public health authorities as a consequence of the dramatic emergence infections in the Indian Ocean islands and the Caribbean as well as the recent emergence of CHIKV in the Americas. Infections have also been reported around Europe such as in Italy, France and Greece. Currently, no safe, approved or effective vaccine or treatment exists for CHIKV infection. The ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS), the major intracellular proteolytic pathway, mediates different kinds of cellular processes, which may be targeted by viruses to aid their replication within cells. In recent years it has been well established that both the forward reaction of ubiquitination, and the reverse reaction of deubiquitination are targeted during virus infection to enhance their replication, either by targeting of cellular proteins or encoding viral homologues of key pathway proteins. The reverse reaction is undertaken by a large family of enzymes termed deubiquitylases or DUBs, and many of these have been shown to play a crucial role, not only in virus replication but also in the regulation of the immune system and vesicle trafficking. The DUBs are attractive drug targets and have increasingly been implicated in cellular processes germane to malignancy which makes the continued characterisation of the role of DUBs during virus infection a worthwhile objective. In on-going experiments in the research group a DUB siRNA pools library screen identified 12 DUBs (USP1, USP4, USP5, USP34, USP45, USP46, OTUD6A, UCHL1, JOSD2, BRCC3 and MYSM1). Depletion of these hits in HeLa cells lead to an increase in cell viability following Semiliki Forest Virus (SFV) infection (and predicted to be pro-viral) and thus could potential be candidate antiviral targets. Inroads into understanding the role of the DUB hits during the alphavirus infection, focusing initial on the BSL2 model virus SFV, and extending this to CHIKV (at BSL3). In the present study, further screening focused on the deconvolution siRNA pools for the DUB hits. Investigation of the subsequent follow up experiments with one strong candidate DUB from this list, MYSM1. Two different approaches were taken. Firstly, the effect of depletion of MYSM1 by siRNA treatment was further investigated in HeLa cells. Secondly, the analysis was extended to investigate the role of MYSM1 in fibroblasts utilising MYSM1 genetic knockout murine embryo fibroblasts. Results from this study indicate that depletion of MYSM1 in HeLa cells by siRNAs resulted in a reduction in both SFV and CHIKV replication, as assayed by measuring RNA levels and plaque formation. It was also found that MYSM1 genetic knockout in MEF cells lead to increase in both SFV and CHIKV replication. In addition, depletion of MYSM1 by siRNAs in MRC-5 cells lead to increase in SFV replication. In conclusion, MYSM1 generated interesting data, implying a role during virus infection that appeared to depend on the cell type being infected. Up to now it is unclear what the effector mechanisms are that contribute to these observations, subject to further mechanistic and functional studies, may increase the options available for targeting this vital DUB during Alphavirus infections.
This research concentrate on cultivated Iraqi Agave attenuata dried leaves and roots, because of little studies on this plant especially on the root that lead to the eager of study and comparison of phytochemical constituents between leaves and root. Extraction of bioactive constituents was carried out using several solvents with increasing polarity (n-hexane, ethyl acetate and methanol) by soxhlet apparatus. Steroidal saponins in Agave genus is well documented in many species, lightening the minds in this research on extraction method which is specific for steroidal saponins. Phytochemical screening was done by GC/MS for n-hexane fraction, qualitative and quantitative estimation of several bioactive constituents (caffe
... Show MoreThis study develops a systematic density functional theory alongside on-site Coulomb interaction correction (DFT + U) and ab initio atomistic thermodynamics approachs for ternary (or mixed transitional metal oxides), expressed in three reservoirs. As a case study, among notable multiple metal oxides, synthesized CoCu2O3 exhibits favourable properties towards applications in solar, thermal and catalytic processes. This progressive contribution applies DFT + U and atomistic thermodynamic approaches to examine the structure and relative stability of CoCu2O3 surfaces. Twenty-five surfaces along the [001], [010], [100], [011], [101], [110] and [111] low-Miller-indices, with varying surface-termination configurations were selected in this study.
... Show MoreSix house-hold Abyssinian pumps distributed in different villages of Mansoura (Mans-I, Mans-II and Mans-III) and Talkha (Talk-I, Talk-II and Talk-III) cities, Egypt, have been selected for regular seasonal water quality assessment during 2017. Water samples have been collected within the mid-periods of four seasons Standard assessment tools were employed for the integrated water quality assessment including Water Quality Index (WQI) and ISO standard algal toxicity test. WQI displayed remarkable local and seasonal variations with excellent (≥ 90) and good (70 - 89) only recorded for water samples collected from Mans-I pump located in sparsely populated area and far 50 meters only from the eastern (Damietta) branch of Nile River. WQI of
... Show MoreIn this study, a mercapto-quinazolinone derivative, 3-(4-Bromobenzyl)-2-mercaptoquinazolin-4(3H)-one (compound B), was synthesized and assessed as a corrosion inhibitor for carbon steel (CS45) in 1M hydrochloric acid. The synthesis began with anthranilic acid and involved two main steps: first, the formation of a thiocyanate intermediate, followed by its reaction with anthranilic acid to produce compound B. The chemical structure of the synthesized compound was confirmed using FT-IR, 1H-NMR, and 13C-NMR techniques. The corrosion inhibition performance of compound B was evaluated at different concentrations (0.01, 0.05, 0.1, and 0.3 M) and temperatures (293, 303, and 313 K) in acidic media. Potentiodynamic polarization measu
... Show MoreType 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a chronic disorder that is a serious health concern all over the globe, it is linked to Interleukin-10 (IL-10) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at the promoter region. On the other hand, diabetes influences the cellular and humoral immunity predisposing the patient to a variety of opportunistic parasites one of them is Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii), which may infect any nucleated cell, including pancreatic cells. The purpose of this research was to explore the association of IL-10 genetic polymorphisms with T2DM and latent toxoplasmosis among Iraqi patients with T2DM. Fifty-five and fifty-eight venous blood samples were taken from T2DM patients and age-matched non-diabetic person
... Show MoreIn the ongoing series of our research, we prepared a new multifunctional azo-vanillin ligand (HL) and its Cu(II) complex to investigate their potential as versatile compounds for industrial/pharmaceutical purposes. Structural integrity was determined through spectroscopic analyses (FT-IR, NMR, Mass and UV-Vis), highlighting a distorted square planar geometry for the metal complex. The ligand was examined for its dyeing potential on wool and cotton with the latter showing better substantivity to cellulosic fibers and behaving as a good direct dye having excellent washing fastness. Furthermore, leveraging its surface-active properties, the ligand was tested as a green corrosion inhibitor for C-45 steel in a saline medium (3.5% NaCl) acr
... Show MoreAim: The reduction in the amount of marginal bone is the most important demand for the long term success of dental implants. This prospective clinical study was aimed to investigate the marginal bone loss of early loaded SLActive implants with different dimensions and surgical approaches. Materials and methods Fifteen patients aged from 18 to 60 years were divided into 2 groups (flapped and flapless approach) that underwent delayed implant placement protocol with SLActive implants. The marginal bone level was estimated by cone-beam computed tomography during three different periods: preoperatively, 8 weeks after surgery and 24 weeks after loading of the prosthesis. Results: The mean value of marginal bone level was not significantly chan
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