Publications related to Ligand Binding to the Collagen VI Receptor Triggers a Talin-to-RhoA Switch that Regulates Receptor Endocytosis

From Sequence to Dynamics to Function: Computational Design of Allostery and Ligand Selectivity in G-Protein Coupled Receptors

The phenomenon of allostery, a general property in proteins that has been heralded as "the second secret of life" remains elusive to our understanding and even more challenging to incorporate into protein design. One example of allosteric proteins with gre ...

EPFL2024

Ultraviolet Superradiance from Mega-Networks of Tryptophan in Biological Architectures

Majed Chergui, Katrin Elisabeth Oberhofer

Networks of tryptophan (Trp)& horbar;an aromatic amino acid with strong fluorescence response & horbar;are ubiquitous in biological systems, forming diverse architectures in transmembrane proteins, cytoskeletal filaments, subneuronal elements, photorecepto ...

Amer Chemical Soc2024

Engineering hydrogel microenvironments for epithelial organoid culture

Antonius Chrisnandy

Organoids, miniature tissues generated from self-organizing stem cells within three-dimensional (3D) extracellular matrices (ECM), have opened up exciting possibilities for in vitro studies of complex physiological processes. A key factor in the success of ...

EPFL2024

Antibodies expand the scope of angiotensin receptor pharmacology

Patrick Daniel Barth, Shuhao Zhang

G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are key regulators of human physiology and are the targets of many small-molecule research compounds and therapeutic drugs. While most of these ligands bind to their target GPCR with high affinity, selectivity is often l ...

2024

A role for the carbon source of the cell and protein kinase A in regulating the S. pombe septation initiation network

Bastien Mangeat, Viesturs Simanis, Andrea Krapp, Özge Uysal Özdemir

The septation initiation network (SIN) is a conserved signal transduction network, which is important for cytokinesis in Schizosaccharomyces pombe. The SIN component Etd1p is required for association of some SIN proteins with the spindle pole body (SPB) du ...

2024

Primary data for "A role for the carbon source of the cell and protein kinase A in regulating the S. pombe septation initiation network"

Bastien Mangeat, Viesturs Simanis, Andrea Krapp, Özge Uysal Özdemir

The Septation Initiation Network (SIN) is a conserved signal transduction network, which is important for cytokinesis in S. pombe. The SIN component Etd1p is required for association of some SIN proteins with the spindle pole body (SPB) during anaphase and ...

EPFL Infoscience2024

Computational drug development for membrane protein targets

Henning Paul-Julius Stahlberg, Pierre Vogel, Shuguang Yuan, Dongchun Ni, Babatunde Edukpe Ekundayo

The application of computational biology in drug development for membrane protein targets has experienced a boost from recent developments in deep learning-driven structure prediction, increased speed and resolution of structure elucidation, machine learni ...

2024

Unlocking Hidden Potential: Exploring the Complexities of Signaling in Immune Cell Activation to Optimize CAR Therapy

Mathieu Girardin

Chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) are synthetic, transmembrane proteins that trigger immune cell signaling following their engagement. They have been first utilized in T cells and later in natural killer (NK) cells to redirect their cytotoxicity toward a s ...

EPFL2023

Rules and mechanisms governing G protein coupling selectivity of GPCRs

Bruno Emanuel Ferreira De Sousa Correia, Pablo Gainza Cirauqui

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) convert extracellular stimuli into intracellular signaling by coupling to heterotrimeric G proteins of four classes: Gi/o, Gq, Gs, and G12/13. However, our understanding of the G protein selectivity of GPCRs is incomplet ...

Cell Press2023

Microfluidic device combining hydrodynamic and dielectrophoretic trapping for the controlled contact between single micro-sized objects and application to adhesion assays

Philippe Renaud, Arnaud Bertsch, Clémentine Sophie Sarah Lipp

The understanding of cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions via receptor and ligand binding relies on our ability to study the very first events of their contact. Of particular interest is the interaction between a T cell receptor and its cognate peptide-m ...

ROYAL SOC CHEMISTRY2023

Exploring the interplay of molecular pattern and valency for selective interactions at the bio-interface

Kaltrina Paloja

Cell-cell communication is fundamental for immune balance. Multivalent interactions of surface receptors at immune interfaces drive specific communication, with stimulatory and inhibitory signals guiding the immune outcome. Notably, the valency, affinity, ...

EPFL2023

AAV9-mediated SMN gene therapy rescues cardiac desmin but not lamin A/C and elastin dysregulation in Smn(2B/-) spinal muscular atrophy mice

Bernard Schneider

Structural, functional and molecular cardiac defects have been reported in spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) patients and mouse models. Previous quantitative proteomics analyses demonstrated widespread molecular defects in the severe Taiwanese SMA mouse model. ...

Oxford University Press2023

Quantifying single-cell diacylglycerol signaling kinetics after uncaging

Milena Maria Schuhmacher, Pavel Barahtjan

Studying the role of molecularly distinct lipid species in cell signaling remains challenging due to a scarcity of methods for performing quantitative lipid biochemistry in living cells. We have recently used lipid uncaging to quantify lipid -pro-tein affi ...

Cell Press2023

Mechanical Properties and Nanomotion of BT-20 and ZR-75 Breast Cancer Cells Studied by Atomic Force Microscopy and Optical Nanomotion Detection Method

Sandor Kasas, María Inés Villalba

Cells of two molecular genetic types of breast cancer-hormone-dependent breast cancer (ZR-75 cell line) and triple-negative breast cancer (BT-20 cell line)-were studied using atomic force microscopy and an optical nanomotion detection method. Using the Pea ...

MDPI2023

Development of a novel Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) for its use in Natural Killer (NK) cells for cancer treatment and beyond

Angela Madurga Alonso

The use of CAR technologies has revolutionized cancer treatment. Their unprecedented efficacy against B cell malignancies has opened the doors for a lot of excitement and research in the field. These synthetic receptors are composed of an antigen recogniti ...

EPFL2023

Screening for drivers of SARS-CoV-2 uptake

Christoph Merten, Alexis Louis Autour

Genetic and cellular drivers of the cellular uptake of SARS-CoV-2 can be screened at high throughput via droplet microfluidics and size-exclusion methods for the analysis of the formation of fusions between cells expressing the virus's spike protein and ce ...

Nature Portfolio2023

Synthetic Receptors with Micromolar Affinity for Chloride in Water

Kay Severin, Sylvain Alexandre Marie Sudan, Farzaneh Fadaei Tirani, Damien Wen Chen, Cesare Berton

A water-soluble coordination cage was obtained by reaction of Pd(NO3)2 with a 1,3-di(pyridin-3-yl)benzene ligand featuring a short PEG chain. The cavity of the metal-organic cage contains one nitrate anion, which is readily replaced by chloride. The appare ...

Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH2023

Towards Uncovering the Mechanisms of Electrophile Sensing and Signaling

Chloé Rogg

Native reactive electrophile species (RES) such as 4-hydroxynonenal (HNE) act as cellular signals through covalent modification of kinetically-privileged electrophile sensor proteins. Research efforts in the field focus mainly on identifying these sensor p ...

EPFL2023

Multivalent Virucidal Antivirals: Synthesis, Mechanisms of Action, and Immune-stimulating Effects

Yong Zhu

Viruses initiate invasion by binding to cell surface glycoproteins. Materials mimicking the carbohydrate motifs of these glycoproteins, such as heparan sulfate (HS) and sialic acid (SA) can block viral attachment and inhibit the infection. Multivalent disp ...

EPFL2023

Implementing Multi-Electron Transfer Strategies in Uranium Chemistry

Dieuwertje Katelijn Modder

In the last decades, the activation of small molecules has attracted increasing attention for their use as cheap and abundant feedstock. Low-oxidation state uranium complexes have displayed high reactivity towards small molecules thanks to their unique pro ...

EPFL2023