Aug 2026· Proteins: Structure, Function, and Bioinformatics· 0 citations
Medicine
TL;DR
This study enhances the understanding of the E. coli-genome nature and suggests the existence of specific and experimentally testable novel prions in this organism, and moves a step forward towards the identification of new prion proteins in bacteria.
Abstract
Prions are infectious proteins that bear misfolded conformations capable of converting folded states into misfolded aggregates under physiologically relevant conditions. In mammals, prions cause deadly maladies including Creutzfeldt-Jakob and chronic wasting disease. To date, several prion proteins have been identified in eukaryotes, primarily vertebrates and fungi. There are, however, very few established prions in bacteria. Interestingly, the sequence of most vertebrate and yeast prions has bimodal characteristics. Namely, it comprises one intrinsically disordered and one folded region of comparable size. Here, we took advantage of this property to develop the PUFF algorithm, which can computationally identify Protein Unfolding/Folding Frameworks based on amino-acid sequence alone. After extensive validations with known prions from different organisms, we employed PUFF to predict juxtaposed intrinsically disordered and folded large regions across the E. coli proteome. Based on this criterion, PUFF predicted the presence of 102 novel 1st-generation prions. Additional analysis, taking sub-cellular compartmentalization and tryptophan distribution into account, led to establishing a refined group of 6 cytoplasmic 2nd-generation prion candidates. Some of these have unknown functions, while others are experimentally well-characterized proteins that are primarily involved in gene expression but were not previously flagged as prions. This study enhances our understanding of the E. coli-genome nature and suggests the existence of specific and experimentally testable novel prions in this organism. In all, our work moves a step forward towards the identification of new prions in bacteria.
This study constructed a pH-responsive P-TN/SF@Fe-Cur composite coating that demonstrated significant anti-infective, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, pro-angiogenic, and pro-osteogenic effects in rat subcutaneous infection and femoral defect models.
ProteinReasoner is developed, a multimodal generative protein foundation model that sequentially connects amino acid sequence, evolutionary constraints and three-dimensional structure within a shared autoregressive architecture and suggests a general route towards reasoning across interdependent representations in other scientific domains.
Chaozhong Liu, Linlin Chao, Shaomin Ji et al.· bioRxiv· 1 citation
Due to its importance and wide adoption, wheat cultivation is promptly required to shift towards sustainable practices, reducing the dependency on chemical components. Among bio-based solutions aimed at securing the sustainability of wheat cultivation, biostimulants offer a versatile platform of eco-friendly tools assuring sustainability and profitability. Microalgae present a concrete example of a biostimulant source due to their richness in metabolites and high value products. Therefore, this study evaluated the biostimulant potential of eleven eco-extracts prepared from soil-isolated microalgae strains. Eco-extracts applied via soil drench at low dose (0.1 g/L) were investigated for their biostimulant effects on wheat growth, physiology, yield, and quality under controlled conditions. Results demonstrated significant ameliorations in treated plants as compared to the control, with no phytoinhibitory effects. Remarkable enhancements were notable in growth parameters such as shoot and root lengths (+40-70%), physiological traits such as total chlorophyll and stomatal conductance (+7-52%), yield components in the example of grain number per spike and thousand grain weight (+17-103%), and grain quality namely protein and polyphenol content (+2-fold to 4-fold). Similarly, phosphorus accumulation and uptake were significantly improved, while soil physicochemical status was ameliorated, indicating enhanced fertility. Multivariate analysis and composite index ranking marked Chlorella sp. GA18, Chlorella sp. GA65, Scenedesmus sp. GA69, and Chlorococcum sp. GA63 as eco-extracts with consistent performances across all plant traits. These findings highlighted the promising potential of integrating microalgae-based eco-friendly extracts in sustainable wheat cultivation.
Amer Chabili, Z. Hakkoum, F. Minaoui et al.· Plant Science· 1 citation
HydroGym is introduced, a solver-independent reinforcement learning platform providing more than 60 validated, openly available flow control environments spanning from canonical laminar flows to complex turbulent flows, with systematic progression in the Reynolds number up to Re = 4 × 105, and Mach number variations in two and three dimensions.
Christian Lagemann, Sajeda Mokbel, Miro Gondrum et al.· Nature· 1 citation
ABSTRACT Microplastics (MPs) accumulation in ecosystem and human organs poses urgent environmental and health risks, yet few enzymes efficiently degrade polyethylene terephthalate (PET) under physiological conditions. We leveraged deep learning to mine unexplored sequence space across 246 million proteins, discovering AhPETase, an evolutionarily distinct hydrolase with low homology (<50% sequence identity) to known PET‐degrading enzymes. This noncanonical biocatalyst efficiently depolymerizes PET at 37°C, outperforming all typical PETases and achieving a 7.76‐fold enhancement over IsPETase, one of the most representative mesophilic PETases. Additionally, engineered variant AhPETaseM1 retains functional activity for over 20 days under physiological conditions and can degrade post‐consumer PET MPs 34‐fold faster than recombinant human‐derived enzyme MG8 (rMG8) under equal enzyme loading. Critically, it reversed PET‐induced toxicity in human lung and colon cells, establishing the first proof‐of‐concept for enzymatic MPs detoxification.
Yuxuan Wang, Shijie He, Yuheng Chang et al.· Advancement of science· 0 citations