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Murthy MHS, Jasbi P, Lowe W, Kumar L, Olaosebikan M, Roger L, Yang J, Lewinski N, Daniels N, Cowen L, Klein-Seetharaman J. Insulin signaling and pharmacology in humans and in corals. PeerJ 2024; 12:e16804. [PMID: 38313028 PMCID: PMC10838073 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.16804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 12/27/2023] [Indexed: 02/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Once thought to be a unique capability of the Langerhans islets in the pancreas of mammals, insulin (INS) signaling is now recognized as an evolutionarily ancient function going back to prokaryotes. INS is ubiquitously present not only in humans but also in unicellular eukaryotes, fungi, worms, and Drosophila. Remote homologue identification also supports the presence of INS and INS receptor in corals where the availability of glucose is largely dependent on the photosynthetic activity of the symbiotic algae. The cnidarian animal host of corals operates together with a 20,000-sized microbiome, in direct analogy to the human gut microbiome. In humans, aberrant INS signaling is the hallmark of metabolic disease, and is thought to play a major role in aging, and age-related diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease. We here would like to argue that a broader view of INS beyond its human homeostasis function may help us understand other organisms, and in turn, studying those non-model organisms may enable a novel view of the human INS signaling system. To this end, we here review INS signaling from a new angle, by drawing analogies between humans and corals at the molecular level.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Paniz Jasbi
- School of Molecular Sciences, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, USA
| | - Whitney Lowe
- Departments of Chemistry & Physics, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO, United States
| | - Lokender Kumar
- Departments of Chemistry & Physics, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO, United States
| | | | - Liza Roger
- School of Molecular Sciences, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, USA
- School of Ocean Futures, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United States of America
| | - Jinkyu Yang
- Department of Aeronautics & Astronautics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Nastassja Lewinski
- Department of Chemical and Life Science Engineering, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA
| | - Noah Daniels
- Department of Computer Science, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, USA
| | - Lenore Cowen
- Department of Computer Science, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA
| | - Judith Klein-Seetharaman
- School of Molecular Sciences, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, USA
- Departments of Chemistry & Physics, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO, United States
- College of Health Solutions, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, United States
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Simau FA, Ahmed U, Khan KM, Khan NA, Siddiqui R, Alharbi AM, Alfahemi H, Anwar A. Lactase can target cellular differentiation of Acanthamoeba castellanii belonging to the T4 genotype. Parasitol Res 2024; 123:117. [PMID: 38294565 DOI: 10.1007/s00436-024-08131-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2023] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 02/01/2024]
Abstract
The free living Acanthamoeba spp. are ubiquitous amoebae associated with potentially blinding disease known as Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) and a fatal central nervous system infection granulomatous amoebic encephalitis (GAE). With the inherent ability of cellular differentiation, it can phenotypically transform to a dormant cyst form from an active trophozoite form. Acanthamoeba cysts are highly resistant to therapeutic agents as well as contact lens cleaning solutions. One way to tackle drug resistance against Acanthamoeba is by inhibiting the formation of cysts from trophozoites. The biochemical analysis showed that the major component of Acanthamoeba cyst wall is composed of carbohydrate moieties such as galactose and glucose. The disaccharide of galactose and glucose is lactose. In this study, we analyzed the potential of lactase enzyme to target carbohydrate moieties of cyst walls. Amoebicidal assessment showed that lactase was ineffective against trophozoite of A. castellanii but enhanced amoebicidal effects of chlorhexidine. The lactase enzyme did not show any toxicity against normal human keratinocyte cells (HaCaT) at the tested range. Hence, lactase can be used for further assessment for development of potential therapeutic agents in the management of Acanthamoeba infection as well as formulation of effective contact lens disinfectants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fathimath Afaaf Simau
- Department of Biological Sciences, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Subang Jaya, 47500, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Usman Ahmed
- Department of Biological Sciences, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Subang Jaya, 47500, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Khalid Mohammed Khan
- International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences, H. E. J. Research Institute of Chemistry, University of Karachi, Karachi, Pakistan
- Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Institute for Research and Medical Consultations (IRMC), Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia
| | - Naveed Ahmed Khan
- Microbiota Research Center, Istinye University, Istanbul, 34010, Turkey.
| | - Ruqaiyyah Siddiqui
- Microbiota Research Center, Istinye University, Istanbul, 34010, Turkey
- Institute of Biological Chemistry, Biophysics and Bioengineering, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, EH14 4AS, UK
| | - Ahmad M Alharbi
- Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Taif University, 21944, Taif, Saudi Arabia
| | - Hasan Alfahemi
- Department of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Al-Baha University, 65799, Al-Baha, Saudi Arabia
| | - Ayaz Anwar
- Department of Biological Sciences, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Subang Jaya, 47500, Selangor, Malaysia.
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Wang B, Zhang Z, Dong Y, Qiu Y, Ren J, Bi K, Ji X, Liu C, Zhou L, Dai Y. Machine-Learning-Enabled Ligand Screening for Cs/Sr Crystallizing Separation. Inorg Chem 2023; 62:13293-13303. [PMID: 37557894 DOI: 10.1021/acs.inorgchem.3c01564] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/11/2023]
Abstract
The reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel is critical for the sustainability of the nuclear energy industry. However, several key separation processes present challenges in this regard, calling for continuous research into next-generation separation materials. Herein, we propose a high-throughput screening framework to improve efficiency in identifying potential ligands that selectively coordinate metal cations of interest in liquid wastes that considers multiple key chemical characteristics, including aqueous solubility, pKa, and coordination bond length. Machine-learning models were designed for the fast and accurate prediction of these characteristics by using graph convolution and transfer-learning techniques. Suitable ligands for Cs/Sr crystallizing separation were identified through the "computational funnel", and several top-ranking, nontoxic, low-cost ligands were selected for experimental verification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bingbing Wang
- School of Chemical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Zhiyuan Zhang
- School of Chemical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Yue Dong
- School of Chemical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Yuqing Qiu
- School of Chemical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Junyu Ren
- School of Chemical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Kexin Bi
- School of Chemical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Xu Ji
- School of Chemical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Chong Liu
- School of Chemical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Li Zhou
- School of Chemical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Yiyang Dai
- School of Chemical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
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Gorai B, Vashisth H. Structural models of viral insulin-like peptides and their analogs. Proteins 2023; 91:62-73. [PMID: 35962629 PMCID: PMC9772067 DOI: 10.1002/prot.26410] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2022] [Revised: 07/21/2022] [Accepted: 08/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The insulin receptor (IR), the insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor (IGF1R), and the insulin/IGF1 hybrid receptors (hybR) are homologous transmembrane receptors. The peptide ligands, insulin and IGF1, exhibit significant structural homology and can bind to each receptor via site-1 and site-2 residues with distinct affinities. The variants of the Iridoviridae virus family show capability in expressing single-chain insulin/IGF1 like proteins, termed viral insulin-like peptides (VILPs), which can stimulate receptors from the insulin family. The sequences of VILPs lacking the central C-domain (dcVILPs) are known, but their structures in unbound and receptor-bound states have not been resolved to date. We report all-atom structural models of three dcVILPs (dcGIV, dcSGIV, and dcLCDV1) and their complexes with the receptors (μIR, μIGF1R, and μhybR), and probed the peptide/receptor interactions in each system using all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Based on the nonbonded interaction energies computed between each residue of peptides (insulin and dcVILPs) and the receptors, we provide details on residues establishing significant interactions. The observed site-1 insulin/μIR interactions are consistent with previous experimental studies, and a residue-level comparison of interactions of peptides (insulin and dcVILPs) with the receptors revealed that, due to sequence differences, dcVILPs also establish some interactions distinct from those between insulin and IR. We also designed insulin analogs and report enhanced interactions between some analogs and the receptors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Biswajit Gorai
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA
| | - Harish Vashisth
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA
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Evaluation of fluorescence-based viability stains in cells dissociated from scleractinian coral Pocillopora damicornis. Sci Rep 2022; 12:15297. [PMID: 36097278 PMCID: PMC9468155 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-19586-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2022] [Accepted: 08/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The application of established cell viability assays such as the commonly used trypan blue staining method to coral cells is not straightforward due to different culture parameters and different cellular features specific to mammalian cells compared to marine invertebrates. Using Pocillopora damicornis as a model, we characterized the autofluorescence and tested different fluorescent dye pair combinations to identify alternative viability indicators. The cytotoxicity of different representative molecules, namely small organic molecules, proteins and nanoparticles (NP), was measured after 24 h of exposure using the fluorescent dye pair Hoechst 33342 and SYTOX orange. Our results show that this dye pair can be distinctly measured in the presence of fluorescent proteins plus chlorophyll. P. damicornis cells exposed for 24 h to Triton-X100, insulin or titanium dioxide (TiO2) NPs, respectively, at concentrations ranging from 0.5 to 100 µg/mL, revealed a LC50 of 0.46 µg/mL for Triton-X100, 6.21 µg/mL for TiO2 NPs and 33.9 µg/mL for insulin. This work presents the approach used to customize dye pairs for membrane integrity-based cell viability assays considering the species- and genotype-specific autofluorescence of scleractinian corals, namely: endogenous fluorescence characterization followed by the selection of dyes that do not overlap with endogenous signals.
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Üstüntanır Dede AF, Arslanyolu M. The in vivo Tetrahymena thermophila extracellular glucose drop assay for characterization of mammalian insulin activity. Eur J Protistol 2021; 79:125803. [PMID: 34044354 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejop.2021.125803] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2021] [Revised: 03/22/2021] [Accepted: 05/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Insulin activity is generally determined by an in vivo rabbit blood glucose drop assay in research and industriel laboratories. The humane experimental techniques imply the use of alternative invertebrate organisms in place of animals, known as replacement rule of the 3Rs. In this study, we report an alternative in vivo extracellular glucose drop assay using unicellular invertebrate Tetrahymena thermophila to replace the use of rabbit and mouse. This assay has four major steps; growing cells, starving cells, treatment of cells and measurement of glucose drop. In this assay, 0.2 mg/ml of human, porcine and bovine insulins dropped extracellular glucose level to 16%, 14% and 12%, respectively in ten minutes. In addition, mammalian insulins respectively increased the cell area about 19%, 15%, and 16% at 6th hour with statistically significant effect on the cell growth, but not in the cell viability. The results showed that the in vivo Tetrahymena thermophila extracellular glucose drop assay could be used as an alternative assay to replace the mouse or the rabbit insulin blood glucose drop assay.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayça Fulya Üstüntanır Dede
- Department of Biology, Graduate School of Sciences, Eskisehir Technical University, Yunus Emre Campus, Eskisehir 26470, Turkey.
| | - Muhittin Arslanyolu
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Eskisehir Technical University, Yunus Emre Campus, Eskisehir, Turkey.
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