Controlling Intracellular Machinery via Polymer Pen Lithography Molecular Patterning

The plasma membrane and the actomyosin cytoskeleton play key roles in controlling how cells sense and interact with their surrounding environment. Myosin, a force-generating actin network-associated protein, is a major regulator of plasma membrane tension, which helps control endocytosis. Despite the important link between plasma membranes and actomyosin (the actin-myosin complex), little is known about how the actomyosin arrangement regulates endocytosis. Here, nanoscopic ligand arrangements defined by polymer pen lithography (PPL) are used to control actomyosin contractility and examine cell uptake. Confocal microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and flow cytometry suggest that the cytoskeletal tension imposed by the nanoscopic ligand arrangement can actively regulate cellular uptake through clathrin- and caveolin-mediated pathways. Specifically, ligand arrangements that increase cytoskeletal tension tend to reduce the cellular uptakes of cholera toxin (CTX) and spherical nucleic acids (SNAs) by regulating endocytic budding and limiting the formation of clathrin- and caveolae-coated pits. Collectively, this work demonstrates how the cell endocytic fate is regulated by actomyosin mechanical forces, which can be tuned by subcellular cues defined by PPL.

COVID-19 mRNA Vaccination Generates Greater Immunoglobulin G Levels in Women Compared to Men

We investigated whether the antibody response to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) mRNA vaccination is similar in women and men. In a community cohort without prior COVID-19, first vaccine dose produced higher immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels and percent inhibition of spike-ACE2 receptor binding, a surrogate measure of virus neutralization, in women compared to men (7.0 µg/mL, 51.6% vs 3.3 µg/mL, 36.4%). After 2 doses, IgG levels remained significantly higher for women (30.4 µg/mL) compared to men (20.6 µg/mL), while percent inhibition was similar (98.4% vs 97.7%). Sex-specific antibody response to mRNA vaccination informs future efforts to understand vaccine protection and side effects.

Cohabitation With a Known Coronavirus Disease 2019 Case Is Associated With Greater Antibody Concentration and Symptom Severity in a Community-Based Sample of Seropositive Adults

In a community-based sample of seropositive adults (n = 1101), we found that seropositive individuals who lived with a known coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) case exhibited higher blood anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 spike receptor-binding domain immunoglobulin G concentrations and greater symptom severity compared to seropositive individuals who did not live with a known COVID-19 case.