Université de Fribourg

Tissue-specific isoforms of the single C. elegans Ryanodine receptor gene unc-68 control specific functions

Marques, Filipe ; Thapliyal, Saurabh ; Javer, Avelino ; Shrestha, Priyanka ; Brown, André E. X. ; Glauser, Dominique A.

In: PLOS Genetics, 2020, vol. 16, no. 10, p. e1009102

Ryanodine receptors (RyR) are essential regulators of cellular calcium homeostasis and signaling. Vertebrate genomes contain multiple RyR gene isoforms, expressed in different tissues and executing different functions. In contrast, invertebrate genomes contain a single RyR-encoding gene and it has long been proposed that different transcripts generated by alternative splicing may diversify...

Université de Fribourg

Inference of natural selection from ancient DNA

Dehasque, Marianne ; Ávila‐Arcos, María C. ; Díez‐del‐Molino, David ; Fumagalli, Matteo ; Guschanski, Katerina ; Lorenzen, Eline D. ; Malaspinas, Anna‐Sapfo ; Marques‐Bonet, Tomas ; Martin, Michael D. ; Murray, Gemma G. R. ; Papadopulos, Alexander S. T. ; Therkildsen, Nina Overgaard ; Wegmann, Daniel ; Dalén, Love ; Foote, Andrew D.

In: Evolution Letters, 2020, vol. 4, no. 2, p. 94–108

Evolutionary processes, including selection, can be indirectly inferred based on patterns of genomic variation among contemporary populations or species. However, this often requires unrealistic assumptions of ancestral demography and selective regimes. Sequencing ancient DNA from temporally spaced samples can inform about past selection processes, as time series data allow direct...

Université de Fribourg

Assessment of the potential for in-plume sulphur dioxide gas-ash interactions to influence the respiratory toxicity of volcanic ash

Tomašek, Ines ; Damby, David E. ; Horwell, Claire J. ; Ayris, Paul M. ; Delmelle, Pierre ; Ottley, Christopher J. ; Cubillas, Pablo ; Casas, Ana S. ; Bisig, Christoph ; Petri-Fink, Alke ; Dingwell, Donald B. ; Clift, Martin J. D. ; Drasler, Barbara ; Rothen-Rutishauser, Barbara

In: Environmental Research, 2019, vol. 179, p. 108798

Volcanic plumes are complex environments composed of gases and ash particles, where chemical and physical processes occur at different temperature and compositional regimes. Commonly, soluble sulphate- and chloride-bearing salts are formed on ash as gases interact with ash surfaces. Exposure to respirable volcanic ash following an eruption is potentially a significant health concern. The...

Université de Fribourg

Predicting abundances of invasive ragweed across Europe using a “top-down” approach

Skjøth, Carsten Ambelas ; Sun, Yan ; Karrer, Gerhard ; Sikoparija, Branko ; Smith, Matt ; Schaffner, Urs ; Müller-Schärer, Heinz

In: Science of The Total Environment, 2019, vol. 686, p. 212–222

Common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.) is a widely distributed and harmful invasive plant that is an important source of highly allergenic pollen grains and a prominent crop weed. As a result, ragweed causes huge costs to both human health and agriculture in affected areas. Efficient mitigation requires accurate mapping of ragweed densities that, until now, has not been achieved...

Università della Svizzera italiana

The Tim-3-Galectin-9 Pathway and Its Regulatory Mechanisms in Human Breast Cancer

Yasinska, Inna M. ; Sakhnevych, Svetlana S. ; Pavlova, Ludmila ; Hansen Selnø, Anette Teo ; Teuscher Abeleira, Ana Maria ; Benlaouer, Ouafa ; Gonçalves Silva, Isabel ; Mosimann, Marianne ; Varani, Luca ; Bardelli, Marco ; Hussain, Rohanah ; Siligardi, Giuliano ; Cholewa, Dietmar ; Berger, Steffen M. ; Gibbs, Bernhard F. ; Ushkaryov, Yuri A. ; Fasler-Kan, Elizaveta ; Klenova, Elena ; Sumbayev, Vadim V.

In: Frontiers in immunology, 2019, vol. 10, p. 1594

Human cancer cells operate a variety of effective molecular and signaling mechanisms which allow them to escape host immune surveillance and thus progress the disease. We have recently reported that the immune receptor Tim-3 and its natural ligand galectin-9 are involved in the immune escape of human acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells. These cells use the neuronal receptor latrophilin 1...

Università della Svizzera italiana

Differential expression and biochemical activity of the immune receptor Tim-3 in healthy and malignant human myeloid cells

Gonçalves Silva, Isabel ; Gibbs, Bernhard F. ; Bardelli, Marco ; Varani, Luca ; Sumbayev, Vadim V.

In: Oncotarget, 2015, vol. 6, no. 32, p. 33823-33833

The T cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 3 (Tim-3) is a plasma membrane-associated receptor which is involved in a variety of biological responses in human immune cells. It is highly expressed in most acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) cells and therefore may serve as a possible target for AML therapy. However, its biochemical activities in primary human AML cells remain unclear. We therefore...

Università della Svizzera italiana

Crystal structure and size-dependent neutralization properties of HK20, a human monoclonal antibody binding to the highly conserved heptad repeat 1 of gp41

Sabin, Charles ; Corti, Davide ; Buzon, Victor ; Seaman, Mike S. ; Hulsik, David Lutje ; Hinz, Andreas ; Vanzetta, Fabrizia ; Agatic, Gloria ; Silacci, Chiara ; Mainetti, Lara ; Scarlatti, Gabriella ; Sallusto, Federica ; Weiss, Robin ; Lanzavecchia, Antonio ; Weissenhorn, Winfried

In: Plos pathogens, 2010, vol. 6, no. 11, p. e1001195

The human monoclonal antibody (mAb) HK20 neutralizes a broad spectrum of primary HIV-1 isolates by targeting the highly conserved heptad repeat 1 (HR1) of gp41, which is transiently exposed during HIV-1 entry. Here we present the crystal structure of the HK20 Fab in complex with a gp41 mimetic 5-Helix at 2.3 A° resolution. HK20 employs its heavy chain CDR H2 and H3 loops to bind into a...