Genetic manipulation of giant viruses and their host, Acanthamoeba castellanii

Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

Evolution of giant pandoravirus revealed by CRISPR/Cas9

Hugo Bisio et al.

Summary: In this study, the researchers used CRISPR/Cas9 technology to genetically modify amoebal giant viruses, and found evidence suggesting that their giant size evolved gradually, possibly as an adaptation to uncertain environments.

NATURE COMMUNICATIONS (2023)

添加到收藏夹

Article Parasitology

Clinical and molecular diagnosis of Acanthamoeba keratitis in contact lens wearers in southern Brazil reveals the presence of an endosymbiont

Denise Leal dos Santos et al.

Summary: This study reported the clinical and molecular diagnosis outcomes of Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) cases in the southern region of Brazil during the summer of 2019. The presence of a bacterial endosymbiont in Acanthamoeba isolates requires further research to understand its potential role in the pathogenicity of Acanthamoeba infections.

PARASITOLOGY RESEARCH (2022)

添加到收藏夹

Article Microbiology

Toxoplasma gondii phosphatidylserine flippase complex ATP2B-CDC50.4 critically participates in microneme exocytosis

Hugo Bisio et al.

Summary: This study identifies the role of a type P4-ATPase and its chaperone CDC50 in regulating microneme exocytosis in apicomplexan parasites. The researchers found that this protein complex is responsible for maintaining the asymmetric distribution of phosphatidylserine in the parasite plasma membrane, which is crucial for microneme fusion with the plasma membrane. These findings highlight the importance of membrane homeostasis and lipid composition in controlling microneme secretion.

PLOS PATHOGENS (2022)

添加到收藏夹

Review Microbiology

Giant virus biology and diversity in the era of genome-resolved metagenomics

Frederik Schulz et al.

Summary: The discovery of giant viruses with similar characteristics as bacteria and cellular organisms has been a significant breakthrough in biology. Previously, our knowledge of giant viruses was limited to a small number of species-level isolates obtained through laboratory-based co-cultivation. However, advances in sequencing technologies and bioinformatics have expanded our understanding of giant viruses, their diversity, and their impact on global nutrient cycles.

NATURE REVIEWS MICROBIOLOGY (2022)

添加到收藏夹

Review Microbiology

Giant Viruses as a Source of Novel Enzymes for Biotechnological Application

Ellen Goncalves de Oliveira et al.

Summary: This review presents the peculiarities of giant viruses that infect protists and discusses why they should be considered an outstanding source of new enzymes. By revisiting the genomes and studying the enzymatic machinery of different groups of giant viruses, this review highlights several genes involved in carbohydrate metabolism, DNA replication, and RNA processing that can be explored in biotechnology. Additionally, structural biology evidence using chitinase as a model reinforces the importance of giant viruses as a source of novel enzymes for biotechnological applications.

PATHOGENS (2022)

添加到收藏夹

Article Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Chromosome-scale assemblies of Acanthamoeba castellanii genomes provide insights into Legionella pneumophila infection-related chromatin reorganization

Cyril Matthey-Doret et al.

Summary: Researchers have obtained the complete genome sequences of two strains of the unicellular amoeba Acanthamoeba castellanii and identified strain-specific functional enrichment, as well as changes in chromatin organization during infection by Legionella pneumophila.

GENOME RESEARCH (2022)

添加到收藏夹

Article Mathematical & Computational Biology

ApE, A Plasmid Editor: A Freely Available DNA Manipulation and Visualization Program

M. Wayne Davis et al.

Summary: A plasmid Editor (ApE) is a free, multi-platform application that allows visualization, design, and presentation of biologically relevant DNA sequences. It offers manual annotation as well as the use of a user-defined library of features. ApE can be used for designing plasmids and other constructs through in silico simulation of cloning methods.

FRONTIERS IN BIOINFORMATICS (2022)

添加到收藏夹

Letter Virology

On the Calculation of TCID50 for Quantitation of Virus Infectivity

Chengfeng Lei et al.

VIROLOGICA SINICA (2021)

添加到收藏夹

Editorial Material Infectious Diseases

Acanthamoeba keratitis: an increasingly common infectious disease of the cornea

Binod Rayamajhee et al.

LANCET MICROBE (2021)

添加到收藏夹

Article Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Virus-encoded histone doublets are essential and form nucleosome-like structures

Yang Liu et al.

Summary: Recent studies have challenged the traditional view of nucleosome organization in eukaryotes by identifying minimalist histones in archaea and discovering genes encoding remote homologs of eukaryotic histones in giant viruses. The presence of viral doublet histones, essential for viral infectivity, suggests a specialized function of histones in the biology of these unusual viruses. Cryo-EM structures of viral nucleosome-like particles show similarities to eukaryotic nucleosomes despite limited sequence identity, further expanding the range of organisms that require nucleosomes.

CELL (2021)

添加到收藏夹

Article Microbiology