Shigella flexneri causes human dysentery after invading the cells of the colonic epithelium. The best-studied effectors of Shigella entry into colonocytes are the invasion plasmid antigens IpaC and IpaB. These proteins are exported via a type III secretion system (TTSS) to form a pore in the host membrane that may allow the translocation of other effectors into the host cytoplasm. TTSS-mediated...

Formation of multiple-protein macromolecular complexes at specialized subcellular microdomains increases the specificity and efficiency of signaling in cells. In this study, we demonstrate that phosphodiesterase type 3A (PDE3A) physically and functionally interacts with cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) channel. PDE3A inhibition generates compartmentalized cyclic adenos...

Introduction: The effect of esophageal distension (ED) on gastric motility has been well documented, but a few investigations have been carried out on the effect of ED on gastric secretion. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of ED on gastric acid and pepsin secretion and the mechanism(s) involved. Methods: Male adult Wistar rats (200-240 g) were anesthetized with urethane (1...

We explore the potential of bacterial secretion systems as tools for genomic modification of human cells. We previously showed that foreign DNA can be introduced into human cells through the Type IV A secretion system of the human pathogen Bartonella henselae. Moreover, the DNA is delivered covalently attached to the conjugative relaxase TrwC, which promotes its integration into the recipient g...

There is a great demand for improved production of therapeutic proteins using mammalian cell expression systems and transgenic animals. There have been intensive endeavors to optimize production at the transcriptional and translational levels, but comparatively little attention has been paid to the secretory level, especially to nonclassical secretion. To compare the efficiencies of classical a...

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are Gram-positive bacteria and are generally regarded as safe (GRAS) organisms. Therefore, LAB could be used for heterologous protein secretion and they are good potential candidates as antigen delivery vehicles. To develop such live vaccines, a better control of protein secretion is required. We developed an efficient secretion system in the model LAB, Lactococcus la...

The aim of this study was to characterize the pathways of basolateral secretion of common dietary tocopherols from polarized Caco-2 monolayers, a model of intestinal absorption. Given differences in structure and physical properties, we hypothesized that secretion may differ between different forms of vitamin E, thus potentially contribute to the selectivity seen in vivo. Monolayers were incuba...

OBJECTIVE This study examined whether the association between cortisol secretion and changes in physical health symptoms would depend on other factors in a person's life. The authors expected that physical health effects would emerge particularly when cortisol disturbances co-occur in the context of high levels of trait negative affect or poor sleep. DESIGN Physical symptoms, diurnal cortisol...

Lactococcus lactis, a food-grade nonpathogenic lactic acid bacterium, is a good candidate for the production of heterologous proteins of therapeutic interest. We examined host factors that affect secretion of heterologous proteins in L. lactis. Random insertional mutagenesis was performed with L. lactis strain MG1363 carrying a staphylococcal nuclease (Nuc) reporter cassette in its chromosome. ...