Contact dependent growth inhibition (CDI) is the phenomenon where CDI+ bacterial strain (inhibitor) inhibits the growth of CDI-strain (target) by direct cell to cell contact. CDI is mediated by cdiBAI gene cluster where CdiB facilitates the export of CdiA, an exotoxin, on the cell surface and CdiI acts as an immunity protein to protect CDI+ cells from autoinhibition. CdiA-CT, the C-terminal reg...

Clathrin-independent endocytosis is an umbrella term for a variety of endocytic pathways that internalize numerous cargoes independently of the canonical coat protein Clathrin [1, 2]. Electron-microscopy studies have defined the pleiomorphic CLathrin-Independent Carriers (CLICs) and GPI-Enriched Endocytic Compartments (GEECs) as related major players in such uptake [3, 4]. This CLIC/GEEC pathwa...

Bacillus anthracis, the causative agent of anthrax, secretes a tri-partite exotoxin that exerts pleiotropic effects on the host. The purification of the exotoxin components, protective antigen, lethal factor, and edema factor allowed the rapid characterization of their physiologic effects on the host. As molecular biology matured, interest focused on the molecular mechanisms and cellular altera...

The present study aimed to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of peppermint oil against Staphylococcus aureus, and further investigate the influence of peppermint oil on S. aureus virulence-related exoprotein production. The data show that peppermint oil, which contained high contents of menthone, isomenthone, neomenthol, menthol, and menthyl acetate, was active against S. aureus with minimal ...

The protective antigen protein, one of the three separate proteins constituting the exotoxin system of Bacillus anthracis, has been crystallized in a form suitable for structural studies. The crystal form which is most amenable to x-ray analysis is orthorhombic, space group P2(1)2(1)2(1), a = 101.1 A, b = 95.4 A, c = 87.3 A, with one protective antigen monomer/asymmetric unit. The crystals diff...

1. The production of exotoxin and of endotoxin by normal Shiga dysentery bacilli and by strains resistant to Laudman phage was found to be the same. 2. The presence of phage did not alter toxin production by the resistant organism.

HIV treatment with highly active anti-retroviral therapy cannot eliminate latent reservoirs of HIV. In a recent paper, Root and Hamer describe a novel targeting mechanism for killing HIV-infected cells. They show that 5-helix (a gp41-binding protein) fused to a Pseudomonas exotoxin fragment can selectively kill cells displaying envelope proteins on their surface from a broad range of HIV strains.

The tripartite protein exotoxin secreted by Bacillus anthracis, a major contributor to its virulence and anthrax pathogenesis, consists of binary complexes of the protective antigen (PA) heptamer (PA63h), produced by proteolytic cleavage of PA, together with either lethal factor or edema factor. The mouse monoclonal anti-PA antibody 1G3 was previously shown to be a potent antidote that shares F...