Published in Journal of Structural Biology
NADPH-dependent assimilatory sulfite reductase (SiR) from Escherichia coli performs a six-electron reduction of sulfite to the bioavailable sulfide. SiR is composed of a flavoprotein (SiRFP) reductase subunit and a hemoprotein (SiRHP) oxidase subunit. There is no known high-resolution structure of SiR or SiRFP, thus we do not yet fully understand h...
Published in Journal of structural biology
14-3-3 proteins are important dimeric scaffolds that regulate the function of hundreds of proteins in a phosphorylation-dependent manner. The SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid (N) protein forms a complex with human 14-3-3 proteins upon phosphorylation, which has also been described for other coronaviruses. Here, we report a high-resolution crystal structure ...
Published in Journal of structural biology
An open-source Python library EMDA for cryo-EM map and model manipulation is presented with a specific focus on validation. The use of several functionalities in the library is presented through several examples. The utility of local correlation as a metric for identifying map-model differences and unmodeled regions in maps, and how it is used as a...
Published in Journal of structural biology
The antigenic epitope regions of pathogens (e.g., viruses) are recognized by antibodies (Abs) and subsequently cleared by the host immune system, thereby protecting us from disease. Some of these epitopes are conserved among different variants or subgroups of pathogens (e.g., Influenza (FLU) viruses, Coronaviruses), hence can be targeted for potent...
Published in Journal of structural biology
Bacteria use adaptive CRISPR-Cas immune mechanisms to protect from invasion by bacteriophages and other mobile genetic elements. In response, bacteriophages and mobile genetic elements have co-evolved anti-CRISPR proteins to inhibit the bacterial defense. We and others have previously shown that anti-CRISPR associated (Aca) proteins can regulate th...
Published in Journal of Structural Biology
Published in Journal of Structural Biology
Bacterial type III secretion systems assemble the axial structures of both injectisomes and flagella. Injectisome type III secretion systems subsequently secrete effector proteins through their hollow needle into a host, requiring co-ordination. In the Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium SPI-2 injectisome, this switch is triggered by sensing th...
Published in Journal of structural biology
The high SARS-CoV-2 reproductive number driving the COVID-19 pandemic has been a mystery. Our recent in vitro, and in vivo coronaviral pathogenesis studies involving Mouse Hepatitis Virus (MHV-A59) suggest a crucial role for a small host membrane-virus contact initiator region of the Spike protein, called the fusion peptide that enhances the virus ...
Published in Journal of Structural Biology
Support films are commonly used during cryo-EM specimen preparation to both immobilise the sample and minimise the exposure of particles at the air-water interface. Here we report preparation protocols for carbon and graphene supported single particle electron microscopy samples using a novel 3D-printed sample transfer block to facilitate the direc...
Published in Journal of structural biology
COVID-19 pandemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2, has drastically affected human health all over the world. After the emergence of the pandemic the major focus of efforts to attenuate the infection has been on repurposing the already approved drugs to treat COVID-19 adopting a fast-track strategy. However, to date a specific regimen to treat COVID-19 is not...
