Microglial cells, as the primary defense line in the central nervous system, play a crucial role in responding to various mechanical signals that can trigger their activation. Despite extensive research on the impact of chemical signaling on brain cells, the understanding of mechanical signaling in microglia remains limited. To bridge this gap, we ...
Inherited kidney diseases are among the leading causes of chronic kidney disease, reducing the quality of life and resulting in substantial socioeconomic impact. The advent of early genetic testing and the growing understanding of the molecular basis and pathophysiology of these disorders have opened avenues for novel treatment strategies. Viral ve...
Disease-associated variants of TUBA4A (alpha-tubulin 4A) have recently been identified in familial ALS. Interestingly, a downregulation of TUBA4A protein expression was observed in familial as well as sporadic ALS brain tissue. To investigate whether a decreased TUBA4A expression could be a driving factor in ALS pathogenesis, we assessed whether TU...
Transcription factors (TFs) can define distinct cellular identities despite nearly identical DNA-binding specificities. One mechanism for achieving regulatory specificity is DNA-guided TF cooperativity. Although in vitro studies suggest that it may be common, examples of such cooperativity remain scarce in cellular contexts. Here, we demonstrate ho...
ATG9A, a transmembrane protein of the core autophagy pathway, cycles between the Golgi, endosomes and a vesicular compartment. ATG9A was recently shown to act as a lipid scramblase, and this function is thought to require its interaction with another core autophagy protein, ATG2A, which acts as a lipid transfer protein. Together, ATG9A and ATG2A ar...
The plant-based meat alternative market is experiencing rapid growth. However, whether this growth extends to mainstream consumers will depend on the sensory profile, emotional profile, and situational appropriateness of these products. This study provides a sensory comparison between two plant-based burgers, one hybrid burger, and a conventional 1...
Zamne is a wild legume and a famine food that attracts interest for its health benefits and has become a delicacy in Burkina Faso. This study aimed to determine the nutritional quality of the traditionally cooked Zamne, appreciate the effectiveness of the traditional cooking process, and compare the properties of the traditionally used cooking alka...
The plant DNA damage response (DDR) pathway safeguards genomic integrity by rapid recognition and repair of DNA lesions that, if unrepaired, may cause genome instability. Most frequently, DNA repair goes hand in hand with a transient cell cycle arrest, which allows cells to repair the DNA lesions before engaging in a mitotic event, but consequently...
Microbes are powerful upgraders, able to convert simple substrates to nutritional metabolites at rates and yields surpassing those of higher organisms by a factor of 2 to 10. A summary table highlights the superior efficiencies of a whole array of microbes compared to conventionally farmed animals and insects, converting nitrogen and organics to fo...
Objective: The interplay of gut microbiota with the kidney system in chronic kidney disease (CKD), is characterized by increased concentrations of uric acid in the gut, which in turn, may increase bacterial uricase activity and may lead to the generation of uremic toxins. Nevertheless, knowledge on these underlying bidirectional molecular mechanism...
