Project description:Effective methods for predicting COVID-19 disease trajectories are urgently needed. Here, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and coronavirus antigen microarray (COVAM) analysis mapped antibody epitopes in the plasma of COVID-19 patients (n = 86) experiencing a wide range of disease states. The experiments identified antibodies to a 21-residue epitope from nucleocapsid (termed Ep9) associated with severe disease, including admission to the intensive care unit (ICU), requirement for ventilators, or death. Importantly, anti-Ep9 antibodies can be detected within 6 days post-symptom onset and sometimes within 1 day. Furthermore, anti-Ep9 antibodies correlate with various comorbidities and hallmarks of immune hyperactivity. We introduce a simple-to-calculate, disease risk factor score to quantitate each patient’s comorbidities and age. For patients with anti-Ep9 antibodies, scores above 3.0 predict more severe disease outcomes with a 13.42 likelihood ratio (96.7% specificity). The results lay the groundwork for a new type of COVID-19 prognostic to allow early identification and triage of high-risk patients. Such information could guide more effective therapeutic intervention.
Project description:We measued IgG autoantibodies associated with Connective Tissue Diseases (CTDs) and Anti-Cytokine Antibodies (ACA) in idiopathic Multicentric Castleman Disease (iMCD) patients and healthy controls who received the BNT162b2 vaccine.
Project description:Transcription factors (TF) recognize specific genomic sequences to regulate complex gene expression programs. Although it is well established that TFs bind specific DNA sequences using a combination of base readout and shape recognition, some fundamental aspects of protein-DNA binding remain poorly understood. Many DNA-binding proteins induce changes in the DNA structure outside the intrinsic B-DNA envelope. However, how the energetic cost associated with distorting DNA contributes to recognition has proven difficult to study because the distorted DNA exists in low-abundance in the unbound ensemble. Here, we use a novel high-throughput assay called SaMBA (Saturation Mismatch-Binding Assay) to investigate the role of DNA conformational penalties in TF-DNA recognition. In SaMBA, mismatches are introduced to pre-induce DNA structural distortions much larger than those induced by changes in Watson-Crick sequence. Strikingly, approximately 10% of mismatches increased TF binding, and at least one mismatch was found that increased the binding affinity for each of 22 examined TFs. Mismatches also converted non-specific sites into high-affinity sites, and high-affinity sites into super-sites stronger than any known canonical binding site. Determination of high-resolution X-ray structures, combined with NMR measurements and structural analyses revealed that many of the mismatches that increase binding induce distortions similar to those induced by protein binding, thus pre-paying some of the energetic cost to deform the DNA. Our work indicates that conformational penalties are a major determinant of protein-DNA recognition, and reveals mechanisms by which mismatches can recruit TFs and thus modulate replication and repair activities in the cell.
Project description:Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) infections are a common cause of diarrheal illness in low- and middle-income countries. The live-attenuated ACE527 vaccine, adjuvanted with double mutant LT (dmLT), affords clear but partial protection against ETEC challenge inhuman volunteers. Comparatively, initial wild-type ETEC challenge completely protects against severe diarrhea on homologous re-challenge...To investigate molecular determinants of protection, vaccine antigen content was compared to wild-type ETEC, and proteome microarrays were used to assess immune responses following vaccination and ETEC challenge... Although molecular interrogation of the vaccine confirmed expression of targeted canonical antigens, relative to wild-type ETEC, vaccine strains were deficient in production of flagellar antigens, immotile, and lacked production of the EtpA adhesin. Similarly, vaccination ± dmLT elicited responses to targeted canonical antigens, but relative to wild-type challenge, vaccine responses to some potentially protective non-canonical antigens including EtpA were diminished or absent...These studies highlight important differences in vaccine and wild-type ETEC antigen content and call attention to distinct immunologic signatures that could inform investigation of correlates of protection, and guide vaccine antigen selection for these pathogens of global importance.
Project description:Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) hold great promise in the field of liver regenerative medicine. However, the mechanisms and reversibility of hepatogenic differentiation in MSCs are poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate that hepatogenic differentiation of MSCs is a reversible process and is modulated by the transforming growth factor beta 1- DNA methyltransferases (TGF-β1-Dnmts) axis. Dnmt1 and Dnmt3a differentially regulate hepatogenic differentiation and de-differentiation in response to the alternation of TGF-β1 concentration. Knockdown of Dnmt1 accelerates the hepatogenic differentiation in MSCs-derived hepatocyte-like cells (dHeps) whereas Knockdown of Dnmt3a represses hepatogenic differentiation. Conclusions: Our finding first demonstrates that epigenetic regulation by Dnmts in response to stimulation from the surrounding microenvironment controls the reversibility of hepatogenic differentiation in MSCs. Manipulation of Dnmts provides a rapid and efficient differentiation protocol to generate functional dHeps from MSCs that may provide clinical potential for regenerative medicine.
Project description:Auto-antibody (Ab) profiles between acute-onset diffuse ILD (AoDILD) and stable states of 25 collagen disease patients were compared to screen biomarkers or pathogenic auto-Abs.
Project description:Our results successfully showed through profiling of 8268 proteins that five autoantibodies in the metastatic group showed significantly higher intensities than non-metastatic and control groups Healthy or non-cancerous pediatric patients were pooled into a control group; Human ProtoArray that contains total 19200 protein spots of which 1326 are control spots and 8,268 are unique human proteins
Project description:Purpose: There is evidence that therapeutic cancer vaccines can lengthen survival for some cancer patients, but responses vary widely from one person to another. Methods to predict clinical outcomes will advance the field and provide new insights into critical determinants of in vivo efficacy. This study uses a high-throughput glycan microarray to assess correlations between a subject's overall survival after receiving PROSTVAC-VF and his anti-glycan humoral responses occuring in the first months after treatment with PROSTVAC-VF. Results: Humoral responses to the terminal Forssman disaccharide (Fsdi) were found to have a statistically significant correlation with survival. Long-term survival was approximately doubled in subjects with four-fold or larger anti-Fsdi responses relative to subjects with little or no anti-Fsdi response. This survival correlation was specific to vaccine treatment, as no correlation was observed in control patients immunized with wild-type poxviruses lacking the key tumor antigen, prostate specific antigen (PSA). Moreover, anti-Fsdi humoral responses were not correlated with general measures of disease severity, such as PSA levels, Gleason score, or Halabi predicted survival. Conclusion: In addition to reporting a new biomarker for monitoring benefical responses to PROSTVAC-VF, this study highlights the potential of glycan microarray technology for personalized medicine.
Project description:Purpose: There is evidence that therapeutic cancer vaccines can lengthen survival for some cancer patients, but responses vary widely from one person to another. Methods to predict clinical outcomes will advance the field and provide new insights into critical determinants of in vivo efficacy. This study uses a high-throughput glycan microarray to assess correlations between a subject's overall survival after receiving PROSTVAC-VF and his baseline serum anti-glycan antibody levels. Results: Pre-vaccination antibody levels to blood group A trisaccharide (BG-Atri) were found to have a statistically significant correlation with survival. Long-term survival was approximately doubled in subjects with abundant anti-BG-Atri IgM relative to subjects with little or no pre-existing IgM for BG-Atri. This survival correlation was specific to vaccine treatment, as no correlation was observed in control patients immunized with wild-type poxviruses lacking the key tumor antigen, prostate specific antigen (PSA). Moreover, anti-BG-Atri IgM levels were not correlated with general measures of disease severity, such as PSA levels, Gleason score, or Halabi predicted survival. Conclusion: In addition to reporting a new potentially predictive biomarker for PROSTVAC-VF, this study highlights the potential of glycan microarray technology for personalized medicine.