Project description:G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), also known as seven-transmembrane domain receptors, are among the most important targets against which many small molecule drugs have been developed. However, only two antibody drugs targeting GPCRs have been approved for clinical use although many antibody drugs against non-GPCR protein targets have been successfully developed for various disease indications. One of the challenges for developing anti-GPCR drugs is the high difficulty to perform affinity maturation due to their insolubility in aqueous solutions. To address this issue, CHO cell display libraries of single-chain variable fragments (scFvs) and full-length antibodies were maturated directly against vesicle probes prepared from CHO cells displaying the endothelin A receptor (ETaR) GPCR. The probe in the vesicle form ensures the physiological conformation and functional activity of the protein and avoids issues with membrane protein insolubility. The size of the vesicle had a clear effect on protein-ligand interaction; we used small-sized vesicles with low expression levels of GPCRs for the affinity maturation. Four rounds of affinity maturation combining vesicles as probes with the CHO cell display platform improved affinity by 13.58-fold for scFvs and 5.05-fold for full-length antibodies. We expect that this method will not only be used for the affinity maturation of antibodies against GPCRs but will also be used to mature antibodies for other types of proteins where the conformation/activity of which depends on the proper membrane environment.
Project description:Set of arrays organized by shared biological context, such as organism, tumors types, processes, etc. mRNA species bound to membrane-associated polysomes were separated from other mRNAs by sedimentation equilibrium or sedimentation velocity. The distribution of individual transcripts in the 'membrane-bound' and 'cytosolic' fractions was quantitated for thousands of genes by hybridization to DNA microarrays. Transcripts known to encode secreted or membrane proteins were enriched in the membrane-bound fractions, whereas those known to encode cytoplasmic proteins were enriched in the fractions containing mRNAs associated with free and cytoplasmic ribosomes. On this basis, we identified over 275 human genes and 285 yeast genes that are likely to encode previously unrecognized secreted or membrane proteins. Computed
Project description:Germinal centers (GCs) are microenvironments where B cells undergo affinity maturation through somatic hypermutation (SHM) and selection by T follicular helper (TFH) cells. While SHM introduces mutations at a fixed rate (~1x10⁻³ per base pair per division), most mutations are deleterious, particularly in high-affinity B cells undergoing many divisions. This study tests a theoretical model suggesting that high-affinity B cells optimize maturation by dividing more but mutating less per division. Data from mice immunized with SARS-CoV-2 or a model antigen support the model, showing that high-affinity B cells shorten their G0/G1 phases and reduce mutation rates, safeguarding their lineages and improving affinity maturation outcomes.
Project description:Set of arrays organized by shared biological context, such as organism, tumors types, processes, etc. mRNA species bound to membrane-associated polysomes were separated from other mRNAs by sedimentation equilibrium or sedimentation velocity. The distribution of individual transcripts in the 'membrane-bound' and 'cytosolic' fractions was quantitated for thousands of genes by hybridization to DNA microarrays. Transcripts known to encode secreted or membrane proteins were enriched in the membrane-bound fractions, whereas those known to encode cytoplasmic proteins were enriched in the fractions containing mRNAs associated with free and cytoplasmic ribosomes. On this basis, we identified over 275 human genes and 285 yeast genes that are likely to encode previously unrecognized secreted or membrane proteins. Keywords: Logical Set
Project description:Increased antibody affinity over time after vaccination is a prototypical feature of immune responses. Recent studies have shown that a diverse collection of B cells, producing antibodies with a wide spectrum of different affinities, are selected into the plasma cell (PC) pathway. How affinity-permissive selection enables PC affinity maturation remains unknown. Here we report that PC precursors (prePC) expressing high affinity antibodies received higher levels of T follicular helper (Tfh) and divided at higher rates than their lower affinity counterparts once they left the GC. Thus, differential cell division by selected prePCs accounted for how diverse precursors developed into a PC compartment that mediated serological affinity maturation.
Project description:Analysis of the effect of G-alpha or GPCR mutation on the Arabidopsis Transcriptome Keywords: Comparitive Genome Hybridization The transcriptomes of wild type and mutants (G-alpha and GPCR) were compared in the current study. The study was carried out on four whole genome oligo arrays. The G-alpha mutant and its corresponding wild type variety were compared on a single array by means of a dual channel experiment (Cy3 and Cy5 labeling). The experiment was repeated on a different array as a flip-dye replicate and the data from both the sets analyzed further.