Broadly neutralizing antibodies developed from the IGHV1–69 germline gene are known to bind to the stem region of hemagglutinin in diverse influenza viruses but the sequence determinants for the antigen recognition, including neutralization potency and binding affinity, are not clearly understood. Such understanding could inform designs of synthetic antibody libraries targeting the stem epitope on hemagglutinin, leading to artificially designed antibodies that are functionally advantageous over antibodies from natural antibody repertoires. In this work, the sequence space of the complementarity determining regions of a broadly neutralizing antibody (F10) targeting the stem epitope on the hemagglutinin of a strain of H1N1 influenza virus was systematically explored; the elucidated antibody-hemagglutinin recognition principles were used to design a phage-displayed antibody library, which...

Although best known for its role in bone development and associated structures the transcription factor RUNX2 is expressed in a wide range of lineages, including those of the mammary gland. Previous studies have indicated that Runx2 can regulate aspects of mammary cell function and influence the properties of cancer cells. In this study we investigate the role of Runx2 in the mammary stem/progenitor population and its relationship with WNT signalling. Results show that RUNX2 protein is differentially expressed throughout embryonic and adult development of the murine mammary gland with high levels of expression in mammary stem-cell enriched cultures. Importantly, functional analysis reveals a role for Runx2 in mammary stem/progenitor cell function in in vitro and in vivo regenerative assays. Furthermore, RUNX2 appears to be associated with WNT signalling in the mammary epithelium and is specifically upregulated in mouse models of WNT-driven breast cancer. Overall our studies reveal a...

Tumor growth is characterized by anchorage independence and the loss of contact inhibition. Previously, we showed that either a red fluorescent protein (DsRed)-tagged N-cadherin or E-cadherin cytoplasmic domain (DNCT or DECT) could function as a dominant negative inhibitor by blocking the cell surface localization of endogenous E-cadherin and inducing cell dissociation. Here, we show that expression of DNCT abrogated contact inhibition of proliferation and conferred anchorage-independent growth. DNCT expression induced the relocation of the tumor suppressor Merlin from the cell surface to intracellular compartments. Although DNCT expression induced redistribution of TAZ from the cytoplasm to the nucleus, YAP/TAZ signaling was not activated. An E-cadherin–α-catenin chimera that functions as a β-catenin–independent cell adhesion molecule restored contact inhibition and anchorage-dependency of growth. Addition of the SV40 large T antigen nuclear localization signal reversed the effects of DNCT expression, indicating that DNCT functioned outside of the nucleus.

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The helicase Twinkle is indispensable for mtDNA replication in nucleoids. Previously, we showed that Twinkle is tightly membrane-associated even in the absence of mtDNA, which suggests that Twinkle is part of a membrane-attached replication platform. Here we show that this platform is a cholesterol-rich membrane structure. We fractionated mitochondrial membrane preparations on flotation gradients and show that membrane-associated nucleoids accumulate at the top of the gradient. This fraction was shown to be highly enriched in cholesterol, a lipid that is otherwise low abundant in mitochondria. In contrast, more common mitochondrial lipids, and abundant inner-membrane associated proteins concentrated in the bottom-half of these gradients. Gene silencing of ATAD3, a protein with proposed functions related to nucleoid and mitochondrial cholesterol homeostasis, modified the distribution of cholesterol and nucleoids in the gradient in an identical fashion. Both cholesterol and ATAD3 were...