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Cell-cell fusion between eukaryotic cells is a general process involved in many physiological and pathological conditions, including infections by bacteria, parasites, and viruses. As obligate intracellular pathogens, viruses use intracellular machineries ...
Influenza A virus (IAV) binds its host cell using the major viral surface protein hemagglutinin (HA). HA recognizes sialic acid, a plasma membrane glycan that functions as the specific primary attachment factor (AF). Since sialic acid alone cannot fulfill ...
The rhythmic and sequential segmentation of the vertebrate body axis into somites during embryogenesis is governed by a multicellular, oscillatory patterning system called the segmentation clock. Despite many overt similarities between vertebrates, differe ...
The use of modern molecular biology tools and simple but powerful tractable model organisms such as Drosophila has contributed significantly to our recent advances in the innate immunity field, notably phagocytosis. Since 2001, many phagocytic transmembran ...
Virus infection is an intricate process that requires the concerted action of both viral and host cell components. Entry of viruses into cells is initiated by interactions between viral proteins and cell-surface receptors. Various cell-surface glycans func ...
In native tissues, the interaction between cells and the surrounding extracellular matrix (ECM) is reciprocal, as cells not only receive signals from the ECM but also actively remodel it through secretion of cell-derived ECM. However, very little is known ...
Microbiology and biophysics are converging to advance our understanding of the mechanobiology of microorganisms. In this Review, Dufrene and Persat discuss the physical forces that bacteria experience in their natural environments and the structures that t ...
Nascent adhesions are submicron transient structures promoting the early adhesion of cells to the extracellular matrix. Nascent adhesions typically consist of several tens of integrins, and serve as platforms for the recruitment and activation of proteins ...
The bacteriophage T4 genome contains two genes that code for proteins with lysozyme activity-e and 5. Gene e encodes the well-known T4 lysozyme (commonly called T4L) that functions to break the peptidoglycan layer late in the infection cycle, which is requ ...
The immune system is a complex network of specialized cells that work in concert to protect against invading pathogens and tissue damage. Imbalances in this network often result in excessive or absent immune responses leading to allergies, autoimmune disea ...
