Seaweeds synthesize a wide range of halogenated metabolites(1-3). The fate of these metabolites remains largely unknown. To address this challenge, the genetic asset encoded by the associated microbiomes of three seaweeds has been annotated. A remarkable gene content potentially active in the degradation of a wide spectrum of halocarbons and haloaromatic molecules has been uncovered. These...
The microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is a widely known model system around the world, fully sequenced in its three genomes, easy and inexpensive to grow in the laboratory, and recently recognized by the FDA organism GRAS (generally recognized as safe)(1,2). The strong potential of this photosynthetic single-cell algae has been extensively studied related to the cell division,...
The mammalian complex I is the largest mitochondrial respiratory chain enzyme composed of 45 constituent subunits. It is the point of entry in the mitochondrial electron transport chain for NADH reducing equivalents, and it behaves as an adaptable pacemaker of respiratory ATP production(1). Mitochondrial respiratory chain complex I is a site of superoxide production during forward electron...
The progressive loss of neuronal cells, as well as the decline of cognitive and motor functions are common features of several neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease (PD) and α-synucleinopathies. Other key factors in the development of these disorders should be oxidative stress, dyshomeostasis of metal ions and α-synuclein (αSyn)(1,2). Moreover, the abnormal aggregation...
TRIM8 plays a key role in controlling the p53 molecular switch that sustains the transcriptional activation of cell cycle arrest genes and response to chemotherapeutic drugs. TRIM8 protein is able to interact with wild type p53 displacing its binding to MDM2 and consequently inducing specific post-translational modifications that stabilize and activate p53 protein. TRIM8 deficit dramatically...
X-ray based techniques are considered among the most powerful tools for the structural investigation of matter. Depending on the physical phenomenon on which the technique relies on, X-rays enable probing the matter down to atomic resolution, recovering information on the electronic structure, chemical coordination, and even about size and shape of large particles in solution. The combination...
