BACKGROUND In lentiviruses such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and bovine immunodeficiency virus (BIV), the Tat (trans-activating) protein enhances transcription of the viral RNA by complexing to the 5'-end of the transcribed mRNA, at a region known as TAR (the trans-activation response element). Identification of the determinants that account for specific molecular recognition requires ...

Three new supramolecular metal-coordination architectures [M(H2O)4(ampyz)2][M(H2O)6](SO4)2(H2O)2 (M = Co (1), Fe (2), and mixed Co/Fe (3); ampyz = 2-aminopyrazine) and a Cd(II) coordination polymer [Cd(ampyz)(H2O)2(SO4)]n(H2O)n (4) were synthesized by layered diffusion and structurally characterized. Compounds 1-3 are isomorphous. Monomeric complex units [M(H2O)4(ampyz)2]2+ are assembled by int...

The character of the intermolecular interactions in Cl2-HX (X =F, Cl and Br) complexes has been investigated by means of the second-order Möller–Plesset perturbation theory (MP2) and the density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The results show that there are two types of lowest interaction potential equilibrium structures in the interactions between Cl2 and HX: X∙∙∙Cl type geometry and hy...

The tumor suppressor protein cylindromatosis (CYLD), as a microtubule-associated deubiquitinase, plays a pivotal role in a wide range of cellular activities, including innate immunity, cell division, and ciliogenesis. Structural characterization reveals a small zinc-binding B-box inserted within the ubiquitin specific protease (USP) domain of CYLD; however, the exact role for this module remain...

Cephalosporin acylase (CA) is a recently identified N-terminal hydrolase. It is also a commercially important enzyme in producing 7-aminocephalosporanic acid (7-ACA), a backbone chemical in synthesizing semi-synthetic cephalosporin antibiotics. CA is translated as an inactive single chain precursor, being post-translationally modified into an active enzyme. The post-translational modification t...