Adhesion to host cells is an initial and important step in Acinetobacter baumannii pathogenesis. However, there is relatively little information on the mechanisms by which A. baumannii binds to and interacts with host cells. Adherence to extracellular matrix proteins, such as fibronectin, affords pathogens with a mechanism to invade epithelial cells. Here, we found that A. baumannii adheres mor...

Bacteria adhering to surfaces exhibit nanoscopic vibrations that depend on the viscoelasticity of the bond. The quantification of the nanoscopic vibrations of bacteria adhering to surfaces provides new opportunities to better understand the properties of the bond through which bacteria adhere and the mechanisms by which they resist detachment. Often, however, bacteria do not adhere to bare surf...

The group A Streptococcus (GAS) sof gene encodes the serum opacity factor protein, which is capable of opacifying mammalian sera and binding at least two host proteins, fibronectin and fibrinogen. The sof gene exists in approximately 50% of clinical isolates, and there is a classical association of so-called nephritogenic strains with the opacity factor-positive phenotype. In both a type emm49 ...

Fibronectin is an extracellular matrix glycoprotein that plays a role in a number of physiological processes involving cell adhesion and migration. The modules of the fibronectin monomer are organized into proteolytically resistant domains that in isolation retain their affinity for various ligands. The tertiary structure of the glycosylated second type 2 module (2F2) from the gelatin-binding d...

Serum opacity factor (SOF) is a bifunctional cell surface protein expressed by 40-50% of group A streptococcal (GAS) strains comprised of a C-terminal domain that binds fibronectin and an N-terminal domain that mediates opacification of mammalian sera. The sof gene was recently discovered to be cotranscribed in a two-gene operon with a gene encoding another fibronectin-binding protein, sfbX. We...

aim : evaluation of biological characteristics of 13 identified proteins of patients with cirrhotic liver disease is the main aim of this research.   background : in clinical usage, liver biopsy remains the gold standard for diagnosis of hepatic fibrosis. evaluation and confirmation of liver fibrosis stages and severity of chronic diseases require a precise and noninvasive biomarkers. since the...

Borrelia burgdorferi, the agent of Lyme disease, causes a multisystemic illness that can affect the skin, heart, joints, and nervous system and is capable of attachment to diverse cell types. Among the host components recognized by this spirochete are fibronectin and glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). Three surface-localized GAG-binding bacterial ligands, Bgp, DbpA, and DbpB, have been previously ident...

Blue iguanas ( Cyclura lewisi ) are endangered reptiles found only on Grand Cayman. Previously, DNA for a novel Helicobacter species GCBI1 was detected in sick and dead iguanas. In the current study, fecal cloacal swab samples were obtained from 25 Through molecular microbiological techniques, cultured feces characterized, whom we propose name cyclurae . This helicobacter had prevalence of 56% ...

Plasma fibronectin has been shown to increase the binding of fibrin monomer to macrophages in vitro. In the present study we began characterization of the mechanism underlying this fibronectin activity. Fragments of fibronectin containing the amino terminus enhanced macrophage fibrin binding to the same extent as intact fibronectin on an equimolar basis. However, fibronectin fragments containin...