Signaling by the transcription factor nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappaB) involves its release from inhibitor kappa B (IkappaB) in the cytosol, followed by translocation into the nucleus. NF-kappaB regulation of IkappaBalpha transcription represents a delayed negative feedback loop that drives oscillations in NF-kappaB translocation. Single-cell time-lapse imaging and computational modeling of NF-kappaB (RelA) localization showed asynchronous oscillations following cell stimulation that decreased in frequency with increased IkappaBalpha transcription. Transcription of target genes depended on oscillation persistence, involving cycles of RelA phosphorylation and dephosphorylation. The functional consequences of NF-kappaB signaling may thus depend on number, period, and amplitude of oscillations.

Background:Intra-articular corticosteroids relieve osteoarthritis pain, but rapid systemic absorption limits efficacy. FX006, a novel, microsphere-based, extended-release triamcinolone acetonide (TA) formulation, prolongs TA joint residence and reduces systemic exposure compared with standard TA crystalline suspension (TAcs). We assessed symptomatic benefits and safety of FX006 compared with saline-solution placebo and TAcs.Methods:In this Phase-3, multicenter, double-blinded, 24-week study, adults ≥40 years of age with knee osteoarthritis (Kellgren-Lawrence grade 2 or 3) and average-daily-pain (ADP)-intensity scores of ≥5 and ≤9 (0 to 10 numeric rating scale) were centrally randomized (1:1:1) to a single intra-articular injection of FX006 (32 mg), saline-solution placebo, or TAcs (40 mg). The primary end point was change from baseline to week 12 in weekly mean ADP-intensity scores for FX006 compared with saline-solution placebo. Secondary end points were area-under-effect (AUE) curves of the change in weekly mean ADP-intensity scores from baseline to week 12 for FX006 compared with saline-solution placebo, AUE curves of the change in weekly mean ADP-intensity scores from baseline to week 12 for FX006 compared with TAcs, change in weekly mean ADP-intensity scores from baseline to week 12 for FX006 compared with TAcs, and AUE curves of the change in weekly mean ADP-intensity scores from baseline to week 24 for FX006 compared with saline-solution placebo. Exploratory end points included week-12 changes in Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) and Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score Quality of Life (KOOS-QOL) subscale scores for FX006 compared with saline-solution placebo and TAcs. Adverse events were elicited at each inpatient visit.Results:The primary end point was met. Among 484 treated patients (n = 161 for FX006, n = 162 for saline-solution placebo, and n = 161 for TAcs), FX006 provided significant week-12 improvement in ADP intensity compared with that observed for saline-solution placebo (least-squares mean change from baseline: −3.12 versus −2.14; p < 0.0001) indicating ∼50% improvement. FX006 afforded improvements over saline-solution placebo for all secondary and exploratory end points (p < 0.05). Improvements in osteoarthritis pain were not significant for FX006 compared with TAcs using the ADP-based secondary measures. Exploratory analyses of WOMAC-A, B, and C and KOOS-QOL subscales favored FX006 (p ≤ 0.05). Adverse events were generally mild, occurring at similar frequencies across treatments.Conclusions:FX006 provided significant, clinically meaningful pain reduction compared with saline-solution placebo at week 12 (primary end point).Level of Evidence:Therapeutic Level I. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

An optical imaging probe was synthesized by attaching a near-infrared carbocyanine fluorophore to an affinity group containing two zinc(II) dipicolylamine (Zn-DPA) units. The probe has a strong and selective affinity for the surfaces of bacteria, and it was used to image infections of Gram-positive S. aureus and Gram-negative E. coli bacteria in living nude mice. After intravenous injection, the probe selectively accumulates at the sites of localized bacterial infections in the thigh muscles of the mice.Bacterial imaging is an emerging technology that has many health and environmental applications. 1 For example, there is an obvious need to develop highly sensitive assays that can detect very small numbers of pathogenic bacterial cells in food, drinking water or biomedical samples. In other situations, the goal is to study in vivo the temporal and spatial distribution of bacteria in live animals.Optical imaging of bacteria in vivo is much less developed than methods such as radioimaging and MRI. One approach is to use bacteria that are genetically encoded to produce luciferase or green fluorescent protein. 2 A second strategy, which is the focus of this study, employs a molecular probe with a fluorescent reporter group. An obvious limitation with a live animal is restricted tissue penetration of the light. However, near-infrared (NIR) dyes with emission wavelengths in the region of 650−900 nm can propagate through two or more centimeters of tissue, and may enable deeper tissue imaging if sensitive detection techniques are employed. Molecular imaging probes can often be deconstructed into two structural components, an affinity ligand and a reporter group. In the case of bacterial targeting, previously reported affinity ligands include antibodies, 5 sugars, 6 bacteria binding peptides, 7 antimicrobial peptides, 8 enzyme substrates, 9 and antibiotic drugs. 10 Recently, we discovered that fluorescent molecular probes containing synthetic zinc(II) dipicolylamine (Zn-DPA) coordination complexes as affinity groups are able to selectively stain the surfaces of bacterial cells 11 and apoptotic animal cells. 12 Zn-DPA affinity ligands bind strongly to the anionic surfaces that are a common characteristic of these two cell-types, whereas affinity for the zwitterionic surfaces of healthy animal cells is weak. These in vitro results have motivated us to pursue in vivo studies, and we report that molecular probe 1, which has a NIR fluorophore attached to an affinity group with two Zn-DPA units, can be used for targeted, fluorescence imaging of bacterial infection in a living whole animal.The bacterial imaging probe 1 (λ max abs: 794 nm, em: 810 nm) was prepared in straightforward fashion using a carbocyanine dye as the NIR fluorophore. 13 Researchers have incorporated this fluorophore into probes for other optical imaging applications. 14 In vitro fluorescence microscopy studies proved that probe 1 can effectively stain the periphery of bacterial cells (Figure 1). In contrast, the cells are not stained when treated un...

Biofoundries provide an integrated infrastructure to enable the rapid design, construction, and testing of genetically reprogrammed organisms for biotechnology applications and research. Many biofoundries are being built and a Global Biofoundry Alliance has recently been established to coordinate activities worldwide.

Anthracene-containing tetralactam macrocycles are prepared and found to have an extremely high affinity for squaraine dyes in chloroform (log Ka = 5.2). Simply mixing the two components produces highly fluorescent, near-infrared inclusion complexes in quantitative yield. An X-ray crystal structure shows the expected hydrogen bonding between the squaraine oxygens and the macrocycle amide NH residues, and a high degree of cofacial aromatic stacking. The kinetics and thermodynamics of the assembly process are very sensitive to small structural changes in the binding partners. For example, a macrocycle containing two isophthalamide units associates with the squaraine dye in chloroform 400,000 times faster than an analogous macrocycle containing two 2,6-dicarboxamidopyridine units. Squaraine encapsulation also occurs in highly competitive media such as mixed aqueous/organic solutions, vesicle membranes, and the organelles within living cells. The highly fluorescent inclusion complexes possess emergent properties; that is, as compared to the building blocks, the complexes have improved chemical stabilities, red-shifted absorption/emission maxima, and different cell localization propensities. These are useful properties for new classes of near-infrared fluorescent imaging probes.

It's hip to be square: Squaraine rotaxanes have very similar photophysical properties to the commonly used Cy‐5 fluorophore, but are substantially more photostable and resist self‐quenching upon aggregation. Molecular probes containing squaraine rotaxanes (see structure) are shown to be versatile, high‐performance NIR fluorescence stains for in vitro fluorescence imaging of cells (middle) and in vivo whole‐body imaging of living mice (right).

In knee OA patients, microsphere-based TA delivery via a single IA injection prolonged SF joint residency, diminished peak plasma levels, and thus reduced systemic TA exposure relative to TAcs.

SNAREs (soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive fusion protein-attachment protein receptors) are widely accepted to drive all intracellular membrane fusion events. SM (Sec1/Munc18-like) proteins bind to SNAREs and this interaction may underlie their ubiquitous requirement for efficient membrane fusion. SM proteins bind to SNAREs in at least three modes: (i) to a closed conformation of syntaxin; (ii) to the syntaxin N-terminus; and (iii) to the assembled SNARE complex. Munc18-1 exhibits all three binding modes and recent in vitro reconstitution assays suggest that its interaction with the syntaxin N-terminus is essential for neuronal SNARE complex binding and efficient membrane fusion. To investigate the physiological relevance of these binding modes, we studied the UNC-18/UNC-64 SM/SNARE pair, which is essential for neuronal exocytosis in Caenorhabditis elegans. Mutations in the N-terminus of UNC-64 strongly inhibited binding to UNC-18, as did mutations targeting closed conformation binding. Complementary mutations in UNC-18 designed to selectively impair binding to either closed syntaxin or its N-terminus produced a similarly strong inhibition of UNC-64 binding. Therefore high-affinity UNC18/UNC-64 interaction in vitro involves both binding modes. To determine the physiological relevance of each mode, unc-18-null mutant worms were transformed with wild-type or mutant unc-18 constructs. The UNC-18(R39C) construct, that is defective in closed syntaxin binding, fully rescued the locomotion defects of the unc-18 mutant. In contrast, the UNC-18(F113R) construct, that is defective in binding to the N-terminus of UNC-64, provided no rescue. These results suggest that binding of UNC-18 to closed syntaxin is dispensable for membrane fusion, whereas interaction with the syntaxin N-terminus is essential for neuronal exocytosis in vivo.