How early-life colonization and subsequent exposure to the microbiota affect long-term tissue immunity remains poorly understood. Here, we show that the development of mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells relies on a specific temporal window, after which MAIT cell development is permanently impaired. This imprinting depends on early-life exposure to defined microbes that synthesize riboflavin-derived antigens. In adults, cutaneous MAIT cells are a dominant population of interleukin-17A (IL-17A)–producing lymphocytes, which display a distinct transcriptional signature and can subsequently respond to skin commensals in an IL-1–, IL-18–, and antigen-dependent manner. Consequently, local activation of cutaneous MAIT cells promotes wound healing. Together, our work uncovers a privileged interaction between defined members of the microbiota and MAIT cells, which sequentially controls both tissue-imprinting and subsequent responses to injury.

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Agonists targeting the kappa opioid receptor (KOR) have been promising therapeutic candidates because of their efficacy for treating intractable itch and relieving pain. Unlike typical opioid narcotics, KOR agonists do not produce euphoria or lead to respiratory suppression or overdose. However, they do produce dysphoria and sedation, side effects that have precluded their clinical development as therapeutics. KOR signaling can be fine-tuned to preferentially activate certain pathways over others, such that agonists can bias signaling so that the receptor signals through G proteins rather than other effectors such as βarrestin2. We evaluated a newly developed G protein signaling–biased KOR agonist in preclinical models of pain, pruritis, sedation, dopamine regulation, and dysphoria. We found that triazole 1.1 retained the antinociceptive and antipruritic efficacies of a conventional KOR agonist, yet it did not induce sedation or reductions in dopamine release in mice, nor did it produce dysphoria as determined by intracranial self-stimulation in rats. These data demonstrated that biased agonists may be used to segregate physiological responses downstream of the receptor. Moreover, the findings suggest that biased KOR agonists may present a means to treat pain and intractable itch without the side effects of dysphoria and sedation and with reduced abuse potential.

CONTENTS 1. Introduction 5702 2. General Properties of Bridged Lactams 5703 2.1. Distortion Parameters of Bridged Lactams 5703 2.2. Bond Lengths of Bridged Lactams 5703 2.3. Spectroscopic Properties of Bridged Lactams 5703 2.4. Analogy of Bridged Lactams to Bridgehead Olefins 5704 2.5. Chemical and Biological Significance of Distorted Amides 5704 3. Synthesis of Historically Important Bridged Lactams 5704 3.1. Quinuclidone Derivatives 5704 3.2. Adamantanone Derivatives 5707 4. Synthesis of Bridged Lactams with the N−(CO) Bond on a Two-Carbon or Larger Bridge, ([m. (≥2).n] Type) 5708 4.1. Condensation Reactions Forming the N− C(O) Bond 5708 4.2. Heck Reactions 5711 4.3. Diels−Alder Reactions 5712 4.4. Carbene Insertion Reactions 5713 4.5. Reactions via Radical Intermediates 5714 4.6. Miscellaneous Examples 5714 5. Synthesis of Bridged Lactams with the N−(CO) Bond on a One-Carbon Bridge, ([m.1.n] Type) 5715 5.1. Carbene Insertion Reactions 5715 5.2. Schmidt Reactions 5716 5.3.

Background:The -opioid receptor can be activated by structurally diverse agonists. Results: Four structurally diverse agonists differentially bound to and activated wild type and mutant -opioid receptors. Conclusion:The structural features of the agonists dictate how they interact with and stabilize G i -signaling receptor conformations. Significance: The results provide insights into the structural basis of opioid receptor ligand recognition and activation.

HuR, an RNA binding protein, binds to adenine- and uridine-rich elements (ARE) in the 3′-untranslated region (UTR) of target mRNAs, regulating their stability and translation. HuR is highly abundant in many types of cancer, and it promotes tumorigenesis by interacting with cancer-associated mRNAs, which encode proteins that are implicated in different tumor processes including cell proliferation, cell survival, angiogenesis, invasion, and metastasis. Drugs that disrupt the stabilizing effect of HuR upon mRNA targets could have dramatic effects on inhibiting cancer growth and persistence. In order to identify small molecules that directly disrupt the HuR–ARE interaction, we established a fluorescence polarization (FP) assay optimized for high throughput screening (HTS) using HuR protein and an ARE oligo from Musashi RNA-binding protein 1 (Msi1) mRNA, a HuR target. Following the performance of an HTS of ~6000 compounds, we discovered a cluster of potential disruptors, which were then validated by AlphaLISA (Amplified Luminescent Proximity Homogeneous Assay), surface plasmon resonance (SPR), ribonucleoprotein immunoprecipitation (RNP IP) assay, and luciferase reporter functional studies. These compounds disrupted HuR–ARE interactions at the nanomolar level and blocked HuR function by competitive binding to HuR. These results support future studies toward chemical probes for a HuR function study and possibly a novel therapy for HuR-overexpressing cancers.

1,1,1,3,3,3-Hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) is a polar, strongly hydrogen bond-donating solvent that has found numerous uses in organic synthesis due to its ability to stabilize ionic species, transfer protons, and engage in a range of other intermolecular interactions. The use of this solvent has exponentially increased in the past decade and has become a solvent of choice in some areas, such as C–H functionalization chemistry. In this review, following a brief history of HFIP in organic synthesis and an overview of its physical properties, literature examples of organic reactions using HFIP as a solvent or an additive are presented, emphasizing the effect of solvent of each reaction.