Aminopeptidase MNP-1 triggers intestine protease production by activating daf-16 nuclear location to degrade pore-forming toxins in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Pore-forming toxins (PFTs) are effective tools for pathogens infection. By disrupting epithelial barriers and killing immune cells, PFTs promotes the colonization and reproduction of pathogenic microorganisms in their host. In turn, the host triggers defense responses, such as endocytosis, exocytosis, or autophagy.

The expression and crystallization of Cry65Aa require two C-termini, revealing a novel evolutionary strategy of Bacillus thuringiensis Cry proteins.

The insecticidal crystal protein (Cry) genes of Bacillus thuringiensis are a key gene resource for generating transgenic crops with pest resistance. However, many cry genes cannot be expressed or form crystals in mother cells. Here, we report a novel Cry protein gene, cry65Aa1, which exists in an operon that contains a downstream gene encoding a hypothetical protein ORF2.