Voltage-Gated Calcium Channels Play a Central Role in Caenorhabditis elegans Response to Noxious Heat.

Voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCCs) are critical for calcium ion influx during action potentials, playing a key role in neurotransmitter release, synaptic transmission, and pain perception. We hypothesized that gabapentin (GBP) and pregabalin (PGB) interact with VGCCs, particularly the auxiliary α2δ subunit, in C. elegans.

Rejuvenation alleviates prolonged postsurgical pain in aging mice by mitigating inflammaging.

As individuals age, they often experience persistent, unresolved pain, impacting their quality of life. Aging as a process is accompanied by "inflammaging," a state of chronic, low-grade systemic inflammation contributing to various diseases. Understanding the functional link between inflammaging and age-related development of pain is crucial for identifying novel therapeutic targets.

Comparative Analysis of Data-Driven Rescoring Platforms for Improved Peptide Identification in HeLa Digest Samples.

Mass spectrometry is a critical tool to understand complex changes in biological processes. Despite significant advances in search engine technology, many spectra remain unassigned. This research evaluates the performance of three rescoring platforms, Oktoberfest, MSRescore, and inSPIRE, using MaxQuant output.

Optimization of protein identifications through the use of different chromatographic approaches and bioinformatic pipelines.

Rationale: Selection of proteomic workflows for a given project can be a daunting task. This research provides a guide outlining the impact on protein identification of different steps such as chromatographic separation, data acquisition strategies, and bioinformatic pipelines. The data presented here will help experts and nonexpert proteomic users to increase proteome coverage and peptide identification.

Anandamide Modulates Thermal Avoidance in Caenorhabditis elegans Through Vanilloid and Cannabinoid Receptor Interplay.

Understanding the endocannabinoid system in C. elegans may offer insights into basic biological processes and potential therapeutic targets for managing pain and inflammation in human. It is well established that anandamide modulates pain perception by binding to cannabinoid and vanilloid receptors, regulating neurotransmitter release and neuronal activity.

Unlocking the distinctive enzymatic functions of the early plant biomass deconstructive genes in a brown rot fungus by cell-free protein expression.

Saprotrophic fungi that cause brown rot of woody biomass evolved a distinctive mechanism that relies on reactive oxygen species (ROS) to kick-start lignocellulosic polymers' deconstruction. These ROS agents are generated at incipient decay stages through a series of redox relays that shuttle electrons from fungus's central metabolism to extracellular Fenton chemistry. A list of genes has been suggested encoding the enzyme catalysts of the redox processes involved in ROS's function.

Towards an Understanding of Oxidative Damage in an α-L-Arabinofuranosidase of Trichoderma reesei: a Molecular Dynamics Approach.

Trichoderma reesei is a "workhorse" fungus that produces glycosyl hydrolases (e.g., cellulases) at high titers for use in industrial bioprocessing.

Gene Regulation Shifts Shed Light on Fungal Adaption in Plant Biomass Decomposers.

Fungi dominate the recycling of carbon sequestered in woody biomass. This process of organic turnover was first evolved among "white rot" fungi that degrade lignin to access carbohydrates and later evolved multiple times toward more efficient strategies to selectively target carbohydrates-"brown rot." The brown rot adaption was often explained by mechanisms to deploy reactive oxygen species (ROS) to oxidatively attack wood structures.

Oxidative Damage Control during Decay of Wood by Brown Rot Fungus Using Oxygen Radicals.

Brown rot wood-degrading fungi deploy reactive oxygen species (ROS) to loosen plant cell walls and enable selective polysaccharide extraction. These ROS, including Fenton-generated hydroxyl radicals (HO˙), react with little specificity and risk damaging hyphae and secreted enzymes. Recently, it was shown that brown rot fungi reduce this risk, in part, by differentially expressing genes involved in HO˙ generation ahead of those coding carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZYs).