Signaling peptides are known for their prominent roles in plant growth, development, and environmental adaptation(Zhang et al., 2025). However, their extremely low natural abundance and highly dynamic expression patte...Signaling peptides are known for their prominent roles in plant growth, development, and environmental adaptation(Zhang et al., 2025). However, their extremely low natural abundance and highly dynamic expression patterns pose significant technical challenges to extract sufficient amounts with good purity for biological studies and practical applications.Consequently, chemical synthesis and microbial systems offer attractive alternatives to obtain potent peptides at higher quantities and purity. Incorporating modifications or substitutions, chemically synthetic approaches enable the creation of more effective engineered peptides such as agonists,antagonists, chemically modified peptides, or peptide-like molecules with novel functions compared to native peptides.展开更多
Peptides play important roles in chemistry,medicinal chemistry and life science,due to their high efficiency and specificity,unusual biological and therapeutic properties.As naturally occurring peptides often face wit...Peptides play important roles in chemistry,medicinal chemistry and life science,due to their high efficiency and specificity,unusual biological and therapeutic properties.As naturally occurring peptides often face with their intrinsic limitations including metabolic instability and low membrane permeability,the strategies for synthesizing unnatural amino acids and peptides are explored.Among the methods for modifying amino acids and peptides,chemo-and site-selective approaches are preferred because of the ability to fine-tuning structural features.Recently,transition metal-catalyzed Csingle bondH activation has been employed for the functionalization of amino acids and peptides.Through domino Csingle bondH activation/annulation,a series of structurally complex and diverse amino acids and peptides is constructed.This review highlights recent advances in the synthesis of unnatural amino acids and peptides via transition metal-catalyzed Csingle bondH activation/annulation.展开更多
The blood-brain barrier(BBB)is a major challenge in drug delivery for the treatment of central nervous system diseases.Walnut derived peptide TWLPLPR(TW-7)has been proved to promote neuronal mitochondrial autophagy an...The blood-brain barrier(BBB)is a major challenge in drug delivery for the treatment of central nervous system diseases.Walnut derived peptide TWLPLPR(TW-7)has been proved to promote neuronal mitochondrial autophagy and enhance hippocampal neuronal synaptic plasticity,thereby improving learning and memory abilities in mice.We investigated the internalization mechanism and intracellular transport pathway for the walnut-derived peptide,TW-7,using b End.3 cells in an in vitro BBB model system.TW-7 was taken up by the b End.3 cells in a concentration-,temperature-,and energy-dependent manner;this involved increases in caveolin-1 and caveolin-2 protein expression and phosphorylation and inhibition of P-glycoprotein-mediated efflux.Subcellular localization of TW-7 in b End.3 cells was observed,indicating that the plasma membrane,endoplasmic reticulum,Golgi apparatus,lysosomes,and mitochondria participated in intracellular trafficking and that the peptide escaped from lysosomes over time.Caveolae may be critical for TW-7 uptake by brain microvascular endothelial cells,assisting TW-7 to cross the BBB.The results of this study provide a theoretical basis for the mechanism of active peptide penetrating the BBB,and provide a reference for developing neuroprotective active peptide products.展开更多
Fluorescent probes,with their superior optical properties and labeling versatility,have greatly advanced the visualization of intracellular molecules and subcellular structures.However,poor cytoplasmic delivery,caused...Fluorescent probes,with their superior optical properties and labeling versatility,have greatly advanced the visualization of intracellular molecules and subcellular structures.However,poor cytoplasmic delivery,caused by charge,size,or targeting groups,limits the effective use of many fluorescent probes in live cells.Recently,cell-penetrating peptides(CPPs)have emerged as efficient carriers,offering great potential for the cytoplasmic delivery of fluorescent probes in live cells.This review provides a comprehensive overview of CPPs as vehicles for probe delivery,outlining advances in their development,conjugation chemistries,and intracellular delivery mechanisms.Recent applications in live-cell imaging are highlighted and organized according to major CPP modification strategies,including sequence engineering,cyclization,hybrid design and enhancement by chemical reagents.Finally,the challenges that remain and the future outlook of this rapidly evolvingfield are discussed.展开更多
Trophoblast cell surface antigen 2(Trop2)has been widely characterized as a clinically significant pan-cancer biomarker expressed in various tumors,significantly impacting tumor growth,invasion,and metastasis.In this ...Trophoblast cell surface antigen 2(Trop2)has been widely characterized as a clinically significant pan-cancer biomarker expressed in various tumors,significantly impacting tumor growth,invasion,and metastasis.In this study,we develop Trop2 targeting peptide-based radiotracer[^(68)Ga]Ga-NOTA-GL10 for accurately detecting the Trop2 expression levels through positron emission tomography(PET)imaging.The Trop2-targeting peptide GL10 was rationally designed through computational methods based on the T2-2 peptide,and conjugated with the 1,4,7-triazacyclononane-N,N′,N″-triacetic acid(NOTA)chelator to synthesize the precursor NOTA-GL10 with nanomolar affinity for Trop2(K_(D)=12.9 nM).The radiosynthesis of[^(68)Ga]Ga-NOTA-GL10 was achieved via conventional methods with high radiochemical yield(RCY),good stability,and favorable pharmacokinetics.Dynamic PET imaging revealed that the tracer presented a significantly higher tumor uptake((5.03±0.49)%ID/mL)and tumor-to-muscle ratio(4.44±0.30)in Trop2-positive BxPC-3 xenografts compared to that in Trop2-negative PANC-1 xenografts((1.41±0.13)%ID/mL,1.23±0.27).Moreover,near-infrared(NIR)fluorescence imaging of the probe ICG-GL10 further confirmed the ability of GL10 to specifically target Trop2-positive tumors.The peptide-based Trop2 targeting radiotracer[^(68)Ga]Ga-NOTA-GL10 demonstrated high specificity and sensitivity in detecting Trop2 expression,which revealed the potential of Trop2-based non-invasive imaging for cancer diagnosis.展开更多
Neurodegenerative diseases are a growing burden on healthcare systems.Patients with Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s diseases(AD or PD)are desperately waiting for innovative solutions that are slow to come,despite several...Neurodegenerative diseases are a growing burden on healthcare systems.Patients with Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s diseases(AD or PD)are desperately waiting for innovative solutions that are slow to come,despite several decades of research worldwide.In 2021 and again in 2023,two monoclonal antibodies,aducanumab and lecanemab,have been approved by the U.S.Food and Drug Administration,and a third,donanemab,is currently under review.However,these treatments have very limited efficacy on cognitive functions and are accompanied by major side effects:amyloid-related imaging abnormalities,microhemorrhages,and accelerated brain volume loss(Høilund-Carlsen et al.,2024).展开更多
A recently published study(Xin et al.,Prog Biochem Biophys,2026,53(2):431-441.DOI:10.3724/j.pibb.2025.0508)addresses the therapeutic challenges of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma(PDAC)by innovatively developing an or...A recently published study(Xin et al.,Prog Biochem Biophys,2026,53(2):431-441.DOI:10.3724/j.pibb.2025.0508)addresses the therapeutic challenges of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma(PDAC)by innovatively developing an orally administered nanogene delivery system.Designed to achieve in situ,efficient delivery of chimeric antigen receptor(CAR)genes to tumor sites,this approach offers a novel strategy for CAR-macrophage(CAR-M)based immunotherapy.Its key highlights are as follows.展开更多
Insects represent emerging sources of bioactive peptides and functional materials.Mantidis Oötheca(Sang-Piao-Xiao in Chinese,SPX)serves as an insect-derived medicine for treating kidney disease.This study demonst...Insects represent emerging sources of bioactive peptides and functional materials.Mantidis Oötheca(Sang-Piao-Xiao in Chinese,SPX)serves as an insect-derived medicine for treating kidney disease.This study demonstrated that supernatant(SPX)improved kidney function in adriamycin(ADR)-induced nephropathy mice model.Transcriptomic analysis revealed that SPX inhibited complement activation by targeting the MASP1-C3/C3a receptor(C3aR)pathway.Peptidomic analysis identified 304 peptides from SPX,with 49 peptides selected for evaluation using prediction tools and molecular docking with complement core protein C3.Three peptides(PMGFPFDR,FNDPK,AAQFFNR)exhibiting docking scores below-8.0 were synthesized to verify complement inhibition and anti-fibrotic activities.The synthetic peptide AAQFFNR demonstrated complement inhibitory activity,with an inhibitory complement hemolytic 50%(ICH_(50))value of 24.54μmol·L^(-1),and exhibited superior protective effects in ADR-induced HK-2 cells.Surface plasmon resonance(SPR)assay revealed direct interaction between AAQFFNR and complement C3 with K_(d)value of 16.8μmol·L^(-1).The reno-protective effect of AAQFFNR was subsequently verified in ADR-induced mice.This research provides initial evidence that complement C3-inhibiting peptides from insects demonstrate potential in preventing nephropathy through in silico and in vivo validation approaches.展开更多
Natural antimicrobial peptides(AMPs)are promising candidates for the development of a new generation of antimicrobials to combat antibiotic-resistant pathogens.They have found extensive applications in the fields of m...Natural antimicrobial peptides(AMPs)are promising candidates for the development of a new generation of antimicrobials to combat antibiotic-resistant pathogens.They have found extensive applications in the fields of medicine,food,and agriculture.However,efficiently screening AMPs from natural sources poses several challenges,including low efficiency and high antibiotic resistance.This review focuses on the action mechanisms of AMPs,both through membrane and non-membrane routes.We thoroughly examine various highly efficient AMP screening methods,including whole-bacterial adsorption binding,cell membrane chromatography(CMC),phospholipid membrane chromatography binding,membranemediated capillary electrophoresis(CE),colorimetric assays,thin layer chromatography(TLC),fluorescence-based screening,genetic sequencing-based analysis,computational mining of AMP databases,and virtual screening methods.Additionally,we discuss potential developmental applications for enhancing the efficiency of AMP discovery.This review provides a comprehensive framework for identifying AMPs within complex natural product systems.展开更多
Ganoderma lingzhi is a new species of the prize medicinal mushroom Ganoderma(Agaricomycetes).Using angiotensin I-converting enzyme(ACE)as a target,a tripeptide Ser-Tyr-Pro(SYP)was discovered with preponderant ACE inhi...Ganoderma lingzhi is a new species of the prize medicinal mushroom Ganoderma(Agaricomycetes).Using angiotensin I-converting enzyme(ACE)as a target,a tripeptide Ser-Tyr-Pro(SYP)was discovered with preponderant ACE inhibitory activity with an 50%inhibiting concentration(IC_(50))value of 62.50μg/mL attribute to the formed salt bridge and hydrogen bonds between SYP and ACE.SYP even maintained superior bioactivity after intestinal digestion,and exerted no cytotoxicity,but presented incomplete bioavailability in blood of spontaneous hypertensive rats(SHRs).Furthermore,it performed antihypertensive effect in vivo by inhibiting the influx of Ca^(2+)through activating endothelial NO synthase(e NOS)/NO/guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate(c GMP)pathway,accompanied by attenuating angiotensin II(Ang II)/NADPH oxidase(NOX)/reactive oxygen species(ROS)pathway.This work not only discoverers a novel pharmacological ingredient from medicinal mushroom G.lingzhi for hypertension therapy,but also provides an insight into molecular mechanism of the ACE inhibitory peptide(ACEIP)on lowering blood pressure.展开更多
Peptide-based therapies have attracted considerable interest in the treatment of cancer, diabetes, bacterial infections, and neurodegenerative diseases due to their promising therapeutic properties and enhanced safety...Peptide-based therapies have attracted considerable interest in the treatment of cancer, diabetes, bacterial infections, and neurodegenerative diseases due to their promising therapeutic properties and enhanced safety profiles. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the major trends in peptide drug discovery and development, emphasizing preclinical strategies aimed at improving peptide stability, specificity, and pharmacokinetic properties. It assesses the current applications and challenges of peptide-based drugs in these diseases, illustrating the pharmaceutical areas where peptide-based drugs demonstrate significant potential. Furthermore, this review analyzes the obstacles that must be overcome in the future,aiming to provide valuable insights and references for the continued advancement of peptidebased drugs.展开更多
Effective countermeasures against multidrug-resistant nosocomial pathogens,such as carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA),require the development of innovative...Effective countermeasures against multidrug-resistant nosocomial pathogens,such as carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA),require the development of innovative antimicrobial strategies.This study presents a structure-function approach to antimicrobial peptide(AMP)design through the strategic integration of a cationic backbone with a hydrophobic core.This dual-domain architecture enables robust hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions,promoting spontaneous self-assembly and efficient membrane engagement.The lead peptide,Tryptolycin(TRPY),formed stable,monodisperse nanoparticles and demonstrated broad-spectrum bactericidal activity,with minimum inhibitory concentrations≤1μmol/L against multiple strains of MRSA and K.pneumoniae,while exerting minimal cytotoxicity toward mammalian cells.TRPY achieved rapid bacterial elimination,eradicating 99.9%of both planktonic and persister populations within minutes.Mechanistic investigations revealed that TRPY induced membrane permeabilization,promoted reactive oxygen species(ROS)production,and inhibited biofilm formation.In murine infection models,TRPY effectively eradicated established infections,reducing bacterial burden across target organs by 3-to 5-fold without significant cytotoxicity at therapeutic concentrations.Collectively,these findings establish TRPY as a promising therapeutic agent for clinical translation in the treatment of refractory bacterial infections.展开更多
Background Broiler chickens are most vulnerable immediately after hatching due to their immature immune systems,making them susceptible to infectious diseases.The yolk plays an important role in early immune defence b...Background Broiler chickens are most vulnerable immediately after hatching due to their immature immune systems,making them susceptible to infectious diseases.The yolk plays an important role in early immune defence by showing relevant antioxidant and passive immunity capabilities during broiler embryonic development.The immunomodulatory effects of phytogenic compound carvacrol have been widely reported.After in ovo delivery in the amniotic fluid during embryonic development carvacrol is known to migrate to the yolk sac.However,it is unknown whether carvacrol in the yolk could enhance defence responsiveness in the yolk sac.Therefore,the aim of this study was to improve early immune function in chicken embryos,and it was hypothesized that in ovo delivery of carvacrol would result in immunomodulatory effects in the yolk sac,potentially improving post-hatch resilience.Methods On embryonic day(E)17.5,either a saline(control)or carvacrol solution was injected into the amniotic fluid.Yolk sac tissue samples were collected at E19.5,and transcriptomic analyses using RNA sequencing were performed,following functional enrichment analyses comparing the control(saline)and carvacrol-injected groups.Results The results showed that 268 genes were upregulated and 174 downregulated in the carvacrol group compared to the control(P<0.05;logFC<-0.5 or log FC>0.5).Functional analyses of these differentially expressed genes,using KEGG,REACTOME,and Gene Ontology databases,showed enrichment of several immune-related pathways.This included the pathways‘Antimicrobial peptides’(P=0.001)and‘Chemoattractant activity’(P=0.004),amongst others.Moreover,the‘NOD-like receptor signaling’pathway was enriched(P=0.002).Antimicrobial peptides are part of the innate immune defence and are amongst the molecules produced after the nucleotide oligomeriza-tion domain(NOD)-like receptor pathway activation.While these responses may be associated with an inflammatory reaction to an exogenous threat,they could also indicate that in ovo delivery of carvacrol could prepare the newly hatched chick against bacterial pathogens by potentially promoting antimicrobial peptide production through acti-vation of NOD-like receptor signaling in the yolk sac.Conclusion In conclusion,these findings suggest that in ovo delivery of carvacrol has the potential to enhance anti-pathogenic and pro-inflammatory responses in the yolk sac via upregulation of antimicrobial peptides,and NOD-like receptor pathways.展开更多
Despite ongoing advancements in cancer treatment,the emergence of primary and acquired resistance poses a significant challenge for both traditional chemotherapy and immune checkpoint blockade therapies.The demand for...Despite ongoing advancements in cancer treatment,the emergence of primary and acquired resistance poses a significant challenge for both traditional chemotherapy and immune checkpoint blockade therapies.The demand for targeted therapeutics for multidrug-resistant cancer is more important than ever.Peptides,as emerging alternatives to current anticancer drugs,offer exquisite versatility in facilitating the design of novel oncology drugs,with the core superiorities of good biocompatibility and a low tendency to induce drug resistance.This review comprehensively introduces the pharmacological mechanisms of peptide-based drugs and strategies for overcoming multidrug resistance(MDR)in cancers,including inducing cell membrane lysis,targeting organelles,activating anticancer immune responses,enhancing drug uptake,targeting ATP-binding cassette(ABC)transporters,and targeting B-cell lymphoma-2(BCL-2)family proteins.Additionally,the current clinical applications of representative peptides in combating MDR cancers and their potential directions for medicinal chemistry research have been thoroughly discussed.This review offers essential insights into the novel treatment approaches for MDR cancers and highlights the trends and perspectives in this field.展开更多
Ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides(RiPPs)constitute a vast and diverse family of bioactive peptides.These peptides,synthesized by ribosomes and subsequently modified by various tailorin...Ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides(RiPPs)constitute a vast and diverse family of bioactive peptides.These peptides,synthesized by ribosomes and subsequently modified by various tailoring enzymes,possess a wide chemical space.Among these modifications,radical S-adenosylmethionine(rSAM)enzymes employ unique radical chemistry to introduce a variety of novel peptide structures,which are crucial for their activity.This review examines the major types of modifications in RiPPs catalyzed by rSAM enzymes,incorporating recent advancements in protein structure analysis techniques and computational methods.Additionally,it elucidates the diverse catalytic mechanisms and substrate selectivity of these enzymes through an analysis of the latest crystal structures.展开更多
The rising prevalence of drug-resistant Gram-positive pathogens,particularly methicillin-resistant Staphy-lococcus aureus(MRSA)and vancomycin-resistant Enterococci(VRE),poses a substantial clinical challenge.Biofilm-a...The rising prevalence of drug-resistant Gram-positive pathogens,particularly methicillin-resistant Staphy-lococcus aureus(MRSA)and vancomycin-resistant Enterococci(VRE),poses a substantial clinical challenge.Biofilm-associated infections exacerbate this problem due to their inherent antibiotic resistance and complex structure.Current antibiotic treatments struggle to penetrate biofilms and eradicate persister cells,leading to prolonged antibiotic use and increased resistance.Host defense peptides(HDPs)have shown promise,but their clinical application is limited by factors such as enzymatic degradation and difficulty in largescale preparation.Synthetic HDP mimics,such as poly(2-oxazoline),have emerged as effective alter-natives.Herein,we found that the poly(2-oxazoline),Gly-POX_(20),demonstrated rapid and potent activity against clinically isolated multidrug-resistant Gram-positive strains.Gly-POX_(20) showed greater stability under physiological conditions compared to natural peptides,including resistance to protease degradation.Importantly,Gly-POX_(20) inhibited biofilm formation and eradicated mature biofilm and demonstrated superior in vivo therapeutic efficacy to vancomycin in a MRSA biofilm-associated mouse keratitis model,suggesting its potential as a novel antimicrobial agent against drug-resistant Gram-positive bacteria,especially biofilm-associated infections.展开更多
Solid lipid nanoparticles(SLN)could enhance the oral bioavailability of loaded protein and peptide drugs through lymphatic transport.Natural oligopeptides regulate nearly all vital processes and serve as a nitrogen so...Solid lipid nanoparticles(SLN)could enhance the oral bioavailability of loaded protein and peptide drugs through lymphatic transport.Natural oligopeptides regulate nearly all vital processes and serve as a nitrogen source for nourishment.They are mainly transported by oligopeptide transporter-1(PepT-1)which are primarily expressed in the intestine with the characteristics of high-capacity and low energy consumption.Our preliminary research discovered the transmembrane transport of SLN could be improved by stimulating the oligopeptide absorption pathway.This implied the potential of combining the advantages of SLN with oligopeptide transporter mediated transportation.Herein,two kinds of dipeptide modified SLN were designed with insulin and glucagon like peptide-1(GLP-1)analogue exenatide as model drugs.These drugs loaded SLN showed enhanced oral bioavailability and hypoglycemic effect in both type I diabetic C57BL/6mice and type II diabetic KKAymice.Compared with un-modified SLN,dipeptide-modified SLN could be internalized by intestinal epithelial cells via PepT-1-mediated endocytosis with higher uptake.Interestingly,after internalization,more SLN could access the systemic circulation via lymphatic transport pathway,highlighting the potential to combine the oligopeptide-absorption route with SLN for oral drug delivery.展开更多
Peptide-based therapeutics hold great promise for the treatment of various diseases;however,their clinical application is often hindered by toxicity challenges.The accurate prediction of peptide toxicity is crucial fo...Peptide-based therapeutics hold great promise for the treatment of various diseases;however,their clinical application is often hindered by toxicity challenges.The accurate prediction of peptide toxicity is crucial for designing safe peptide-based therapeutics.While traditional experimental approaches are time-consuming and expensive,computational methods have emerged as viable alternatives,including similarity-based and machine learning(ML)-/deep learning(DL)-based methods.However,existing methods often struggle with robustness and generalizability.To address these challenges,we propose HyPepTox-Fuse,a novel framework that fuses protein language model(PLM)-based embeddings with conventional descriptors.HyPepTox-Fuse integrates ensemble PLM-based embeddings to achieve richer peptide representations by leveraging a cross-modal multi-head attention mechanism and Transformer architecture.A robust feature ranking and selection pipeline further refines conventional descriptors,thus enhancing prediction performance.Our framework outperforms state-of-the-art methods in cross-validation and independent evaluations,offering a scalable and reliable tool for peptide toxicity prediction.Moreover,we conducted a case study to validate the robustness and generalizability of HyPepTox-Fuse,highlighting its effectiveness in enhancing model performance.Furthermore,the HyPepTox-Fuse server is freely accessible at https://balalab-skku.org/HyPepTox-Fuse/and the source code is publicly available at https://github.com/cbbl-skku-org/HyPepTox-Fuse/.The study thus presents an intuitive platform for predicting peptide toxicity and supports reproducibility through openly available datasets.展开更多
Small signaling peptides,generally comprising fewer than 100 amino acids,act as crucial signaling molecules in cell-to-cell communications.Upon perception by their membrane-localized corresponding receptors or co-rece...Small signaling peptides,generally comprising fewer than 100 amino acids,act as crucial signaling molecules in cell-to-cell communications.Upon perception by their membrane-localized corresponding receptors or co-receptors,these peptide-receptor modules then(de)activate either long-distance or local signaling pathways,thereby orchestrating developmental and adaptive responses via(post)transcriptional,(post)translational,and epigenetic regulations.The physiological functions of small signaling peptides are implicated in a multitude of developmental processes and adaptive responses,including but not limited to,shoot and root morphogenesis,organ abscission,nodulation,Casparian strip formation,pollen development,taproot growth,and various abiotic stress responses such as aluminum,cadmium,drought,cold,and salinity.Additionally,they play a critical role in response to pathogenic invasions.These small signaling peptides also modulate significant agronomic and horticultural traits,such as fruit size,maize kernel development,fiber elongation,and rice awn formation.Here,we underscore the roles of several small signaling peptide families such as CLE,RALF,EPFL,mi PEP,CEP,IDA/IDL,and PSK in regulating these biological processes.These novel insights will deepen our current understanding of small signaling peptides,and offer innovative strategies for genetic breeding stress-tolerant crops and horticultural plants,contributing to establish sustainable agricultural systems.展开更多
Momordica antiviral protein 30 kD(MAP30)is a type I ribosome-inactivating protein(RIP)with antibacterial,anti-HIV and antitumor activities but lacks the ability to target tumor cells.To increase its tumor-targeting ab...Momordica antiviral protein 30 kD(MAP30)is a type I ribosome-inactivating protein(RIP)with antibacterial,anti-HIV and antitumor activities but lacks the ability to target tumor cells.To increase its tumor-targeting ability,the arginine-glycine-aspartic(RGD)peptide and the epidermal growth factor receptor interference(EGFRi)peptide were fused with MAP30,which was named ELRL-MAP30.The efficiency of targeted therapy for triple-negative breast cancer(TNBC)MDA-MB-231 cells,which lack the expression of estrogen receptor(ER),Progesterone receptor(PgR)and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2(HER2),is limited.In this study,we focus on exploring the effect and mechanism of ELRL-MAP30 on TNBC MDA-MB-231 cells.First,we discovered that ELRL-MAP30 significantly inhibited the migration and invasion of MDA-MB-231 cells and induced MDA-MB-231 cell apoptosis.Moreover,ELRL-MAP30 treatment resulted in a significant increase in Bax expression and a decrease in Bcl-2 expression.Furthermore,ELRL-MAP30 triggered apoptosis via the Fak/EGFR/Erk and Ilk/Akt signaling pathways.In addition,recombinant ELRL-MAP30 can inhibit chicken embryonic angiogenesis,and also inhibit the tube formation ability of human umbilical vein endothelial cells(HUVECs),indicating its potential therapeutic effects on tumor angiogenesis.Collectively,these results indicate that ELRL-MAP30 has significant tumor-targeting properties in MDA-MB-231 cancer cells and reveals potential therapeutic effects on angiogenesis.These findings indicate the potential role of ELRL-MAP30 in the targeted treatment of the TNBC cell line MDA-MB-231.展开更多
基金supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(32370850,32460081)Leading Talent of Technological Innovation of Shaanxi Special Support Program(20249)+3 种基金the Natural Science Foundation of Shaanxi(2020JC-29,2023-JCZD-09)Central Universities Funds(GK202402003)the Jiangxi Agricultural University(9232308314)the Science and Technology Department of Jiangxi Province(20223BCJ25037)。
文摘Signaling peptides are known for their prominent roles in plant growth, development, and environmental adaptation(Zhang et al., 2025). However, their extremely low natural abundance and highly dynamic expression patterns pose significant technical challenges to extract sufficient amounts with good purity for biological studies and practical applications.Consequently, chemical synthesis and microbial systems offer attractive alternatives to obtain potent peptides at higher quantities and purity. Incorporating modifications or substitutions, chemically synthetic approaches enable the creation of more effective engineered peptides such as agonists,antagonists, chemically modified peptides, or peptide-like molecules with novel functions compared to native peptides.
基金supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province(No.BK20220409)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.22401153)+2 种基金the FWO[Fund for Scientific Research-Flanders(Belgium)]for financial support(recipient Erik V.Van der Eycken)the Research Council of the KU Leuven(recipient Erik V.Van der Eycken)the support of the"RUDN University Strategic Academic Leadership Program"(recipient Erik V.Van der Eycken).
文摘Peptides play important roles in chemistry,medicinal chemistry and life science,due to their high efficiency and specificity,unusual biological and therapeutic properties.As naturally occurring peptides often face with their intrinsic limitations including metabolic instability and low membrane permeability,the strategies for synthesizing unnatural amino acids and peptides are explored.Among the methods for modifying amino acids and peptides,chemo-and site-selective approaches are preferred because of the ability to fine-tuning structural features.Recently,transition metal-catalyzed Csingle bondH activation has been employed for the functionalization of amino acids and peptides.Through domino Csingle bondH activation/annulation,a series of structurally complex and diverse amino acids and peptides is constructed.This review highlights recent advances in the synthesis of unnatural amino acids and peptides via transition metal-catalyzed Csingle bondH activation/annulation.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(22378368).
文摘The blood-brain barrier(BBB)is a major challenge in drug delivery for the treatment of central nervous system diseases.Walnut derived peptide TWLPLPR(TW-7)has been proved to promote neuronal mitochondrial autophagy and enhance hippocampal neuronal synaptic plasticity,thereby improving learning and memory abilities in mice.We investigated the internalization mechanism and intracellular transport pathway for the walnut-derived peptide,TW-7,using b End.3 cells in an in vitro BBB model system.TW-7 was taken up by the b End.3 cells in a concentration-,temperature-,and energy-dependent manner;this involved increases in caveolin-1 and caveolin-2 protein expression and phosphorylation and inhibition of P-glycoprotein-mediated efflux.Subcellular localization of TW-7 in b End.3 cells was observed,indicating that the plasma membrane,endoplasmic reticulum,Golgi apparatus,lysosomes,and mitochondria participated in intracellular trafficking and that the peptide escaped from lysosomes over time.Caveolae may be critical for TW-7 uptake by brain microvascular endothelial cells,assisting TW-7 to cross the BBB.The results of this study provide a theoretical basis for the mechanism of active peptide penetrating the BBB,and provide a reference for developing neuroprotective active peptide products.
基金supported by the following grants:National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.92354305 and 32271428),National Key R&D Program of China(Grant No.2022YFC3401100)Young Talent Program of Hubei Provincial Health Commission(WJ2025Q037)+1 种基金Interdisciplinary Research Program of HUST(Grant No.2023JCY5045)Director Fund of WNLO.
文摘Fluorescent probes,with their superior optical properties and labeling versatility,have greatly advanced the visualization of intracellular molecules and subcellular structures.However,poor cytoplasmic delivery,caused by charge,size,or targeting groups,limits the effective use of many fluorescent probes in live cells.Recently,cell-penetrating peptides(CPPs)have emerged as efficient carriers,offering great potential for the cytoplasmic delivery of fluorescent probes in live cells.This review provides a comprehensive overview of CPPs as vehicles for probe delivery,outlining advances in their development,conjugation chemistries,and intracellular delivery mechanisms.Recent applications in live-cell imaging are highlighted and organized according to major CPP modification strategies,including sequence engineering,cyclization,hybrid design and enhancement by chemical reagents.Finally,the challenges that remain and the future outlook of this rapidly evolvingfield are discussed.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(22407052)the Jiangsu Provincial Natural Science Foundation(BK20240300)+4 种基金the Scientific Research Project of Jiangsu Commission of Health(MQ2024007,H2023150,K2024007)the Wuxi Science and Technology Development Fund(K20241060)the Major Project of Wuxi Municipal Health Commission(Z202303)the Wuxi Association for Science and Technology(TJXD-2024-102)the Jiangsu Province Capability Improvement Project through Science,Technology and Education(ZDXYS202211)。
文摘Trophoblast cell surface antigen 2(Trop2)has been widely characterized as a clinically significant pan-cancer biomarker expressed in various tumors,significantly impacting tumor growth,invasion,and metastasis.In this study,we develop Trop2 targeting peptide-based radiotracer[^(68)Ga]Ga-NOTA-GL10 for accurately detecting the Trop2 expression levels through positron emission tomography(PET)imaging.The Trop2-targeting peptide GL10 was rationally designed through computational methods based on the T2-2 peptide,and conjugated with the 1,4,7-triazacyclononane-N,N′,N″-triacetic acid(NOTA)chelator to synthesize the precursor NOTA-GL10 with nanomolar affinity for Trop2(K_(D)=12.9 nM).The radiosynthesis of[^(68)Ga]Ga-NOTA-GL10 was achieved via conventional methods with high radiochemical yield(RCY),good stability,and favorable pharmacokinetics.Dynamic PET imaging revealed that the tracer presented a significantly higher tumor uptake((5.03±0.49)%ID/mL)and tumor-to-muscle ratio(4.44±0.30)in Trop2-positive BxPC-3 xenografts compared to that in Trop2-negative PANC-1 xenografts((1.41±0.13)%ID/mL,1.23±0.27).Moreover,near-infrared(NIR)fluorescence imaging of the probe ICG-GL10 further confirmed the ability of GL10 to specifically target Trop2-positive tumors.The peptide-based Trop2 targeting radiotracer[^(68)Ga]Ga-NOTA-GL10 demonstrated high specificity and sensitivity in detecting Trop2 expression,which revealed the potential of Trop2-based non-invasive imaging for cancer diagnosis.
文摘Neurodegenerative diseases are a growing burden on healthcare systems.Patients with Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s diseases(AD or PD)are desperately waiting for innovative solutions that are slow to come,despite several decades of research worldwide.In 2021 and again in 2023,two monoclonal antibodies,aducanumab and lecanemab,have been approved by the U.S.Food and Drug Administration,and a third,donanemab,is currently under review.However,these treatments have very limited efficacy on cognitive functions and are accompanied by major side effects:amyloid-related imaging abnormalities,microhemorrhages,and accelerated brain volume loss(Høilund-Carlsen et al.,2024).
文摘A recently published study(Xin et al.,Prog Biochem Biophys,2026,53(2):431-441.DOI:10.3724/j.pibb.2025.0508)addresses the therapeutic challenges of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma(PDAC)by innovatively developing an orally administered nanogene delivery system.Designed to achieve in situ,efficient delivery of chimeric antigen receptor(CAR)genes to tumor sites,this approach offers a novel strategy for CAR-macrophage(CAR-M)based immunotherapy.Its key highlights are as follows.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.82104353)China Postdoctoral Science Foundation funded project(No.2022M711680).
文摘Insects represent emerging sources of bioactive peptides and functional materials.Mantidis Oötheca(Sang-Piao-Xiao in Chinese,SPX)serves as an insect-derived medicine for treating kidney disease.This study demonstrated that supernatant(SPX)improved kidney function in adriamycin(ADR)-induced nephropathy mice model.Transcriptomic analysis revealed that SPX inhibited complement activation by targeting the MASP1-C3/C3a receptor(C3aR)pathway.Peptidomic analysis identified 304 peptides from SPX,with 49 peptides selected for evaluation using prediction tools and molecular docking with complement core protein C3.Three peptides(PMGFPFDR,FNDPK,AAQFFNR)exhibiting docking scores below-8.0 were synthesized to verify complement inhibition and anti-fibrotic activities.The synthetic peptide AAQFFNR demonstrated complement inhibitory activity,with an inhibitory complement hemolytic 50%(ICH_(50))value of 24.54μmol·L^(-1),and exhibited superior protective effects in ADR-induced HK-2 cells.Surface plasmon resonance(SPR)assay revealed direct interaction between AAQFFNR and complement C3 with K_(d)value of 16.8μmol·L^(-1).The reno-protective effect of AAQFFNR was subsequently verified in ADR-induced mice.This research provides initial evidence that complement C3-inhibiting peptides from insects demonstrate potential in preventing nephropathy through in silico and in vivo validation approaches.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.:82373835,82304437,and 82173781)Regional Joint Fund Project of Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Fund,China(Grant Nos.:2023A1515110417 and 2023A1515140131)+2 种基金Regional Joint Fund-Key Project of Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Fund,China(Grant No.:2020B1515120033)the Key Field Projects of General Universities in Guangdong Province,China(Grant Nos.:2020ZDZX2057 and 2022ZDZX2056)Medical Scientific Research Foundation of Guangdong Province of China(Grant No.:A2022061).
文摘Natural antimicrobial peptides(AMPs)are promising candidates for the development of a new generation of antimicrobials to combat antibiotic-resistant pathogens.They have found extensive applications in the fields of medicine,food,and agriculture.However,efficiently screening AMPs from natural sources poses several challenges,including low efficiency and high antibiotic resistance.This review focuses on the action mechanisms of AMPs,both through membrane and non-membrane routes.We thoroughly examine various highly efficient AMP screening methods,including whole-bacterial adsorption binding,cell membrane chromatography(CMC),phospholipid membrane chromatography binding,membranemediated capillary electrophoresis(CE),colorimetric assays,thin layer chromatography(TLC),fluorescence-based screening,genetic sequencing-based analysis,computational mining of AMP databases,and virtual screening methods.Additionally,we discuss potential developmental applications for enhancing the efficiency of AMP discovery.This review provides a comprehensive framework for identifying AMPs within complex natural product systems.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(32071673 and 32202573)the Program of Hunan Science and Technology Innovation Team(2021RC4063)+1 种基金the Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province(2021JJ31151 and 2022JJ50028)the Key Scientific Research Project of Hunan Education Department(22A0538)。
文摘Ganoderma lingzhi is a new species of the prize medicinal mushroom Ganoderma(Agaricomycetes).Using angiotensin I-converting enzyme(ACE)as a target,a tripeptide Ser-Tyr-Pro(SYP)was discovered with preponderant ACE inhibitory activity with an 50%inhibiting concentration(IC_(50))value of 62.50μg/mL attribute to the formed salt bridge and hydrogen bonds between SYP and ACE.SYP even maintained superior bioactivity after intestinal digestion,and exerted no cytotoxicity,but presented incomplete bioavailability in blood of spontaneous hypertensive rats(SHRs).Furthermore,it performed antihypertensive effect in vivo by inhibiting the influx of Ca^(2+)through activating endothelial NO synthase(e NOS)/NO/guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate(c GMP)pathway,accompanied by attenuating angiotensin II(Ang II)/NADPH oxidase(NOX)/reactive oxygen species(ROS)pathway.This work not only discoverers a novel pharmacological ingredient from medicinal mushroom G.lingzhi for hypertension therapy,but also provides an insight into molecular mechanism of the ACE inhibitory peptide(ACEIP)on lowering blood pressure.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 82173674 and 82204195)。
文摘Peptide-based therapies have attracted considerable interest in the treatment of cancer, diabetes, bacterial infections, and neurodegenerative diseases due to their promising therapeutic properties and enhanced safety profiles. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the major trends in peptide drug discovery and development, emphasizing preclinical strategies aimed at improving peptide stability, specificity, and pharmacokinetic properties. It assesses the current applications and challenges of peptide-based drugs in these diseases, illustrating the pharmaceutical areas where peptide-based drugs demonstrate significant potential. Furthermore, this review analyzes the obstacles that must be overcome in the future,aiming to provide valuable insights and references for the continued advancement of peptidebased drugs.
基金supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China(2022YFC2105003,2022YFC2602500)National Natural Science Foundation of China(92469103,32400769,32300404)+6 种基金Chinese Academy of Sciences(YSBR-111,SAJC202402)Yunnan Provincial Science and Technology Department(202305AH340007,202301AT070343,202502AA310005)Yunnan Characteristic Plant Extraction Laboratory(2025YKZY002)Kunming Science and Technology Bureau(2022SCP007)New Cornerstone Investigator Program from Shenzhen New Cornerstone Science Foundation(NCI202238)Tianfu Jincheng Laboratory Foundation(TFJC2023010007)Chinese Academy of Sciences and World Academy of Sciences(CAS-TWAS)President’s Fellowship Program(2019A8010415001)。
文摘Effective countermeasures against multidrug-resistant nosocomial pathogens,such as carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA),require the development of innovative antimicrobial strategies.This study presents a structure-function approach to antimicrobial peptide(AMP)design through the strategic integration of a cationic backbone with a hydrophobic core.This dual-domain architecture enables robust hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions,promoting spontaneous self-assembly and efficient membrane engagement.The lead peptide,Tryptolycin(TRPY),formed stable,monodisperse nanoparticles and demonstrated broad-spectrum bactericidal activity,with minimum inhibitory concentrations≤1μmol/L against multiple strains of MRSA and K.pneumoniae,while exerting minimal cytotoxicity toward mammalian cells.TRPY achieved rapid bacterial elimination,eradicating 99.9%of both planktonic and persister populations within minutes.Mechanistic investigations revealed that TRPY induced membrane permeabilization,promoted reactive oxygen species(ROS)production,and inhibited biofilm formation.In murine infection models,TRPY effectively eradicated established infections,reducing bacterial burden across target organs by 3-to 5-fold without significant cytotoxicity at therapeutic concentrations.Collectively,these findings establish TRPY as a promising therapeutic agent for clinical translation in the treatment of refractory bacterial infections.
基金support by AgriFutures Australia’s Chicken Meat Program[grant number PRJ-011584]is gratefully acknowledged.
文摘Background Broiler chickens are most vulnerable immediately after hatching due to their immature immune systems,making them susceptible to infectious diseases.The yolk plays an important role in early immune defence by showing relevant antioxidant and passive immunity capabilities during broiler embryonic development.The immunomodulatory effects of phytogenic compound carvacrol have been widely reported.After in ovo delivery in the amniotic fluid during embryonic development carvacrol is known to migrate to the yolk sac.However,it is unknown whether carvacrol in the yolk could enhance defence responsiveness in the yolk sac.Therefore,the aim of this study was to improve early immune function in chicken embryos,and it was hypothesized that in ovo delivery of carvacrol would result in immunomodulatory effects in the yolk sac,potentially improving post-hatch resilience.Methods On embryonic day(E)17.5,either a saline(control)or carvacrol solution was injected into the amniotic fluid.Yolk sac tissue samples were collected at E19.5,and transcriptomic analyses using RNA sequencing were performed,following functional enrichment analyses comparing the control(saline)and carvacrol-injected groups.Results The results showed that 268 genes were upregulated and 174 downregulated in the carvacrol group compared to the control(P<0.05;logFC<-0.5 or log FC>0.5).Functional analyses of these differentially expressed genes,using KEGG,REACTOME,and Gene Ontology databases,showed enrichment of several immune-related pathways.This included the pathways‘Antimicrobial peptides’(P=0.001)and‘Chemoattractant activity’(P=0.004),amongst others.Moreover,the‘NOD-like receptor signaling’pathway was enriched(P=0.002).Antimicrobial peptides are part of the innate immune defence and are amongst the molecules produced after the nucleotide oligomeriza-tion domain(NOD)-like receptor pathway activation.While these responses may be associated with an inflammatory reaction to an exogenous threat,they could also indicate that in ovo delivery of carvacrol could prepare the newly hatched chick against bacterial pathogens by potentially promoting antimicrobial peptide production through acti-vation of NOD-like receptor signaling in the yolk sac.Conclusion In conclusion,these findings suggest that in ovo delivery of carvacrol has the potential to enhance anti-pathogenic and pro-inflammatory responses in the yolk sac via upregulation of antimicrobial peptides,and NOD-like receptor pathways.
基金supported by the Science and Technology Innovation Program of Hunan Province(No.2022RC1168)National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.82322073,82173846,82304533)+12 种基金CAMS Innovation Fund for Medical Sciences(CIFMS)(No.2023-I2M-3-009)Key project at central government level:The ability establishment of sustainable use for valuable Chinese medicine resources(No.2060302)China Postdoctoral Science Foundation(No.2021M702215)Oriental Scholars of Shanghai Universities(No.TP2022081)Jiangxi Province Thousand Talents Program(No.jxsq2023102168)Young Talent Lifting Project of China Association of Chinese Medicine(No.CACM-(2021-QNRC2-A08))Shanghai Rising-Star Program(No.22QA1409100)Shanghai Sailing Program(No.22YF1445000)2021 Shanghai Science and Technology Innovation Action Plan(No.21S11902800)Three-year Action Plan for Shanghai TCM Development and Inheritance Program(Nos.ZY(2021-2023)-0208,ZY(2021-2023)-0401)High level Key Discipline of National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine(No.71)Innovation Team and Talents Cultivation Program of National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine(No.ZYYCXTD-D-202004)Innovation team of high-level local universities in Shanghai:Strategic Innovation Team of TCM Chemical Biology。
文摘Despite ongoing advancements in cancer treatment,the emergence of primary and acquired resistance poses a significant challenge for both traditional chemotherapy and immune checkpoint blockade therapies.The demand for targeted therapeutics for multidrug-resistant cancer is more important than ever.Peptides,as emerging alternatives to current anticancer drugs,offer exquisite versatility in facilitating the design of novel oncology drugs,with the core superiorities of good biocompatibility and a low tendency to induce drug resistance.This review comprehensively introduces the pharmacological mechanisms of peptide-based drugs and strategies for overcoming multidrug resistance(MDR)in cancers,including inducing cell membrane lysis,targeting organelles,activating anticancer immune responses,enhancing drug uptake,targeting ATP-binding cassette(ABC)transporters,and targeting B-cell lymphoma-2(BCL-2)family proteins.Additionally,the current clinical applications of representative peptides in combating MDR cancers and their potential directions for medicinal chemistry research have been thoroughly discussed.This review offers essential insights into the novel treatment approaches for MDR cancers and highlights the trends and perspectives in this field.
基金supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China(No.2023YFA0916000)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.32371324)the High-level Talent Startup Fund provided by China Pharmaceutical University.
文摘Ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides(RiPPs)constitute a vast and diverse family of bioactive peptides.These peptides,synthesized by ribosomes and subsequently modified by various tailoring enzymes,possess a wide chemical space.Among these modifications,radical S-adenosylmethionine(rSAM)enzymes employ unique radical chemistry to introduce a variety of novel peptide structures,which are crucial for their activity.This review examines the major types of modifications in RiPPs catalyzed by rSAM enzymes,incorporating recent advancements in protein structure analysis techniques and computational methods.Additionally,it elucidates the diverse catalytic mechanisms and substrate selectivity of these enzymes through an analysis of the latest crystal structures.
基金financially supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China(no.2022YFC2303100)National Natural Science Foundation of China(nos.T2325010,22305082,52203162,and 22075078)+1 种基金Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Optogenetic Techniques for Cell Metabolism(Shanghai Municipal Education Commission),the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(nos.JKVD1241029 and JKD01241701)Open Research Fund of State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry(Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry,Chinese Academy of Sciences),the Open Project of Engineering Research Center of Dairy Quality and Safety Control Technology(Ministry of Education,no.R202201).
文摘The rising prevalence of drug-resistant Gram-positive pathogens,particularly methicillin-resistant Staphy-lococcus aureus(MRSA)and vancomycin-resistant Enterococci(VRE),poses a substantial clinical challenge.Biofilm-associated infections exacerbate this problem due to their inherent antibiotic resistance and complex structure.Current antibiotic treatments struggle to penetrate biofilms and eradicate persister cells,leading to prolonged antibiotic use and increased resistance.Host defense peptides(HDPs)have shown promise,but their clinical application is limited by factors such as enzymatic degradation and difficulty in largescale preparation.Synthetic HDP mimics,such as poly(2-oxazoline),have emerged as effective alter-natives.Herein,we found that the poly(2-oxazoline),Gly-POX_(20),demonstrated rapid and potent activity against clinically isolated multidrug-resistant Gram-positive strains.Gly-POX_(20) showed greater stability under physiological conditions compared to natural peptides,including resistance to protease degradation.Importantly,Gly-POX_(20) inhibited biofilm formation and eradicated mature biofilm and demonstrated superior in vivo therapeutic efficacy to vancomycin in a MRSA biofilm-associated mouse keratitis model,suggesting its potential as a novel antimicrobial agent against drug-resistant Gram-positive bacteria,especially biofilm-associated infections.
基金supported by National Key Research and Development Program of China(Grant No.2021YFE0115200)the Regional Innovation and Development Joint Fund of National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.U22A20356).
文摘Solid lipid nanoparticles(SLN)could enhance the oral bioavailability of loaded protein and peptide drugs through lymphatic transport.Natural oligopeptides regulate nearly all vital processes and serve as a nitrogen source for nourishment.They are mainly transported by oligopeptide transporter-1(PepT-1)which are primarily expressed in the intestine with the characteristics of high-capacity and low energy consumption.Our preliminary research discovered the transmembrane transport of SLN could be improved by stimulating the oligopeptide absorption pathway.This implied the potential of combining the advantages of SLN with oligopeptide transporter mediated transportation.Herein,two kinds of dipeptide modified SLN were designed with insulin and glucagon like peptide-1(GLP-1)analogue exenatide as model drugs.These drugs loaded SLN showed enhanced oral bioavailability and hypoglycemic effect in both type I diabetic C57BL/6mice and type II diabetic KKAymice.Compared with un-modified SLN,dipeptide-modified SLN could be internalized by intestinal epithelial cells via PepT-1-mediated endocytosis with higher uptake.Interestingly,after internalization,more SLN could access the systemic circulation via lymphatic transport pathway,highlighting the potential to combine the oligopeptide-absorption route with SLN for oral drug delivery.
基金supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea(NRF)funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT,Republic of Korea(Grant No.:RS-2024-00344752)supported by the Department of Integrative Biotechnology,Sungkyunkwan University(SKKU)and the BK21 FOUR Project,Republic of Korea.
文摘Peptide-based therapeutics hold great promise for the treatment of various diseases;however,their clinical application is often hindered by toxicity challenges.The accurate prediction of peptide toxicity is crucial for designing safe peptide-based therapeutics.While traditional experimental approaches are time-consuming and expensive,computational methods have emerged as viable alternatives,including similarity-based and machine learning(ML)-/deep learning(DL)-based methods.However,existing methods often struggle with robustness and generalizability.To address these challenges,we propose HyPepTox-Fuse,a novel framework that fuses protein language model(PLM)-based embeddings with conventional descriptors.HyPepTox-Fuse integrates ensemble PLM-based embeddings to achieve richer peptide representations by leveraging a cross-modal multi-head attention mechanism and Transformer architecture.A robust feature ranking and selection pipeline further refines conventional descriptors,thus enhancing prediction performance.Our framework outperforms state-of-the-art methods in cross-validation and independent evaluations,offering a scalable and reliable tool for peptide toxicity prediction.Moreover,we conducted a case study to validate the robustness and generalizability of HyPepTox-Fuse,highlighting its effectiveness in enhancing model performance.Furthermore,the HyPepTox-Fuse server is freely accessible at https://balalab-skku.org/HyPepTox-Fuse/and the source code is publicly available at https://github.com/cbbl-skku-org/HyPepTox-Fuse/.The study thus presents an intuitive platform for predicting peptide toxicity and supports reproducibility through openly available datasets.
基金supported by funding from Jiangxi Agricultural University(9232308314 to Huibin Han)Science and Technology Department of Jiangxi Province(20223BCJ25037 to Huibin Han and 20202ACB215002 to Shuaiying Peng)+1 种基金the Outstanding Youth Fund Project of the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangxi Province,China(20242BAB23066 to Yong Zhou)National Natural Science Foundation of China(32060047 to Jianping Liu,32160739 to Youxin Yang,32460797 to Yong Zhou and 32460081 to Huibin Han)。
文摘Small signaling peptides,generally comprising fewer than 100 amino acids,act as crucial signaling molecules in cell-to-cell communications.Upon perception by their membrane-localized corresponding receptors or co-receptors,these peptide-receptor modules then(de)activate either long-distance or local signaling pathways,thereby orchestrating developmental and adaptive responses via(post)transcriptional,(post)translational,and epigenetic regulations.The physiological functions of small signaling peptides are implicated in a multitude of developmental processes and adaptive responses,including but not limited to,shoot and root morphogenesis,organ abscission,nodulation,Casparian strip formation,pollen development,taproot growth,and various abiotic stress responses such as aluminum,cadmium,drought,cold,and salinity.Additionally,they play a critical role in response to pathogenic invasions.These small signaling peptides also modulate significant agronomic and horticultural traits,such as fruit size,maize kernel development,fiber elongation,and rice awn formation.Here,we underscore the roles of several small signaling peptide families such as CLE,RALF,EPFL,mi PEP,CEP,IDA/IDL,and PSK in regulating these biological processes.These novel insights will deepen our current understanding of small signaling peptides,and offer innovative strategies for genetic breeding stress-tolerant crops and horticultural plants,contributing to establish sustainable agricultural systems.
文摘Momordica antiviral protein 30 kD(MAP30)is a type I ribosome-inactivating protein(RIP)with antibacterial,anti-HIV and antitumor activities but lacks the ability to target tumor cells.To increase its tumor-targeting ability,the arginine-glycine-aspartic(RGD)peptide and the epidermal growth factor receptor interference(EGFRi)peptide were fused with MAP30,which was named ELRL-MAP30.The efficiency of targeted therapy for triple-negative breast cancer(TNBC)MDA-MB-231 cells,which lack the expression of estrogen receptor(ER),Progesterone receptor(PgR)and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2(HER2),is limited.In this study,we focus on exploring the effect and mechanism of ELRL-MAP30 on TNBC MDA-MB-231 cells.First,we discovered that ELRL-MAP30 significantly inhibited the migration and invasion of MDA-MB-231 cells and induced MDA-MB-231 cell apoptosis.Moreover,ELRL-MAP30 treatment resulted in a significant increase in Bax expression and a decrease in Bcl-2 expression.Furthermore,ELRL-MAP30 triggered apoptosis via the Fak/EGFR/Erk and Ilk/Akt signaling pathways.In addition,recombinant ELRL-MAP30 can inhibit chicken embryonic angiogenesis,and also inhibit the tube formation ability of human umbilical vein endothelial cells(HUVECs),indicating its potential therapeutic effects on tumor angiogenesis.Collectively,these results indicate that ELRL-MAP30 has significant tumor-targeting properties in MDA-MB-231 cancer cells and reveals potential therapeutic effects on angiogenesis.These findings indicate the potential role of ELRL-MAP30 in the targeted treatment of the TNBC cell line MDA-MB-231.