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Biology subjects

Galindo, G.

Publications and source records attributed to Galindo, G..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

AI-assisted protein design to rapidly convert antibody sequences to intrabodies targeting diverse peptides and histone modifications

Intrabodies are engineered antibodies that function inside living cells, enabling therapeutic, diagnostic, and imaging applications. While powerful, their development has been hindered by challenges associated with their folding, solubility, and stability in the reduced intracellular environment. Here, we present an AI-driven pipeline integrating AlphaFold2, ProteinMPNN, and live-cell screening to optimize antibody framework regions while preserving epitope-binding complementarity-determining regions. Using this approach, we successfully converted 19 out of 26 antibody sequences into functional single-chain variable fragment (scFv) intrabodies, including a panel targeting diverse histone modifications for real-time imaging of chromatin dynamics and gene regulation. Notably, 18 of these 19 sequences had failed to convert using the standard approach, demonstrating the unique effectiveness of our method. As antibody sequence databases expand, our method will accelerate intrabody design, making their development easier, more cost-effective, and broadly accessible for biological research.

cell biology↗

Synonymous codon usage regulates translation initiation

Synonymous codon usage regulates gene expression such that transcripts rich in optimal codons produce significantly more protein than their nonoptimal counterparts. A major unresolved issue has been understanding the mechanisms by which synonymous codons regulate gene expression. We and others have previously shown that nonoptimal codons slow translation elongation speeds and thereby trigger mRNA degradation. However, differences in transcript abundance are not always sufficient to explain differences in protein levels, suggesting there are additional mechanisms by which codon usage regulates gene expression. Using reporter assays in human and Drosophila cells, we found that transcript levels account for less than half of the variation in protein abundance. We demonstrate that the differences at the protein level are not attributable to either protein folding or stability. Instead, we find that mRNAs with nonoptimal codons are bound by fewer ribosomes and that nonoptimal codon usage represses translation initiation. Nonoptimal transcripts are also less bound by the key translation initiation factors eIF4E and eIF4G, providing a mechanistic explanation for their reduced initiation rates. Our results reveal a new mechanism of regulation by codon usage, where nonoptimal codons repress further rounds of translation.

molecular biology↗

Nanoscopic resolution within a single imaging frame

Mean-Shift Super Resolution (MSSR) is a principle based on the Mean Shift theory that extends spatial resolution in fluorescence images, beyond the diffraction limit. MSSR works on low- and high-density fluorophore images, is not limited by the architecture of the detector (EM-CCD, sCMOS, or photomultiplier-based laser scanning systems) and is applicable to single images as well as temporal series. The theoretical limit of spatial resolution, based on optimized real-world imaging conditions and analysis of temporal image series, has been measured to be 40 nm. Furthermore, MSSR has denoising capabilities that outperform other analytical super resolution image approaches. Altogether, MSSR is a powerful, flexible, and generic tool for multidimensional and live cell imaging applications.

bioinformatics↗