Biology subjects

Wilson, P.

Publications and source records attributed to Wilson, P..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2020

Biochemical Patterns of Antibody Polyreactivity Revealed Through a Bioinformatics-Based Analysis of CDR Loops

Antibodies are critical components of adaptive immunity, binding with high affinity to pathogenic epitopes. Antibodies undergo rigorous selection to achieve this high affinity, yet some maintain an additional basal level of low affinity, broad reactivity to diverse epitopes, a phenomenon termed "polyreactivity". While polyreactivity has been observed in antibodies isolated from various immunological niches, the biophysical properties that allow for promiscuity in a protein selected for high affinity binding to a single target remain unclear. Using a database of nearly 1,500 polyreactive and non-polyreactive antibody sequences, we created a bioinformatic pipeline to isolate key determinants of polyreactivity. These determinants, which include an increase in inter-loop crosstalk and a propensity for an "inoffensive" binding surface, are sufficient to generate a classifier able to identify polyreactive antibodies with over 75% accuracy. The framework from which this classifier was built is generalizable, and represents a powerful, automated pipeline for future immune repertoire analysis.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2020

The complete genome sequence of the Staphylococcus bacteriophage Metroid

Phages infecting bacteria of the genus Staphylococcus play an important role in their hosts ecology and evolution. On one hand, horizontal gene transfer from phage can encourage the rapid adaptation of pathogenic Staphylococcus enabling them to escape host immunity or access novel environments. On the other hand, lytic phages are promising agents for the treatment of bacterial infections, especially those resistant to antibiotics. As part of an ongoing effort to gain novel insights into bacteriophage diversity, we characterized the complete genome of the Staphylococcus bacteriophage Metroid, a cluster C phage with a genome size of 151kb, encompassing 254 predicted protein-coding genes as well as 4 tRNAs. A comparative genomic analysis highlights strong similarities - including a conservation of the lysis cassette - with other Staphylococcus cluster C1 bacteriophages, several of which were previously characterized for therapeutic applications.

genomics↗

bioRxiv2020

Cell profiling of mouse acute kidney injury reveals conserved cellular responses to injury

After acute kidney injury (AKI), patients either recover or alternatively develop fibrosis and chronic kidney disease. Interactions between injured epithelia, stroma and inflammatory cells determine whether kidneys repair or undergo fibrosis, but the molecular events that drive these processes are poorly understood. Here, we use single nucleus RNA sequencing of a mouse model of AKI to characterize cell states during repair from acute injury. We identify a distinct proinflammatory and profibrotic proximal tubule cell state that fails to repair. Deconvolution of bulk RNA-seq datasets indicates that this "failed-repair proximal tubule cell" or FR-PTC, state can be detected in other models of kidney injury, increasing in the aging rat kidney and over time in human kidney allografts. We also describe dynamic intercellular communication networks and discern transcriptional pathways driving successful vs. failed repair. Our study provides a detailed description of cellular responses after injury and suggests that the FR-PTC state may represent a therapeutic target to improve repair. Significance StatementSingle nucleus RNA sequencing revealed gene expression changes during repair after acute kidney injury. We describe a small population of proximal tubule cells that fail to repair (FR-PTC). Since this subpopulation expresses abundant pro-inflammatory and profibrotic genes, it may represent a new therapeutic target to improve repair and reduce fibrosis after AKI.

genomics↗