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The overuse of antibiotics has led to an alarming spread of drug-resistant microbial infections, creating an urgent need for new therapeutic technologies. This issue has become a significant concern in recent years due to the increase in mortality rates, especially in hospital infections. In addition to antibiotic resistance, side effects caused by antibiotics, such as liver and kidney complications, threaten immunocompromised patients, infants, and the elderly, which indicates the need for immediate action. One of these technologies that has attracted attention as an alternative or complementary treatment for bacterial and viral infections is chicken immunoglobulin (IgY). This process involves extracting chicken immunoglobulin antibodies from egg yolk, which is achieved by injecting killed or recombinant pathogen antigens into the chicken. Several studies have investigated the therapeutic effects of IgY on bacterial infections in vitro and in vivo. However, a research gap exists regarding the mechanism of action, benefits, and possible side effects of these antibodies. This review article examines the structure, mechanism of action, optimal production conditions, advantages, and disadvantages of using this antibody, which can be widely used in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Gammopathy is not more frequent on LDSs' patients at diagnosis than in general population. • SPE can be useful to simplify new LSDs' marker discovery projects. Serum protein electrophoresis (SPE) is a well-established technique to identify alterations in plasma protein profiles, caused by diseases as multiple myeloma (MM). In addition, it could be a cost-effective technique to discover new plasma biomarkers. Relation between MM and lysosomal storage diseases (LSDs) as Gaucher disease has been set out but, it has not been evaluated on other LSDs nor the utility of the SPE as first step on LSDs biomarkers discovery projects. Stored plasma samples at diagnosis from several LSDs patients underwent analysis. Quality control was checked prior to the SPE was analyzed by capillary electrophoresis. The analysis for monoclonal spikes and the differences between each fraction on patients' samples vs the control data previously published, were evaluated. Furthermore, immunoprotein quantification and free light chains ratio were done by nephelometry and turbidimetry. Seventy-five samples of LSD patients at diagnosis, were assessed. The frequency of the MGUS on LSDs patients was not higher than in general population whereas one lysosomal acid lipase deficiency infant showed increased IgA and kappa deviation. Regarding to the usefulness of SPE in biomarkers discovery, statistically significant differences were observed on SPE fractions between LSDs and healthy population. The evaluation of SPE fractions can be a useful tool to understand pathophysiologic aspects in LDSs and, to simplify new marker discovery projects. In some of them, the MGUS appearance is a risk factor for the MM development despite its frequency is not increased on the studied LSDs at diagnosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae is a prokaryotic pathogen that colonizes the respiratory ciliated epithelial cells in swine. Infected animals suffer respiratory lesions, causing major economic losses in the porcine industry. Characterization of the immunodominant membrane‐associated proteins from M. hyopneumoniae may be instrumental in the development of new therapeutic approaches. Here, the crystal structure of P46, one of the main surface‐antigen proteins, from M. hyopneumoniae is presented and shows N‐ and C‐terminal α/β domains connected by a hinge. The structures solved in this work include a ligand‐free open form of P46 (3.1 Å resolution) and two ligand‐bound structures of P46 with maltose (2.5 Å resolution) and xylose (3.5 Å resolution) in open and closed conformations, respectively. The ligand‐binding site is buried in the cleft between the domains at the hinge region. The two domains of P46 can rotate with respect to each other, giving open or closed alternative conformations. In agreement with this structural information, sequence analyses show similarities to substrate‐binding members of the ABC transporter superfamily, with P46 facing the extracellular side as a functional subunit. In the structure with xylose, P46 was also bound to a high‐affinity (Kd = 29 nM) Fab fragment from a monoclonal antibody, allowing the characterization of a structural epitope in P46 that exclusively involves residues from the C‐terminal domain. The Fab structure in the complex with P46 shows only small conformational rearrangements in the six complementarity‐determining regions (CDRs) with respect to the unbound Fab (the structure of which is also determined in this work at 1.95 Å resolution). The structural information that is now available should contribute to a better understanding of sugar nutrient intake by M. hyopneumoniae. This information will also allow the design of protocols and strategies for the generation of new vaccines against this important swine pathogen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Risk stratification and patient management in heart failure (HF) is difficult due to the unpredictable progression of the disease, necessitating the development of reliable diagnostic biomarkers to facilitate decision-making in clinical practice. Pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A) is a marker of arteriosclerotic heart disease. PAPP-A is a serum protease, which is involved in the insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) axis where it is inhibited by the proform of the eosinophil major basic protein (proMBP). In this study, we evaluated serum PAPP-A and proMBP as long-term prognostic biomarkers of all-cause mortality in HF. Serum PAPP-A and proMBP concentrations were determined in 683 patients with NYHA III–IV HF recruited in the EchoCardiography and Heart Study (ECHOS) in Denmark. The mean age of the patients (73% male) was 70 at admission. During 7 years of follow-up, 516 patients died. In univariate analysis, both PAPP-A and proMBP, divided into quartiles, showed significant association with mortality. Using a Cox proportional hazard model, hazard ratios for continuous values of PAPP-A and proMBP were HR = 1.42 (CI = 1.23–1.64,p < 0.0001) and HR = 1.36 (CI = 1.22–1.51,p <0.0001), respectively. However, neither PAPP-A nor proMBP were significant independent predictors when the model included age, gender, brain-type natriuretic peptide, medical history of HF, ischemic heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and diabetes mellitus. In conclusion, high levels of PAPP-A and proMBP are associated with increased risk of death from all causes in HF and are potential prognostic markers of adverse outcomes in HF patients. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Objective To investigate the protein expression of LRG1 and SRC in postmenopausal osteoporosis patients with Kidney Yin deficiency． Methods Postmenopausal osteoporosis patients were randomly selected． Thirty women with normal bone mineral density acted as controls，and 25 women with Kidney Yin deficiency syndrome group were the study group． The protein expression of LRG1 and SRC in peripheral blood was detected by Western-blot method． Results The expression level of LRG1 protein in Kidney Yin deficiency group (1. 2391 + 1. 5860) was higher than that of the control group (0. 8033 + 0. 7485)，but the trend of increase did not reach statistical significance level (Z = － 0. 085，P = 0. 933) ． The expression level of SRC protein was significantly higher in Kidney Yin deficiency patients (0. 7873 + 0. 6275) than the controls (0. 3712 + 0. 4064) (Z = － 2. 874，P = 0. 004) ． Conclusion Osteoporosis patients with Kidney Yin deficiency have increased expression of SRC protein． [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]