Characteristics of umami peptides identified from porcine bone soup and molecular docking to the taste receptor T1R1/T1R3.

Biopolymers based Aerogels: A Review on Revolutionary Solutions for Smart Therapeutics Delivery

Size control and electronic manipulation of Ru catalyst over B, N co-doped carbon network for high-performance hydrogen evolution reaction

Isolation and screening of umami peptides from preserved egg yolk by nano-HPLC-MS/MS and molecular docking.

In-silico investigation of umami peptides with receptor T1R1/T1R3 for the discovering potential targets: A combined modeling approach

Melatonin prevents conjugative transfer of plasmid-mediated antibiotic resistance genes by disrupting proton motive force

The widespread dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) is a serious problem and constitutes a threat for public health. Plasmid-mediated conjugative transfer of ARGs is recognized as one of the most important pathways accounting for this global crisis. Inhibiting the conjugative transfer of resistant gene-bearing plasmids provides a feasible strategy to prevent the spread of antibiotic resistance. Here we found that melatonin, a neurohormone secreted from pineal gland, substantially inhibited the horizontal transfer of RP4-7 plasmid in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, melatonin could also suppress the conjugal frequency of different types of clinical plasmids that carrying colistin resistance gene mcr-1 rather than blaNDM or tet(X) genes. Next, we investigated the mechanisms underlying the inhibitory effect of melatonin on conjugation. As a result, we showed that the addition of melatonin markedly reduced bacterial membrane permeability and inhibited the oxidative stress. In line with these observations, the conjugative transfer-related genes were regulated accordingly. Most importantly, we uncovered that melatonin disrupted bacterial proton motive force (PMF), which is an essential bacterial energy metabolism substance and is important for conjugative process. Collectively, these results provide implications that some non-antibiotics such as melatonin are effective inhibitors of transmission of ARGs and raise a promising strategy to confront the increasing resistant infections. 

Yi Tan

Papers

Melatonin prevents conjugative transfer of plasmid-mediated antibiotic resistance genes by disrupting proton motive force

Melatonin prevents conjugative transfer of plasmid-mediated antibiotic resistance genes by disrupting proton motive force

In-silico investigation of umami peptides with receptor T1R1/T1R3 for the discovering potential targets: A combined modeling approach

Exploring the relationships between perceived umami intensity, umami components and electronic tongue responses in food matrices

Exploring the relationships between perceived umami intensity, umami components and electronic tongue responses in food matrices.