Staphylococcus aureus remains one of the major human pathogens, causing a number of diverse infections. The growing antibiotic resistance, including vancomycin and methicilin‑resistant strains raises the special interest in virulence mechanism of this pathogen. Among a number of...

The blood‑brain barrier refers to the very low permeability across microvessels in the Central Nervous System (CNS), created by the interaction between vascular endothelial cells and surrounding cells of the neurovascular unit. Permeability can be modulated (increased and decreased) by a...

Atherosclerosis is a disease of the blood vessel characterized by the development of an arterial occlusion containing lipid and cellular deposits. Caveolae are 50‑100 nm cell surface plasma membrane invaginations that are believed to play an important role in the regulation of cellular...

Cysteine proteases of the protozoan parasite Entamoeba histolytica are key virulence factors involved in overcoming host defences. These proteases are cathepsin‑like enzymes with a cathepsin‑L like structure, but cathepsin‑B substrate specificity. In the host intestine, amoeba cysteine...

Kainate receptors (KARs) are glutamate‑gated ion channels, assembled from various combinations of GluK1‑GluK5 subunits with different physiological and pharmacological properties. In the hippocampus, KARs expressed at postsynaptic site mediate a small component of excitatory postsynaptic...

Proteases are the most abundant class of proteins produced by mast cells. Many of these are stored in membrane‑enclosed intracellular granules until liberated by degranulating stimuli, which include cross‑linking of high affinity IgE receptor FcεRI by IgE bound to multivalent allergen....