Lipid droplets (LDs) are intracellular organelles that store lipids, mainly triacylglycerols (TAGs) and sterol esters. LDs were initially considered just inert fat reservoirs but have now been identified as critical players in the cellular stress response, especially in cancer cells. In response to various kinds of stress, including nutrient deprivation …
Innate immune system acts as the first line of defence to protect the host against pathogens. The regulation of immune system and inflammatory response is crucial since dysregulated or sustained inflammation leads to pathological conditions, septic shock and tissue damage. Macrophages are innate immune cells that sense pathogens with pattern …
Cysteine peptidases have been demonstrated to be important virulence factors of protozoan parasites, including Trypanosoma cruzi. With genome sequence determination the existence of several novel families of cysteine peptidases can be envisioned in this parasite. We focused on two families, metacaspases from the clan CD and autophagins (or Atg4 proteases) …