Browsing by Author "Cheng, Xi"

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
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    CHARMM at 45: Enhancements in Accessibility, Functionality, and Speed
    (American Chemical Society, 2024) Hwang, Wonmuk; Austin, Steven L.; Blondel, Arnaud; Boittier, Eric D.; Boresch, Stefan; Buck, Matthias; Buckner, Joshua; Caflisch, Amedeo; Chang, Hao-Ting; Cheng, Xi; Choi, Yeol Kyo; Chu, Jhih-Wei; Crowley, Michael F.; Cui, Qiang; Damjanovic, Ana; Deng, Yuqing; Devereux, Mike; Ding, Xinqiang; Feig, Michael F.; Gao, Jiali; Glowacki, David R.; Gonzales, James E., II; Hamaneh, Mehdi Bagerhi; Harder, Edward D.; Hayes, Ryan L.; Huang, Jing; Huang, Yandong; Hudson, Phillip S.; Im, Wonpil; Islam, Shahidul M.; Jiang, Wei; Jones, Michael R.; Käser, Silvan; Kearns, Fiona L.; Kern, Nathan R.; Klauda, Jeffery B.; Lazaridis, Themis; Lee, Jinhyuk; Lemkul, Justin A.; Liu, Xiaorong; Luo, Yun; MacKerell, Alexander D., Jr.; Major, Dan T.; Meuwly, Markus; Nam, Kwangho; Nilsson, Lennart; Ovchinnikov, Victor; Paci, Emanuele; Park, Soohyung; Pastor, Richard W.; Pittman, Amanda R.; Post, Carol Beth; Prasad, Samarjeet; Pu, Jingzhi; Qi, Yifei; Rathinavelan, Thenmalarchelvi; Roe, Daniel R.; Roux, Benoit; Rowley, Christopher N.; Shen, Jana; Simmonett, Andrew C.; Sodt, Alexander J.; Töpfer, Kai; Upadhyay, Meenu; van der Vaart, Arjan; Vazquez-Salazar, Luis Itza; Venable, Richard M.; Warrensford, Luke C.; Woodcock, H. Lee; Wu, Yujin; Brooks, Charles L., III; Brooks, Bernard R.; Karplus, Martin; Chemistry and Chemical Biology, School of Science
    Since its inception nearly a half century ago, CHARMM has been playing a central role in computational biochemistry and biophysics. Commensurate with the developments in experimental research and advances in computer hardware, the range of methods and applicability of CHARMM have also grown. This review summarizes major developments that occurred after 2009 when the last review of CHARMM was published. They include the following: new faster simulation engines, accessible user interfaces for convenient workflows, and a vast array of simulation and analysis methods that encompass quantum mechanical, atomistic, and coarse-grained levels, as well as extensive coverage of force fields. In addition to providing the current snapshot of the CHARMM development, this review may serve as a starting point for exploring relevant theories and computational methods for tackling contemporary and emerging problems in biomolecular systems. CHARMM is freely available for academic and nonprofit research at https://academiccharmm.org/program.
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    Deep learning-driven adaptive optics for single-molecule localization microscopy
    (Springer Nature, 2023) Zhang, Peiyi; Ma, Donghan; Cheng, Xi; Tsai, Andy P.; Tang, Yu; Gao, Hao-Cheng; Fang, Li; Bi, Cheng; Landreth, Gary E.; Chubykin, Alexander A.; Huang, Fang; Anatomy, Cell Biology and Physiology, School of Medicine
    The inhomogeneous refractive indices of biological tissues blur and distort single-molecule emission patterns generating image artifacts and decreasing the achievable resolution of single-molecule localization microscopy (SMLM). Conventional sensorless adaptive optics methods rely on iterative mirror changes and image-quality metrics. However, these metrics result in inconsistent metric responses and thus fundamentally limit their efficacy for aberration correction in tissues. To bypass iterative trial-then-evaluate processes, we developed deep learning-driven adaptive optics for SMLM to allow direct inference of wavefront distortion and near real-time compensation. Our trained deep neural network monitors the individual emission patterns from single-molecule experiments, infers their shared wavefront distortion, feeds the estimates through a dynamic filter and drives a deformable mirror to compensate sample-induced aberrations. We demonstrated that our method simultaneously estimates and compensates 28 wavefront deformation shapes and improves the resolution and fidelity of three-dimensional SMLM through >130-µm-thick brain tissue specimens.
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    Effective combinatorial immunotherapy for penile squamous cell carcinoma
    (Springer Nature, 2020-05-01) Huang, Tianhe; Cheng, Xi; Chahoud, Jad; Sarhan, Ahmed; Tamboli, Pheroze; Rao, Priya; Guo, Ming; Manyam, Ganiraju; Zhang, Li; Xiang, Yu; Han, Leng; Shang, Xiaoying; Deng, Pingna; Luo, Yanting; Lu, Xuemin; Feng, Shan; Ferrer, Magaly Martinez; Wang, Y. Alan; DePinho, Ronald A.; Pettaway, Curtis A.; Lu, Xin; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Penile squamous cell carcinoma (PSCC) accounts for over 95% of penile malignancies and causes significant mortality and morbidity in developing countries. Molecular mechanisms and therapies of PSCC are understudied, owing to scarcity of laboratory models. Herein, we describe a genetically engineered mouse model of PSCC, by co-deletion of Smad4 and Apc in the androgen-responsive epithelium of the penis. Mouse PSCC fosters an immunosuppressive microenvironment with myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) as a dominant population. Preclinical trials in the model demonstrate synergistic efficacy of immune checkpoint blockade with the MDSC-diminishing drugs cabozantinib or celecoxib. A critical clinical problem of PSCC is chemoresistance to cisplatin, which is induced by Pten deficiency on the backdrop of Smad4/Apc co-deletion. Drug screen studies informed by targeted proteomics identify a few potential therapeutic strategies for PSCC. Our studies have established what we believe to be essential resources for studying PSCC biology and developing therapeutic strategies.
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    Myeloid-derived suppressor cells inhibit T cell activation through nitrating LCK in mouse cancers
    (National Academy of Sciences, 2018-10-02) Feng, Shan; Cheng, Xi; Zhang, Lin; Lu, Xuemin; Chaudhary, Seema; Teng, Ruifang; Frederickson, Christian; Champion, Matthew M.; Zhao, Ren; Cheng, Liang; Gong, Yiyi; Deng, Haiteng; Lu, Xin; Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of Medicine
    Potent immunosuppressive mechanisms within the tumor microenvironment contribute to the resistance of aggressive human cancers to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapy. One of the main mechanisms for myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) to induce T cell tolerance is through secretion of reactive nitrogen species (RNS), which nitrates tyrosine residues in proteins involved in T cell function. However, so far very few nitrated proteins have been identified. Here, using a transgenic mouse model of prostate cancer and a syngeneic cell line model of lung cancer, we applied a nitroproteomic approach based on chemical derivation of 3-nitrotyrosine and identified that lymphocyte-specific protein tyrosine kinase (LCK), an initiating tyrosine kinase in the T cell receptor signaling cascade, is nitrated at Tyr394 by MDSCs. LCK nitration inhibits T cell activation, leading to reduced interleukin 2 (IL2) production and proliferation. In human T cells with defective endogenous LCK, wild type, but not nitrated LCK, rescues IL2 production. In the mouse model of castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) by prostate-specific deletion of Pten, p53, and Smad4, CRPC is resistant to an ICB therapy composed of antiprogrammed cell death 1 (PD1) and anticytotoxic-T lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (CTLA4) antibodies. However, we showed that ICB elicits strong anti-CRPC efficacy when combined with an RNS neutralizing agent. Together, these data identify a previously unknown mechanism of T cell inactivation by MDSC-induced protein nitration and illuminate a clinical path hypothesis for combining ICB with RNS-reducing agents in the treatment of CRPC.
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    Opposing roles of TGFβ and BMP signaling in prostate cancer development
    (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 2017-12-01) Lu, Xin; Jin, Eun-Jung; Cheng, Xi; Feng, Shan; Shang, Xiaoying; Deng, Pingna; Jiang, Shan; Chang, Qing; Rahmy, Sharif; Chaudhary, Seema; Lu, Xuemin; Zhao, Ren; Wang, Y. Alan; DePinho, Ronald A.; Medicine, School of Medicine
    SMAD4 constrains progression of Pten-null prostate cancer and serves as a common downstream node of transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) and bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) pathways. Here, we dissected the roles of TGFβ receptor II (TGFBR2) and BMP receptor II (BMPR2) using a Pten-null prostate cancer model. These studies demonstrated that the molecular actions of TGFBR2 result in both SMAD4-dependent constraint of proliferation and SMAD4-independent activation of apoptosis. In contrast, BMPR2 deletion extended survival relative to Pten deletion alone, establishing its promoting role in BMP6-driven prostate cancer progression. These analyses reveal the complexity of TGFβ-BMP signaling and illuminate potential therapeutic targets for prostate cancer.