The present disclosure relates to a polypeptide including an Fc-gamma receptor mutant. The Fc-gamma receptor mutant of the present disclosure is optimized by substituting a part of an amino acid sequence of an Fc-gamma receptor with a different amino acid sequence, so as to provide an excellent selective binding ability to immunoglobulins. Therefore, it can be usefully used for increasing in vivo half-life of drugs, detecting and purifying immunoglobulins, inhibiting organ transplant rejections, or preventing or treating autoimmune diseases.

The present invention relates to the field of anastasis, i.e., the process of reversal of apoptosis. More specifically, the present invention provides methods and compositions useful for studying anastasis. In one embodiment, a tracking construct of the present invention comprises Lyn11-NES-ERT2-DEVD-rtTA-3xFLAG-DEVD-ERT2-NES. In another embodiment, a construct comprises Lyn11-NES-DEVD-rtTA-3xFLAG. In a further embodiment, a construct comprises ERT2-DEVD-rtTA-3XFLAG-DEVD-ERT2.

Disclosed are a non-integrative Listeria-based vaccine and a method for inducing antitumor immune response. In particular, the present disclosure provides a recombinant nucleic acid molecule, a recombinant plasmid or a recombinant expression vector comprising the recombinant nucleic acid molecule, a recombinant protein, and a recombinant Listeria. Also disclosed are a pharmaceutical composition and a vaccine comprising the above component, a method for slowly and continuously killing cells using the same, and a method for inducing immune response in a subject using the same.

Provided are non-natural or variant β-ketoacyl-acyl carrier protein (ACP) synthase (KAS) IVa enzymes (KASIVa), polynucleotides encoding such variant KASIVa, host cells expressing such variant KASIVa, oils and oil products produced by such cells, and methods of making and using such variant KASIVa.

Compositions and methods for binding to a target sequence of interest are provided. The compositions find use in cleaving or modifying a target sequence of interest, detecting a target sequence of interest, and modifying the expression of a sequence of interest. Compositions comprise RNA-guided nuclease polypeptides, CRISPR RNAs, trans-activating CRISPR RNAs, guide RNAs, and nucleic acid molecules encoding the same. Vectors and host cells comprising the nucleic acid molecules are also provided. Further provided are CRISPR systems for binding a target sequence of interest, wherein the CRISPR system comprises an RNA-guided nuclease polypeptide and one or more guide RNAs.

Herein is provided a recombinant tumor-selective viral particle comprising a nucleic acid encoding a recombinant polypeptide for directing an extracellular vesicle (EV) to at least one target cell, said recombinant polypeptide comprising: at least one targeting moiety for directing said EV to said at least one target molecule expressed by said at least one target cell; at least one EV-anchoring polypeptide; and at least one intravesicular polypeptide. The viral particle may be from an oncolytic viruses. Recombinant polypeptides for programming EVs to target particular molecules are also provided. Also described are therapeutic EVs for delivering payload polypeptides (and/or cargo molecules) to target cells, e.g., in vaccine or cell-free “CAR-T”-like applications, along with EVs for recruiting immune cells to target cells in EV-mediated BiTE -like applications. Oncolytic viruses may also be engineered to infect tumor cells and shed programmed EVs, yielding additional therapeutic effects.

The present invention provides a gel formed of fibrin and a molecule generated by thrombin treatment of a chimeric protein that comprises a fibrinogen fragment capable of binding to fibrinogen upon thrombin treatment and a laminin fragment having integrin-binding activity, and optionally further comprises a protein having growth factor-binding activity. The gel of the present invention is suitable as a gel substrate that has properties of the basement membrane and can be used in medical applications.

Disclosed are antigen binding polypeptides and antigen binding polypeptide complexes (e.g., antibodies and antigen binding fragments thereof) having certain structural features. Also disclosed are polynucleotides and vectors encoding such polypeptides and polypeptide complexes; host cells, chimeric antigen receptors (CARs), immune cells, pharmaceutical compositions and kits containing such polypeptides and polypeptide complexes; and methods of using such polypeptides and polypeptide complexes.

Peptides that specifically bind erythrocytes are described. These are provided as peptidic ligands having sequences that specifically bind, or as antibodies or fragments thereof that provide specific binding, to erythrocytes. The peptides may be prepared as molecular fusions with therapeutic agents, tolerizing antigens, or targeting peptides. Immunotolerance may be created by use of the fusions and choice of an antigen on a substance for which tolerance is desired.

The present disclosure provides methods and compositions for directed to synthetic block copolymer proteins, expression constructs for their secretion, recombinant microorganisms for their production, and synthetic fibers (including advantageously, microfibers) comprising these proteins that recapitulate many properties of natural silk. The recombinant microorganisms can be used for the commercial production of silk-like fibers.