5 documents found, page 1 of 1
HepatoPredict Accurately Selects Hepatocellular Carcinoma Patients for Liver Tr...
Andrade, Rita; Perez-Rojas, Judith; da Silva, Sílvia Gomes; Miskinyte, Migla; Quaresma, Margarida C; Frazão, Laura P; Peixoto, CarolinaBackground/objectives: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major cause of cancer-related deaths rising worldwide. This is leading to an increased demand for liver transplantation (LT), the most effective treatment for HCC in its initial stages. However, current patient selection criteria are limited in predicting recurrence and raise ethical concerns about equitable access to care. This study aims to enhance pa...
Fitness Measurements of Evolved Esherichia coli
Miskinyte, Migla; Gordo, IsabelBacteria can adapt very rapidly to novel selective pressures. In the transition from commensalism to pathogenicity bacteria have to face and adapt to the host immune system. Specifically, the antagonistic interaction imposed by one of the first line of defense of innate immunity cells, macrophages, on commensal bacteria, such as Escherichia coli (E. coli), can lead to its rapid adaptation. Such adaptation is ch...
Evolution of Escherichia coli to Macrophage Cell Line
Miskinyte, Migla; Gordo, IsabelThe genomes of species of Escherichia coli (E. coli) show an extraordinary amount of diversity, which include commensal strains and strains belonging to different pathovars. Many strains of E. coli, which can cause mild or severe pathologies in humans, have a commensal ancestor. Understanding the evolutionary changes that can lead to a transition from commensal to pathogen is an important task, which requires i...
Role of biotic interactions in generating and maintaining biodiversity
Miskinyte, MiglaDissertation presented to obtain the Ph.D degree in Biology.; Microbial populations constantly face pressures imposed by exposure to host immune systems and antibiotics. Thus it is important to have a better understanding of how they can adapt to such pressures. In this context, studying the process of adaptation of commensal bacteria towards becoming a pathogen and how resistance to antibiotics affects bacteri...
The Genetic Basis of Escherichia coli Pathoadaptation to Macrophages
Miskinyte, Migla; Sousa, Ana; Ramiro, Ricardo S.; de Sousa, Jorge A. Moura; Kotlinowski, Jerzy; Caramalho, Iris; Magalhães, Sara; Soares, Miguel P.Antagonistic interactions are likely important driving forces of the evolutionary process underlying bacterial genome complexity and diversity. We hypothesized that the ability of evolved bacteria to escape specific components of host innate immunity, such as phagocytosis and killing by macrophages (MΦ), is a critical trait relevant in the acquisition of bacterial virulence. Here, we used a combination of exper...