The EDCTP Alumni Network

Dr
Juliann Makau

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Dr Mercy Karoney

Assistant Lecturer

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Dr Olaposi Olatoregun

Deputy Project Director

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Dr Aida Sivro

Scientist

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Profile EDCTP Fellowship 1

Project Title

Determination of HIV-1 drug resistance among patients failing second-line treatment in Kenya using an in-house phenotypic assay (HIVDR)

EDCTP Project

TMA2019CDF-2716

EDCTP Program

EDCTP2

EDCTP Project Call

Career Development Fellowship (CDF)

Host Organisation

Department	Institution	Country
Centre for Virus Research	Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI)	Kenya

Current Organisation

Kenya Medical Research Institute

Current Job Title

Research Scientist

Biography

Publications

Authors:

Journal:

ACS Omega

Content:

Date:

2020-05-12

Authors:

Journal:

Drug Discoveries & Therapeutics

Content:

Date:

2013-10-01

Authors:

Journal:

Scientific Reports

Content:

Abstract Echinocandins, including caspofungin, micafungin, and anidulafungin, are first-line antifungal agents for the treatment of invasive candidiasis. They exhibit fungicidal activity by inhibiting the synthesis of β-1,3-d-glucan, an essential component of the fungal cell wall. However, they are active only against proliferating fungal cells and unable to completely eradicate fungal cells even after a 24 h drug exposure in standard time-kill assays. Surprisingly, we found that caspofungin, when dissolved in low ionic solutions, had rapid and potent antimicrobial activities against multidrug-resistant (MDR) Candida and bacteria cells even in non-growth conditions. This effect was not observed in 0.9% NaCl or other ion-containing solutions and was not exerted by other echinocandins. Furthermore, caspofungin dissolved in low ionic solutions drastically reduced mature biofilm cells of MDR Candida auris in only 5 min, as well as Candida-bacterial polymicrobial biofilms in a catheter-lock therapy model. Caspofungin displayed ion concentration-dependent conformational changes and intracellular accumulation with increased reactive oxygen species production, indicating a novel mechanism of action in low ionic conditions. Importantly, caspofungin dissolved in 5% glucose water did not exhibit increased toxicity to human cells. This study facilitates the development of new therapeutic strategies in the management of catheter-related biofilm infections.

Date:

2020-12-20

Authors:

Journal:

Scientific reports

Content:

Echinocandins, including caspofungin, micafungin, and anidulafungin, are first-line antifungal agents for the treatment of invasive candidiasis. They exhibit fungicidal activity by inhibiting the synthesis of β-1,3-D-glucan, an essential component of the fungal cell wall. However, they are active only against proliferating fungal cells and unable to completely eradicate fungal cells even after a 24 h drug exposure in standard time-kill assays. Surprisingly, we found that caspofungin, when dissolved in low ionic solutions, had rapid and potent antimicrobial activities against multidrug-resistant (MDR) Candida and bacteria cells even in non-growth conditions. This effect was not observed in 0.9% NaCl or other ion-containing solutions and was not exerted by other echinocandins. Furthermore, caspofungin dissolved in low ionic solutions drastically reduced mature biofilm cells of MDR Candida auris in only 5 min, as well as Candida-bacterial polymicrobial biofilms in a catheter-lock therapy model. Caspofungin displayed ion concentration-dependent conformational changes and intracellular accumulation with increased reactive oxygen species production, indicating a novel mechanism of action in low ionic conditions. Importantly, caspofungin dissolved in 5% glucose water did not exhibit increased toxicity to human cells. This study facilitates the development of new therapeutic strategies in the management of catheter-related biofilm infections.

Date:

2020-10-20

Authors:

Journal:

Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research

Content:

Date:

2020-08-05

Authors:

Journal:

ChemMedChem

Content:

Date:

2018-09-05

Authors:

Satoshi Mizuta, Hiroki Otaki, Takeshi Ishikawa, Juliann Nzembi Makau, Tomoko Yamaguchi, Takuya Fujimoto, Nobuyuki Takakura, Nobuki Sakauchi, Shuji Kitamura, Hikaru Nono, Ryota Nishi, Yoshimasa Tanaka, Kohsuke Takeda, Noriyuki Nishida, Ken Watanabe

Journal:

Journal of medicinal chemistry

Content:

Date:

2021-12-14

Authors:

Journal:

Journal of Medicinal Food

Content:

Date:

2018-04-01

Authors:

Satoshi Mizuta Juliann Nzembi Makau Ayako Kitagawa Kanami Kitamura Hiroki Otaki Kodai Nishi Ken Watanabe

Journal:

ChemMedChem

Content:

Date:

2018-11-20

Authors:

Satoshi Mizuta Juliann Nzembi Makau Ayako Kitagawa Kanami Kitamura Hiroki Otaki Kodai Nishi Ken Watanabe

Journal:

ChemMedChem

Content:

Date:

2018-11-20

Authors:

Journal:

Viruses

Content:

The emergence of resistance to currently available anti-influenza drugs has heightened the need for antivirals with novel mechanisms of action. The influenza A virus (IAV) nucleoprotein (NP) is highly conserved and essential for the formation of viral ribonucleoprotein (vRNP), which serves as the template for replication and transcription. Recently, using in silico screening, we identified an antiviral compound designated NUD-1 (a 4-hydroxyquinolinone derivative) as a potential inhibitor of NP. In this study, we further analyzed the interaction between NUD-1 and NP and found that the compound interferes with the oligomerization of NP, which is required for vRNP formation, leading to the suppression of viral transcription, protein synthesis, and nuclear export of NP. We further assessed the selection of resistant variants by serially passaging a clinical isolate of the 2009 H1N1 pandemic influenza virus in the presence of NUD-1 or oseltamivir. NUD-1 did not select for resistant variants after nine passages, whereas oseltamivir selected for resistant variants after five passages. Our data demonstrate that NUD-1 interferes with the oligomerization of NP and less likely induces drug-resistant variants than oseltamivir; hence, it is a potential lead compound for the development of novel anti-influenza drugs.

Date:

2020-03-19

Authors:

Journal:

PLoS One

Content:

Date:

2017-03-08

Authors:

Journal:

Organic Chemistry Frontiers

Content:

Date:

2016-09-27

Dr Juliann Makau

Related fellows

Dr Mercy Karoney

Dr Olaposi Olatoregun

Dr Aida Sivro

Project Title

EDCTP Project

EDCTP Program

EDCTP Project Call

Host Organisation

Current Organisation

Current Job Title

Biography

Publications

Dr
Juliann Makau