👤 Inusha Panigrahi

SARS-CoV-2 is the causative agent of COVID-19, and although vaccines have reduced disease severity, emerging variants remain a significant public health issue. Broadly effective therapeutics, particularly those targeting host pathways essential for coronavirus infection, are still needed. Here, we used a CRISPR knockout screen to identify druggable host factors required for SARS-CoV-2 infection. The screen revealed NAE1 and FGFR1 as key contributors to infection. Inhibitors, either FDA-approved or those in clinical trials, of these pathways reduced replication of both ancestral and contemporary viral variants. Mechanistic studies showed that FGFR1 promotes viral replication through downstream MEK/ERK signaling, while neddylation appears to support viral entry or infectivity rather than replication itself. In a murine model of severe COVID-19, inhibitors of NAE1 and FGFR1 significantly decreased viral load and lung pathology. These findings support the development of host-targeted antiviral strategies. Show less

To characterise severe hypertriglyceridaemia (HTG) in Indian children, focusing on clinical and genetic profiles. A retrospective analysis from January 2017 to December 2023 included children up to 14 years old with triglyceride (TG) levels > 500 mg/dl, excluding children with known secondary causes. Among 18 children with severe HTG, 7 had secondary causes. Data from 11 patients (7 boys, median age at diagnosis 0.9 [0.45-2.4] years) revealed presenting features such as lipemic serum (63.3%), failure to thrive (36.3%), loss of subcutaneous fat (18.2%), and abdominal distension (18.2%). Genetic aetiology was identified in 10 cases, with familial chylomicronaemia syndrome (FCS) being the most prevalent (6 cases) caused by the lipoprotein lipase (LPL) and apolipoprotein A-V (APOA5) gene mutations. One each had mutations in the 1-acylglycerol-3-phosphate O-acyltransferase 2 (AGPAT2), lamin A/C (LMNA), glucose-6-phosphatase catalytic subunit (G6PC), and glycerol kinase (GK) genes. FCS patients presented earlier and were resistant to treatment targets, requiring drug therapy. At the final follow-up (mean duration 1.75 ±1.0 years) of 9 patients, the median TG levels for the FCS and non-FCS groups were 1240 (610-1,685) and 412 (247.5-993) mg/dl, respectively. Only 2 patients (40%) with FCS had TG levels < 1000 mg/dl, while all but one (75%) non-FCS subjects had TG levels < 500 mg/dl at the last follow-up. One child developed acute pancreatitis during the said duration. Paediatric HTG is often detected incidentally. Genetic characterisation is crucial for prognosis because baseline TG levels are non-predictive. Drug therapy helps to reach treatment targets in most of the patients. Show less

To study the clinical profile and molecular diagnosis of children with severe early-onset non-syndromic monogenic obesity. The clinical and molecular data (performed using whole exome sequencing) of 7 children with early-onset (< 5 years) non-syndromic monogenic obesity were extracted from the Obesity Clinic files and analysed retrospectively. The median (IQR) age at presentation was 18 (10.5-27) months. Of the 7 patients, 5 were boys, 3 had a history of parental consanguinity, and 4 had a family history of severe early-onset obesity. All patients exhibited hyperphagia and showed signs of insulin resistance. Dyslipidaemia and fatty liver were observed in 4. The variants identified in 6 patients included 2 in leptin receptor, and one each in melanocortin 4 receptor, pro-opiomelanocortin, leptin, and neurotrophic tyrosine kinase receptor type 2 genes. Notably, 4 of these variants were novel. This case series provides valuable insights into the spectrum of genetic mutations associated with non-syndromic monogenic obesity in North Indian children. The findings underscore the significance of next-generation sequencing in identifying the aetiology of severe early-onset obesity. Show less

This study seeks a comprehensive exploration of genome-wide selective processes impacting morphometric traits across diverse cattle breeds, utilizing an array of statistical methods. Morphometric traits, encompassing both qualitative and quantitative variables, play a pivotal role in characterizing and selecting livestock breeds based on their external appearance, size, and physical attributes. While qualitative traits, such as color, horn structure, and coat type, contribute to adaptive features and breed identification, quantitative traits like body weight and conformation measurements bear a closer correlation with production characteristics. This study employs advanced genotyping technologies, including the Illumina BovineSNP50 Bead Chip and next-generation sequencing methods like Reduced Representation sequencing, to identify genomic signatures associated with these traits. We applied four intra-population methods to find evidence of selection, such as Tajima's D, CLR, iHS, and ROH. We found a total of 40 genes under the selection signature, that were associated with morphometric traits in five cattle breeds (Kankrej, Tharparkar, Nelore, Sahiwal, and Gir). Crucial genes such as ADIPDQ, DPP6, INSIG1, SLC35D2 in Kankrej, LPL, ATP6V1B2, CDC14B in Tharparkar, HPSE2, PLAG1 in Nelore, PCSK1, PRKD1 in Sahiwal, and GNAQ, HPCAL1 in Gir were identified in our study. This approach provides valuable insights into the genetic basis of variations in body weight and conformation traits, facilitating informed selection processes and offering a deeper understanding of the evolutionary and domestication processes in diverse cattle breeds. Show less

Beta-site amyloid-β precursor protein-cleaving enzyme 1 (BACE1) is a transmembrane aspartic protease and has shown potential as a possible therapeutic target for Alzheimer's disease. This aggravating disease involves the aberrant production of β amyloid plaques by BACE1 which catalyzes the rate-limiting step by cleaving the amyloid precursor protein (APP), generating the neurotoxic amyloid β protein that aggregates to form plaques leading to neurodegeneration. Therefore, it is indispensable to inhibit BACE1, thus modulating the APP processing. In this study, we present a workflow that utilizes a multi-stage virtual screening protocol for identifying potential BACE1 inhibitors by employing multiple artificial neural network-based models. Collectively, all the hyperparameter tuned models were assigned a task to virtually screen Maybridge library, thus yielding a consensus of 41 hits. The majority of these hits exhibited optimal pharmacokinetic properties confirmed by high central nervous system multiparameter optimization (CNS-MPO) scores. Further shortlisting of 8 compounds by molecular docking into the active site of BACE1 and their subsequent in-vitro evaluation identified 4 compounds as potent BACE1 inhibitors with IC50 values falling in the range 0.028-0.052 μM and can be further optimized with medicinal chemistry efforts to improve their activity. Show less