Cover legend: Studies with HCT8 colon tumor cells revealed a MakA-mediated decrease in the level of β-catenin. To determine if MakA colocalizes with β-catenin, the cells were stained for both β-catenin (green) and MakA (red) using specific antibodies. Nuclei were stained with DAPI (blue). The immunofluorescence analysis revealed strong colocalization of β-catenin and MakA at the cell membrane and moderate colocalization at the perinuclear region of the tumor cell. The MakA-mediated alteration of β-catenin integrity in the colon cancer cells led to the inhibition of β-catenin-mediated tumor cell proliferation. Nadeem et al., 2021
Cover legend: The recently discovered Vibrio cholerae cytotoxin MakA was shown to be a modulator of autophagy and an apoptotic inducer in target cells. This scanning electron micrograph of an epithelial cell intoxicated by MakA demonstrates changes in cell morphology. The yellow pseudo-color indicates a co-localization cluster of MakA and phosphatidic acid in a filopodia-rich structure of the cell. The red pseudo-color indicates association of MakA to the tubular structures. The MakA and phosphatidic acid interaction at the filopodia-rich structures promoted macropinocytosis resulting in the formation of an endomembrane-rich aggregate in intoxicated cells that ultimately leads to activation of autophagy. Nadeem et al., 2021