Molecular & Structural Biology

RSS

Small molecule restores normal heart development in animal model with rare genetic disorder

A research team at the Greenwood Genetic Center has successfully used small molecules to restore normal heart and valve development in an animal model for Mucolipidosis II (ML II), a rare genetic disorder. Progressive heart disease is commonly associated with ML II.

15 Oct 2020

Small RNA molecule controls major pathogenicity factors of H. pylori

More than half of the world's population carries the bacterium Helicobacter pylori in their stomach mucosa. It often causes no problems throughout life, but sometimes it can cause inflammation, and in some cases, it can even lead to the development of stomach cancer.

15 Oct 2020

Scientists find sensor protein that makes normal bladder function possible

A team co-led by scientists at Scripps Research has found that the main sensor protein enabling our sense of touch also underlies the feeling of having a full bladder and makes normal bladder function possible.

14 Oct 2020

NYUAD researchers study the molecular basis of adipogenesis

The impairment of adipogenesis, the process in which fat cells (also known as adipocytes) accumulate to become fat tissue, can lead to many diseases such as diabetes, obesity, and heart conditions.

14 Oct 2020

Study provides new insight into unknown effects of factors that regulate blood vessel formation

A new study by researchers at the University of Eastern Finland provides novel insight into the previously unknown effects of factors regulating blood vessel formation.

14 Oct 2020

NYU scientists develop a method using holographic imaging to detect viruses, antibodies

A team of New York University scientists has developed a method using holographic imaging to detect both viruses and antibodies. The breakthrough has the potential to aid in medical diagnoses and, specifically, those related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

13 Oct 2020

Novel findings on mole growth could pave way for skin cancer treatments

Moles stop growing when they reach a certain size due to normal interactions between cells, despite having cancer-associated gene mutations, says a new study published today in eLife.

13 Oct 2020

Enzyme SSH1 impairs the disposal of damaged tau and neurotoxic mitochondria

In a healthy brain, the multistep waste clearance process known as autophagy routinely removes and degrades damaged cell components - including malformed proteins like tau and toxic mitochondria.

12 Oct 2020

Understanding the production of memory B cells and immune responses

The current COVID-19 climate has made vaccines, antibodies, and immune responses topics of everyday conversation.

12 Oct 2020

Penn receives $4.5 million NIH grant to create a comprehensive resource for women’s health

Junhyong Kim, PhD, Chair and Patricia M. Williams Professor of Biology in the School of Arts and Sciences, and Kate O'Neill, MD MTR, Assistant Professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in the Perelman School of Medicine, have been awarded a Human BioMolecular Atlas Program (HuBMAP) grant supported by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development and the Common Fund of the National Institutes of Health.

9 Oct 2020

Study reveals how ovaries maintain a female's fertility

Recently published work from Carnegie's Allan Spradling and Wanbao Niu revealed in unprecedented detail the genetic instructions immature egg cells go through step by step as they mature into functionality.

9 Oct 2020

Excess genetic exchanges impede the segregation of chromosomes into eggs

The exchange of DNA between chromosomes during the early formation of sperm and egg cells normally is limited to assure fertility.

8 Oct 2020

Production of bone substitutes is less complicated than was previously thought

The way in which bone formation occurs needs to be redefined. This was revealed by Radboud university medical center researchers and their colleagues in a publication in Nature Communications.

8 Oct 2020

PCR Biosystems launches NGSBIO Library Quant Kit for Illumina

PCR Biosystems, the UK-based PCR experts, have expanded their range of specialist molecular biology kits with the introduction of NGSBIO Library Quant Kit for Illumina®.

From PCR Biosystems Ltd. 8 Oct 2020

NTHU research could have significant impact on the treatment of dementia

One of the causes of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's is the calcification of the basal nucleus of the brain, which blocks the membrane protein channels on the surface of brain cells, preventing the transmission of signal molecules and nutrients to the cells.

8 Oct 2020

Research team discovers a new key player in long-term memory

A McGill-led multi-institutional research team has discovered that during memory consolidation, there are at least two distinct processes taking place in two different brain networks - the excitatory and inhibitory networks.

7 Oct 2020

Research elucidates the molecular mechanism of lentiviral cross-species transmission

Humans are exposed continuously to the menace of viral diseases such as those caused by the Ebola virus, Zika virus and coronaviruses. Such emerging/re-emerging viral outbreaks can be triggered by cross-species viral transmission from wild animals to humans.

7 Oct 2020

Researchers track time-resolved allosteric changes in PDZ2 test protein

Proteins transduce information and signals within the human body by changes in their structures. For example, hormones binding to their target proteins cause a structural change which in turn opens new binding sites for other proteins elsewhere on the surface of the protein.

7 Oct 2020

Researchers decipher evolution of the Y chromosome in great apes

New analysis of the DNA sequence of the male-specific Y chromosomes from all living species of the great ape family helps to clarify our understanding of how this enigmatic chromosome evolved.

6 Oct 2020

New approach to reveal high-resolution protein structural details

The number of proteins in the human body, collectively known as the proteome, is vast. Somewhere between 80,000 and 400,000 proteins circulate in our cells, tissues and organs, carrying out a broad range of duties essential for life.

6 Oct 2020