Eukaryotic cell News and Research

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Penn, UGA scientists awarded new contract to develop genome database for microbial pathogens

At the turn of the millennium, the cost to sequence a single human genome exceeded $50 million, and the process took a decade to complete. Microbes have genomes, too, and the first reference genome for a malaria parasite was completed in 2002 at a cost of roughly $15 million. But today researchers can sequence a genome in a single afternoon for just a few thousand dollars. Related technologies make it possible to capture information about all genes in the genome, in all tissues, from multiple individuals.

18 Dec 2014

Study offers insights into mechanisms of bacterial resistance to antimicrobial peptides

Antimicrobial peptides are a distinctive class of potent, broad-spectrum antibiotics produced by the body's innate immune system--the first line of defense against disease-causing microbes.

18 Dec 2014

Experts expose fundamental role of chaos and complexity in biological information processing

The interdisciplinary approach to problems that till recently were addressed in the hermetic framework of distinct disciplines such as physics, informatics, biology or sociology constitutes today one of the most active and innovative areas of science, where fundamental issues meet problems of everyday concern.

14 Dec 2014

Landmark study provides new insight into function of enzyme related to BRCA1 protein

A landmark study to be published in the October 30, 2014 print edition of the journal Nature provides new insight into the function of an enzyme related to the BRCA1 breast-cancer protein. The study by a team at Penn State University is the first to produce a detailed working image of an enzyme in the Polycomb Repressive Complex 1 (PRC1) -- a group that regulates cell development and is associated with many types of cancer.

30 Oct 2014

Researchers discover mitochondrial and nuclear tRNA-lookalikes in human genome

Transfer RNAs (tRNAs) are ancient workhorse molecules and part of the cellular process that creates the proteins, critical building blocks of life that keep a cell running smoothly.

9 Oct 2014

Using NMR to study protein motion: an interview with Fabien Ferrage, École Normale Supérieure, Paris

Can you give us a brief overview of the work you presented at ENC 2014 (Experimental Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Conference)?

From Bruker BioSpin - NMR, EPR and Imaging 19 Aug 2014

Study reveals intricate mechanisms involved in enzyme that governs DNA duplication

In a study published today in Genes & Development, Dr Christian Speck from the MRC Clinical Sciences Centre's DNA Replication group, in collaboration with Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), New York, reveal the intricate mechanisms involved in the enzyme that governs DNA duplication during cell division.

4 Aug 2014

Identification of new molecular mechanism indicates new ways to block uncontrolled cell division

1 Aug 2014

Unnatural DNA bases: an interview with Professor Floyd E. Romesberg, The Scripps Research Institute

The natural DNA bases that form the letters of DNA are usually referred to as G, C, A, and T. Those are only the first letters of the chemical names. They’re often called nucleotides by their scientific name and all of them have in common a phosphate part, a sugar part and a nucleobase part.

21 Jul 2014

Rice University scientists apply new theory to learn how and why cells differentiate

How does a stem cell decide what path to take? In a way, it's up to the wisdom of the crowd.

17 Jun 2014

Protein-kinase interactions offer a new way to fight antimalarial drug resistance

When it comes to the emergence of antimalarial drug resistance, it's not a question of 'if' but 'when'. In order to keep up with the quickly evolving Plasmodium parasite - the cause of malaria - new ways to treat and control the disease must be found.

9 Jun 2014

Scientists reproduce chromosomal modifications in human cells that cause certain cancer

Scientists at the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC) and the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Oncol-gicas (CNIO) have succeeded in reproducing, in human cells, the chromosomal translocations that cause two types of cancer: acute myeloid leukemia and Ewing's sarcoma.

5 Jun 2014

Researchers reproduce tumor chromosomal translocations in human cells

Scientists from the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre and the Spanish National Cardiovascular Research Centre have been able to reproduce, for the first time in human cells, chromosomal translocations associated with two types of cancer: acute myeloid leukaemia and Ewing's sarcoma.

4 Jun 2014

DNA-binding fluorescent dyes evaluate cytotoxicity in real-time during screening

High throughput screening of compounds in live cells is a powerful approach for discovering new drugs, but the potential for cell toxicity must be considered.

31 May 2014

Research opens new possibilities for blocking runaway cell division in cancer

The structure of a key part of the machinery that allows cells to divide has been identified by researchers at the University of California, Davis -- opening new possibilities for throwing a wrench in the machine and blocking runaway cell division in cancer.

9 Apr 2014

Researchers generate 3D model of human malaria parasite genome

A research team led by a cell biologist at the University of California, Riverside has generated a 3D model of the human malaria parasite genome at three different stages in the parasite's life cycle - the first time such 3D architecture has been generated during the progression of the life cycle of a parasite.

7 Apr 2014

Scientist receives $147,157 grant from NIH to find cure for infectious disease

A Clemson University scientist was awarded a two-year, $147,157 grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, to find a cure for an infectious disease.

20 Mar 2014

Scientists use novel metagenomic approaches to characterize microbial communities that reside in human gut

The gut microbiota contains a vast number of microorganisms from all three domains of life, including bacteria, archaea and fungi, as well as viruses. These interact in a complex way to contribute towards both health and the development of disease - interactions that are only now being elucidated thanks to the application of advanced DNA sequencing technology in this field.

10 Mar 2014

Scientists discover viruses containing genes for antibiotic resistance in fossilized human feces

A team of French investigators has discovered viruses containing genes for antibiotic resistance in a fossilized fecal sample from 14th century Belgium, long before antibiotics were used in medicine.

28 Feb 2014

New study explores molecular biology and evolution of family of enzymes

For the ancient ancestors of plants and animals, a partnership with other microbes was once formed during an endosymbiotic event to give rise to eukaryotes. Plants and animals, over billions of years of trial and error, made efficient use of different energy sources in the environment, namely carbon dioxide and oxygen.

17 Feb 2014