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Study reveals how a causal factor in Angelman syndrome eliminates neural chat

Researchers from the University of Tokyo reveal how the presynaptic Ube3a E3 ligase, a causal factor in Angelman syndrome, eliminates neural chat.

14 Sep 2023

Researchers unlock the molecular basis behind fastest biological movement of single-celled eukaryotes

In his famous letter to the Royal Society dated Oct. 9, 1676, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek described a single-celled eukaryote (Vorticella) and its fascinating ultrafast cell contraction as the first set of discoveries.

22 Feb 2023

Researchers explore the mechanism involved in the living world’s fastest cell movements

Raphidocystis contractilis belongs to Heliozoa, a group of eukaryotes commonly found in fresh, brackish, and sea water.

18 Jan 2023

Study uncovers a previously unknown propofol effect in neurons

Propofol is the most commonly used drug to induce general anesthesia. Despite its frequent clinical application, it is poorly understood how propofol causes anesthesia.

7 Nov 2022

Overexpression of KIF11 gene may offset Alzheimer’s-related cognitive decline in mice and humans

The overexpression of a gene tied to cell division and the structure and function of neurons may prevent and protect against cognitive decline in both mice and humans with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), according to a new study by scientists at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

25 Oct 2022

UC Davis research reveals a novel role for how tau functions in healthy nerve cells

In Alzheimer's Disease and other neurodegenerative dementias, proteins that normally play a role in healthy brain tissue turn bad, clumping together to form insoluble plaques and tangles as neurons wither and die.

25 Aug 2022

Study uncovers the crucial roles of kinesins during the malaria parasite life cycle

Scientists at the University of Nottingham have made a major breakthrough in understanding how malaria parasites divide and transmit the disease, which could be a major step forwards in helping to prevent one of the biggest killer infections in the world.

29 Jul 2022

Study identifies critical genes and biological pathways related to COVID-19 myocarditis

Scientists from China have recently deciphered the genetic network and biological mechanisms associated with COVID-19 myocarditis using bioinformatic methods.

28 Jun 2022

Scientists identify a new switch for controlling motor proteins

Inside neurons, motor proteins haul precious cargo, moving essential goods along thread-like roadways called microtubule tracks.

21 Jan 2022

New study shines light on how brain cells die in prion diseases

Prion diseases, such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD), are fast-moving, fatal dementia syndromes associated with the formation of aggregates of the prion protein, PrP.

22 Dec 2021

Study uncovers the herpes virus' strategy for infecting the nervous system

Herpes type 1 is sealed with a kiss for a lifetime. More than half of U.S. adults are carriers of HSV1 (herpes simplex virus type 1) which hibernates in the peripheral nervous system and can never be eradicated.

17 Nov 2021

Molecular biologists elucidate the key role of motor proteins in cell division

Proper chromosome segregation into two future daughter cells requires the mitotic spindle to elongate in anaphase.

15 Jun 2021

Simple dietary supplement ameliorates schizophrenic traits in mice

A simple dietary supplement reduces behavioral symptoms in mice with a genetic mutation that causes schizophrenia.

19 Apr 2021

New study sheds light on complex brain process that helps learn and form new memories

Making memories involves more than seeing friends or taking photos. The brain constantly adapts to new information and stores memories by building connections among neurons, called synapses. How neurons do this--reaching out arm-like dendrites to communicate with other neurons--requires a ballet of genes, signaling molecules, cellular scaffolding and protein-building machinery.

19 Apr 2021

Study discovers how microcephaly and blindness may develop in Zika-infected fetuses

A study led by Edward Wojcik, PhD, Associate Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine, identified how microcephaly (abnormally small heads) and blindness may develop in Zika-infected fetuses, as well as a new way to potentially prevent these neurodevelopmental defects.

6 Apr 2021

Breakthrough genetic discovery into the cause of severe neurological conditions

Researchers have made a breakthrough genetic discovery into the cause of a spectrum of severe neurological conditions.

8 Oct 2020

Research suggests greater complexity in cellular protein movement

A new imaging technique that makes it possible to match motor proteins with the cargo they carry within a cell is upending a standard view of how cellular traffic reaches the correct destination.

23 Oct 2019

RNA hitches lysosome rides to make proteins far away from the nucleus

Proteins inside a cell are often made at the site where they are used, rather than being shipped long distances. This is so with nerve cells which have long cell extensions in the form of axons and dendrites, up to four feet long in some case

22 Sep 2019

New insights into molecular motors could help treat neurological disorders

Nerve cells form the basis of the nervous system in animals, as they transfer information between the various sensory and effector organs of the body and the brain and spinal cord. However, this function relies heavily on the transport of several proteins and other molecules between various parts of the cell.

15 Jul 2019

Biologists unravel new role for nervous system in regeneration

Biologists at Tufts University have developed a computational model of planarian (flatworm) regeneration that explains how fragments of planaria determine which end should form a tail and which should form a head.

25 Apr 2019