Angiotensin News and Research

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Angiotensin is an oligopeptide in the blood that causes vasoconstriction, increased blood pressure, and release of aldosterone from the adrenal cortex. It is a powerful dipsogen. It is derived from the precursor molecule angiotensinogen, a serum globulin produced in the liver. It plays an important role in the renin-angiotensin system.

Study suggests natural UV radiation protects against coronavirus

A new study by scientists at the University of Edinburgh and published on the preprint server medRxiv* in July 2020 suggests an interesting link between ultraviolet A radiation and deaths due to COVID-19. While this is an observational study, which means that direct inferences cannot be drawn from this finding, it does, however, suggest better strategies for reducing the death rate due to COVID-19.

8 Jul 2020

Study of glycosylation on SARS-CoV-2 spike protein

The first intimation of the current COVID-19 crisis came with the news of severe pneumonic illness caused by an unknown agent in a Chinese city called Wuhan, issued on the last day of 2019. Following this, researchers found the cause to be a novel coronavirus, closely related to the earlier SARS virus, now called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2.

8 Jul 2020

Gene expression networks flag potential therapeutic targets for SARS-CoV-2

An international team of researchers from Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, and the United States has identified dozens of genes that could contribute to the pathology of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and serve as potential therapeutic targets.

7 Jul 2020

Spike proteins of SARS-CoV-2 covered by mobile glycans that shield its surface

A new study of the structural dynamics of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein published in the preprint server bioRxiv in July 2020 reports on the epitopes that could be possible immune targets for the development of vaccines.

7 Jul 2020

SARS-CoV-2 spike protein hidden as pH changes

Now, a new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv in July 2020 reports the role of pH in helping the virus escape neutralization by antibodies, by inducing a key conformational switch.

7 Jul 2020

COVID-19 complications may be associated with von Willebrand factor in the blood

Anna Aksenova, a senior research associate at the Laboratory of Amyloid Biology at St Petersburg University, has advanced a hypothesis that the severe course of COVID-19 may be associated with von Willebrand factor.

6 Jul 2020

Study: Hypertension medications can also reduce risk of colorectal cancer

Medications commonly prescribed to treat high blood pressure may also reduce patients' colorectal cancer risk, according to new research published today in Hypertension, an American Heart Association journal.

6 Jul 2020

Mutated European strain of coronavirus more contagious but less potent

The coronavirus pandemic is far from over as it actively spreads across the globe. The infection toll has reached a staggering 10.84 million people since it emerged in late December 2019 in Wuhan City, China. The virus that has left the city has now spread to 188 countries and territories and has mutated, becoming more infectious.

3 Jul 2020

SARS-CoV-2 infection modeling in iPSC-derived type 2 cells

The most fatal form of COVID-19 disease is acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), caused by direct viral injury as well as indirect noxious effects caused by cytotoxic chemicals and inflammatory processes. A new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv* in June 2020 shows that this is partly due to the rapid onset of inflammation caused by the infection of type 2 alveolar cells with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

2 Jul 2020

Scientists find coronavirus' Achilles' heel

A team of scientists at the University of California San Francisco has found out how SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) invades proteins in the cells that serve as master regulators of key cellular processes.

1 Jul 2020

Blood cell damage in COVID-19 may compromise oxygen transport

Researchers in the U.S. have shown that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) may alter key protein structures on red blood cells and compromise the transport and delivery of oxygen in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

1 Jul 2020

A glycan analysis of SARS-CoV-2 ACE2 complex

Researchers in the U.S. have produced molecular dynamic simulations of the Spike protein found on severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and its interaction with the host cell receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2).

29 Jun 2020

Genomics used to trace origin of SARS-CoV-2 in Canada

A new study published in June 2020 on the preprint server bioRxiv discusses the use of phylogenetic analysis to trace the origin of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and its spread into and then within Canada. The study findings may help optimize public health policies in the case of future outbreaks.

28 Jun 2020

Study shows generic drug does not slow kidney disease

Historically, half or more of people with type 1 diabetes develop kidney disease, which frequently progresses to kidney failure, requiring dialysis treatment or kidney transplantation for survival, according to a study in Diabetes Care.

26 Jun 2020

Promising treatment does not guard against complication in type 1 diabetes

Historically, half or more of people with type 1 diabetes develop kidney disease, which frequently progresses to kidney failure requiring hemodialysis or a kidney transplant for survival.

25 Jun 2020

Pixatimod is active in lab studies against SARS-CoV-2

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) circulating the world has caused over 9.6 million cases and over 490,000 deaths as of June 26, 2020. With neither an effective vaccine nor therapeutic drug yet available, intensive and widespread research is ongoing to develop a pharmacological intervention that will halt the global pandemic.

25 Jun 2020

Platelets may be contributing to COVID-19

The current pandemic of COVID-19 is characterized mainly by severe acute respiratory distress of the lungs, but other organ dysfunctions are also being observed, including the heart and blood vessels. Now, a new paper published on the preprint server medRxiv* in June 2020 describes the abnormal activation of platelets in this disease and the link between this phenomenon and poor outcomes for COVID-19 patients.

24 Jun 2020

Effective neutralization of SARS-CoV-2 by synthetic nanobodies targeting the spike protein

In their recent bioRxiv paper, a multinational group of researchers reported rapid isolation and characterization of nanobodies from a synthetic library (known as sybodies) that target the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein – with a strikingly high neutralization ability.

24 Jun 2020

ACE inhibition in kidney could influence pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2

The dynamics of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) expression in the kidney could have implications for the infectivity and pathogenicity of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), say researchers.

24 Jun 2020

Structured 'cut-and-paste' design enables streamlined development of SARS-CoV-2 molecular probes

A seminal study by US researchers, currently available on the bioRxiv* preprint server, demonstrates how structure-based design can be efficiently employed to develop molecular probes targeting the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike and its domains, with possible future use in diagnostics, treatment and vaccine development.

24 Jun 2020