Amino Acid News and Research

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Amino Acid is one of several molecules that join together to form proteins. There are 20 common amino acids found in proteins.

New links found between Mediterranean diet and healthy aging outcomes

A series of six articles appearing in the March issue of The Journals of Gerontology, Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences finds new correlations between a Mediterranean diet and healthy aging outcomes -- while also underscoring the need for careful approaches to the use of data in order to measure the diet's potential benefits.

30 Mar 2018

Salk scientists discover protein that 'turns off' uncontrolled liver cancer growth

Salk Institute scientists, together with researchers from Switzerland's University of Basel and University Hospital Basel, discovered a protein called LHPP that acts as a molecular switch to turn off the uncontrolled growth of cells in liver cancer.

29 Mar 2018

Biophysical mechanism involving spaghetti-like proteins helps cells avoid 'data breaches'

Cells can avoid "data breaches" when letting signaling proteins into their nuclei thanks to a quirky biophysical mechanism involving a blur of spaghetti-like proteins, researchers from the Rockefeller University and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine have shown.

28 Mar 2018

Certain nutrients found in food may help reduce symptoms of psychotic illness

A scientific paper has revealed that some nutrients found in food may help reduce the symptoms of psychotic illness, when used in the early stages of treatment.

22 Mar 2018

Discovery of new ALS gene points to cytoskeleton as potential target for drug development

An international team of researchers led by John Landers, PhD, at UMass Medical School, and Bryan Traynor, MD, PhD, at the National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health, has identified KIF5A as a new gene associated with the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

21 Mar 2018

Hydrogel may accelerate healing of diabetic ulcers

A hydrogel invented at Rice University that is adept at helping the body heal may also be particularly good at treating wounds related to diabetes.

20 Mar 2018

Study shows benefits of hair loss drug in improving cognitive function and vascular health

Minoxidil, a popular drug used on the scalp to treat hair loss, might improve blood flow to the brain, lower blood pressure and increase elasticity in the blood vessels if taken in an oral form, according to a new study in mice.

20 Mar 2018

Simple dietary supplement found to improve birth outcomes

A simple dietary supplement (L-arginine) was found to improve birth outcomes, paving the way for future clinical trials to test this inexpensive and safe intervention.

9 Mar 2018

Study pinpoints gene that plays direct role in neurodevelopmental disorders

A study led by researchers at McMaster University has pinpointed a gene that is responsible for neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism.

5 Mar 2018

Calorie restriction improves intestinal-tissue regeneration after injury

Dramatic calorie restriction, diets reduced by 40 percent of a normal calorie total, have long been known to extend health span, the duration of disease-free aging, in animal studies, and even to extend life span in most animal species examined.

22 Feb 2018

Study sheds light on biological mechanisms that drive rare pediatric neurogenetic disorders

Researchers studying a rare genetic disorder that causes severe, progressive neurological problems in childhood have discovered insights into biological mechanisms that drive the disease, along with early clues that an amino acid supplement might offer a targeted therapy.

22 Feb 2018

People with major depressive disorder have reduced arginine levels, study shows

People suffering from major depressive disorder, MDD, have reduced arginine levels, a new study from the University of Eastern Finland shows. Arginine is an amino acid which the body uses to produce, e.g., nitric oxide.

21 Feb 2018

New findings about fruit fly's body temperature rhythms may help people sleep better

In findings that one day may help people sleep better, scientists have uncovered the first molecular evidence that two anciently conserved proteins in the brains of insects and mammals share a common biological ancestry as regulators of body temperature rhythms crucial to metabolism and sleep.

13 Feb 2018

Novel motion capture-like technology for tracking how proteins fold into certain shape

In many modern animated movies, the trick to achieving realistic movements for individual characters and objects lies in motion-capture technology.

13 Feb 2018

Researchers use molecular simulations to understand lung cancer drug resistance

Scientists from the Universities of Bristol and Parma, Italy, have used molecular simulations to understand resistance to osimertinib - an anticancer drug used to treat types of lung cancer.

12 Feb 2018

UNC gene therapy scientists uncover viral barcode to penetrate blood-brain barrier

Gene therapies promise to revolutionize the treatment of many diseases, including neurological diseases such as ALS. But the small viruses that deliver therapeutic genes can have adverse side effects at high doses.

11 Feb 2018

Certain foods may assist spread of breast cancer

Researchers from Cambridge have come up with a new study that shows that some foods may influence the spread of certain cancers. Asparagine for example is a nutrient present in asparagus. If this nutrient is absent, the growth of breast cancer can be slowed, they note. The results of the study are published in the latest issue of the journal Nature.

8 Feb 2018

Scientists find way to reduce breast cancer spread

Scientists have discovered that an amino acid called asparagine is essential for breast cancer spread, and by restricting it, cancer cells stopped invading other parts of the body in mice, according to research part-funded by Cancer Research UK and published in the journal Nature today, (Wednesday).

7 Feb 2018

Researchers discover specific taste neurons necessary for protein craving in fruit flies

A team of neuroscientists from the Champalimaud Centre for the Unknown, in Lisbon, Portugal, has discovered that were it not for specific taste neurons located in the fruit fly's proboscis (the equivalent of our tongue), the fly would not develop a craving for protein even when in excruciating need of it.

5 Feb 2018

Researchers use innovative method to screen kinases for cancer drug's effectiveness

In recent years, a powerful suite of drugs known as kinase inhibitors have been developed to treat cancer and other diseases. Primary targets of such drugs include a family of receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) which protrude from cell surfaces like antennae and can activate cancer-related pathways in virtually all types of cancer when signaling molecules bind with them.