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Proteins are complex molecules that are made up of amino acids. They can be found in every cell in the body, and carry out vital processes that keep human beings alive. Mutations in proteins can lead to a multitude of diseases, the most common being cancer.

New insight may allow researchers to design drugs that improve immune responses to vaccines

Memory T cells are a critical element of our immune system's historical archive. To prevent repeat infections, these cells retain a record of germs they've fought before.

19 Apr 2018

Researchers use optogenetics to treat chronic pain

The finger prick from a thorn generates an immediate sensory response. In that instant, neurons at the injury site fire an electrical signal along a nerve fiber to the central nervous system. Our brain notes to avoid further encounters with thorns and the painful insult subsides.

18 Apr 2018

UT Southwestern scientists discover protein linked to metastatic breast cancer

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have identified a protein that is strongly associated with metastatic breast cancer and that could be a target for future therapies.

18 Apr 2018

Compound derived from immune cells treats psoriasis in mice

A compound derived from immune cells treats psoriasis in mice and holds promise for other autoimmune diseases, according to a new study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

18 Apr 2018

Researchers discover unique protein in malaria parasite that could be new drug target

Over a thousand people die from malaria every day. The disease is caused by a single-cell parasite (protozoan) that is transmitted by mosquitoes. Anti-malaria efforts currently focus on effective diagnostics, mosquito nets, insecticides and drugs.

18 Apr 2018

Researchers build molecular networks of calcific aortic valve disease

Calcific aortic valve disease - a disease that leaves the aortic valve stiff and calcified, preventing blood flow from the heart into the aorta - affects one quarter of the U.S. population aged 65 and over.

18 Apr 2018

Researchers use 'top-down proteomics' strategy to get new insights into cancer

When a RAS gene operates normally, it acts as an on/off switch for cell signaling to control cell proliferation. But when the gene mutates, the switch jams into the "on" position, allowing cells to proliferate uncontrollably.

18 Apr 2018

Study sheds light on how the HSC niche is maintained

Researchers have identified an important cellular protein involved in the maintenance of bone marrow cavities and the hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) niche

18 Apr 2018

Children with autism have gastrointestinal and immune system deregulation, research finds

Researchers at the UC Davis MIND Institute have found that children with autism spectrum disorder have reduced immune system regulation, as well as shifts in their gut microbiota.

17 Apr 2018

Students develop one-size-fits-all, inexpensive embolization tool

Stemming the flow of blood to starve a tumor or stop hemorrhage can be an expensive, repetitive task for doctors, requiring a variety of approaches and materials for different patients and different sized blood vessels. Often, the interventional radiologists who perform these important procedures must try several times in order to successfully stop the bleeding.

17 Apr 2018

Scientists decipher mechanism of chemotherapy induced female infertility

Many chemotherapeutics act by damaging the DNA. Since cancer cells divide more often than most normal cells, they react more sensitive to DNA damaging agents.

17 Apr 2018

Scientists analyze nanostructure of chicken eggshells

The results of a study recently published in the prestigious international journal Science Advances have enabled researchers to better understand the role of eggshells in embryo development and hatching.

17 Apr 2018

Researchers develop new method to study activity of inflammatory cells

The process that the body sets in motion in the event of inflammation is complex, but also impressive. The main role here is played by immune cells migrating from the blood into the tissue to fight the inflammation.

17 Apr 2018

Innomech develops innovative test station for Fluidic Analytics

Automation consultancy GB Innomech Ltd (Innomech) has designed and developed an innovative new test station for Fluidic Analytics – the Cambridge-based protein analysis company – as a labor-saving R&D tool to help process multiple test samples and to ensure product quality.

17 Apr 2018

Large ALS-causing protein aggregates protect rather than harm neurons

Scientists at the UNC School of Medicine have made a significant advance in the understanding of the complex and fatal neurodegenerative disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

17 Apr 2018

Antioxidant treatment may decrease cardiovascular risk in women with type 1 diabetes

The high estrogen levels that typically afford younger women protection from cardiovascular disease appear to instead multiply their risk if they have type 1 diabetes, researchers say.

17 Apr 2018

Researchers generate stable cartilage tissue from adult mesenchymal stem cells

Stable joint cartilage can be produced from adult stem cells originating from bone marrow. This is made possible by inducing specific molecular processes occurring during embryonic cartilage formation, as researchers from the University and University Hospital of Basel report in the scientific journal PNAS.

16 Apr 2018

Novel disease model for ALS and MS can be used to develop new immunotherapies

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have developed a new disease model for neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS and MS that can be used to develop new immunotherapies. The model is described in a publication in the scientific journal Nature Immunology.

16 Apr 2018

CNIO researchers determine structure of protein complex related to cell survival

A team from the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre has determined for the first time the high-resolution structure of a complex (R2TP) involved in key processes for cell survival and in diseases such as cancer.

16 Apr 2018

Finding ways to reverse obesity’s lingering, pro-cancer effects

Like exposure to too much sun and drinking alcohol, obesity is a risk factor for cancer. Researchers at the University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center are working to be a part of the solution -- they want to find ways to reverse obesity-linked biological changes in the body that are associated with cancer growth.

16 Apr 2018