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.

Penn State researchers link mutation in common virus to fatal brain disease

Why people on immunosuppressant drugs for autoimmune conditions have a higher incidence of an often-fatal brain disease may be linked to a mutation in a common virus, according to researchers at Penn State College of Medicine.

19 May 2016

Exercise may help reduce toxicity caused by glutamate build-up in the brain

In a new study published today in Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, scientists from the University of Guelph have found that exercise has the potential to decrease toxic build-up in the brain, reducing the severity of brain disorders such as Huntington's disease.

17 May 2016

Arkin Holdings and Primera Capital lead investment of $13M in BioSight

BioSight, Ltd, an Israeli pharmaceutical development company focused on the development of innovative chemotherapy pro-drugs with reduced toxicity, announced today the closing of an investment of $13M led by the Mori Arkin's pharmaceutical investment firm, Arkin Holdings, and the US based venture firm Primera Capital. Proceeds of the financing will be used to fund a multi-center phase IIb clinical trial with the company's lead product, Astarabine™, for the treatment of AML.

16 May 2016

Unlocking the dark proteome: an interview with Dr Kriwacki

The term dark proteome refers to proteins whose structural features and thus functions are not well understood. Many proteins within the dark proteome do not fold into stable three-dimensional structures. These proteins are called intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) and feature highly flexible, disordered confirmations.

16 May 2016

Histone mutation linked to fatal pediatric brain tumor

A single defect in a gene that codes for a histone — a "spool" that wraps idle DNA — is linked to pediatric cancers in a study published today in the journal Science.

13 May 2016

Potential vaccine that resembles sugar structures may help fight against gut bacterium C. difficile

A vaccine against one of the most dangerous hospital germs may soon be available. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam and the Freie Universität Berlin have developed a substance that elicits an immune response against the gut bacterium Clostridium difficile.

13 May 2016

T cell gives precise mechanical tugs to detect friends and foes

T cells, the security guards of the immune system, use a kind of mechanical "handshake" to test whether a cell they encounter is a friend or foe, a new study finds.

6 May 2016

Innovative strategy can reverse symptoms in neurodegenerative diseases

Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease are the two most common neurodegenerative disorders worldwide and cause untold suffering to millions of patients and their families. Treatments for these diseases are limited, and no cures exist. Now, a new study describes an innovative strategy that reverses symptoms in these neurodegenerative diseases - at least in fruit flies which had been genetically altered to model the diseases.

26 Apr 2016

Nutritional supplements can enhance effectiveness of antidepressants

An international evidence review has found that certain nutritional supplements can increase the effectiveness of antidepressants for people with clinical depression.

26 Apr 2016

Subtle changes in protein-coding gene may cause different genetic disorders

It has been disorienting to the scientific and medical community as to why different subtle changes in a protein-coding gene causes many different genetic disorders in different patients -- including premature aging, nerve problems, heart problems and muscle problems. no other gene works like this. According to a new study, co-authored by Binghamton University faculty Eric Hoffman, it has to do with cell "commitment."

22 Apr 2016

Scientists discover new diagnostic marker for liver cancer

Scientists may have discovered a significant new diagnostic marker for liver cancer, according to a paper published in the April 18 online issue of Nature Cell Biology.

19 Apr 2016

UNC scientists develop new optogenetic tool to study function of different proteins

Scientists at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine have developed a way to embed light-responsive switches into proteins so that researchers can use lasers to manipulate protein movement and activity within living cells and animals.

19 Apr 2016

Researchers reveal how relatively unknown pathogen led to current Zika outbreak

An analysis comparing the individual differences between over 40 strains of Zika virus (30 isolated from humans, 10 from mosquitoes, and 1 from monkeys) has identified significant changes in both amino acid and nucleotide sequences during the past half-century.

18 Apr 2016

M10 peptide could help protect systemic sclerosis patients against fibrotic damage

The results of preclinical studies by investigators at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) reported in the April 2016 issue of Translational Research suggest that the M10 peptide could help protect against fibrotic damage in patients with systemic sclerosis, particularly in those who develop interstitial lung diseases (ILD), its deadliest complication.

15 Apr 2016

Structure-based approach could lead to effective HIV vaccine

It's been known for some time that the immune system can produce antibodies capable of "neutralizing" HIV, and stopping the AIDS-causing virus dead in its tracks.

7 Apr 2016

First-ever immature antibody found in immune molecules may help combat HIV

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute and collaborating institutions have described the first-ever immature or “teenage” antibody found in a powerful class of immune molecules effective against HIV.

6 Apr 2016

Pediatric researchers uncover new syndrome that causes intellectual disability

Pediatric researchers, using high-speed DNA sequencing tools, have identified a new syndrome that causes intellectual disability (ID). Drawing on knowledge of the causative gene mutation, the scientists' cell studies suggest that an amino acid supplement may offer a targeted treatment for children with this condition.

5 Apr 2016

Altered metabolism of two essential amino acids helps drive development of glioblastoma

The altered metabolism of two essential amino acids helps drive the development of the most common and lethal form of brain cancer, according to a new study led by researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute.

2 Apr 2016

Scientists identify two enzymes that appear to play role in metabolism, inflammation

A team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute and the Salk Institute for Biological Studies has discovered two enzymes that appear to play a role in metabolism and inflammation—and might someday be targeted with drugs to treat type 2 diabetes and inflammatory disorders.

29 Mar 2016

MU researchers use MRI to study effects of Phenylketonuria

All children are screened for a host of conditions at birth, such as Phenylketonuria (PKU), a genetic disorder that is passed by mutated genes from both parents to their offspring. PKU is rare, only affecting one in every 10,000 children in the U.S.; therefore, it is seldom studied.

23 Mar 2016