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Severe COVID-19 recovered patients do not display long-lasting adaptive immune responses, finds study

A team of scientists from the University of Valencia and INCLIVA Health Research Institute, Spain, has recently investigated the durability of immune responses specifically developed against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative pathogen of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

7 Jan 2021

Study reveals molecular machinery that regulates membrane association of Arf proteins

The small GTPases of the ADP-ribosylation factor (Arf) family are key initiators of various physiological processes including secretion, endocytosis, phagocytosis, and signal transduction. Arf family proteins function to mediate the recruitment of cytosolic effectors to specific subcellular compartments.

7 Jan 2021

Researchers identify the missing link between intestinal disease and brain injury in premature infants

Physicians have long known that necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a potentially lethal inflammatory condition that destroys a premature infant's intestinal lining, is often connected to the development of severe brain injury in those infants who survive.

6 Jan 2021

Researchers develop detailed map of protein-protein interactions between SARS-CoV-2 and the host

By conducting a state-of-the-art interactome study between SARS-CoV-2 and host cells, researchers from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston identified 437 human proteins as the high-confidence interacting proteins – with substantial implications for understanding coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pathology and potential treatments.

5 Jan 2021

Sugar-binding protein could promote inflammation and worsen sepsis

A sugar-binding protein could fuel terrible inflammation and worsen sepsis, a disease that kills more than 270,000 people every year in the US alone, reports a team of researchers led by UConn Health in the 4 January issue of Nature Immunology.

4 Jan 2021

New UCLA-developed device transfers mitochondria into 100,000 or more recipient cells

Scientists from the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have developed a simple, high-throughput method for transferring isolated mitochondria and their associated mitochondrial DNA into mammalian cells.

29 Dec 2020

Protein employs twist‐and‐squeeze mechanism to expel chemotherapeutics from cancer cells

In 1986, cellular biochemist Kazumitsu Ueda, currently at Kyoto University's Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences, discovered that a protein called ABCB1 could transport multiple chemotherapeutics out of some cancer cells, making them resistant to treatment. How it did this has remained a mystery for the past 35 years.

29 Dec 2020

Large transporter protein dysfunction associated with schizophrenia

Scientists have suspected mutations in a cellular cholesterol transport protein are associated with psychiatric disorders, but have found it difficult to prove this and to pinpoint how it happens.

29 Dec 2020

Researchers develop new drug discovery method targeting membrane proteins on live cells

A research team led by Dr Xiaoyu LI from the Research Division for Chemistry, Faculty of Science, in collaboration with Professor Yizhou LI from School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chongqing University and Professor Yan CAO from School of Pharmacy, Second Military Medical University in Shanghai has developed a new drug discovery method targeting membrane proteins on live cells.

28 Dec 2020

Researchers develop new system for direct detection of SARS-CoV-2 in aerosols

Researchers from the Polytechnic University of Valencia, in collaboration with specialists from the University of Valencia (UV), have come up with a new system based on a high-sensitivity mass biosensor that continuously monitors signals for the direct detection of SARS-CoV-2 in environmental aerosols.

28 Dec 2020

Animal study suggests palmitoylation inhibitor reduces virulence of SARS-CoV-2

A new study preprint on the bioRxiv* server demonstrates the ability of a fatty acid synthase inhibitor to improve the survival of mice infected with murine hepatitis virus. In so doing, it adds to the sum of knowledge about the relationship of SARS-CoV-2 with cholesterol metabolism in the host cell.

24 Dec 2020

A common compound in mouthwashes found to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 in vitro

Researchers found that cetylpyridinium chloride, found in most mouthwashes, lowers infectivity of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in vitro, likely by inhibiting viral fusion with target cells. With more tests to prove validity, mouthwashes could be a simple, cheap way of curbing transmission.

24 Dec 2020

A short-cut in photosynthetic machinery can allow needles of pine trees to stay green

How can conifers that are used for example as Christmas trees keep their green needles over the boreal winter when most trees shed their leaves?

24 Dec 2020

Researchers identify new weapon to battle the rising tide of antibiotic-resistant bacteria

As scientists around the globe wage war against a novel, deadly virus, one University of Colorado Boulder lab is working on new weapons to battle a different microbial threat: a rising tide of antibiotic-resistant bacteria which, if left unchecked, could kill an estimated 10 million people annually by 2050.

23 Dec 2020

Novel computational tool can systematically analyze cell images in C. elegans

A joint research team co-led by City University of Hong Kong (CityU) has developed a novel computational tool that can reconstruct and visualise three-dimensional (3D) shapes and temporal changes of cells, speeding up the analysing process from hundreds of hours by hand to a few hours by the computer.

23 Dec 2020

Study shows how sodium ions drive glutamate transport in the central nervous system

Scientists from the MIPT Research Center for Molecular Mechanisms of Aging and Age-Related Diseases have joined forces with their colleagues from Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany, and uncovered how sodium ions drive glutamate transport in the central nervous system.

22 Dec 2020

Membrane News and Research

Severe COVID-19 recovered patients do not display long-lasting adaptive immune responses, finds study

Study reveals molecular machinery that regulates membrane association of Arf proteins

Researchers identify the missing link between intestinal disease and brain injury in premature infants

Researchers develop detailed map of protein-protein interactions between SARS-CoV-2 and the host

Sugar-binding protein could promote inflammation and worsen sepsis

New UCLA-developed device transfers mitochondria into 100,000 or more recipient cells

Protein employs twist‐and‐squeeze mechanism to expel chemotherapeutics from cancer cells

Large transporter protein dysfunction associated with schizophrenia

Researchers develop new drug discovery method targeting membrane proteins on live cells

Researchers develop new system for direct detection of SARS-CoV-2 in aerosols

Animal study suggests palmitoylation inhibitor reduces virulence of SARS-CoV-2

A common compound in mouthwashes found to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 in vitro

A short-cut in photosynthetic machinery can allow needles of pine trees to stay green

Researchers identify new weapon to battle the rising tide of antibiotic-resistant bacteria

Novel computational tool can systematically analyze cell images in C. elegans

Study shows how sodium ions drive glutamate transport in the central nervous system

SARS-CoV-2 spike protein remains remarkably conserved among 37 variants from Hong Kong

Cross-reactive coronavirus antibodies shape COVID-19 convalescent plasma functionality

Novel amorphous nanoparticles can efficiently and selectively kill cancer cells

Researchers develop new nanoparticle that efficiently and selectively kills cancer cells

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