Molecular Biology News and Research

RSS

Molecular biology is the study of biology at a molecular level. The field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry. Molecular biology chiefly concerns itself with understanding the interactions between the various systems of a cell, including the interactions between DNA, RNA and protein biosynthesis as well as learning how these interactions are regulated.

Biologists discover new pathway for repairing nerve cells

Penn State University molecular biologists have discovered a brand-new pathway for repairing nerve cells that could have implications for faster and improved healing. The researchers describe their findings in a paper titled "Dendrite injury triggers DLK-independent regeneration," which will be published in the 30 January 2014 issue of the journal Cell Reports.

10 Jan 2014

New research unit at JGU examines extreme experiences in human life using biomedical explanations

The German Research Foundation (DFG) is establishing a new research unit at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU). The interdisciplinary group will examine how new biomedical capabilities can lead to extreme experiences in human life.

9 Jan 2014

Researchers develop new, safer and noninvasive diagnostic technique for ulcers

Doctors may soon be able to diagnose stomach ulcers without taking tissue samples from the stomach. Researchers from the University of Southern Denmark now report to have developed a new, safer and noninvasive diagnostic technique for ulcers.

8 Jan 2014

Scientists discover new class of cells expressing olfactory receptors in human airways

Your nose is not the only organ in your body that can sense cigarette smoke wafting through the air. Scientists at Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Iowa have showed that your lungs have odor receptors as well.

3 Jan 2014

Macrophages invade diabetic pancreatic tissue during early stages of type 2 diabetes

As people's waistlines increase, so does the incidence of type 2 diabetes. Now scientists have a better understanding of exactly what happens in the body that leads up to type 2 diabetes, and what likely causes some of the complications related to the disease. Specifically, scientists from Denmark have found that in mice, macrophages, a specific type of immune cell, invade the diabetic pancreatic tissue during the early stages of the disease.

2 Jan 2014

Protein responsible for excretion of copper in body cells utilizes unique transport mechanism

We are fundamentally dependent on the presence of copper in the cells of the body. Copper is actually part of the body's energy conversion and protective mechanisms against oxygen radicals, as well as part of the immune system, and it also has great importance for the formation of e.g. hormones and neurotransmitters.

28 Dec 2013

Genetic screening identifies genes driving resistance with guide RNA library

Researchers have developed a method to create a comprehensive library of mutations across all genes in the mouse genome. This library can be used to examine the role of every gene in different cell types.

23 Dec 2013

Neuroscience researchers discover gene that controls response to cocaine

UT Southwestern neuroscience researchers have identified a gene that controls the response to cocaine by comparing closely related strains of mice often used to study addiction and behavior patterns.

22 Dec 2013

European research project to develop new rapid diagnostic devices

Led by the Basque R&D Alliance IK4, 13 organisations in 8 different countries have been conducting research for three years under the European LabOnFoil project to develop new rapid diagnostic devices.

19 Dec 2013

Researchers discover molecular "switch" in receptor that controls cell behavior

If scientists can control cellular functions such as movement and development, they can cripple cells and pathogens that are causing disease in the body.

17 Dec 2013

Mirimus develops enhanced tools for reversible gene suppression

Over the last decades, RNA interference (RNAi) has become an indispensable tool for functional genetic studies by harnessing the power of a cell intrinsic mechanism enabling reversible gene silencing.

17 Dec 2013

New Opterra multipoint scanning confocal microscope from Bruker

Today at the 2013 American Society for Cell Biology Annual Meeting, Bruker introduced the Opterra Multipoint Scanning Confocal Microscope, which sets a new standard for integration of confocal imaging with photoactivation.

16 Dec 2013

Study could lead towards a personalised medicine for chemoresistant lymphomata

To date, tests have only been carried out on cells, but a piece of research conducted by the Department of Genetics at the UPV/EHU's Faculty of Medicine in collaboration with MD Anderson and the CNIO is opening up the door for the treatment of lymphoma types that have a lower survival rate. The study of the molecular characteristics of the tumours would enable molecules that are altered in a specific way to be identified and turned into new therapeutic targets that would improve the prognosis of patients with chemoresistant lymphomata.

16 Dec 2013

Transport of bacterial substrates through injectisome observed almost in real time

When attacking body cells, bacteria, such as salmonellae or Yersinia (plague pathogens), inject specific bacterial proteins through hollow, syringe-like structures - called injectisomes - into the host cells. These substances reprogram the cells and can thus overcome their defense. From then on, they can infiltrate the cells unhindered in large numbers, and trigger diseases such as typhus, plague, or cholera.

13 Dec 2013

Digital Science donates complete patent chemistry collection to advance drug discovery

Digital Science, a division of Macmillan Science & Education, is donating the SureChem collection of >15million chemical structures from world patents into the public domain through the European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI).

11 Dec 2013

Researchers find how olfactory receptor variation impacts human odor perception

According to Gertrude Stein, "A rose is a rose is a rose," but new research indicates that might not be the case when it comes to the rose's scent. Researchers from the Monell Center and collaborating institutions have found that as much as 30 percent of the large array of human olfactory receptor differs between any two individuals. This substantial variation is in turn reflected by variability in how each person perceives odors.

9 Dec 2013

Skin is capable of communicating with liver, say researchers

Researchers from the University of Southern Denmark have discovered that the skin is capable of communicating with the liver. The discovery has surprised the scientists, and they say that it may help our understanding of how skin diseases can affect the rest of the body.

9 Dec 2013

New research finds that H7N9 still mainly adapted for infecting birds, not humans

Avian influenza virus H7N9, which killed several dozen people in China earlier this year, has not yet acquired the changes needed to infect humans easily, according to a new study by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute. In contrast to some initial studies that had suggested that H7N9 poses an imminent risk of a global pandemic, the new research found, based on analyses of virus samples from the Chinese outbreak, that H7N9 is still mainly adapted for infecting birds, not humans.

6 Dec 2013

Researchers illuminate inner workings of enzymes placed inside the outer envelopes of cells

For what is believed to be the first time, researchers at The Johns Hopkins University have illuminated the inner workings of an important class of enzymes located inside the outer envelopes of cells. Much to their surprise, they report, these protein cutters, called rhomboid proteases, are entirely different than nearly every other type of enzyme studied, showing no attraction to the proteins they cut and being extremely slow in making their cuts.

6 Dec 2013

Scientists receive 2013 Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize for advancements in field of neuroscience

For discoveries about how the brain calculates and remembers where it is—which could be part of the foundation of memory—Columbia University will award the 2013 Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize to Edvard I. Moser, PhD, and May-Britt Moser, PhD, of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Norway, and John Michael O'Keefe, PhD, of University College London in the UK.

6 Dec 2013

Molecular Biology News and Research

Further Reading

Biologists discover new pathway for repairing nerve cells

New research unit at JGU examines extreme experiences in human life using biomedical explanations

Researchers develop new, safer and noninvasive diagnostic technique for ulcers

Scientists discover new class of cells expressing olfactory receptors in human airways

Macrophages invade diabetic pancreatic tissue during early stages of type 2 diabetes

Protein responsible for excretion of copper in body cells utilizes unique transport mechanism

Genetic screening identifies genes driving resistance with guide RNA library

Neuroscience researchers discover gene that controls response to cocaine

European research project to develop new rapid diagnostic devices

Researchers discover molecular "switch" in receptor that controls cell behavior

Mirimus develops enhanced tools for reversible gene suppression

New Opterra multipoint scanning confocal microscope from Bruker

Study could lead towards a personalised medicine for chemoresistant lymphomata

Transport of bacterial substrates through injectisome observed almost in real time

Digital Science donates complete patent chemistry collection to advance drug discovery

Researchers find how olfactory receptor variation impacts human odor perception

Skin is capable of communicating with liver, say researchers

New research finds that H7N9 still mainly adapted for infecting birds, not humans

Researchers illuminate inner workings of enzymes placed inside the outer envelopes of cells

Scientists receive 2013 Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize for advancements in field of neuroscience

Industry Focus eBook - Cell biology (5th edition) eBook

Latest eBooks

Industry Focus eBook - Microbiome (1st edition)

Industry Focus eBook - Cell biology (5th edition)

Advancing degrader and proximity-based drug development

Driving innovation in Korean drug development

Advancing Intracellular Delivery with LumiPore®

How ELRIG Is Helping Mid-Career Scientists Navigate Leadership, Career Change and Redundancy

The role of UV-Vis in biopharma QC