Molecular Biology News and Research

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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.

DFG announces establishment of eleven new Collaborative Research Centres

The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) will establish eleven new Collaborative Research Centres (CRC) as of 1 January 2011. This decision was made recently by the responsible Grants Committee at its autumn meeting in Bonn. The new CRCs will receive a total of - 94.4 million (including a 20 percent programme allowance for indirect project costs) for an initial funding period of four years.

24 Nov 2010

Ergothioneine international congress 2011 to be held at UCLA

OXIS International, Inc., today announced that the "First International Congress on Ergothioneine, Anti-Oxidants, and Age Management Medicine" will be held Friday to Sunday, July 15-17, 2011, in the DeNeve Auditorium at the University of California, Los Angeles.

23 Nov 2010

High BMI remains primary problem among wealthier women in developing countries

A new study from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) finds that high body mass index (BMI) in developing countries remains primarily a problem of the rich. The findings suggest that the shift towards overweight and obesity among the poor that has already happened in wealthier countries has not yet happened in developing countries.

23 Nov 2010

BioCancell raises $5.1 million by excess demand in public offering

Success for BioCancell Therapeutics Inc. Excess demand in BioCancell's public offering of shares and warrants generated immediate proceeds of $5.1 million, 18% above its stated minimal fundraising goal of $4.3 million.

23 Nov 2010

Researchers reconstitute first step of break repair in cancerous cells

What prompts normal cells to transform themselves into cancerous cells. Researchers from Texas institutions, including the UT Health Science Center San Antonio, have identified factors in the very first step of the process and reconstituted this first step in the test tube. The latter accomplishment was reported Sunday [Nov. 21] in the top-tier journal Nature Structural & Molecular Biology.

22 Nov 2010

Alexion's Soliris Phase 2 clinical study for aHUS meets primary, secondary endpoints

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that a Phase 2 clinical study investigating Soliris (eculizumab) as a treatment for patients with atypical Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (aHUS) who are resistant to plasma therapy met primary and key secondary endpoints with high levels of statistical and clinical significance, according to results presented today at the American Society of Nephrology (ASN) annual meeting in Denver.

21 Nov 2010

People with heart disease, diabetes or cancer believe economic downturn hurts their health: Poll

A new poll from researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health and Knowledge Networks shows that many people with heart disease, diabetes or cancer believe the economic downturn is hurting their health and will have further negative impacts in the future. Many Americans with these illnesses face financial problems paying for medical bills in this economy.

20 Nov 2010

Study refocuses on rare group of neutralizing antibodies against HIV

Although people infected with HIV produce many antibodies against the protein encapsulating the virus, most of these antibodies are strangely ineffective at fighting the disease. A new study suggests why some of the most common of these antibodies don't work: they target the protein in a form it takes after the virus has already invaded the cell, when it's too late, report researchers at Children's Hospital Boston and their colleagues.

20 Nov 2010

Cold Spring releases new series of laboratory manuals

Sophisticated techniques that permit the visualization of dynamic processes in cells, tissues, and organ systems at extraordinary levels of resolution have become tremendously valuable in biological research. However, finding the right imaging method and optimizing it for data collection can be a daunting process, even for an established imaging laboratory. To fill this need, a new series of laboratory manuals has been developed by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press. The first volume in this series, Imaging: A Laboratory Manual, has just been released.

19 Nov 2010

Mouse study finds blocking GnT-V enzyme delays breast cancer growth

New University of Georgia research, published this week in the early online edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, has found that blocking the action of an enzyme called GnT-V significantly delays the onset and spread of tumors in mice with cancer very similar to many cases of human breast cancer.

19 Nov 2010

Improving immune system to defend against HIV infection

Researchers have been stymied for years over the fact that people infected with the AIDS virus do indeed produce antibodies in response to the pathogen - antibodies that turn out to be ineffective in blocking infection.

19 Nov 2010

HSR Act applicable to LabCorp’s acquisition of Genzyme

Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings today announced that it has received early termination from the Federal Trade Commission of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, or HSR Act, applicable to the acquisition of Genzyme Genetics, a business unit of Genzyme Corp. by LabCorp.

19 Nov 2010

Low allergenic wines with less potential to trigger allergy symptoms

Scientists have identified a mysterious culprit that threatens headaches, stuffy noses, skin rash and other allergy symptoms when more than 500 million people worldwide drink wine. The discovery could help winemakers in developing the first low allergenic vintages - reds and whites with less potential to trigger allergy symptoms, they say. The new study appears in ACS' monthly Journal of Proteome Research.

18 Nov 2010

Cigarette smoke, automobile exhaust and french fries increase risk of developing Alzheimer's disease

There is growing evidence that exposure to a group of chemicals known as type-2 alkenes -- which are found in the smoke inhaled from cigarettes, the exhaust of automobiles and even in French fries - can increase the chances of developing Alzheimer's disease and other neurological conditions such as Parkinson's disease.

18 Nov 2010

Statins activate bacterial-killing properties of white blood cells

Widely prescribed for their cholesterol-lowering properties, recent clinical research indicates that statins can produce a second, significant health benefit: lowering the risk of severe bacterial infections such as pneumonia and sepsis.

18 Nov 2010

New findings suggest novel approach to targeted treatment of cancer

New research that provides potential for exciting new approaches to targeting diseases such as cancer has been announced by an international team of academics.

17 Nov 2010

University of Oslo opens new Centre for Molecular Medicine Norway

The University of Oslo recently opened its new Centre for Molecular Medicine Norway (NCMM). The centre is the second in Norway to form a partnership with the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL).

17 Nov 2010

Researchers develop new vaccine delivery system for rotavirus infection

Researchers have developed a promising new approach to vaccination for rotavirus, a common cause of severe diarrheal disease that is responsible for approximately 500,000 deaths among children in the developing world every year.

16 Nov 2010

Poll finds Americans' conflicting views about public health system

A comprehensive review of national opinion polls shows that Americans have conflicting views about the nation's public health system and are divided along partisan lines in their support of additional spending on public health programs. A majority supports increased spending on public health in general and sees public health interventions as saving money in the long term.

11 Nov 2010

Neuron subtypes control level of fear output from amygdala

The eerie music in the movie theater swells; the roller coaster crests and begins its descent; something goes bump in the night. Suddenly, you're scared: your heart thumps, your stomach clenches, your throat tightens, your muscles freeze you in place. But fear doesn't come from your heart, your stomach, your throat, or your muscles. Fear begins in your brain, and it is there specifically in an almond shaped structure called the amygdala that it is controlled, processed, and let out of the gate to kick off the rest of the fear response.

11 Nov 2010