Biochemistry News and Research

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Researchers reveal mechanism behind how cells communicate

Cell communication is essential for the development of any organism. Scientists know that cells have the power to "talk" to one another, sending signals through their membranes in order to "discuss" what kind of cell they will ultimately become - whether a neuron or a hair, bone, or muscle. And because cells continuously multiply, it's easy to imagine a cacophony of communication.

6 Sep 2011

Study describes new class of anti-diabetic compound that targets unique molecular switch

In a joint study, scientists from The Scripps Research Institute and Harvard University's Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have established a new class of anti-diabetic compound that targets a unique molecular switch.

5 Sep 2011

Nature journal publishes Metabolon's genome wide association study

Metabolon, Inc., the leader in metabolomics, biomarker discovery and biochemical analysis, announced the publication of "Human Metabolic Individuality in Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Research" in the journal Nature.

3 Sep 2011

Sand fly's salivary components play a critical role in process for Leishmania

For millions of people who live under the constant threat of Leishmania infection, a new discovery by Brazilian scientists may lead to new breakthroughs, preventing these parasites from taking hold in the body or reducing the severity of infections once they occur.

2 Sep 2011

Contraceptive pill prevents loss of eye sight

Scientists at University College Cork (UCC) have shown that the active component (Norgestrel) of the contraceptive 'Mini Pill' prevents the loss of sight in mice that have degenerative eye conditions that normally lead to blindness.

2 Sep 2011

New guidelines for the treatment of acromegaly, a serious growth hormone disorder

It’s said a lot can happen in seven days. In seven years, a lot has happened in the understanding of acromegaly, a debilitating condition that causes a patient to have too much growth hormone. It’s seven years since the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists last produced guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of acromegaly. Their 2004 guidelines were just 13 pages long. Their latest, the 2011 guidelines, have grown – to 44 pages.

31 Aug 2011

Tel Aviv University develops Facebook app to track the spread of infections

From SARS to swine flu, virus outbreaks can be unpredictable - and devastating. But now a new application through the ubiquitous social networking site Facebook, developed in a Tel Aviv University lab, is poised to serve as a better indicator of how infections spread among populations.

30 Aug 2011

Student researchers throughout Australia compete for annual award

Student researchers from throughout Australia will compete for state and national titles in the country’s leading competition for life science, biotechnology and bio-engineering students: the 2011 AusBiotech-GSK Student Excellence Awards. Applications are now open for the 2011 awards.

29 Aug 2011

Kettering University's biodegradable magnesium alloy can repair traumatic bone injury

Repairing traumatic injury to a bone is possible, but current procedures require multiple surgeries and long-term recovery. Kettering University's Dr. Montserrat Rabago-Smith and her team of co-researchers are exploring the use of a magnesium orthotic alloy in severe trauma injuries where the distance between two halves of a bone can't be overcome by the human body's ability to regenerate and heal.

26 Aug 2011

Insight into how bacterial toxins cause human diseases may help improve treatment

A better understanding of how bacterial toxins cause common human diseases may lead to their improved treatment and prevention according to a paper just published by Irish and US scientists in Nature Reviews Microbiology.

25 Aug 2011

NTNU Professors receive 2011 Anders Jahre's Award for Medical Research

NTNU Professors May-Britt and Edvard Moser have been selected for the 2011 Anders Jahre's Award for Medical Research. The award, which includes a NOK 1 million (€128,000) prize, is considered among the most prestigious of medical awards in the Nordic countries.

25 Aug 2011

Bacteria tweak their genes and proteins to gain strength

Scientists have discovered that bacteria like E. coli and Salmonella have a sneaky way of making minor alterations to their genes to boost their chances for infection.

24 Aug 2011

Insight into acrolein-induced acute lung injury

Metabolon, Inc., the leader in metabolomics, biomarker discovery and biochemical analysis, announces the publication of "Integrative Metabolome and Transcriptome Profiling Reveals Discordant Energetic Stress Between Mouse Strains with Differential Sensitivity to Acrolein-Induced Acute Lung Injury" in The Molecular Nutrition and Food Research Journal.

24 Aug 2011

Molecular Endocrinology journal publishes two studies on estrogen hormones

University of Houston (UH) researchers have their sights set on developing possible treatments for breast and colon cancer.

23 Aug 2011

Scientists discover mechanism that helps explain why stress causes DNA damage

For years, researchers have published papers that associate chronic stress with chromosomal damage. Now researchers at Duke University Medical Center have discovered a mechanism that helps to explain the stress response in terms of DNA damage.

22 Aug 2011

New model for biomedical education

Leaders in biomedical education at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine are calling for a radical new approach to post-graduate training in the life sciences to address significant challenges, including an avalanche of new discoveries in the last decade and the need to transcend traditional departmental boundaries to understand biological processes at multiple levels.

20 Aug 2011

Scientists report molecular structural basis for sex organ, head deformities

Scientists this month reported the molecular structural basis for severe head deformities and ambiguous sex organs in babies born with Antley-Bixler syndrome accompanied by an enzyme deficiency.

20 Aug 2011

Dog fecal material may constitute the dominant source of airborne bacteria

Bacteria from fecal material -- in particular, dog fecal material -- may constitute the dominant source of airborne bacteria in Cleveland's and Detroit's wintertime air, says a new University of Colorado Boulder study.

19 Aug 2011

Dissimilar interaction of opioid receptors may explain why men, women experience pain differently

Women and men experience pain, particularly chronic pain, very differently. The ability of some opioids to relieve pain also differs between women and men. While it has been recognized since the mid-nineties that some narcotic analgesics are more effective in women than men, the reason for this difference was largely unknown.

19 Aug 2011

Single-molecule imaging reveals how cells prepare to interact with biochemical signals

Researchers at Harvard Medical School have discovered that structural elements in the cell play a crucial role in organizing the motion of cell-surface receptors, proteins that enable cells to receive signals from other parts of the organism.

19 Aug 2011