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Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a biologically important type of molecule that consists of a long chain of nucleotide units. Each nucleotide consists of a nitrogenous base, a ribose sugar, and a phosphate.

Researchers decipher key component behind rising epidemic of pathogens in West Africa

A research team from several institutions being led by the University of California San Diego has deciphered a key component behind a rising epidemic of pathogens that the World Health Organization (WHO) recently added to its list of critical emerging diseases.

13 Jul 2018

Georgia State professor receives federal grant to study virus similar to Ebola virus

Dr. Christopher Basler, a professor in the Institute for Biomedical Sciences at Georgia State University, director of the university's Center for Microbial Pathogenesis and a Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar in Microbial Pathogenesis, has received a two-year, $419,100 federal grant to study a virus similar to Ebola virus that causes disease in animals but not in humans.

12 Jul 2018

Study provides new insight into blood-clotting ability of leeches

Leeches are blood-feeding organisms that have a suite of anticoagulant compounds they secrete from their salivary glands that prevent blood clotting. This allows them to maximize feeding time and blood volume.

12 Jul 2018

Growing pains in CRISPR gene editing

In the six years since its inception, CRISPR gene editing has experienced ups and downs, from giddy excitement over the technology's potential to cure genetic diseases to patent disputes, ethical considerations and cancer scares.

12 Jul 2018

Researchers discover why CRISPR gene editing sometimes fails

A study has explained for the first time why the CRISPR gene editing tool fails to work in 15% cases, and has suggested methods to prevent this.

11 Jul 2018

Researchers reveal why CRISPR gene editing sometimes fails to work

Researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago are the first to describe why CRISPR gene editing sometimes fails to work, and how the process can be made to be much more efficient.

11 Jul 2018

New approach could greatly enhance people's long-term tolerance for transplants

Currently, people receiving organ transplants must take drugs to suppress the inflammatory immune response that leads to rejection. Even so, almost all recipients eventually lose their transplant.

10 Jul 2018

Mice study shows promise for treating genetic conditions during fetal development

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University and Yale University have for the first time used a gene editing technique to successfully cure a genetic condition in a mouse model.

10 Jul 2018

Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals how complex brain circuit works

The complexity of the human brain presents scientists with immense challenges as they try to find new treatments for a host of diseases and conditions. But the advent of a new technology known as single-cell RNA sequencing is opening a window into how the brain works.

6 Jul 2018

Research elucidates maturation of cancer-causing miRNAs

An international research team led by Helmholtz Zentrum München, Technical University of Munich and the University of Edinburgh has used an integrated structural biological approach to elucidate the maturation of a cancer-causing microRNA in gene regulation.

4 Jul 2018

Specific type of satellite RNA induces breast cancer, shows study

Only some of us have satellite TV in our homes, but all of us have satellite DNA in cells in our bodies. Working copies of satellite DNA are high in certain types of cancer, such as breast and ovarian.

4 Jul 2018

Researchers find new metabolic vulnerability in small cell lung cancer

Researchers at the Children's Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern (CRI) have discovered a new metabolic vulnerability in small cell lung cancer (SCLC) that can be targeted by existing drug therapies.

3 Jul 2018

Mayo researchers determine how DNA repair protein gets to the site of damage

Damage to DNA is a daily occurrence but one that human cells have evolved to manage. Now, in a new paper published in Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, Mayo researchers have determined how one DNA repair protein gets to the site of DNA damage. The authors say they hope this discovery research will help identify new therapies for ovarian cancer.

3 Jul 2018

Study finds that several existing anti-cancer drugs may work in part by binding to RNA

Bolstering the notion that RNA should be considered an important drug-discovery target, scientists at Scripps Research have found that several existing, FDA-approved anti-cancer drugs may work, in part, by binding tightly to RNA, the regulators of the basic activities of life within cells.

30 Jun 2018

Timing may be key to evading destruction for bacteria facing antibiotics

For bacteria facing a dose of antibiotics, timing might be the key to evading destruction. In a series of experiments, Princeton researchers found that cells that repaired DNA damaged by antibiotics before resuming growth had a much better chance of surviving treatment.

30 Jun 2018