Enzyme News and Research

RSS

Researchers map physical properties of live breast cancer cells using advanced AFM technology

Researchers who developed a high-speed form of atomic force microscopy have shown how to image the physical properties of live breast cancer cells, for the first time revealing details about how deactivation of a key protein may lead to metastasis.

30 Jun 2015

Imperial College London researchers discover new inherited form of obesity, type 2 diabetes

Scientists have discovered a new inherited form of obesity and type 2 diabetes in humans. A large number of genes are involved in regulating body weight, and there are now over 30 genes known in which people with harmful changes in DNA sequence become extremely overweight. Similarly, there are a number of genes that can, when altered, cause type 2 diabetes. These conditions are inherited through families in exactly the same way as disorders such as cystic fibrosis or Huntington's disease.

30 Jun 2015

Researchers complete participants’ enrollment in Phase III trial of vaginal ring for HIV prevention

In a first for HIV prevention, an international team of researchers have completed follow-up of participants enrolled in a pivotal Phase III trial that tested the safety and effectiveness of a vaginal ring for preventing HIV in women.

30 Jun 2015

New informatics technology could accelerate search for potential new drug targets on protein structures

Researchers have developed a new informatics technology that analyzes existing data repositories of protein modifications and 3D protein structures to help scientists identify and target research on "hotspots" most likely to be important for biological function.

30 Jun 2015

New species of tRNA-derived small RNAs contribute to cell proliferation in cancer

Since their discovery in the 1950s, transfer RNAs (tRNAs) have been best known for their role in helping the cell make proteins from messenger RNA templates. However, recent studies have led to a previously-unsuspected concept that tRNAs are not always the end product; namely, they further serve as a source of small RNAs.

30 Jun 2015

Wistar Institute study shows that PI3K inhibitors may make a patient's cancer even worse

The enzyme phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase (PI3K) appears to be exploited in almost every type of human cancer, making it the focus of considerable interest as a therapeutic target, with many PI3K-inhibiting drugs currently in various stages of clinical development. However, PI3K inhibitors have only shown modest clinical activity with patients who receive these drugs experiencing very little improvement in survival.

30 Jun 2015

Rare genetic variants in A2ML1 gene responsible for chronic middle ear infections, say researchers

Many parents have heard the night-time cry of "my ear hurts." For some children, this might happen frequently beginning in infancy and even persist into adulthood. An international consortium led by those at Baylor College of Medicine may have taken the first step on the road to understanding why only some people get frequent painful or chronic middle ear infections. The culprit may be rare genetic variants in a gene called A2ML1.

30 Jun 2015

Danish scientists discover what controls ADAM17 enzyme that aids growth of cancer tumours

Researchers from the University of Copenhagen have discovered what regulates an enzyme that is central to the growth of cancer tumours. This could be of great value to future cancer treatment.

30 Jun 2015

Potential new class of drugs lessen neurodegeneration in rat model of Parkinson's disease

The first test in a mammalian model of a potential new class of drugs to treat Parkinson's disease shows abatement of neurodegeneration in the brains of test rats and no significant toxicities, University of Alabama at Birmingham and Pfizer Inc. researchers report online in The Journal of Biological Chemistry.

26 Jun 2015

Caltech chemists develop new sensitive technique that can detect colorectal cancer in tissue samples

Chemists at Caltech have developed a new sensitive technique capable of detecting colorectal cancer in tissue samples -- a method that could one day be used in clinical settings for the early diagnosis of colorectal cancer.

26 Jun 2015

Scientists develop small molecule drug that prevents autophagy from starting in cancer cells

As a tumor grows, its cancerous cells ramp up an energy-harvesting process to support its hasty development. This process, called autophagy, is normally used by a cell to recycle damaged organelles and proteins, but is also co-opted by cancer cells to meet their increased energy and metabolic demands.

26 Jun 2015

UIC researchers identify molecular mechanism that directs embryonic stem cells to turn into endothelial cells

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago have identified a molecular mechanism that directs embryonic stem cells to mature into endothelial cells -- the specialized cells that form blood vessels. Understanding the processes initiated by this mechanism could help scientists more efficiently convert stem cells into endothelial cells for use in tissue repair, or for engineering blood vessels to bypass blockages in the heart.

25 Jun 2015

Sugar-gobbling enzyme helps restore normal function in heart muscles of diabetic rats

Working with heart muscle cells from diabetic rats, scientists at Johns Hopkins have located what they say is the epicenter of mischief wreaked by too much blood sugar and used a sugar-gobbling enzyme to restore normal function in the glucose-damaged cells of animal heart muscles.

25 Jun 2015

Research shows New Zealand blackcurrants are good for keeping us mentally young and agile

Research has shown that New Zealand blackcurrants are good for keeping us mentally young and agile, a finding that could have potential in managing the mental decline associated with aging populations, or helping people with brain disorders such as Parkinson's disease or depression.

24 Jun 2015

Nutrition experts offer tips to employees working in sedentary environment

When it comes to taking a physical activity break at work, it's more about the frequency than duration. That's advice Kansas State University experts in human nutrition and kinesiology are offering to employees working in a sedentary environment who are looking to improve their health.

24 Jun 2015

Groundbreaking UVA research may lead to creation of male contraceptive

Groundbreaking new reproductive research from the School of Medicine has identified key molecular events that could be playing a critical role as sperm and egg fuse to create new life. The findings might one day lead to the creation of a male contraceptive.

24 Jun 2015

UMass Amherst reports how two molecular pathways get together to ensure normal bacterial growth

As part of their long-term investigation of regulatory factors in the bacterial cell cycle, molecular biologists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst now report finding a surprising new role for one factor, CpdR, an adaptor that helps to regulate selective protein destruction, the main control mechanism of cell cycle progression in bacteria, at specific times.

23 Jun 2015

New 'smart insulin patch' could help patients suffering from diabetes

Painful insulin injections could become a thing of the past for the millions of Americans who suffer from diabetes, thanks to a new invention from researchers at the University of North Carolina and NC State, who have created the first "smart insulin patch" that can detect increases in blood sugar levels and secrete doses of insulin into the bloodstream whenever needed.

23 Jun 2015

Purdue University-led study could lead to better treatments for people infected with MERS virus

A Purdue University-led team of researchers studying the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, or MERS, have found molecules that shut down the activity of an essential enzyme in the virus and could lead the way to better treatments for those infected.

23 Jun 2015

Biotin benefits ‘clinically relevant’ in progressive multiple sclerosis

Patients with progressive multiple sclerosis and their clinicians see clear improvements during treatment with a high dose of biotin, show further results from the phase III trial of the therapy.

22 Jun 2015

Enzyme News and Research

Researchers map physical properties of live breast cancer cells using advanced AFM technology

Imperial College London researchers discover new inherited form of obesity, type 2 diabetes

Researchers complete participants’ enrollment in Phase III trial of vaginal ring for HIV prevention

New informatics technology could accelerate search for potential new drug targets on protein structures

New species of tRNA-derived small RNAs contribute to cell proliferation in cancer

Wistar Institute study shows that PI3K inhibitors may make a patient's cancer even worse

Rare genetic variants in A2ML1 gene responsible for chronic middle ear infections, say researchers

Danish scientists discover what controls ADAM17 enzyme that aids growth of cancer tumours

Potential new class of drugs lessen neurodegeneration in rat model of Parkinson's disease

Caltech chemists develop new sensitive technique that can detect colorectal cancer in tissue samples

Scientists develop small molecule drug that prevents autophagy from starting in cancer cells

UIC researchers identify molecular mechanism that directs embryonic stem cells to turn into endothelial cells

Sugar-gobbling enzyme helps restore normal function in heart muscles of diabetic rats

Research shows New Zealand blackcurrants are good for keeping us mentally young and agile

Nutrition experts offer tips to employees working in sedentary environment

Groundbreaking UVA research may lead to creation of male contraceptive

UMass Amherst reports how two molecular pathways get together to ensure normal bacterial growth

New 'smart insulin patch' could help patients suffering from diabetes

Purdue University-led study could lead to better treatments for people infected with MERS virus

Biotin benefits ‘clinically relevant’ in progressive multiple sclerosis

Biochemistry eBook

Latest eBooks

Industry Focus eBook - Analytical Chemistry (3rd edition)

Industry Focus eBook - Microbiome (1st edition)

Industry Focus eBook - Cell biology (5th edition)

Advancing degrader and proximity-based drug development

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo