Protein News and Research

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Proteins are complex molecules that are made up of amino acids. They can be found in every cell in the body, and carry out vital processes that keep human beings alive. Mutations in proteins can lead to a multitude of diseases, the most common being cancer.

Electroacupuncture promotes weight loss by turning white fat into brown

Globally rising obesity rates pose major health risks, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and certain malignancies.

28 Apr 2026

Study identifies protein essential for repairing damage after inflammation

Whenever there is a wound or infection, the body produces an inflammatory response. This is the body's first line of defense, and macrophages — cells of the innate immune system — play a key role: first, they help eliminate pathogens and other infectious agents, and then they trigger the mechanisms that repair the damage caused during the inflammatory process.

28 Apr 2026

Study identifies "RNA dicing" as a key cancer driver

Scientists have uncovered an unexpected way cells can generate cancer-driving proteins—by cutting RNA into shorter, functional fragments rather than following the standard blueprint.

28 Apr 2026

New imaging method maps DNA replication forks with single-cell resolution

Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have developed a new imaging method, known as RF-SIRF, that quantitatively detects and maps reversed DNA replication forks with single-cell resolution

28 Apr 2026

UBC researchers develop new way to target previously undruggable proteins

Researchers at the University of British Columbia and BC Cancer have developed a new way to target proteins long considered "undruggable," opening the door to new treatments for prostate cancer and other serious diseases.

28 Apr 2026

Obesity may leave immune cells stuck in inflammatory mode after weight loss

A new EMBO Reports study suggests that obesity can leave a lasting epigenetic imprint on CD4 T cells, delaying the restoration of adaptive immune balance after weight loss. Using mouse models and human cohorts, researchers linked this immune “memory” to DNA methylation changes, saturated fatty acids, autophagy, and immune senescence.

28 Apr 2026

Biliary epithelial cells found to actively prevent liver fibrosis development

Many liver diseases share a common characteristic: fibrosis, that is, the progressive accumulation of scarring in the liver tissue.

28 Apr 2026

New light-based technique reveals the inner workings of cells

Human cells adjust to ever-changing conditions while preserving internal states necessary for survival, but exactly how they achieve both adaptability and stability remains unclear. For the first time, researchers, including those from the University of Tokyo, used a light-based technique called Raman spectroscopy to create snapshots of the entire protein landscape inside an E. coli cell in a nondestructive manner.

28 Apr 2026

Scientists uncover why brain damage continues after stroke

Every stroke begins with a sudden interruption of blood flow in the brain. But what happens afterward—why neurons continue to lose function and die over the following days—has remained one of the most important unanswered questions in neuroscience.

28 Apr 2026

Detailed images reveal DNA repair mechanism in cancer-related proteins

Scientists have captured the most detailed structural images to date of a specific type of protein's DNA repair process, a finding that could reveal ways to inhibit the effects of BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations that heighten the risk for breast, ovarian and other cancers.

28 Apr 2026

Single protein shapes both brain connectivity and vascular stability

The communication network in the developing brain builds when neurons partner up to form contact points called synapses, allowing signals to pass form one cell to another.

27 Apr 2026

Three cognitive trajectories identified in preclinical Alzheimer’s disease

Cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease differs substantially from one person to the next and is not well predicted by existing medical tests.

27 Apr 2026

Scientists uncover protein switch that turns on leptospirosis virulence

During infection, pathogens must adapt quickly to the conditions to thrive inside the body. A research team at the University of Basel, Switzerland, has uncovered how a key protein switches on the machinery that enables Leptospira pathogens to survive and cause disease.

27 Apr 2026

NIH awards five year grant for cardiovascular epidemiology training

Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine researchers Vanessa Xanthakis, PhD, FAHA, associate professor of medicine and director of research training, and Mathew Nayor, MD, MPH, associate professor of medicine, have been awarded a five-year, T32 grant from the National Institutes of Health's National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute

27 Apr 2026

Scientists seek to reverse neurodegeneration by eliminating harmful RNA pollution

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, the Salk Institute and Sanford Burnham Prebys have received a four-year, $13 million award from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) to investigate how to reverse age-related neurodegeneration by eliminating what the researchers call "RNA pollution" in aging neurons.

27 Apr 2026

New blood filtering treatment safely extends pregnancy in severe preeclampsia

Cedars-Sinai Health Sciences University investigators have developed and successfully tested a new treatment for pregnant women with severe early preeclampsia, a leading cause of premature birth as well as maternal and fetal death.

27 Apr 2026

Yoga to help manage obesity-related heart and metabolic risks

The impact of yoga on heart health in obesity is modest, suggesting it as a complementary approach for improving metabolic outcomes in high BMI populations.

27 Apr 2026

Scientists will probe whether processing itself makes ultra-processed foods harmful

A randomized controlled trial protocol will test whether the cardiometabolic risks linked to ultra-processed foods stem from industrial processing, poor nutrient composition, or both. Using four controlled diets, researchers will separate the effects of UPF content from saturated fat, added sugar, and sodium on LDL cholesterol, insulin resistance, and blood pressure.

26 Apr 2026

Natural compound obakulactone shows therapeutic potential for rheumatoid arthritis

A new study published in Engineering reveals that obakulactone (OL), a natural tetracyclic triterpenoid isolated from Phellodendri cortex, exerts a therapeutic effect on rheumatoid arthritis (RA) by promoting the degradation of acyl coenzyme A thioesterase 1 (ACOT1) via the ubiquitin‒proteasome pathway and restoring the homeostasis of unsaturated fatty acids.

25 Apr 2026

Engineered cells boost production of gene editing delivery vehicles

Gene editing has emerged as a powerful approach for targeting the genetic causes of disease, but getting the editing machinery into the right cells efficiently, safely, and at the scale needed for therapies remains one of the biggest set of challenges in the field.

25 Apr 2026