Protein C News and Research

RSS

Study characterizes biochemical mechanism of cancer-linked enzyme

A new study led by scientists at IUPUI and Indiana University Bloomington is the first to describe a biochemical mechanism that increases the activity of a molecule whose presence is observed in many types of cancer.

21 Oct 2020

SARS-CoV-2 mutations possibly making virus less virulent

In their bioRxiv* preprint paper, the researchers focus on mapping the clade-specific mutations' effects on the protein structures' conformation and stability. They identified the mutations in the set of seven proteins - orf8, nsp2, nsp4, nsp6, nucleocapsid protein (N), and Spike protein (S).

21 Oct 2020

Protein delivery to the testes restores male fertility in mice

According to the Mayo Clinic, about 15% of couples are infertile, and male infertility plays a role in over one-third of these cases.

21 Oct 2020

Study identifies potential target for treating polyploidal giant cancer cells

As researchers and medical professionals work to develop new treatments for cancer, they face a variety of challenges.

21 Oct 2020

"Immunological imprinting" could influence antibody response to COVID-19

Researchers in the United States and Spain have shown that prior exposure to seasonal coronaviruses may influence antibody responses to infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

21 Oct 2020

Cold-induced increase in vitamin A boosts fat burning

A recent study conducted by a research team led by Florian Kiefer from MedUni Vienna's Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism shows that cold ambient temperatures increase vitamin A levels in humans and mice.

21 Oct 2020

New diagnostic method may allow for real-time detection of cancer growth patterns

Using a 2 ml blood sample from 100 gastric cancer patients, researchers succeeded in identifying cancer cells circulating in the bloodstream and trace them back to their origin tumor by detecting an overexpression of fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR2) in both the cancer cells and the tumor.

21 Oct 2020

New DNA-cutting tool could advance gene editing for novel treatments

Gene editing for the development of new treatments, and for studying disease as well as normal function in humans and other organisms, may advance more quickly with a new tool for cutting larger pieces of DNA out of a cell's genome, according to a new study by UC San Francisco scientists.

21 Oct 2020

Spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 virus identifies and binds neuropilin-1 on human cells to infect them

Helping to explain what makes SARS-CoV-2 so capable of infecting human cells, researchers in two independent studies discovered that the virus's spike protein recognizes and binds a protein on the human cell surface called neuropilin-1.

21 Oct 2020

Diet may help restore ovulation in women with polycystic ovary syndrome

The Mediterranean diet may be investigated as a possible treatment for polycystic ovary syndrome after mice with PCOS-like features of the condition were found to benefit from a similar diet.

21 Oct 2020

Time-keeping brain protein regulates memory

Upsetting the brain’s timekeeping can cause cognitive impairments, like when jetlag makes you feel foggy and forgetful.

21 Oct 2020

Study indicates the relationship between SARS-CoV-2 viral infection and diabetes

It has recently been described that infection by some enteroviruses - a genus of viruses that commonly cause diseases of varying severity - could potentially trigger diabetes, although its direct effect 'in vivo' as well as its mechanism of action at the molecular level were unknown.

21 Oct 2020

Scientists may be able to prevent cancer by controlling the ANP32E and H2AZ proteins

Someday, scientists may be able to prevent cancer by controlling two proteins that operate deep inside the quagmire of epigenetic cell fate transitions, a new paper suggests.

21 Oct 2020

SARS-CoV-2 hijacks mitochondria

An important phase of the viral protein translation relies on the mitochondrial translation machinery. Towards this goal, the molecular mechanism involved in the SARS-CoV-2 entry into human cells is studied by Zhenguo Cheng et al.

21 Oct 2020

Scientists uncover a novel cellular mechanism for disposing of misfolded proteins

About 30 years ago, Dr. Richard Sifers set out on a journey to discover why people with a rare condition known as alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency present with high variation in the severity of liver disease.

21 Oct 2020

Researchers use supercomputers to simulate the inner working of Ebola virus

As the world grapples with the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, another virus has been raging again in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in recent months: Ebola.

21 Oct 2020

New study could help achieve multicolor imaging with fluorescent biosensors cells

With a little tweak of the color palette, University of Virginia School of Medicine researchers have made it easier for scientists to understand biological processes, track happenings inside individual cells, unravel the mysteries of disease and develop new treatments.

21 Oct 2020

Researchers explore effect of temperature on molecular structure of SARS-CoV-2 spike

Didac Martí et al., from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, in a recent bioRxiv preprint research paper, explore the effect of the temperature on the molecular structure of the SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein. The study specifically focuses on the spike glycoprotein's molecular structural integrity at different temperatures (within 25 ºC and 100 ºC) using atomistic computer simulations.

20 Oct 2020

New smart surface pulls critical COVID-19 marker from the blood

When COVID-19 attacks, the immune system produces a cytokine, or protein, called Interleukin-6 (IL-6), whose concentrations can offer vital information about a patient's level and stage of infection.

20 Oct 2020

3D imaging of SARS-CoV-2 infection in ferrets using light sheet microscopy

Researchers from the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health demonstrate the ability to detect severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in 3D tissue samples in ferrets. This will allow the detection of infection patterns in tissues and their interrelations.

20 Oct 2020