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.

Newly discovered chemical compound shows potential to become treatment for brain disorders

Researchers at IIT-Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (Italian Institute of Technology) discovered a novel chemical compound, which has the potential to became a new drug for the treatment of core symptoms of brain disorders like Down syndrome and autism.

11 Jul 2020

Consuming whey protein at night increases morning blood sugar level in healthy people

Consuming protein at night increases blood sugar level in the morning for healthy people, according to new research presented this week at The Physiological Society's virtual early career conference called Future Physiology 2020.

11 Jul 2020

Researchers set up Gate2Brain to exploit a novel drug-transporting technology

Researchers from IRB Barcelona, the University of Barcelona (UB) and the Sant Joan de Déu Research Institute - Hospital Sant Joan de Déu (SJD) have set up Gate2Brain, a company based on a novel technology developed at IRB Barcelona to transport drugs into the brain.

10 Jul 2020

Scientists identify a new role for covalent linker in transmembrane ion channels

In the molecular-level world of ion channels - passageways through membranes that carry signals in a cell's environment and allow it to respond - researchers have debated about the role of a small piece of the channel called a linker, says computational biophysicist Jianhan Chen at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

10 Jul 2020

Salmonella biofilm protein can cause autoimmune responses, arthritis in animals

Scientists from the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization-International Vaccine Centre at the University of Saskatchewan and Temple University have demonstrated that a Salmonella biofilm protein can cause autoimmune responses and arthritis in animals.

10 Jul 2020

New cancer vaccine shows promising signs in preclinical studies

Scientists are ready to trial a new cancer vaccine in humans following the successful outcome of their preclinical studies.

9 Jul 2020

Novel testicular luminal protein is vital for male fertility

Newly produced spermatozoa within the testis are not fully functional until they mature in the epididymis, a duct that helps to transport and store sperm.

9 Jul 2020

Novel antibody test for SARS-CoV-2

A team of researchers in the United States have developed highly specific and sensitive assays that could improve understanding of the antibody response in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and help to determine the effectiveness of vaccines.

9 Jul 2020

SARS-CoV-2 a dagger to the aging heart

Researchers in Europe have shown that genes involved in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection are expressed to a higher degree in older heart muscle cells (cardiomyocytes) than they are in younger cardiomyocytes.

9 Jul 2020

X-ray scattering technique reveals mechanisms of protein folding

KAIST researchers have used an X-ray method to track how proteins fold, which could improve computer simulations of this process, with implications for understanding diseases and improving drug discovery.

9 Jul 2020

DNA hypermethylation correlated with reduced amygdala volume in male patients with schizophrenia

Researchers at Kumamoto University, Japan have revealed that DNA methylation occurs in the gene that codes serotonin transporter (SERT), a protein that regulates neurotransmitter transmission, in schizophrenia and bipolar patients.

9 Jul 2020

Structure of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein provides clues to its evolution

Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute have characterized the structure of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein as well as its most similar relative in a bat coronavirus. The structures provide clues about how the spike evolved and could help inform vaccine design.

9 Jul 2020

New nanoconjugate blocks dissemination of tumor cells in animal models of acute myeloid leukemia

The nanoparticle targets only leukemic cells and therefore would reduce the severe adverse effects of current treatments.

9 Jul 2020

Attomarker's new COVID-19 Triple Antibody Test approved for use in the UK

A new COVID-19 Triple Antibody Test, produced by Attomarker Ltd, a spin-out company from the University of Exeter, could represent the next-generation of rapid and accurate COVID-19 antibody testing.

9 Jul 2020

Researchers use gene-editing techniques to visualize protein action in multicellular animals

Duke University researchers have made the first time-lapse movies of the sheet-like latticework that surrounds and supports most animal tissues.

9 Jul 2020

siRNA therapeutics can reduce off-target side effects of anticancer drugs

Small interfering RNA (siRNA) has shown tremendous potential for treating human diseases in the past decades.

9 Jul 2020

Research shows how SARS-CoV-2 alters translation

Now, a new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv in July 2020 shows that the 5’ end of the RNA molecule is capable of inhibiting the binding of mRNA to the ribosomal 40S subunit, thus preventing translation.

9 Jul 2020

Researchers map RNA structure throughout SARS-CoV-2 genome

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which is currently at the heart of a pandemic that has cost the world more than 550,000 lives, 12 million infections, and uncounted years of productivity, is an RNA virus with the largest genome among all such viruses. This 30 kb size virus has caused many difficulties for scientists in search of a vaccine.

9 Jul 2020

Experimental drug for rare ALS shows promise in early clinical trial

An experimental drug for a rare, inherited form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) has shown promise in a phase 1/phase 2 clinical trial conducted at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and other sites around the world and sponsored by the pharmaceutical company Biogen Inc.

8 Jul 2020

Tracing adaptation to ACE2 use in sarbecoviruses

A detailed study published on the preprint server bioRxiv in July 2020 argues that recombination accounts for the appearance of the ability of both SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 to use the human angiotensin-converting enzyme (hACE) 2 as the binding receptor mediating viral infection of human cells.

8 Jul 2020