Amino Acid News and Research

RSS

Amino Acid is one of several molecules that join together to form proteins. There are 20 common amino acids found in proteins.

Researchers identify mechanism of TRPM2 regulation

Professor Makoto TOMINAGA from National Institute for Physiological Sciences (Okazaki Institute for Integrative Bioscience), National Institutes of Natural Sciences, and his research team member Ms. Makiko KASHIO have identified the mechanism through which TRPM2 is activated by body temperature with hydrogen peroxide (a kind of reactive oxygen species) produced by immune reactions.

10 Apr 2012

Key finding in regulation of intraocular pressure in glaucoma

A six-year collaboration between two faculty members of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine has yielded new insight regarding the regulation of intraocular pressure (IOP) in glaucoma - an irreversible blinding disease that causes progressive visual impairment due to optic nerve damage and is the leading cause of blindness worldwide.

6 Apr 2012

Scientists discover new serine protease: NSP4

Neutrophil granulocytes comprise important defences for the immune system. When pathogenic bacteria penetrate the body, they are the first on the scene to mobilise other immune cells via signal molecules, thereby containing the risk. To this end, they release serine proteases - enzymes that cut up other proteins to activate signal molecules. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried have now discovered a new serine protease: neutrophil serine protease 4, or NSP4.

3 Apr 2012

XRCC2 gene mutations cause increased breast cancer risk

Mutations in a gene called XRCC2 cause increased breast cancer risk, according to a study published today in the American Journal of Human Genetics. The study looked at families that have a history of the disease but do not have mutations in the currently known breast cancer susceptibility genes.

30 Mar 2012

Scientists uncover new layer of information in the genetic code

A hidden and never before recognized layer of information in the genetic code has been uncovered by a team of scientists at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) thanks to a technique developed at UCSF called ribosome profiling, which enables the measurement of gene activity inside living cells - including the speed with which proteins are made.

29 Mar 2012

Pfizer to present data on ADCs at AACR 2012

Pfizer Oncology will present data from a variety of preclinical and clinical studies of Pfizer's early-stage compounds, including data from Pfizer's investigational antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) portfolio and research evaluating several molecules targeting novel pathways that play a crucial role in basic cellular functions, at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2012 in Chicago, IL, from March 31-April 4.

27 Mar 2012

New method uses E. coli bacteria to engineer human therapeutic glycoproteins

Escherichia coli - a bacteria considered the food safety bane of restaurateurs, grocers and consumers - is a friend. Cornell University biomolecular engineers have learned to use E. coli to produce sugar-modified proteins for making pharmaceuticals cheaper and faster.

27 Mar 2012

Study identifies major gene affecting chronic pain sensitivity

Nearly one in five people suffers from the insidious and often devastating problem of chronic pain.

27 Mar 2012

New solid state NMR method can help visualize structure of proteins

A new method to reveal the structure of proteins could help researchers understand biological molecules - both those involved in causing disease and those performing critical functions in healthy cells.

20 Mar 2012

New research could provide roadmap for more effective drug discovery for CF

A recent study led by Gergely Lukacs, a professor at McGill University's Faculty of Medicine, Department of Physiology, and published in the January issue of Cell, has shown that restoring normal function to the mutant gene product responsible for cystic fibrosis (CF) requires correcting two distinct structural defects. This finding could point to more effective therapeutic strategies for CF in the future.

12 Mar 2012

Researchers determine structure of concentrative nucleoside transporter

A team of researchers at Duke University has determined the structure of a key molecule that can carry chemotherapy and anti-viral drugs into cells, which could help to create more effective drugs with fewer effects to healthy tissue.

12 Mar 2012

Nitrogen balance occurs with a precise 24-hour rhythm in mammals

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine demonstrated that nitrogen balance, the process of utilizing amino acids and disposing of their toxic byproducts, occurs with a precise 24-hour rhythm - also known as circadian rhythm - in mammals. Disruption of this cycle has a direct impact on survival of organisms, and may predispose one to life altering diseases including diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

7 Mar 2012

CLR01 blocks toxic aggregations of proteins in mouse model of Parkinson's

Millions of people suffer from Parkinson's disease, a disorder of the nervous system that affects movement and worsens over time. As the world's population ages, it's estimated that the number of people with the disease will rise sharply. Yet despite several effective therapies that treat Parkinson's symptoms, nothing slows its progression.

2 Mar 2012

Bacteria may be talking to each other with a contact-dependent language

What if bacteria could talk to each other? What if they had a sense of touch? A new study by researchers at UC Santa Barbara suggests both, and theorizes that such cells may, in fact, need to communicate in order to perform certain functions. The findings appear today in the journal Genes & Development.

2 Mar 2012

F-DOPA PET/CT imaging alters management plans for patients with brain cancer

Imaging amino acid transporters with positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) has been shown to significantly alter intended management plans for patients with brain tumors, according to research in the March issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

2 Mar 2012

Induced hyperammonaemia increases daytime sleepiness in patients with cirrhosis

Italian and Swiss researchers confirm that induced hyperammonaemia significantly increases daytime sleepiness in patients with cirrhosis. The findings available in the March issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, show that higher blood levels of ammonia reduced the ability of cirrhotic patients to produce restorative sleep.

2 Mar 2012

Researchers discover mechanism by which lead alters nerve cells in the brain

Exposure to lead wreaks havoc in the brain, with consequences that include lower IQ and reduced potential for learning. But the precise mechanism by which lead alters nerve cells in the brain has largely remained unknown.

1 Mar 2012

Evolutionary forces encourage diversity in the active surfaces of venomous toxins

For snakes, spiders, and other venomous creatures, the "business end," or active part, of a toxin is the area on the surface of a protein that is most likely to undergo rapid evolution in response to environmental constraints, say researchers from Ben Gurion University in Israel.

24 Feb 2012

UA researchers identify the likely culprit of epilepsy

Only 10 years ago, deciphering the genetic information from one individual in a matter of weeks to find a certain disease-causing genetic mutation would have been written off as science fiction. It was the time of the Human Genome Project, and it had taken armies of sequencing robots working around the clock for almost a decade to unravel the complete sequence of the human genetic code - referred to as the genome - by churning out the DNA alphabet letter by letter.

24 Feb 2012

Study reveals how mutation shuts down DJ-1 protein's neuroprotective abilities

Purdue University researchers revealed how a mutation in a protein shuts down a protective function needed to prevent the death of neurons in Parkinson's disease, possibly opening the door to new drug strategies to treat the disorder.

22 Feb 2012