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Researchers discover HIV-1 resists AZT drug

Rutgers researchers have discovered how HIV-1, the virus that causes AIDS, resists AZT, a drug widely used to treat AIDS. The scientists, who report their findings in Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, believe their discovery helps researchers understand how important anti-AIDS treatments can fail and could help AIDS researchers develop more effective treatment for the disease.

20 Sep 2010

Discovery shows how cells decide what to recycle, unlocking debilitating disease's secret

Our bodies recycle proteins, the fundamental building blocks that enable cell growth and development. Proteins are made up of a chain of amino acids, and scientists have known since the 1980s that first one in the chain determines the lifetime of a protein. McGill researchers have finally discovered how the cell identifies this first amino acid - and caught it on camera.

13 Sep 2010

Emerald BioStructures, SomaLogic announce strategic collaboration for SOMAmers

Emerald BioStructures, a leading provider of integrated structural biology services, and SomaLogic, Inc., a diagnostics and biomarker discovery company, today announced that they have entered into a strategic collaboration for the structure-based design of chemically modified DNA aptamers and small molecule therapeutics, based on crystal structures of important protein targets bound to high affinity SOMAmers.

3 Sep 2010

Research on immune system can develop new therapy for inflammation, tumors

In two closely related studies, two teams of Scripps Research Institute scientists have discovered the underlying mechanisms that activate a type of immune cell in the skin and other organs. The findings may lead to the development of new therapies to treat inflammation, wounds, asthma, and malignant tumors.

3 Sep 2010

Researchers clear hurdle on path toward gene-therapy treatment for disease

One of the most difficult aspects of working at the nanoscale is actually seeing the object being worked on. Biological structures like viruses, which are smaller than the wavelength of light, are invisible to standard optical microscopes and difficult to capture in their native form with other imaging techniques.

2 Sep 2010

Fralin Life Science Institute professor receives grant from NSF to elucidate research on fungi

Pablo Sobrado, assistant professor of biochemistry with the Fralin Life Science Institute at Virginia Tech, has received a $1.1 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to advance his research on the mechanism of iron acquisition in fungi and mycobacteria.

19 Aug 2010

Scientists to develop new antibiotics to tackle infection-causing bacteria

Detailed pictures published today reveal how a new type of experimental antibiotic can kill bacteria that are already resistant to existing treatments. The findings could ultimately help scientists to develop new antibiotics to tackle the bacteria responsible for many hospital and community-acquired infections.

5 Aug 2010

Australian scientists uncover the secrets behind one of nature’s most extraordinary biological machines

Scientists from the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute (VCCRI), Sydney, have discovered the secrets behind the tiny motors in bacteria that allow them to swim rapidly towards nutrients and away from toxins, which is crucial to the spread of bacterial infection. These motors can rotate at up to 100,000 revolutions per minute, yet can switch directions in milliseconds.

1 Aug 2010

Scientists discover mechanism of herpes virus cell entry machinery

The mechanism by which a herpes virus invades cells has remained a mystery to scientists, but now research from Tufts University and the University of Pennsylvania reveals the unusual structure of a key member of the protein complex that allows a herpes virus to invade cells.The new map details an essential piece of the herpes virus "cell-entry machinery," providing scientists with a new target for antiviral drugs.

27 Jul 2010

Researchers discover potential method for neurodegenerative disease detection

New investigations, initiated by research workers at CIC bioGUNE and led by Dr. Aitor Hierro, have opened possibilities for making progress in the knowledge and prediction of neurodegenerative diseases such as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), according to the journal of The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.This study opens the possibility of research in humans to detect this pathology before the symptoms arise.

26 Jul 2010

Map of herpes virus "cell-entry machinery" provides new target for antiviral drugs

The mechanism by which a herpes virus invades cells has remained a mystery to scientists seeking to thwart this family of viruses. New research funded by the National Institutes of Health and published online in advance of print in Nature Structural & Molecular Biology reveals the unusual structure of the protein complex that allows a herpes virus to invade cells. This detailed map of a key piece of the herpes virus "cell-entry machinery" gives scientists a new target for antiviral drugs.

7 Jul 2010

Investment report on BioCryst Pharmaceuticals

MicroStockProfit.com announces an investment report featuring BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Inc.. The report includes financial, comparative and investment analyses, and recent company news that you need to know to make an educated investment decision.

30 Jun 2010

Emerald, FORMA sign strategic partnership for structure-based design of cancer drug candidates

Emerald BioStructures, a leading provider of integrated structural biology services, and FORMA Therapeutics, a drug discovery company, today announced the signing of a strategic partnership for the structure-based design of cancer drug candidates for FORMA's pipeline.

28 Jun 2010

Sapient Discovery, Helicon Therapeutics enter structural biology collaboration

Sapient Discovery, LLC., a structure-guided drug discovery company, announced today that it has entered into a research collaboration agreement with the Helicon Therapeutics, Inc., a San Diego based pharmaceutical company. Under the terms of the agreement, Sapient Discovery will apply its proprietary structural biology platform and expertise to determine the three-dimensional structures for targets of interest to Helicon Therapeutics, Inc.

16 Jun 2010

Help Conquer Cancer Project taps World Community Grid to discover structure of cancer-related proteins

Scientists have devised a way to automate and accelerate a manual, complex process that enables researchers to more easily discover the structure of cancer-related proteins, and, eventually, formulate cancer cures. This new, automated approach may also help the exploration of other diseases and food-related research.

15 Jun 2010

New findings may help researchers design drugs that can prevent HIV

Researchers at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine and University of Nebraska Medical Center have created a three-dimensional picture of an important protein that is involved in how HIV -- the virus responsible for AIDS -- is produced inside human cells. The picture may help researchers design drugs that can prevent HIV from reproducing.

10 Jun 2010

Research findings advance the effort to develop AIDS vaccine

In findings that contribute to efforts to design an AIDS vaccine, a team led by Scripps Research Institute scientists has determined the structure of an immune system antibody molecule that effectively acts against most strains of human immunodeficiency virus, the virus that causes AIDS.

2 Jun 2010

Mutation causing light chain amyloidosis identified

Light chain amyloidosis, a deadly protein misfolding disease, is caused by multiple mutations in cells that are intended to protect the body. Instead, the mutations send misfolded bundles of proteins through the bloodstream, potentially destroying the heart, kidneys, liver or other organs. Mayo Clinic researchers have identified one of these mutations and have shown that the molecule's shifting position is as important as its unique shape. The findings appear in the current issue of the journal Structure.

12 May 2010

Crystal structures of key fluorescent proteins to "light up" molecules in cells

Scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have determined the crystal structures of two key fluorescent proteins - one blue, one red - used to "light up" molecules in cells.

23 Apr 2010

New computer simulation technique could speed up drug discovery process

Scientists here are taking the trial and error out of drug design by using powerful computers to identify molecular structures that have the highest potential to serve as the basis for new medications.

15 Apr 2010