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DNA-protein structure more diverse and flexible chain than previously thought, study reveals

How can six and half feet of DNA be folded into the tiny nucleus of a cell? Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have developed a new imaging method that visualizes a very different DNA structure, featuring small folds of DNA in close proximity.

27 Jul 2017

UMD scientists develop new bio-compatible ionic current-generating battery

Engineers at the University of Maryland have invented an entirely new kind of battery. It is bio-compatible because it produces the same kind of ion-based electrical energy used by humans and other living things.

24 Jul 2017

CUMC researchers capture first snapshot of key brain receptor in action

Columbia University Medical Center researchers have captured the first three-dimensional snapshots of the AMPA-subtype glutamate receptor in action. The receptor, which regulates most electrical signaling in the brain, is involved in several important brain activities, including memory and learning.

24 Jul 2017

Scientists unlock secrets of indestructible virus to create super-durable materials

It's like the Superman of viruses, astonishingly tough and able to survive in an environment that would dissolve flesh and bone. And now scientists have unlocked the secrets of its indestructibility, potentially allowing them to harness its remarkable properties to create super-durable materials and better treat disease.

19 Jul 2017

New technique physically expands tissues to improve breast cancer diagnosis

A Ludwig Cancer Research study offers pathologists a quick, cheap and reliable tool to diagnose diseases such as early breast cancer with a conventional optical microscope.

18 Jul 2017

Scientists gain new insights into protein network that regulates programmed cell death

Researchers use a simplified model of a protein network to explain how apoptosis is regulated, whose malfunction is linked to cancer and neurodegenerative diseases.

14 Jul 2017

Researchers develop metal-free contrast agent that could be safer for high-risk patients

To enhance the visibility of organs as they are scanned with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), patients are usually injected with a compound known as a contrast agent before going into the scanner. The most commonly used MRI contrast agents are based on the metal gadolinium; however, these metal compounds can be harmful for young children or people with kidney problems.

13 Jul 2017

Scientists provide detailed view of tau protein structures found in Alzheimer's disease

New research by scientists at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in the United Kingdom and Indiana University School of Medicine gives the most detailed view yet of tau protein structures found in Alzheimer's disease.

6 Jul 2017

Alzheimer’s disease specific brain deposits photographed for the first time in vivid detail

Scientists from the Britain's Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology have for the first time, clearly pictured what the deposits typically seen in a person with Alzheimer’s disease look like. This is a breakthrough in neurodegenerative diseases. The latest study showing the structure of tau protein was published in the journal Nature.

5 Jul 2017

New study evaluates two additive manufacturing methods for producing fine or coarse textured implants

A new study evaluated two additive manufacturing methods for producing either fine or coarse textured titanium implants and compared the strength of bone integration, interlocking, and torque in rats given one or both types of the implants in the distal femurs.

30 Jun 2017

Study: Gadolinium may accumulate in brain tissues of patients without intracranial abnormalities

Minute traces of gadolinium, the contrast agent used to enhance MR images, are often retained in the brain tissue of patients years after undergoing MRI. Some studies have suggested this deposition was limited to patients with underlying brain pathology, such as a tumor or infection.

28 Jun 2017

Researchers shed light on molecular mechanisms of ovarian cancer metastasis

With 20,000 diagnoses each year, ovarian cancer is the ninth most common cancer and fifth leading cause of cancer death among women in the United States.

28 Jun 2017

Morgridge researchers reveal complex viral replication process in unprecedented detail

In the fight against the viruses that invade everyday life, seeing and understanding the battleground is essential. Scientists at the Morgridge Institute for Research have, for the first time, imaged molecular structures vital to how a major class of viruses replicates within infected cells.

27 Jun 2017

Novel Nanopsis technology quadruples magnification power of regular optical microscope

A British nanotech invention has revolutionized the humble optical microscope by quadrupling its magnification power to a level far beyond what could previously be achieved with visible light.

23 Jun 2017

Scientists reveal detailed snapshot of bacterial microcompartment shells

For the first time, scientists have visualized the fine details of bacterial microcompartment shells - the organisms' submicroscopic nanoreactors, which are comprised completely of protein.

22 Jun 2017

Researchers create new camera that can register fast processes in transparent specimens

Researchers from ITMO University have built a setup for recording holograms of tiny objects like living cells with a femtosecond speed. The new method allows one to reconstruct phase topography of a studied sample according to deformations that emerge in a laser pulse when it passes through the specimen.

22 Jun 2017

Francis Crick Institute selects Livecyte cell analysis system from Phasefocus

Phasefocus provides a range of products and services based on its proprietary Ptychographic Quantitative Phase Imaging (QPI) technology to provide a wide range of analytical applications including label-free cell imaging and quantitative electron phase microscopy. Here, they report on the Light Microscopy Science Technology Platform at the Francis Crick Institute’s selection of the Livecyte® label-free cell analysis system.

From Phase Focus Limited 19 Jun 2017

Near-atomic resolution 3D snapshots show how key biological machine unfolds problematic proteins

Hand over hand. That's how new, near-atomic resolution, 3-D snapshots show that a key biological machine unfolds a ribbon of protein through its central channel.

16 Jun 2017

Altered virus could help more patients to become eligible for human gene therapy trials

For many patients, participating in gene therapy clinical trials isn't an option because their immune system recognizes and fights the helpful virus used for treatment.

13 Jun 2017

Pyk2 deficits contribute to memory problems in Huntington’s disease mouse model

Researchers from the Institute of Neurosciences of the UB and from IDIBAPS together with a team from the University Pierre and Marie Curie and the Institute du Fer à Moulin, published a study in Nature Communications, which demonstrates that the regulation in Pyk2, a protein-tyrosine kinase, causes alterations of the synaptic plasticity involved in memory tasks, associated with the hippocampus in mouse models of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Huntington's.