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Research: Experimental drug can protect kidneys from acute kidney injury

New research reveals the mechanism by which an experimental drug can protect the kidneys from sudden damage, called acute kidney injury (AKI). The findings, which appear in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN), show how the drug may be able to save many lives and cut medical costs related to the condition.

12 Jul 2013

Molecular protein folding process may help medical researchers understand and treat diseases

Scientists using sophisticated imaging techniques have observed a molecular protein folding process that may help medical researchers understand and treat diseases such as Alzheimer's, Lou Gehrig's and cancer.

30 Jun 2013

Scientists find that psychiatric disorders may be linked to protein involved in memory formation

Researchers have discovered a pathway by which the brain controls a molecule critical to forming long-term memories and connected with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

17 Jun 2013

University of Nottingham scientists discover previously undetected layer in the cornea

Scientists at The University of Nottingham have discovered a previously undetected layer in the cornea, the clear window at the front of the human eye.

11 Jun 2013

Researchers determine precise chemical structure of HIV capsid

Researchers have determined the precise chemical structure of the HIV capsid, a protein shell that protects the virus's genetic material and is a key to its ability to infect and debilitate the human body's defense mechanism.

1 Jun 2013

Scientists move closer to understanding HIV-1 infection

Scientists have long been unable to fully explain how infections attack the body, but now a team of researchers, including one from the University of Central Florida, has taken a step closer to understanding how the process works in HIV-1. The results mean that one day that knowledge may prevent infection.

31 May 2013

New research reveals how endothelium maintains highly efficient barrier function

The endothelium, the cellular layer lining the body's blood vessels, is extremely resilient. Measuring just a few hundred nanometers in thickness, this super-tenuous structure routinely withstands blood flow, hydrostatic pressure, stretch and tissue compression to create a unique and highly dynamic barrier that maintains the organization necessary to partition tissues from the body's circulatory system.

17 May 2013

Metallurgists use microwave oven to produce nanocrystal semiconductors

University of Utah metallurgists used an old microwave oven to produce a nanocrystal semiconductor rapidly using cheap, abundant and less toxic metals than other semiconductors. They hope it will be used for more efficient photovoltaic solar cells and LED lights, biological sensors and systems to convert waste heat to electricity.

6 May 2013

Scientists develop new technique for imaging nanoparticle dynamics with atomic resolution

The macroscopic effects of certain nanoparticles on human health have long been clear to the naked eye. What scientists have lacked is the ability to see the detailed movements of individual particles that give rise to those effects.

26 Apr 2013

Dr. Stefano Vanin investigates the Fardos mummies of pre-Columbian Peru

The mummified bodies of Peruvians who died up to 1,000 years ago will yield up their secrets, thanks to a prestigious research project by the University of Huddersfield's Dr Stefano Vanin and two of his students in collaboration with the University of Pisa and the Ancient World Society.

19 Apr 2013

Researchers create complete visual map of telomerase enzyme

Like finally seeing all the gears of a watch and how they work together, researchers from UCLA and UC Berkeley have, for the first time ever, solved the puzzle of how the various components of an entire telomerase enzyme complex fit together and function in a three-dimensional structure.

15 Apr 2013

Rising temperature induces key changes in dengue virus

Researchers have discovered that rising temperature induces key changes in the dengue virus when it enters its human host, and the findings represent a new approach for designing vaccines against the aggressive mosquito-borne pathogen.

12 Apr 2013

Researchers study influence of muscle types, body metabolism in diabetes

Researchers in the Life Sciences Institute at the University of Michigan have challenged a long-held belief that whitening of skeletal muscle in diabetes is harmful.

8 Apr 2013

Cell fusion studies at Johns Hopkins could lead to improved treatments for muscular dystrophy

Researchers at Johns Hopkins have established a high-efficiency cell-cell fusion system, providing a new model to study how fusion works. The scientists showed that fusion between two cells is not equal and mutual as some assumed, but, rather, is initiated and driven by one of the fusion partners. The discovery, they say, could lead to improved treatments for muscular dystrophy, since muscle regeneration relies on cell fusion to make muscle fibers that contain hundreds or even thousands of nuclei.

8 Mar 2013

Overexpression of alpha-synuclein can cause Parkinson's

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine say overexpression of a protein called alpha-synuclein appears to disrupt vital recycling processes in neurons, starting with the terminal extensions of neurons and working its way back to the cells' center, with the potential consequence of progressive degeneration and eventual cell death.

10 Feb 2013

DRCRF announces recipients of Nov. 2012 Damon Runyon Fellows

The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on supporting innovative early career researchers, named 15 new Damon Runyon Fellows at its fall Fellowship Award Committee review.

29 Jan 2013

Scientists determine structure of Ltn1 protein

Using an innovative approach, scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have determined the structure of Ltn1, a recently discovered "quality-control" protein that is found in the cells of all plants, fungi and animals.

17 Jan 2013

Scientists describe detailed structure and function of the TFIID protein complex

A research team of scientists from EMBL Grenoble and the IGBMC in Strasbourg, France, have, for the first time, described in molecular detail the architecture of the central scaffold of TFIID: the human protein complex essential for transcription from DNA to mRNA. The study, published today in Nature, opens new perspectives in the study of transcription and of the structure and mechanism of other large multi-protein assemblies involved in gene regulation.

9 Jan 2013

Scientists demonstrate importance of Plvap gene in mammalian physiology

Dartmouth scientists have demonstrated the importance of the gene Plvap and the structures it forms in mammalian physiology in a study published in December by the journal Developmental Cell.

4 Jan 2013

Towards imaging biological processes in action at the atomic level

If the key to winning battles is knowing both your enemy and yourself, then scientists are now well on their way toward becoming the Sun Tzus of medicine by taking a giant step toward a priceless advantage - the ability to see the soldiers in action on the battlefield.

21 Dec 2012