Guanine News and Research

RSS

Inhibition of nsp14 methyltransferase as a potential antiviral target for SARS-CoV-2

Beyond vaccination, the broad-spectrum antiviral medication remdesivir has robust clinical evidence and is known as the best antiviral treatment to reduce severe COVID-19 infection in hospitalized patients. Research led by John F.X. Diffley of the Chromosome Replication Laboratory suggests a potential therapeutic target for treatment development is the viral RNA cap methyltransferases, essential for viral protein translation and immune evasion.

13 Apr 2021

Screening for SARS-CoV-2 non-structural protein 14 inhibitors

In a paper recently uploaded to the preprint server bioRxiv* by Diffley et al. (April 8th, 2021), inhibitors of one essential SARS-CoV-2 non-structural protein are explored, with four compounds, in particular, identified as potential antiviral leads that exhibit synergistic effects with antiviral drug remdesivir.

12 Apr 2021

Racial diversity and poverty may influence heart-failure morbidity and mortality

Race associates with the risk of death from end-stage heart failure. So, identifying the molecular determinants of that risk may help the pursuit of the novel diagnosis and prognosis of heart failure, and its therapy.

8 Apr 2021

Natural selection and adaptation of SARS-CoV-2 in mammals

Researchers of the Hubei University of Medicine, China, have analyzed several mutations in different variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) from mammal species that suggest natural selection and host adaptation are occurring in the virus.

6 Apr 2021

Prime editing enables more precise correction of genetic problems than traditional CRISPR

The latest gene editing technology, prime editing, expands the "genetic toolbox" for more precisely creating disease models and correcting genetic problems, scientists say.

30 Mar 2021

Study shows how mutant huntingtin protein triggers brain cell death

In 1993, scientists discovered that a single mutated gene, HTT, caused Huntington's disease, raising high hopes for a quick cure. Yet today, there's still no approved treatment.

7 Mar 2021

Study identifies a host of agents with anti-SARS-CoV-2 potential

A team of researchers at the Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, in Taiwan, evaluated the efficacy of 2,855 agents against SARS-CoV-2.

22 Jan 2021

Kruppel-like factor 2 may be a major determinant of acute respiratory distress syndrome in COVID-19 patients

A study conducted at the University of Chicago, USA, has recently revealed that downregulation of an endothelial transcription factor, Kruppel-like factor 2, by SARS-CoV-2 is responsible for ARDS frequently observed in critically ill COVID-19 patients.

19 Jan 2021

NIST compiles the first detailed tutorial on DNA origami

In a technique known as DNA origami, researchers fold long strands of DNA over and over again to construct a variety of tiny 3D structures, including miniature biosensors and drug-delivery containers.

8 Jan 2021

Huntington’s disease mutant gene affects brain and body growth in childhood

There is growing evidence to support the hypothesis that there is a neurodevelopmental component to the late-onset neurodegeneration occurring in the brain of huntingtin gene (HTT gene) mutation carriers, and that this increased susceptibility to brain cell death begins during childhood.

6 Jan 2021

RNA editing within host linked to SARS-CoV-2 variants

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the causative virus, SARS-CoV-2, has undergone several mutations.

14 Dec 2020

Researchers identify potential drug target that may improve cognition in people with mental illnesses

More than a dozen drugs are known to treat symptoms such as hallucinations, erratic behaviors, disordered thinking and emotional extremes associated with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and other severe mental illnesses.

3 Dec 2020

5-amino levulinic acid inhibits SARS-CoV-2 infection in vitro

Researchers tested 5-amino levulinic acid in vitro in human-derived cells and found it prevents severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Because it is safe and ubiquitous in plants and animals, it could be a potential drug against SARS-CoV-2.

1 Nov 2020

More than 40-year-old cancer mystery solved: Thanks to epigenetics

In an article that was just published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences by the group of Dr. Manel Esteller, is solved this mystery by describing that in cancer cells the protein that generates the nucleotide "Y" is epigenetically inactivated, causing small but highly aggressive tumors.

12 Aug 2020

Novel mutation identified in SARS-CoV-2 spike protein from Sweden

Researchers from Sweden and Brazil have identified a novel mutation in a strain of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) obtained from a patient in Stockholm, Sweden, in late April.

4 Aug 2020

Long stretches of repeating DNA associated with susceptibility to systemic sclerosis

Researchers from the University of Tsukuba show that long stretches of repeat DNA sequences in the gene FLI1 are associated with susceptibility to systemic sclerosis.

2 Aug 2020

New maps of chemical marks on DNA could help illuminate the causes of developmental disorders

In research that aims to illuminate the causes of human developmental disorders, Salk scientists have generated 168 new maps of chemical marks on strands of DNA--called methylation--in developing mice.

29 Jul 2020

New genome-editing technologies can help understand disease-associated genetic mutations

New genome-editing technologies developed by researchers in J. Keith Joung's laboratory at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have the potential to help understand disease-associated genetic mutations that are based on C-to-G (cytosine to guanine) single base changes.

24 Jul 2020

Specific SARS-CoV-2 genetic elements found in different insect species

In a recent bioRxiv paper, researchers from Norway and the US demonstrate the presence of a highly conserved, mobile genetic element (thus far with unknown function) in genomes of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and a large number of insects – opening the door for hitherto unexplored treatment opportunities.

30 Jun 2020

Genomics used to trace origin of SARS-CoV-2 in Canada

A new study published in June 2020 on the preprint server bioRxiv discusses the use of phylogenetic analysis to trace the origin of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and its spread into and then within Canada. The study findings may help optimize public health policies in the case of future outbreaks.

28 Jun 2020