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Award for genetic study that revolutionised thinking on epilepsy

Melbourne researcher, Professor Sam Berkovic, has been awarded the prestigious Zulch Prize from the Max Planck Society in Germany in recognition of his groundbreaking investigations into the genetic foundations of epilepsy.

19 Oct 2005

Divalent metal transporter-1 decreases metal-related injury in the lung

Multi-vitamin products, nutritional supplements and parents tout the need for such mineral elements as calcium, zinc, phosphorus, iron and others.

4 Oct 2005

Organosilicon compounds help improve lithium battery technology

With the help of new silicon-based compounds, scientists -- and patients -- are getting a significant new charge out of the tiny lithium batteries used in implantable devices to help treat nervous system and other disorders.

3 Oct 2005

Wound dressing to stop antibiotic-resistant bacteria from spreading

University of Florida researchers have led the development of a new type of wound dressing that could keep dangerous antibiotic-resistant bacteria from spreading in hospitals, a problem that leads to thousands of deaths in the United States each year.

27 Sep 2005

Water management is the key to regulating cell volume

...says Dutch researcher Bas Tomassen. He investigated the uptake and secretion of water by the plasma membrane of animal and human cells.

27 Sep 2005

John Hopkins scientists uncover "tags" that force proteins to cell surface

Johns Hopkins scientists have discovered internal "shipping labels" that allow -- and perhaps force -- hundreds if not thousands of proteins to get to the surface of cells and stay there.

22 Sep 2005

Amantadine resistant avian influenza viruses more common in Southeast Asia than North America

Resistance to the antiviral drug amantadine is spreading more rapidly among avian influenza viruses of H5N1 subtype in Southeast Asia than in North America, according to the study done by investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

12 Sep 2005

Tools for studying the chemistry of the brain, neuron by neuron

The human brain is composed of billions of cells, each a separate entity that communicates with others. The chemical interaction of those cells determines personality, controls behavior and encodes memory; but much remains to be understood.

1 Sep 2005

New laboratory method for quickly detecting active anthrax proteins

A new laboratory method for quickly detecting active anthrax proteins within an infected blood sample at extremely low levels has been developed by researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases and the National Cancer Institute.

29 Aug 2005

New method to predict protein separation behavior directly from protein structure

Applying math and computers to the drug-discovery process, researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have developed a method to predict protein separation behavior directly from protein structure.

22 Aug 2005

Calcium fights prostate cancer

Calcium, more familiar in its role as one of the building blocks of the body, is being enlisted as a tool in the fight against prostate cancer.

15 Aug 2005

How negatively charged lipids stick to negatively charged DNA and self-organize into structures

Scientists studying the structure and interaction of negatively charged lipids and DNA molecules have created a "cookbook" for a class of nontoxic DNA delivery systems that will assist doctors and clinicians in the safe and effective delivery of genetic medicine.

13 Aug 2005

How some antibiotics kill bacteria

Researchers have uncovered how members of one family of antibiotics kill bacteria that make people sick.

11 Aug 2005

New study points to new treatments for some forms of Lou Gehrig's disease

A new study indicates that mutant Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD1) enzymes that are associated with an inherited form of Lou Gehrig's disease cause the protein to become sticky in tissues. Partial unfolding of the mutant protein can expose hydrophobic residues that may promote abnormal interactions with other proteins or membranes in the cell.

11 Aug 2005

Hearing protein TRPA1 also involved with pain perception

The same protein that “translates” sound into nerve signals to the brain and enables individuals to hear is also required for pain perception, researchers from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine have found.

21 Jul 2005

Researchers have doubled the potency of a protein that drives blood to clot

...according to research to be published in the July 26 edition of Biochemistry. The study results may have profound implications for the treatment of hemophilia, the inherited blood disorder that causes easy or excessive bleeding in 30,000 Americans.

20 Jul 2005

Chemical sealant - poloxamer 188 can repair damage to cardiac muscle cell membrane

A common chemical used in the manufacturing and pharmaceutical industries can repair damage to cardiac muscle cell membranes and prevent heart failure in mice with the genetic mutation that causes Duchenne muscular dystrophy, according to scientists at the University of Michigan Medical School.

18 Jul 2005

RNA dynamics may help in drug design

Biophysicists have developed a method for studying, in real time, a nanoscale "docking and undocking" interaction between small pieces of ribonucleic acid (RNA), a technique that may be broadly useful in studying structural changes in RNA that affect its function.

17 Jul 2005

New research on atrial fibrillation

Atrial fibrillation is an irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia) in which the atria, or upper chambers of the heart, beat quickly and inconsistently.

17 Jul 2005

New understanding of degeneration of brain cells in patients with Alzheimer's, Huntington's, and Parkinson's diseases

A ground-breaking new research approach to understanding the cellular processes of Alzheimer's and other degenerative diseases has revealed a promising pathway to the development of new types of drugs for these diseases.

11 Jul 2005