Protein Folding News and Research

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Two-drug combination improves lung function in some cystic fibrosis patients

The combination of two drugs — an investigational drug used in conjunction with an already FDA-approved medication — improved lung function in patients with one form of cystic fibrosis, according to two new studies.

19 May 2015

Study reveals how cell's protein quality control mechanism helps combat neurodegenerative diseases

A molecular pathway known to suppress tumors appears to also be a major player in clearing cells of damaged proteins implicated in neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS and certain types of dementia, new research in roundworms and human cells suggests.

6 Apr 2015

UCSF professor wins Vilcek Prize in Biomedical Science

Peter Walter was chosen as winner of the Vilcek Prize in Biomedical Science for his pioneering work on how proteins are transported between cellular compartments and for unraveling the components of a regulatory mechanism that cells use to handle stress tied to the aggregation of misshapen proteins.

29 Mar 2015

Viagra can have anti-cancer, anti-Alzheimer's disease effects if used with new drugs

Chaperone proteins play an important role in protein folding in human cells and in bacteria and are promising new targets for drugs to treat cancer and Alzheimer's disease and for novel antiviral drugs and antibiotics. How existing drugs such as Viagra or Cialis and a derivative of the drug Celebrex, for example, can reduce the activity of a specific chaperone protein, with the potential for anti-tumor and anti-Alzheimer's disease effects, is described in a Review article in DNA and Cell Biology, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

10 Mar 2015

Applying NMR to biological problems: an interview with Professor Arthur Palmer

Our current focus is on areas in protein folding, molecular recognition by proteins and also enzyme catalysis. NMR spin relaxation is one of the very powerful techniques in NMR for studying conformational dynamics in proteins or chemical kinetic processes.

From Bruker BioSpin - NMR, EPR and Imaging 17 Feb 2015

Recipients of The 2015 Protein Society Awards announced

The Protein Society, the premiere international society dedicated to supporting protein research, announces the winners of The 2015 Protein Society Awards. The awards will be conferred at the 29th Annual Symposium of The Protein Society (July 22-25, 2015, Barcelona, Spain).

5 Feb 2015

Scientific collaboration reveals encouraging insight on AMD disease

Insilico Medicine along with scientists from Vision Genomics and Howard University shed light on AMD disease, introducing the opportunity for eventual diagnostic and treatment options.

12 Dec 2014

University of Illinois study could provide insight into protein-misfolding diseases

When a large protein unfolds in transit through a cell, it slows down and can get stuck in traffic. Using a specialized microscope -- a sort of cellular traffic camera -- University of Illinois chemists now can watch the way the unfolded protein diffuses.

10 Dec 2014

SRY protein alters specific gender-related tissue in males before birth

Case Western Reserve researchers have identified a protein mutation that alters specific gender-related tissue in males before birth and can contribute to the development of cancer as well as other less life-threatening challenges.

21 Nov 2014

TSRI study examines body’s own response against chronic protein misfolding

“Protein misfolding” diseases such as cystic fibrosis and Alzheimer’s may be seriously exacerbated by the body’s own response against that misfolding, according to a new study led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute.

20 Nov 2014

Research: Ageing and depression are associated with epigenetic changes

Psychological stress and stress-related psychiatric disorders are associated with increased risk for aging-related diseases, but the molecular mechanisms underlying this relation are unknown.

20 Oct 2014

Rice, Baylor scientists analyze how influenza-related proteins help infect cells

A flu virus acts like a Trojan horse as it attacks and infects host cells. Scientists at Rice University and Baylor College of Medicine have acquired a clearer view of the well-hidden mechanism involved.

1 Aug 2014

Scientists reveal secrets of cell membrane proteins

Rice University scientists have succeeded in analyzing transmembrane protein folding in the same way they study the proteins' free-floating, globular cousins.

17 Jul 2014

Extract of Chinese herb thunder god vine suppresses pancreatic cancer cell

A diagnosis of pancreatic cancer—the fourth most common cause of cancer death in the U.S.—can be devastating. Due in part to aggressive cell replication and tumor growth, pancreatic cancer progresses quickly and has a low five-year survival rate (less than 5 percent).

1 Jul 2014

Rice University scientists apply new theory to learn how and why cells differentiate

How does a stem cell decide what path to take? In a way, it's up to the wisdom of the crowd.

17 Jun 2014

Max Planck researchers elucidate important mechanism of protein folding

Proteins are the workhorses of the cell and thus responsible for almost all biological functions including metabolism, signal transmission or the determination of the cell's shape. However, before they can fulfill their various tasks, the chain-like molecules must first adopt an intricate three-dimensional conformation.

13 May 2014

Research to understand exactly how bleach kills bacteria

Spring cleaning often involves chlorine bleach, which has been used as a disinfectant for hundreds of years. But our bodies have been using bleach's active component, hypochlorous acid, to help clean house for millennia. As part of our natural response to infection, certain types of immune cells produce hypochlorous acid to help kill invading microbes, including bacteria.

8 Apr 2014

Harvard stem cell scientists discover potential treatment for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Harvard stem cell scientists have discovered that a recently approved medication for epilepsy may possibly be a meaningful treatment for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)-Lou Gehrig's disease, a uniformly fatal neurodegenerative disorder. The researchers are now collaborating with Massachusetts General Hospital to design an initial clinical trial testing the safety of the treatment in ALS patients.

4 Apr 2014

New probes help to quantify normally folded and misfolded conformations of protein in cells

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have invented small-molecule folding probes that enable them to quantify functional, normally folded and disease-associated misfolded conformations (shapes) of a protein-of-interest in cells under different conditions.

5 Mar 2014

Research uncovers new mechanism in brain cells that may help keep deadly neurological diseases in check

New research from David Westaway, PhD, of the University of Alberta and Jiri Safar, MD, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine has uncovered a quality control mechanism in brain cells that may help keep deadly neurological diseases in check for months or years.

17 Jan 2014