Structural Biology News and Research

RSS

Research reveals key aspect of protein regulation in cells

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have discovered how an important "on" switch is attached to the machinery that cells rely on to adapt thousands of proteins to meet changing conditions.

20 Jun 2014

NIH receives $10 million grant for research on breast cancer metastasis

The American Cancer Society predicts that 40,000 American women will die from breast cancer this year. Most of those deaths will occur due to cells from the primary tumor that spread to other parts of the body-the process known as metastasis.

20 Jun 2014

Researchers solve structure of key protein that drives DNA copying in plasmids

Staph infections that become resistant to multiple antibiotics don't happen because the bacteria themselves adapt to the drugs, but because of a kind of genetic parasite they carry called a plasmid that helps its host survive the antibiotics.

10 Jun 2014

Researchers find that protein serves as on-off switch for "beigeing" of fat

Scientists this week reported that a molecular pathway called mTORC1 controls the conversion of unhealthy white fat into beige fat, an appealing target for increasing energy expenditure and reducing obesity.

6 Jun 2014

Discovery of IDE may lead to new treatment approaches for diabetes

The discovery of an inhibitor of the Insulin Degrading Enzyme (IDE), a protein responsible for the susceptibility of diabetes because it destroys insulin in the body, may lead to new treatment approaches for diabetes.

5 Jun 2014

Researchers figure out way to disable a part of SARS virus

A Purdue University-led research team has figured out how to disable a part of the SARS virus responsible for hiding it from the immune system; a critical step in developing a vaccine against the deadly disease.

4 Jun 2014

UK makes £5.64M investment in most advanced crystallography technology

The UK's structural biology community will have access to the most advanced crystallography technology in the world thanks to a - £5.64M investment from UK research funders.

3 Jun 2014

Protein complex structure that plays an important role in regulating circadian rhythm identified

Structural biologists have made important progress towards better understanding the functioning of the circadian clock. The circadian or inner clock coordinates the sleep-wake rhythm and many other body processes that regulate, for example, metabolism, blood pressure, and the immune system.

31 May 2014

Researchers discover signaling pathway in cancer cells that invades nearby tissues

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have discovered a signaling pathway in cancer cells that controls their ability to invade nearby tissues in a finely orchestrated manner.

26 May 2014

Analysis of key cellular protein demonstrates the effectiveness of Taxol anti-cancer drug

A pathway to the design of even more effective versions of the powerful anti-cancer drug Taxol has been opened with the most detailed look ever at the assembly and disassembly of microtubules, tiny fibers of tubulin protein that form the cytoskeletons of living cells and play a crucial role in mitosis.

23 May 2014

St. Jude analysis reveals how protein p53 triggers cancer cells to commit suicide

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have mapped the structural details of how p53 attaches to its regulatory protein, called BCL-xL, in the cell.

16 May 2014

Shark antibodies reveal evolutionary principles of immunoglobulins

Custom-tailored antibodies are regarded as promising weapons against a multitude of serious illnesses. Since they can accurately recognize specific structures on the surface of viruses, bacteria or cancer cells, they are already being deployed successfully in cancer diagnostics and therapy, as well as against numerous other diseases. The stability of the sensitive antibodies is a decisive factor in every step, from production and storage to therapeutic application.

15 May 2014

Eleven Biotherapeutics reports financial results and operational highlights for Q1 2014

Eleven Biotherapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company discovering and developing protein therapeutics to treat diseases of the eye, today reported financial results and operational highlights for the quarter ended March 31, 2014.

15 May 2014

Protein Data Bank now contains over 100,000 structures

Spanning the globe from the US, UK, and Japan, the Worldwide Protein Data Bank (wwPDB) organization announces that the Protein Data Bank archive now contains more than 100,000 entries.

14 May 2014

TSRI scientists discover new HIV target

A team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) working with the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) has discovered a new vulnerable site on the HIV virus. The newly identified site can be attacked by human antibodies in a way that neutralizes the infectivity of a wide variety of HIV strains.

25 Apr 2014

Researchers discover how of EBV virus takes over human cells gene regulating machinery

University of Montreal researchers have discovered how a component of the Epstein Barr (EBV) virus takes over our cells gene regulating machinery, allowing the virus to replicate itself.

10 Apr 2014

University of Montreal scientists discover molecular details of kissing disease virus attacks

University of Montreal researchers have discovered how a component of the Epstein Barr (EBV) virus takes over our cells gene regulating machinery, allowing the virus to replicate itself.

10 Apr 2014

Investigators find group of drugs to treat heart attacks and cancer metastasis

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators may have found a way to solve a problem that has plagued a group of drugs called ligand-mimicking integrin inhibitors, which have the potential to treat conditions ranging from heart attacks to cancer metastasis.

24 Mar 2014

EPFL sets up foundation to release antibiotic for tuberculosis

Even though tuberculosis kills more than 1.5 million people every year, the market is not cost-effective for pharmaceutical companies. So EPFL is setting up a foundation to release an antibiotic developed in its own laboratories under EU funding.

12 Mar 2014

Bruker’s new TopSolids™ software provides accelerated workflow in solid-state NMR for the characterization of protein structures

At Pittcon 2014, Bruker introduced TopSolids™, a new intuitive, workflow-based software package for solid-state NMR in structural biology that provides menu-based, automated setup and acquisition of the most advanced multinuclear multi-dimensional NMR experiments.

5 Mar 2014