Ubiquitin News and Research

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Ubiquitin is a small regulatory protein that has been found in almost all cells (''ubiquitously'') with nuclei (eukaryotes). It directs proteins to recycling and other functions.

PCRF awards £1.2M grants for new research projects tackling pancreatic cancer

Seven innovative research projects tackling pancreatic cancer have been awarded grants totalling £1.2M by the UK medical research charity, Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund.

28 May 2019

Scientists unravel how DNA organizes and preserves genetic information

Two scientists at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have unraveled aspects of how DNA organizes and preserves genetic information.

From Johns Hopkins Medicine 22 May 2019

Researchers identify new molecular mechanism causing rheumatoid arthritis

A collaborative study by research groups from the University of Cologne, VIB, Ghent University, the Βiomedical Sciences Research Center 'Alexander Fleming' in Athens and the University of Tokyo identified a new molecular mechanism causing rheumatoid arthritis.

14 May 2019

Damaged mitochondria use 'eat me' signals for mitophagy

When mitochondria become damaged, they avoid causing further problems by signaling cellular proteins to degrade them.

12 Apr 2019

Scientists develop technique to clear abnormal tau protein from human neurons

Harnessing a probe used to image the brain in diagnosing Alzheimer's disease and related forms of dementia, scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Massachusetts General Hospital have successfully cleared patient-derived brain cells of an abnormal protein associated with dementia and other neurogenerative disorders.

10 Apr 2019

A gene regulatory multi-tool plays key role in unjamming the genome after DNA damage

A protein complex that is involved in nearly every step in the regulatory control of gene expression in cells has now been shown also to play a key role in clearing potential traffic jams in the production of RNA.

5 Apr 2019

Researchers identify crucial player in controlling misfolded proteins

Researchers have identified a protein complex that marks misfolded proteins, stops them from interacting with other proteins in the cell and directs them towards disposal.

27 Mar 2019

USP15 enzyme could potentially lead to new treatments for breast, pancreatic cancer

Researchers at the George Washington University Cancer Center found that the enzyme USP15 could potentially lead to new treatments for breast and pancreatic cancer. Their findings were published in Nature Communications.

15 Mar 2019

Biophysicists visualize atomic-level dynamics of largest protein-degrading machine

Protein dynamics are essential for their functions. Protein nanomachines made of multiple protein molecules are highly dynamics during their actions on their functional targets, sometime called substrates.

26 Feb 2019

Mechanism behind how diabetes causes muscle loss revealed

Diabetes mellitus is associated with various health problems including decline in skeletal muscle mass. A research group led by Professor Wataru Ogawa at the Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine revealed that elevation of blood sugar levels leads to muscle atrophy and that two proteins, WWP1 and KLF15, play key roles in this phenomenon.

23 Feb 2019

Intense exercise, fasting and hormones can enhance waste-protein removal, study shows

The body's ability to adapt to changing conditions and shifting physiologic demands is essential to survival. To do so, each cell must be able to dispose of damaged or unnecessary proteins--a quality-control mechanism critical for cellular performance and for the health of the entire organism.

21 Feb 2019

MUSC researchers discover new mechanism for a class of anti-cancer drugs

Researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina reveal a novel binding site for a class of anti-cancer drugs known as E1 inhibitors. This finding could lead to the design of more efficient E1 inhibitors.

15 Feb 2019

Researchers unlock key process in human cells that contributes to cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, and aging

Monash researchers have unlocked a key process in all human cells that contributes to diseases like cancer and neurodegenerative diseases as well as ageing.

24 Jan 2019

Researchers demonstrate strong evidence connecting bacterial pathogen and Alzheimer's pathogenesisis

New science uncovers how an unlikely culprit, Porphyromonas gingivalis (Pg) - the bacterium commonly associated with chronic gum disease - appears to drive Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology.

24 Jan 2019

The cytoskeleton of neurons found to play role in Alzheimer's disease

A researcher at the UPV/EHU has participated in a study describing what it is during the early stages of Alzheimer's that triggers the loss of dynamics and subsequent impairment of the dendritic spines, the compartments of the neurons responsible for receiving nerve impulses from other neurons.

17 Jan 2019

Researchers identify a key regulator that stops excessive inflammation

A component has been identified by researchers in Umeå as a novel regulator of the immune system. It acts as a molecular switch to deactivate the innate immune system and has the ability to prevent certain diseases caused by an excessive activation of the immune system.

15 Jan 2019

Study reveals how Parkinson's disease protein 'buys time' for cell repair

Australian researchers have discovered how a protein linked to Parkinson's disease may protect cells such as neurons in the brain.

20 Dec 2018

Study uncovers new mechanism controlling the master cancer regulator

Of the more than 23,000 genes in the human genome, only a handful assume a very central role in signal transduction and growth regulation. Of these, the three genes encoding RAS proteins are particularly important, as they are found mutated in over 25% of human cancers.

20 Nov 2018

Researchers identify LZTR1 as evolutionarily conserved component of RAS pathway

Mutations in RAS proteins initiate many of the most aggressive tumors, and the search for pharmacological inhibitors of these proteins has become a priority in the battle against cancer. Michail Steklov, Francesca Baietti, and colleagues from the Anna Sablina lab identified LZTR1 as an evolutionarily conserved component of the RAS pathway.

16 Nov 2018

Inhibition of one protein clears toxic clumps seen in Parkinson's disease, study finds

A defining feature of Parkinson's disease is the clumps of alpha-synuclein protein that accumulate in the brain's motor control area, destroying dopamine-producing neurons.

14 Nov 2018