Molecular & Structural Biology

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Mutant zebrafish opens a window into evolutionary history of human spine

A chance mutation that led to spinal defects in a zebrafish has opened a little window into our own fishy past.

20 Jul 2020

Researchers determine how SARS-CoV-2 inhibits protein synthesis

Researchers from Munich and Ulm have determined how the pandemic coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 inhibits the synthesis of proteins in infected cells and shown that it effectively disarms the body's innate immune system.

19 Jul 2020

UNH scientists identify quicker and less expensive way to count sperm in lobsters

Researchers at the University of New Hampshire have identified a quicker and less expensive way to count sperm in lobsters that could help scientists looking at any animal better understand mating, a key aspect of species survival.

19 Jul 2020

Study reveals intricate details about the biology of huntingtin protein

A new study reveals intricate details about the biology of the huntingtin protein (HTT), which is responsible for Huntington's disease.

17 Jul 2020

Groundbreaking technology could enhance therapeutic efficiency of nanomedicines

Researchers from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology and their colleagues from Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry and Prokhorov General Physics Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences have developed a breakthrough technology to resolve a key problem that has prevented the introduction of novel drugs into clinical practice for decades.

17 Jul 2020

Researchers unravel key mechanisms behind the mysteries of aging

Molecular biologists and bioengineers at the University of California San Diego have unraveled key mechanisms behind the mysteries of aging. They isolated two distinct paths that cells travel during aging and engineered a new way to genetically program these processes to extend lifespan.

16 Jul 2020

Pioneering method reveals the dynamics of HIV Gag lattice structure

Viruses are scary. They invade our cells like invisible armies, and each type brings its own strategy of attack. While viruses devastate communities of humans and animals, scientists scramble to fight back.

16 Jul 2020

A new strategy to combat treatment resistance in choroidal neovascularization

An international team of researchers led by Baylor College of Medicine and Houston Methodist has discovered a strategy that can potentially address a major challenge to the current treatment for choroidal neovascularization (CNV), an aggressive form of age-related macular degeneration, the leading cause of irreversible blindness in the elderly.

16 Jul 2020

RNA editing may repair the underlying cause of Rett Syndrome in mouse model

A genomic error that causes Rett Syndrome, a serious lifelong neurological disorder, can be corrected in the brains of mice by rewriting the genetic instructions carried by the RNA.

15 Jul 2020

Researchers characterize how changes in glioblastoma cells influence different drug effects

Therapies for treating glioblastoma brain cancer can be delivered with greater precision and existing drugs can be used in new ways.

14 Jul 2020

Study reveals how two key neural circuits control social preference

Some individuals love meeting new people, while others abhor the idea. For individuals with conditions such as autism, unfamiliar social interactions can produce negative emotions such as fear and anxiety. A new study from Scripps Research reveals how two key neural circuits dictate the choice between social approach and avoidance.

14 Jul 2020

Your biology may play a role in feeling insecure about romantic relationships

Imagine tracking your feelings during daily interactions with your romantic partner. What would you learn? That's what approximately 100 heterosexual couples in Montreal did each day for 3 weeks during a study run by researchers from McGill University.

14 Jul 2020

Novel drug could enable the immune system to attack ovarian cancer

A drug known as SP-2577 could help enable the body's own immune system to attack ovarian cancer, according to a study led by the Translational Genomics Research Institute, an affiliate of City of Hope.

13 Jul 2020

Developments in Separation Science

An interview with Daniel Armstrong about the evolution of separation science and its recent and future developments.

From Pittcon 13 Jul 2020

New mutation in common subtype of influenza virus helps evade immune response

Strains of a common subtype of influenza virus, H3N2, have almost universally acquired a mutation that effectively blocks antibodies from binding to a key viral protein, according to a study from researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

12 Jul 2020

Fat cell hormone enhances therapeutic potential of MSC therapy

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have the potential to differentiate into a range of different cell types, including bone, fat, and muscle cells.

12 Jul 2020

UQ researchers reveal three-dimensional structure of important enzyme

Advanced herbicides and treatments for infection may result from the unravelling of a 50-year-old mystery by University of Queensland researchers.

11 Jul 2020

USC scientists may have found a path toward increasing human lifespan

Scientists at USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences may have found the beginnings of a path toward increasing human lifespan.

11 Jul 2020

Study sheds new light on neurobiological processes that control drug-related adaptations

The lab of Jeremy Day, Ph.D., at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, has used single-nucleus RNA sequencing approaches to compare transcriptional responses to acute cocaine in 16 unique cell populations from a portion of the brain called the nucleus accumbens, or NAc.

10 Jul 2020

X-ray scattering technique reveals mechanisms of protein folding

KAIST researchers have used an X-ray method to track how proteins fold, which could improve computer simulations of this process, with implications for understanding diseases and improving drug discovery.

9 Jul 2020