Molecular & Structural Biology

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Researchers design interleukin protein to balance overshooting immune response

Small infections can be fatal: Millions of people die each year from sepsis, an overreaction of the immune system.

23 Jan 2019

Gene-edited chickens could prevent future flu pandemic

British researchers are genetically engineering flu-resistant chickens in an effort to prevent the next deadly human flu pandemic.

23 Jan 2019

Scientists discover new blood vessels in bone

Researchers have discovered new blood vessels in the long bones of mice and similar new vessels in human long bones that could be used to further our understanding of osteoporosis.

23 Jan 2019

New research reveals mechanisms underlying the diversification of sex pheromones

Many organisms including insects, amphibians and yeasts use sex pheromones for attracting individuals of the opposite sex, but what happens to sex pheromones as new species emerge?

23 Jan 2019

Unexpected connection found between feeding and memory centers of the brain

The search for a mechanism that could explain how the protein complex NCOR1/2 regulates memory has revealed an unexpected connection between the lateral hypothalamus and the hippocampus, the feeding and the memory centers of the brain, respectively.

21 Jan 2019

MPFI researchers identify synaptic logic for connections between two brain hemispheres

Researchers at the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience have developed a new combination of technologies that allows them to identify the functional properties of individual synapses that link the two hemispheres and determine how they are arranged within a neuron's dendritic field.

21 Jan 2019

Newly discovered regulatory mechanism helps control fat metabolism

A newly discovered regulatory mechanism helps the body control the rate of fat metabolism, according to a new study publishing on January 17 in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Ligong Chen of Tsinghua University in Beijing and colleagues.

18 Jan 2019

UC Riverside biologists study evolution of dorsal fin in molly and Limia fish

To female molly and Limia fish, nothing is hotter than a male with a large dorsal fin. But these fins aren't just decorations to attract females.

18 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

Research finds decline in ketone body utilization when coronary circulation is reduced

Ketone bodies are metabolites that can be used as energy sources like glucose and fatty acids. They can be converted into acetyl-CoA, which produces energy via the Krebs cycle in the mitochondria, and are typically used as an alternative energy source during starvation, fasting, or periods of high-intensity exercise.

17 Jan 2019

Researchers cultivate vascular organoids that perfectly mimic human blood vessels

For the first time, researchers have successfully cultivated “vascular organoids” in a petri dish that perfectly mimic real human blood vessels.

16 Jan 2019

Researchers develop novel viral identification method

Currently, influenza typing in clinical practice is performed using an immunochromatography method based on antigen-antibody interaction.

16 Jan 2019

Truncal mutations study suggests new direction in origins of cancer

Cancers most commonly arise because of a series of two to five mutations in different genes that combine to cause a tumor.

16 Jan 2019

LifeTime receives fund to develop a plan to embed its vision for healthier future

Our body's cells are constantly changing. But which of these changes are healthy developments and which lead to serious diseases? This is what LifeTime, a new transnational and interdisciplinary initiative of leading European researchers, aims to discover.

16 Jan 2019

Researchers identify MANF as a rejuvenating factor in parabiosis

Older mice who are surgically joined with young mice in order to share a common bloodstream get stronger and healthier, making parabiosis one of the hottest topics in age research. Publishing in Nature Metabolism, researchers from the Buck Institute report that MANF (mesencephalic astrocyte-derived neurotrophic factor) is one of the factors responsible for rejuvenating the transfused older mice.

16 Jan 2019

Researchers discover how cancer cells avoid genetic meltdown

A team of scientists have shed light on how cancer cell populations avoid genetic meltdown, despite the rapid accumulation of harmful mutations.

15 Jan 2019

New understanding in the evolution of human feet

Scientists have made a step forward in understanding the evolution of human feet.

14 Jan 2019

Scientists identify endogenous activator of sigma-1 receptors in human cells

Cells communicate through complex mechanisms that typically involve receptors and ligands that bind to them. Endogenous ligands, produced by the body, have been identified for the vast majority of cellular receptors, helping explain receptor existence and function. But in the case of sigma-1 receptors, which interact with a diverse array of psychoactive drugs, an endogenous ligand has remained elusive.

14 Jan 2019

Molecular hallmarks of tumor hypoxia across 19 cancer types discovered

Unlike healthy tissues, tumors thrive in low-oxygen environments, often acquiring the ability to resist treatment and spread to other sites in the body. Despite being a well-known cause of therapy resistance and metastasis, the impact of low oxygen, known as hypoxia, on tumor cells is poorly understood.

14 Jan 2019