Molecular & Structural Biology

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Alternative splicing in neurodegenerative disease and the promise of RNA-based therapeutic strategies

Alternative splicing, a clever way a cell generates many different variations of messenger RNAs - single-stranded RNAs involved in protein synthesis - and proteins from the same stretch of DNA, plays an important role in molecular biology.

21 Jun 2023

Opentrons partners with Zymo Research to automate key microbiome chemistries on the Opentrons Flex™

Opentrons Labworks, Inc., a leader in lab automation and makers of accessible lab robotics and Zymo Research Corp, a life science reagent company, are collaborating to transform microbiome and metagenome analysis by fully automating comprehensive, end-to-end workflows from sample collection through library preparation on the Opentrons Flex.

From Opentrons 19 Jun 2023

Mapping the evolutionary timeline and population distribution of E. coli’s protective outer capsule

In a new study, published today (15 June) in Nature Communications, a multi-centre team led by the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the University of Oslo, Imperial College London and UCL, has mapped for the first time the evolutionary timeline and population distribution of Escherichia coli’s protective outer capsule, which is responsible for the bacterium’s virulence.

15 Jun 2023

Researchers create a diagnostic test to identify functional sperm in infertile men

In a recent study, researchers created a diagnostic test to identify functional sperm in infertile men that could change the treatment of male infertility and assisted reproductive technology.

14 Jun 2023

Four pancreatic injury safety biomarkers identified and evaluated by PSTC

Critical Path Institute (C-Path) today announced that the Biomarker Qualification Program (BQP) at the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Biomarker Letter of Support (LOS) for four pancreatic injury safety biomarkers identified and evaluated by C-Path's Predictive Safety Testing Consortium's (PSTC) Pancreatic Injury Working Group (PIWG).

14 Jun 2023

CHOP researchers engineer stable, universal MHC-I molecules in a shorter timeframe

Class I major histocompatibility complex (MHC-I) proteins play an essential role in the immune system of all jawed vertebrates. The MHC-I displays peptide fragments of proteins from within the cell on the cell surface, "presenting" them to the immune system, which is constantly scanning the body for foreign or toxic antigens.

13 Jun 2023

UCL researchers produce first image of the structures that power human cilia

The first image of the structures that power human cilia – the tiny, hairlike projections that line our airways – has been produced by a team involving UCL researchers and could lead to much-needed treatments for people with rare cilial diseases.

13 Jun 2023

Berlin scientists further improve nasal vaccine against coronavirus

After having successfully tested a mucosal vaccine against coronavirus in animals just months ago, Berlin scientists have now further developed their live SARS-CoV-2 vaccine.

13 Jun 2023

Scientists uncover the structure of the first step in amyloid formation for Huntington's disease

Devastating neurodegenerative diseases like Huntington's, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's are all associated with protein deposits in the brain, known as amyloid.

13 Jun 2023

Scientists determine the atomic-level structure of a zinc-transporter protein

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory have determined the atomic-level structure of a zinc-transporter protein, a molecular machine that regulates levels of this crucial trace metal micronutrient inside cells.

9 Jun 2023

Cryo-EM reveals key atomic structures of the ends of actin filament

Actin filaments - protein structures critical to living movement from single cells to animals - have long been known to have polarity associated with their physical characteristics, with growing "barbed" and shrinking "pointed" ends.

8 Jun 2023

Penn Medicine researchers receive $6 million NIH grant to gain new insights on cardiac cellular identity

Historically, scientists have studied how cells develop and give rise to specialized cells, such as heart, liver, or skin cells, by examining specific proteins.

8 Jun 2023

SARS-CoV-2 virus can cause brain cells to fuse: Study

Researchers at The University of Queensland have discovered viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 can cause brain cells to fuse, initiating malfunctions that lead to chronic neurological symptoms.

8 Jun 2023

DNAmFitAge: A new method to incorporate physical fitness into epigenetic clocks

A new research paper was published in Aging (listed by MEDLINE/PubMed as "Aging (Albany NY)" and "Aging-US" by Web of Science) Volume 15, Issue 10, entitled, "DNAmFitAge: biological age indicator incorporating physical fitness."

7 Jun 2023

Experts provide neural evidence for the glimpsing model of speech perception

Researchers led by Dr. Nima Mesgarani at Columbia University, US, report that the brain treats speech in a crowded room differently depending on how easy it is to hear, and whether we are focusing on it. Publishing June 6th in the open access journal PLOS Biology, the study uses a combination of neural recordings and computer modeling to show that when we follow speech that is being drowned out by louder voices, phonetic information is encoded differently than in the opposite situation. The findings could help improve hearing aids that work by isolating attended speech.

7 Jun 2023

Study reveals intricate pathway that dictates the cell’s ability to be resilient and plastic

Researchers have long thought that once a cell starts down its path of differentiation, growing into a skin cell or a liver cell or a neuron, that path could not be changed.

7 Jun 2023

Chain reaction: Nutritional keys to a healthier diet may lie in unraveling starch structures

The chain length distribution (CLD) of starch plays a crucial role in human health, affecting the digestibility of starch-containing foods and correlating with diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity. By understanding and manipulating CLDs, it is possible to develop plant varieties that provide improved health properties in starch-based foods.

6 Jun 2023

Molecular & Structural Biology

Alternative splicing in neurodegenerative disease and the promise of RNA-based therapeutic strategies

Opentrons partners with Zymo Research to automate key microbiome chemistries on the Opentrons Flex™

Mapping the evolutionary timeline and population distribution of E. coli’s protective outer capsule

Researchers create a diagnostic test to identify functional sperm in infertile men

Four pancreatic injury safety biomarkers identified and evaluated by PSTC

CHOP researchers engineer stable, universal MHC-I molecules in a shorter timeframe

UCL researchers produce first image of the structures that power human cilia

Berlin scientists further improve nasal vaccine against coronavirus

Scientists uncover the structure of the first step in amyloid formation for Huntington's disease

Scientists determine the atomic-level structure of a zinc-transporter protein

Cryo-EM reveals key atomic structures of the ends of actin filament

Penn Medicine researchers receive $6 million NIH grant to gain new insights on cardiac cellular identity

SARS-CoV-2 virus can cause brain cells to fuse: Study

DNAmFitAge: A new method to incorporate physical fitness into epigenetic clocks

Experts provide neural evidence for the glimpsing model of speech perception

Study reveals intricate pathway that dictates the cell’s ability to be resilient and plastic

Chain reaction: Nutritional keys to a healthier diet may lie in unraveling starch structures

World's fastest camera can detect fluorescence from single molecules

Efficient machine learning pipeline predicts the location of nanoscale interactions

How lipid metabolites in the gut aid in regulatory T-cell differentiation

Evolving spectrophotometry for modern biopharma workflows

Scaling B-cell cloning workflows for antibody development

Fluidics in Modern Healthcare & Medical Device Innovation

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