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Loss of specific protein makes breast cancers more aggressive, resistant to chemotherapy

Researchers in Italy have discovered how specific versions of a protein called Numb protect the key tumor suppressor p53 from destruction.

21 Dec 2017

Researchers use a gene-editing complex to preserve hearing in animal model of progressive deafness

Researchers have developed a CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing complex that can be delivered directly into hair cells of the inner ear to prevent hearing loss.

21 Dec 2017

Findings provide better understanding of thyroid hormones' role in mammalian seasonal changes

Researchers now have a better understanding of the role that thyroid hormones, the tissues that produce them, and the biochemical pathways on which they act have in driving seasonal reproduction in some mammals, and how this new information may help explain seasonal changes in metabolism and mood that affect humans.

21 Dec 2017

Researchers design new polymer particles using DNA strands

McGill University researchers have chemically imprinted polymer particles with DNA strands - a technique that could lead to new materials for applications ranging from biomedicine to the promising field of "soft robotics."

20 Dec 2017

Silky webs of spiders may hold secrets to repairing our skeletons

Some secrets to repairing our skeletons might be found in the silky webs of spiders, according to recent experiments guided by supercomputers. Scientists involved say their results will help understand the details of osteoregeneration, or how bones repair themselves.

20 Dec 2017

Gene editing shows promise to help people at risk of hearing loss

Gene editing could someday help people at risk of hearing loss from genetic mutations, according to research by a new Rice University faculty member.

20 Dec 2017

Stem cells remain healthy following low-dose X-ray exposure, say biophysicists

Biophysicists have shown that following low-dose exposure to X-rays (at 80 milligrays), stem cells remain healthy, proliferate, and do not accumulate DNA damage to be passed on to their progeny. The paper was published in the journal Aging.

20 Dec 2017

Two studies show how cells adapt to stressors by reprogramming internal signaling networks

In a pair of publications, researchers have shown how cells adapt to stressors--like water loss--by reprogramming their internal signaling networks.

20 Dec 2017

Japanese researchers use pluripotent stem cells to reproduce higher-order kidney structures

In the embryonic kidney, three types of precursor cells, nephron progenitor cells, ureteric buds, and interstitial progenitor cells, interact to form three-dimensional structures of the kidney.

20 Dec 2017

Epigenetics: A New Tool for Forensic Detectives

Developing analytical methods can help the triers of fact, judges and juries, better understand the events surrounding the circumstances of a crime. In forensic analysis, we are talking about determining the identity of unknown individuals through DNA and using DNA and other chemical signatures to determine and clarify the circumstances of the crime.

From Pittcon 20 Dec 2017

Researchers use genomics to advance understanding of Parkinson´s disease

It is widely known that genomics has already begun to influence medicine and that bioinformatics holds the key for developing new medical approaches, but how does medical genomics really work?

19 Dec 2017

Bruker Biospec MRI device installed at The Weizmann Institute of Science

The Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, today announced the installation of the Biospec® 15.2 Tesla USR™ preclinical ultra-high field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) instrument from Bruker. The new instrument is installed in the Daniel Wolf building of the Department of Chemical Research, and is used by the MRI Biosensors laboratory, led by Dr. Bar-Shir, and the laboratory of Professor Neeman, to open new frontiers in molecular and microscopic imaging, adding to the team's existing world-class MRI instruments.

From Bruker BioSpin - NMR, EPR and Imaging 19 Dec 2017

Advances in BioAFM

AFM is quite a versatile technique and we see a great potential of this technology for life science applications. It is still fairly new in Bio community, however very well accepted not only as imaging tools but as a versatile instrument for nanomechanical measurements.

From Bruker Nano Surfaces and Metrology 19 Dec 2017

Pittcon Release eBook Featuring the Latest Scientific Advances

Ahead of the 2018 conference and expo, Pittcon has released an eBook that highlights the latest advances in a range of scientific disciplines. It is an ‘ultimate compilation’ of scientific articles and interviews with some of the worlds leading scientists.

From Pittcon 19 Dec 2017

Study shows vital role for maternally inherited gene in embryonic development

A new study indicates an essential role for a maternally inherited gene in embryonic development. The study found that zebrafish that failed to inherit specific genetic instructions from mom developed fatal defects earlier in development, even if the fish could make their own version of the gene.

18 Dec 2017

Spatial deconvolution of marker expression in whole heart subjected to ischemia-reperfusion

When a coronary artery is obstructed by atheroma, blood flow is depressed or even arrested. This causes hypoxia of cardiac cells associated with the deprivation of nutrients. In clinic, the first objective is to restore blood flow. However, this is associated with a burst in oxidation of cellular proteins and lipids. This oxidation enhances cell death and participates to the so-called reperfusion injury.

From Logos Biosystems 18 Dec 2017

HKBU experts develop new generation of smart anti-cancer drug molecules

The toxic nature of chemotherapy poses a great challenge to clinical treatment of cancer. A team of scholars from the School of Chinese Medicine of Hong Kong Baptist University devoted their efforts to the development of a new generation of smart anti-cancer drug molecules.

15 Dec 2017

New genetic analysis of candidiasis reveals surprising fungal sex secrets

Working together with researchers in the Université Paris-Sud in France and University Medical Centre Göttingen in Germany, ICREA Research Professor Toni Gabaldón and his team at the Centre for Genomic Regulation in Barcelona read the genetic code of 33 separate strains of the yeast Candida glabrata, the second most common cause of candidiasis.

15 Dec 2017

New high precision machine-learning model could help accelerate drug discovery

Drug discovery could be significantly accelerated thanks to a new high precision machine-learning model, developed by an international collaboration of researchers, including the University of Warwick.

14 Dec 2017