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Scientists have developed a new amino acid that can be used to modify the 3D structure of therapeutic peptides. Insertion of the amino acid into bioactive peptides enhanced their binding affinity up to 40-fold. Peptides with the new amino acid could potentially become a new class of therapeutics.
Sep 3rd, 2014
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A fortuitous collaboration at Rice University has led to the total synthesis of a recently discovered natural antibiotic.
Sep 2nd, 2014
Read moreIn a new study that could ultimately lead to many new medicines, scientists have adapted a chemical approach to turn diseased cells into unique manufacturing sites for molecules that can treat a form of muscular dystrophy.
Sep 2nd, 2014
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Cells attach so-called 'epigenetic' signals to their genome to select which part of their genetic information is used. Scientists have now systematically investigated the interplay between components of an epigenetic network and developed a mathematical model that describes how it operates. The results can be used to predict how cellular gene expression programs respond to drug treatment or other perturbations of the cellular environment.
Sep 2nd, 2014
Read moreAbout 50 years ago, electron microscopy revealed the presence of tiny blob-like structures that form inside cells, move around and disappear. But scientists still don't know what they do - even though these shifting cloud-like collections of proteins are believed to be crucial to the cell, and therefore could offer a new approach to disease treatment. Now, researchers are issuing a call to investigators to focus their attention on the role of these formations.
Sep 1st, 2014
Read moreScientists have developed a new amino acid that can be used to modify the 3-D structure of therapeutic peptides. Insertion of the amino acid into bioactive peptides enhanced their binding affinity up to 40-fold. Peptides with the new amino acid could potentially become a new class of therapeutics.
Aug 31st, 2014
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In a new study, scientists used an innovative technique to study how cells move in a three-dimensional matrix, similar to the structure of certain tissues, such as the skin. They discovered an entirely new type of cell movement whereby the nucleus helps propel cells through the matrix like a piston in an engine, generating pressure that thrusts the cell's plasma membrane forward.
Aug 31st, 2014
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Bochemists have identified the developmental on-off switch for Streptomyces, a group of soil microbes that produce more than two-thirds of the world's naturally derived antibiotic medicines. Their hope now would be to see whether it is possible to manipulate this switch to make nature's antibiotic factory more efficient.
Aug 28th, 2014
Read moreResearchers have identified a gene that could help engineer drought-resistant crops. The gene, called OSCA1, encodes a protein in the cell membrane of plants that senses changes in water availability and adjusts the plant's water conservation machinery accordingly.
Aug 27th, 2014
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Like a protective tent over a colony of harmful bacteria, biofilms make the treatment of skin infections especially difficult.
Aug 27th, 2014
Read moreScientists have shown how to better identify and measure vital molecules that control cell behaviour - paving the way for improved tools for diagnosis, prediction and monitoring of cancer.
Aug 26th, 2014
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Precise, gentle and efficient cell separation from a device the size of a cell phone may be possible thanks to tilt-angle standing surface acoustic waves, according to a team of engineers.
Aug 25th, 2014
Read moreScientists have grown a fully functional organ from transplanted laboratory-created cells in a living animal for the first time.
Aug 25th, 2014
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A decade-long effort in genetic engineering is close to re-programming yeast cells to make palliative medicines in stainless steel vats.
Aug 24th, 2014
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Health scientists receive $25.9M to bring life-saving technology from the future to the present.
Aug 22nd, 2014
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High-resolution electron microscopy shows in detail how plant cell compartments change with cell growth.
Aug 22nd, 2014
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An upcoming genetics investigation into the symbiotic association between soil fungi and feedstock plants for bioenergy production could lead to more efficient uptake of nutrients, which would help limit the need for expensive and polluting fertilizers.
Aug 21st, 2014
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By understanding the secret of how lizards regenerate their tails, researchers may be able to develop ways to stimulate the regeneration of limbs in humans. Now, a team of researchers is one step closer to solving that mystery.
Aug 20th, 2014
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