Every year, heart disease claims an estimated 7 million lives, according to the World Health Organization. Scientists have struggled to pinpoint the precise genes behind this complex disease. Now, however, they have a new research ally: the designer rat.
In a four-year study published in the January 15 advance online publication of Nature Genetics, researchers at The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR) and the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) systematically bred and studie
Molecular biologists, developmental biologists and computer scientists at the Universtity of Helsinki, Finland, came together to advance towards cracking the code for how gene expression is controlled. The results of this work were published in Cell, in January 2006.
A genome milestone was reached in 2001 when sequencing of the human genome was completed. This has been followed by complete chemical read-outs of DNA sequence for several species, for example mouse, dog, cow and chi
Chemistry teams from two universities – Lomonosov Moscow State University and Texas A&M University (USA) have improved the efficacy of pharmaceutical substance synthesis by simplifying the process. The Russian team is guided by Academician Irina Beletskaya, and the US team by Professor David Edward Bergbreiter. These two teams play on the same side because the nanoreactor concept they are using will in the long run allow to simplify in many respects chemical and pharmaceutical technology and, mo
Not long ago, the biochemist’s main tool was a chromatograph or an electrophoresis plant, but now specialists in bio-informatics use special software to simulate biochemical processes and the behaviour of complex molecules.
This approach was used to research factitious proteins of the cytochrome P450 family by researchers from the V.N. Orekhovich Research Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, guided by A.V. Lisitsa, Ph.D. (Biology), and their colle
An approach to treating intestine cancer is being developed by Russian researchers from the Bioengineering Centre, Russian Academy of Sciences, under Anna Prokhorchuk’s guidance jointly with American colleagues sponsored by the international CRDF foundation and the Federal Agency for Science and Innovation (Rosnauka).
Any cancerous disease changes the genetic landscape – some genes are suppressed, others get activated, which results in tumour growth, the formation of metastases, and can
Study of cuddly creatures focuses on walking stability with applications for elderly, robots
With their feathery tuxedoes and charming Chilly Willy-waddle, penguins are the quintessence of cute. Small wonder they’re featured in Coke commercials, movies like “Madagascar” and “March of the Penguins” and children’s toys galore.
But one University of Houston professor is looking into a serious side of these ultra-cute creatures. Dozens of teeter-tottering pengui
A fundamental process that has puzzled researchers for many years has been explained by UK scientists. Some simple plants that are crucial in maintaining the balance of carbon in the Earth’s atmosphere require vitamin B12 to grow properly but it has been a mystery to scientists why some types needed external sources and others did not. Now researchers at the Universities of Cambridge and Kent have discovered that half of all algae have a dependent but beneficial relationship with bacteria that ma
Genistein, a major component of soy, was found to disrupt the development of the ovaries in newborn female mice that were given the product. This study adds to a growing body of literature demonstrating the potentially adverse consequences of genistein on the reproductive system.
“Although we are not entirely certain about how these animal studies on genistein translate to the human population, there is some reason to be cautious,” said Dr. David A. Schwartz, Director of the Nat
Researchers at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center have uncovered a clue to explain the invasive nature of an aggressive kind of brain tumor called glioblastoma multiforme, or gliomas, and their findings are published in this week’s online edition of the journal Oncogene.
Reid Thompson, M.D., director of Neurosurgical Oncology, and his colleague, Moneeb Ehtesham, M.D., assistant professor of Neurological Surgery and Cancer Biology, found a key receptor plays a role in the
A new method to mine existing scientific data may provide a wealth of information about the interactions among genes, the environment and biological processes, say researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Like panning for gold, they used the powerful technique to sift through millions of bits of unrelated information – in this case, gene expression data from so-called microarray experiments – to pinpoint genes
Ants teach by running in tandem
Certain species of ant use a technique known as ’tandem running’ to lead another ant from the nest to a food source. Signals between the two ants control both the speed and course of the run. It is believed to be the first time a demonstration of ’formal’ teaching has been recognised in any non-human animal.
This behaviour indicates that it could be the value of information, rather than the constraint of brain size
A quarter century after they discovered it, researchers have identified the job of one of the most common DNA-damage response proteins. The enzyme has puzzled scientists because it is present in nearly every organism, which suggests that it is crucial to life, and yet, in laboratory experiments, its function has remained a mystery.
The discovery suggests that the enigmatic enzyme known as DinB DNA polymerase is specialized for proficient and accurate replication of a particular
Scientists at the University of Michigan Medical School have discovered that a protein called cryopyrin responds to invading bacteria by triggering the activation of a powerful inflammatory molecule called IL-1beta, which signals the immune system to attack pathogens and induces fever to protect the body against infection.
The discovery could help scientists understand what causes autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis where the immune system attacks and destroys tissue i
In an upcoming G&D paper, Dr. Albert Baldwin and colleagues (UNC School of Medicine) lend new insight into an alternate mechanism of p53 inactivation in tumor cells. The researchers found that the putative oncoprotein Bcl-3, which is expressed in some leukemias and solid tumors, potently suppresses p53 activation through a mechanism that involves the controlled upregulation of Hdm2 gene expression.
Additionally, they found that Bcl-3 is activated by DNA damage and is required for p53 to
A new paper in the January 15th issue of G&D provides the structural basis by which FGF8 splice isoforms (FGF8a and FGF8b) differ in their ability to pattern embryonic brain. FGF8b differs from FGF8a solely by the presence of 11 additional amino acids at its N-terminus.
However, only FGF8b can transform midbrain to cerebellum whereas FGF8a causes an overgrowth of midbrain. Dr. Moosa Mohammadi’s research team has solved the crystal structure of FGF8b in complex with the FG
WHAT:
NIH-funded scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have developed a technique for detecting changes in flu viruses that would precede a virus’s ability to infect humans and cause epidemics. The new, publicly available tool, called a glycan array, could be used to monitor the emergence of flu strains that efficiently infect humans, including those of avian origin. The technology was developed by the Consortium for Functional Glycomics, a “glue grant” project sponsor
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