A group of scientists at The Scripps Research Institute has solved the structure of a protein that regulates the expression of genes by controlling the stability of mRNA — an intermediate form of genetic information between DNA genes and proteins.
“Gene expression can be controlled at many levels, ” says Scripps Research Professor Peter Wright, Ph.D., who is chairman of the Department of Molecular Biology and Cecil H. and Ida M. Green Investigator in Medical Research at Scripps Research.
An observational study in this week’s issue of THE LANCET sheds more light on the theory that ageing is associated with a shortening of chromosomes in somatic (ie. non-reproductive) cells. Results of the study suggest that the gene responsible for telomere shortening is inherited via the X chromosome.
Previous research including a 2003 Lancet paper (Lancet 2003; 361: 393-95) has shown that the relative length of the ends of chromosomes (telomeres) is associated with age-related illness and m
Loss of restraint may contribute to lupus, other autoimmune disorders
When they’re not busy battling invaders, some of the cells that act as the attack dogs of the mouse immune system have to be kept on a genetic leash to prevent them from mounting inappropriate attacks on the mouse’s own tissues, researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found.
The findings, reported in this week’s issue of Science, are the first scientific p
In the world of molecules, DNA tends to get top billing at the expense of RNA, which is critical for turning DNA’s genetic blueprint into working proteins. Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have published significant insights into how the RNA molecule completes this task in two back-to-back papers in the Feb. 13 issue of Science.
All the genetic information contained in DNA is silent, said Roger Kornberg, PhD, the Mrs. George A. Wizner Professor in Medicine and
Researchers at the School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee have made an exciting new discovery on how cells regulate themselves and prevent cancer as reported in Nature tomorrow (Wednesday). Dr Tomo Tanaka and his team members, Drs Hilary Dewar and Kozo Tanaka have uncovered a tug of war that cells use to collect their full complement of correct chromosomes. The absence of this tug of war leads to irregular cells, tumours, cancer and congenital disorders such as Down syndrome. How all d
Starving a cancerous tumor of its blood supply might stop its growth while other treatments aim to kill it.
“Nutrient depletion” is how Dr. Ed Harris, Texas A&M University biochemist, describes the process in the February issue of Nutrition Reviews. His article traces how independent studies around the world led researchers to consider copper, a trace mineral in the human diet, for its potential in controlling cancerous growth.
“The idea is to deprive a selective nutrient f
Coating DNA with a topical steroid might make for more effective therapeutic gene delivery, according to bioengineers at the University of Pennsylvania. The researchers have shown that a common anti-inflammatory steroid, wrapped around a strand of DNA, can prevent the immune responses commonly associated with gene-transfer techniques.
Studies of the technique, performed in animal models, are presented in the Feb. 15 issue of the journal Gene Therapy, available online now.
“The st
Scientists at Scripps research create single, clonable strand of DNA that folds into an octahedron
A group of scientists at The Scripps Research Institute has designed, constructed, and imaged a single strand of DNA that spontaneously folds into a highly rigid, nanoscale octahedron that is several million times smaller than the length of a standard ruler and about the size of several other common biological structures, such as a small virus or a cellular ribosome.
Making the
European researchers launch 10 million Euro collaborative technology project: EMBL-Hamburg coordinates a four-year integrated research project within the 6th Framework Programme of the European Commission:
The European Commission has given Europe a huge boost in the field of Structural Genomics, awarding the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and its partners 10 Million Euro for an integrated project called “BIOXHIT.” The project aims to create a common platform throughout Europe f
Diamonds are getting bigger, more colorful and cheaper, thanks to chemistry. A favorite gem at Valentine’s Day is getting a makeover with synthetic diamond making processes, according to the Feb. 2 issue of Chemical & Engineering News, the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society, the world’s largest scientific society.
The diamond-making business has been around for years and although synthetic diamonds had many important uses, including saw blades, drill bits and exfolian
The sinking of the Prestige and the resulting leakage of petroleum oil, just over a year ago, provoked a real catastrophe. A significant number of research groups were prompted to set to work to clean up the remains of this oil slick. One year after, the first results of those researches are being known. They want to use bacteria that eat petroleum oil, extracted from the proper petroleum oil.
Certain bacteria are able to feed off petroleum oil which is, in fact, full of these kinds of bact
Marvin Gaye wailed in the ’60s hit “Heard it through the Grapevine” that we’re supposed to believe just half of what we see.
Biomedical engineer Daniel Moran, Ph.D., and University of Pittsburgh researchers, have identified areas of the brain where reality and illusion are processed. For instance, the first time you don a new pair of bifocals, there is a difference in what you percieve visually and what your hand does when you reach for something. With time, though, the br
By identifying a 30-year-old mistaken assumption, Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center scientists have found that substituting a simple bleach solution for more complex tools makes a DNA separation technique called electrophoresis five times faster and less costly.
Reported in the February issue of BioTechniques, the scientists say that using the compound sodium boric acid in DNA electrophoresis may speed genetic discoveries. The scientists searched old literature and dozens of compounds to f
There sits in most mammalian cells what amounts to a lock-box of DNA tucked away from the bulk of genetic material. While scientists routinely cut and paste snippets of life’s blueprint to learn more about life and to treat disease, crucial DNA within cellular structures known as mitochondria has remained off-limits.
That’s beginning to change, though, thanks in part to work described in the Feb. 10 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences by a team from the Un
Different combinations of genetic mutations may give rise to diverse human traits, including complex diseases such as schizophrenia, say scientists at the University of Toronto and McGill University in Montreal.
Drs. Brenda Andrews and Charles Boone of U of T and Howard Bussey of McGill used simple yeast cells to demonstrate that there are many different combinations of genetic mutations that can lead to cell death or reduced cell fitness. The research team will now focus on mapping gene int
A method for determining the function of large numbers of genes is being developed and piloted by Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) researchers at Harvard Medical School. In a trial of the technique, the researchers characterized the role in growth and viability of nearly all the genes in the genome of the fruit fly Drosophila.
Although the fruit fly genome was chosen for the first study, the researchers are confident that their technique can be applied to any organism, including humans
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