Researchers at the University of Bonn have isolated a DNA molecule that is suitable for combating allergic contact dermatitis in mice. What is known as an aptamer binds to certain immune system messenger substances, rendering them ineffective. This even works if the active ingredient is applied to the skin in the form of an ointment. The working groups involved hope that aptamer creams such as this could also be suitable for treating other skin conditions. The results have now been…
How to improve transcription factors. Transcription factors regulate gene expression by binding specific sequences on DNA, which is an essential step to produce messenger RNAs from protein-coding genes. Denes Hnisz’s lab, in collaboration with Martin Vingron’s lab at the MPIMG, has discovered that human transcription factors don’t typically use their full potential to help transcribe mRNA. Instead, important protein regions within transcription factors encode chemical features that generate submaximal transcriptional activity. The findings, published in Nature Cell Biology, suggest simple…
Scientists create 1 nm-sized metal-based catalysts for efficient and environmentally friendly chemical reactions. A new catalyst may well catalyze a shift to greener chemistry. Chemists from Yokohama National University have successfully developed innovative catalysts containing two noble metals that demonstrate remarkable efficiency in ester-producing chemical reactions and utilize oxygen as the sole oxidant, making the process much more environmentally friendly and sustainable. Their results were published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society on June 6. Cross-Dehydrogenative Coupling (CDC)…
… and paves way for rare metal-free applications. A research team led by Osaka University discovered that the new organic molecule thienyl diketone shows high-efficiency phosphorescence. It achieved phosphorescence that is more than ten times faster than traditional materials, allowing the team to elucidate this mechanism. Phosphorescence is a valuable optical function used in applications such as organic EL displays (OLEDs) and cancer diagnostics. Until now, achieving high-efficiency phosphorescence without using rare metals such as iridium and platinum has been…
How does our body control blood sugar so precisely? An international team led by Prof. Nikolay Ninov at the Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden (CRTD), part of Dresden University of Technology, brought us a step closer to the answer. They found a special group of “first responder” cells in the pancreas that are crucial for triggering blood sugar response. Their findings were published in the journal Science Advances. Our bodies need to keep blood sugar levels just right. Too high…
Researchers examine how radionuclides interact with kidney cells. When radionuclides enter our organism, whether by inhalation, ingestion, or through wounds, they pose a potential health risk. Many previous studies on radionuclide exposure have focused mainly on animal experiments. However, we have little data on toxicity at the cellular and molecular level. Kidney cells are of particular interest because in mammals they play a central role in the detoxification of bivalent, trivalent, and hexavalent radionuclides as well as other heavy metals…
Sweet flavours and healthy ingredients make strawberries one of the world’s most popular berries. The complex biochemical compounds that determine the flavour and nutritional value of a strawberry – known as biomarkers – can only be determined in detail by experts using modern analyses. A team from TU Bergakademie Freiberg, together with Serbian researchers, has now analysed different strawberry varieties for the first time using ultra-high resolution mass spectrometry and examined how the biomarkers are distributed in the fruit. The…
Every living cell transcribes DNA into RNA. This process begins when an enzyme called RNA polymerase (RNAP) clamps onto DNA. Within a few hundred milliseconds, the DNA double helix unwinds to form a node known as the transcription bubble, so that one exposed DNA strand can be copied into a complementary RNA strand. How RNAP accomplishes this feat is largely unknown. A snapshot of RNAP in the act of opening that bubble would provide a wealth of information, but the…
A new study led by Rice University’s Peter Wolynes offers new insights into the evolution of foldable proteins. The research was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Researchers at Rice and the University of Buenos Aires used energy landscape theory to distinguish between foldable and nonfoldable parts of protein sequences. Their study illuminates the ongoing debate about whether the pieces of DNA that code for only part of a protein during their origins can fold on…
… identified for predicting adverse events of tuberculosis therapy. Borstel researchers are the first to develop a biomarker to predict the occurrence of neuropathic adverse events during therapy for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. The results have now been published in the journal Pathogens & Immunity. Every year, an estimated 410,000 people worldwide contract a multidrug-resistant form of tuberculosis. During treatment, approximately a quarter of patients experience linezolid-associated adverse drug reactions (ADRs) associated with one of the medicines, linezolid. These include nerve disorders…
Findings alter previous scientific views, and may be relevant to skin cancer development. In a recent study, researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine suggest the cell’s messenger RNA (mRNA) — the major translator and regulator of genetic material — along with a critical protein called ZAK, spur the cell’s initial response to UV radiation damage and play a critical role in whether the cell lives or dies. While UV radiation has long been known to damage DNA, it also damages mRNA,…
Disrupting a class of sugar-modified proteins improves cell repair, rescues neuron loss and reverses cellular changes associated with neurodegenerative diseases, researchers report. A class of proteins that regulates cell repair and enhances cell growth-signaling systems could be a promising new target for the treatment of Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases, according to a new study led by researchers at Penn State. They found that disrupting necessary sugar modifications of these proteins promotes cell repair and reverses cellular abnormalities that occur…
New study explores the machinery of gene regulation. Researchers at Arizona State University have made a significant advance in understanding how genes are controlled in living organisms. The new study, published in the journal Nucleic Acids Research, focuses on critical snippets of RNA in the tiny, transparent roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans). The study provides a detailed map of the 3’UTR regions of RNA in C. elegans. 3’UTRs (untranslated regions) are segments of RNA involved in gene regulation. The new map is a…
Using artificial intelligence, Garvan Institute researchers have found potential cancer drivers hidden in so-called ‘junk’ regions of DNA, opening up possibilities for a new approach to diagnosis and treatment. Non-coding DNA – the 98% of our genome that doesn’t contain instructions for making proteins – could hold the key to a new approach for diagnosing and treating cancers, according to a new study from the Garvan Institute of Medical Research. The findings, published in the journal Nucleic Acids Research, reveal…
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg have developed an AI model that increases the potential for detecting cancer through sugar analyses. The AI model is faster and better at finding abnormalities than the current semi-manual method. Glycans, or structures of sugar molecules in our cells, can be measured by mass spectrometry. One important use is that the structures can indicate different forms of cancer in the cells. However, the data from the mass spectrometer measurement must be carefully analysed by…
To prevent proteins from being damaged during cellular stress, they are concentrated in so-called stress granules. Scientists from the department of Cellular Biochemistry at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry have now been able to show for the first time that the protein Urm1 has a critical role in this process. In yeast cells, the ubiquitin-like protein facilitates the onset of phase separation and thus the formation of stress granules. The results of the study were published in the scientific…
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