Researchers at the University of Birmingham have demonstrated that silver retains antimicrobial activity for longer when it is impregnated into ‘bioactive glass’, and shown for the first time how this promising combination delivers more long-lasting antimicrobial wound protection than conventional alternatives. Bioactive glasses are a unique class of synthetic biomaterials made from silicone and have been used for some years in bone grafting. Silver has long been known to prevent or reduce the growth of biofilms (communities of bacteria) in…
UNIGE scientists have identified a new type of molecular sensor that enables the malaria parasite to infect human cells or mosquitoes at just the right moment. With almost 250 million cases a year, 621,000 of them fatal, malaria remains a major public health problem, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. Malaria is a parasitic disease transmitted by mosquitoes and caused by a microbe of the genus Plasmodium. On its journey from mosquito to human, Plasmodium must adapt to the specificities of the many…
TUD researchers introduce a two-step process for producing phosphorus-containing chemicals. Professor Jan J. Weigand and his team from the TUD Dresden University of Technology have achieved a ground breaking advancement in the production of phosphorus-containing chemicals. In a recent publication in the renowned scientific journal “Nature Synthesis”, they present an innovative synthesis method that requires only two process steps for the previously complex production of functionalized phosphates. This promising innovation not only contributes to environmental protection but also saves significant…
Numerous visual illusions are caused by limits in the way our eyes and visual neurones work – rather than more complex psychological processes, new research shows. Researchers examined illusions in which an object’s surroundings affect the way we see its colour or pattern. Scientists and philosophers have long debated whether these illusions are caused by neural processing in the eye and low-level visual centres in the brain, or involve higher-level mental processes such as context and prior knowledge. In the…
Researchers from the Gothelf lab at Aarhus University have developed a new method to manipulate the shape of DNA, opening up exciting new avenues for exploration in molecular biology, nanotechnology, and beyond. A human cell harbors roughly 2 meters of DNA, encompassing the essential genetic information of an individual. If one were to unwind and stretch out all the DNA contained within a single person, it would span a staggering distance – enough to reach the sun and back 60…
Controlling chemical reactions to generate new products is one of the biggest challenges in chemistry. Developments in this area impact industry, for example, by reducing the waste generated in the manufacture of construction materials or by improving the production of catalysts to accelerate chemical reactions. For this reason, in the field of polariton chemistry – which uses tools of chemistry and quantum optics – in the last ten years different laboratories around the world have developed experiments in optical cavities…
UR researchers develop a method for reliable planning of syntheses. Cross-coupling reactions–chemical transformations in which two fragments are joined together–are a valuable tool in the synthesis of organic molecules. Applications range from drug development and synthesis of naturally occurring molecules to materials science. Despite many known methods, finding the right conditions for new reactions remained a challenge. Given the numerous factors that can affect the outcome of the reaction, such as the presence or absence of ligand molecules, catalyst precursors,…
Scientists have created one of the most detailed 3D images of the synapse, the important juncture where neurons communicate with each other through an exchange of chemical signals. These nanometer scale models will help scientists better understand and study neurodegenerative diseases such as Huntington’s disease and schizophrenia. The new study appears in the journal PNAS and was authored by a team led by Steve Goldman, MD, PhD, co-director of the Center for Translational Neuromedicine at the University of Rochester and…
Researchers print bacterial biofilms on human lung cells to study chronic lung infections. Some bacterial pathogens form so-called biofilms during infection processes to protect themselves from drugs or cells of the human immune system. Every year, more than 500,000 people die from infections associated with biofilms. Researchers at the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) have now developed a novel method to place such biofilms on lung cells in the laboratory. The model system produced by means of “bioprinting”…
All living cells contains proteins with different functions, depending on the type of cell. Researchers at the University of Gothenburg have discovered a way to identify proteins even without looking at their structure. Their method is faster, easier and more reliable than previous methods. Currently, the general view is that each protein’s structure is what controls its function in cells. The atomic sequences, meaning how the atoms are arranged in the proteins, create the protein’s structure and shape. But there…
Meacham leads WashU team in creating an acoustic microfluidic device to study swimming microorganisms. A team from the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis and Massachusetts Institute of Technology has created an acoustic microfluidic method that offers new opportunities to conduct experiments with swimming cells and microorganisms. “The cells that our collaborators study are powerful swimmers for their size, and so the forces needed to trap them are substantial,” said J. Mark Meacham, an associate professor…
PNNL scientists investigate the promising properties of a common, Earth-abundant salt. In a world of continuously warmer temperatures, a growing consensus demands that energy sources have zero, or next-to-zero, carbon emissions. That means growing beyond coal, oil, and natural gas by getting more energy from renewable sources. One of the most promising renewable energy carriers is clean hydrogen, which is produced without fossil fuels. It’s a promising idea because the most abundant element in the universe is hydrogen, found in…
Scientists from the Berlin Institute of Health at Charité (BIH), along with colleagues from the United Kingdom, have found clues as to how we maintain constant blood sugar levels after we have eaten. Analyzing the DNA of nearly 55,000 participants from different studies, they identified ten genomic regions containing genetic variants responsible for regulating blood sugar levels after a meal. In further experiments, they were able to show how these genetic variants influence insulin resistance in cells. Their findings, which…
How do our genes determine the immune response to pathogens? This depends on small differences in the genome. The situation is complex, as a new study shows. Not everyone reacts to infectious agents in the same way: some fall ill very severely, others only slightly, and still others possibly not at all. There are many different reasons for this variability. One important reason is that the genome of different people differs from one another. For example, single molecules can be…
A team of researchers from IRB Barcelona and CNAG identifies the IL-17 protein as a determining factor in skin ageing. Blocking the function of IL-17 reduces the pro-inflammatory state and delays the appearance of age-related features in the skin. Published in the journal Nature Aging, the work opens up new perspectives in the development of therapies to improve skin ageing health. A team of scientists from the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) in collaboration with the National Center…
New cryo-EM structure of a zinc-transporter protein reveals how this molecular machine functions to regulate cellular levels of zinc, an essential micronutrient. Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory have determined the atomic-level structure of a zinc-transporter protein, a molecular machine that regulates levels of this crucial trace metal micronutrient inside cells. As described in a paper just published in Nature Communications, the structure reveals how the cellular membrane protein shifts its shape to move zinc…
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