Protein News and Research

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Proteins are complex molecules that are made up of amino acids. They can be found in every cell in the body, and carry out vital processes that keep human beings alive. Mutations in proteins can lead to a multitude of diseases, the most common being cancer.

Viral RNA undergoes conformational changes to hijack host cells, says study

Scientists from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus recently identified how an RNA molecule from a virus develops a complex, three-dimensional structure, and is capable of changing its shape to hijack host proteins.

25 Nov 2021

UD biochemist explores how mRNA eraser enzymes work in our cells

University of Delaware biochemist Jeff Mugridge is trying to figure out how so-called mRNA eraser enzymes work in our cells, why those erasers can sometimes misbehave and lead to cancer, and how science can pave the way for possible solutions to this problem.

25 Nov 2021

Study shows why disruption of the body clock leads to inflammatory diseases

New research from RCSI has demonstrated the significant role that an irregular body clock plays in driving inflammation in the body's immune cells, with implications for the most serious and prevalent diseases in humans.

25 Nov 2021

New details about Shigella's translocon may help develop effective strategy to block infection

Shigella, a bacterial pathogen that causes dysentery and is the leading cause of childhood diarrheal diseases, inserts a pore called a translocon into an infected person's intestinal cells and then injects bacterial proteins into the cells.

24 Nov 2021

Deep learning can generate real insights into how proteins interact

Scientist are now combining recent advances in evolutionary analysis and deep learning to build three-dimensional models of how most proteins in eukaryotes interact.

23 Nov 2021

Researchers expand understanding of how T cells recognize infections or disease

T cells communicate with other cells in the body in search of infections or diseases. This crosstalk relies on specialized receptors known as T cell receptors that recognize foreign molecular fragments from an infection or cancer that are presented for detection by particular molecules called major histocompatibility complex (MHC) or MHC-like.

23 Nov 2021

New technique could dramatically speed up the breeding of new crops

Scientists are a step closer to breeding plants with genes from only one parent. New research led by plant biologists at the University of California, Davis, published Nov. 19 in Science Advances, shows the underlying mechanism behind eliminating half the genome and could make for easier and more rapid breeding of crop plants with desirable traits such as disease resistance.

From The University of California, Davis 22 Nov 2021

MIT researchers identify a way to indirectly activate T cells to fight tumors

Under the right circumstances, the body's T cells can detect and destroy cancer cells. However, in most cancer patients, T cells become disarmed once they enter the environment surrounding a tumor.

22 Nov 2021

Robust electron microscope provides mechanistic insight into protein degradation

Proteins are the building blocks of all living things and numerous studies are carried out to determine how these proteins are made and their function.

19 Nov 2021

Study identifies new variants for polycystic ovary syndrome

Scientists from the Institute of Genomics of the University of Tartu recently identified the association between polycystic ovary syndrome and genetics.

19 Nov 2021

Study compares protein quality of meat-based burgers and plant-based burgers

Plant-based burgers claim that they offer protein similar to their animal-based counterparts. However, protein is expressed on present-day nutrition labels as a single generic value expressed in grams.

19 Nov 2021

Study results facilitate construction of complex nanoscale computing agents

Scientists for the first time developed a nano computing agent that regulates the function of a specific protein involved in cell movement and cancer metastasis.

From Penn State University 19 Nov 2021

Glial cells in the heart play critical role in cardiac development and function

Glial cells in the heart help regulate heart rate and rhythm, and drive its development in the embryo, according to a new study publishing November 18th in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Nina Kikel-Coury, Cody Smith and colleagues at the University of Notre Dame.

19 Nov 2021

De Novo Mutations may Play a Role in Male Infertility

In this interview, we speak to Dr. Miguel J. Xavier about his latest research into male infertility and how de novo mutations may play a part.

From Newcastle University 19 Nov 2021

New links found between CRISPR, p53 and other cancer genes that could prevent accumulation of mutated cells

A protein that protects cells from DNA damage, p53, is activated during gene editing using the CRISPR technique.

18 Nov 2021

Scientists use AI and evolutionary analysis to produce 3D models of eukaryotic protein interactions

UT Southwestern and University of Washington researchers led an international team that used artificial intelligence (AI) and evolutionary analysis to produce 3D models of eukaryotic protein interactions.

17 Nov 2021

Covid-19 vaccine-elicited immune cells persist six months after vaccination, study shows

A recent study by Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers provides evidence that CD4+ T lymphocytes — immune system cells also known as helper T cells — produced by people who received either of the two available messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines for COVID-19 persist six months after vaccination at only slightly reduced levels from two weeks after vaccination and are at significantly higher levels than for those who are unvaccinated.

17 Nov 2021