Molecular Biology News and Research

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Molecular biology is the study of biology at a molecular level. The field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry. Molecular biology chiefly concerns itself with understanding the interactions between the various systems of a cell, including the interactions between DNA, RNA and protein biosynthesis as well as learning how these interactions are regulated.

Scientists visualize protein machinery of respiration with unparalleled precision

Oxygen and sugar are the basis of life for animals, plants, fungi and many bacteria. The metabolic process called respiration makes it possible to convert food into energy for the cells.

1 Feb 2022

Researchers aim to tackle neurodegenerative diseases of the eye and brain

Could a new paradigm in digital health treat blinding disorders and possibly also be a conduit for treating other parts of the brain? A multi-disciplinary team of world-renowned researchers at USC are exploring this exciting possibility.

31 Jan 2022

Researchers analyze motor protein movement in neurons

A thread-like highway, called microtubule tracks, allows motor proteins to transport cargo inside neurons.

21 Jan 2022

Researchers discover a key mechanism used by Zika virus to evade cell’s antiviral response

The world knows SARS-CoV-2 intimately now, but there are more than 200 virus species capable of infecting humans and causing disease.

19 Jan 2022

Scientists examine key mechanisms underlying genomic imprinting

Hereditary diseases, along with cancers and cardiovascular diseases, may be linked to genomic imprinting.

13 Jan 2022

Researchers fine-tune an additional system for more efficient gene editing

Over the past decade, the CRISPR genome-editing system has revolutionized molecular biology, giving scientists the ability to alter genes inside living cells for research or medical applications. Now, researchers at Gladstone Institutes have fine-tuned an additional system for more efficient gene editing, using molecules called retrons.

6 Jan 2022

Revealing a Cell's Components through Artificial Intelligence

We speak to Professor Trey Ideker and Yue Qin about their latest in cell biology and how artificial intelligence could be used to discover new components within cells.

From UC San Diego 23 Dec 2021

New methods help chemists to understand how bacteria turn light into chemical energy

Chemists have come to a deeper understanding of how photosynthetic bacteria convert light into chemical energy and discovered why one step in the process may be more robust than previously realized, according to a new study published this week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

17 Dec 2021

Researchers create a healthier form of starch in the cassava plant

Researchers at the RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science (CSRS) in Japan have recently created a healthier form of starch in the cassava plant. Published in the scientific journal Plant Molecular Biology, the study shows how reducing levels of starch branching enzymes (SBEs) in cassava plants changes the composition of tapioca starch, making it more resistant to digestion and healthier for us to eat.

17 Dec 2021

Researchers use CRISPR-Cas9 to successfully target brown fat

Fat is an essential component of life, however too much fat leads to numerous health issues. Investigating the role played by fat or adipose tissue is significant to get a better understanding of obesity and other problems.

17 Dec 2021

Study details the design of RNA-based breathalyzer to diagnose SARS-CoV-2

In a new study in The Journal of Molecular Diagnostics, published by Elsevier, investigators report on the design and testing of a breathalyzer, known as the Bubbler, that relies on viral RNA detection to diagnose SARS-CoV-2. Its name is derived from the bubbling sound that occurs when the patient exhales into the device.

14 Dec 2021

First molecular structure of TDP-43 could pave the way for new ALS therapies

Scientists have determined for the first time the structure of the molecule associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and multiple other neurodegenerative diseases.

9 Dec 2021

New strategy to improve the therapeutic efficacy of liver cancer immunotherapy

In recent years, tumor immunotherapy has emerged as a highly promising and much-touted oncological approach.

8 Dec 2021

Experts identify first non-coding RNA that controls chromosome loop formation

Recent research carried out by scientists from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) reveals that a significant player in the healthy development of female embryos also performs a vital role in controlling the behavior of chromosome loops and gene expression in both sexes.

7 Dec 2021