Two Iowa State research groups are combining their expertise to change stem cells for nerve regrowth. The groups -- one led by a mechanical engineer and the other by a chemical engineer -- just published their findings in Advanced Healthcare Materials.
Researchers published in Nature Medicine from the George Washington University, the University of Perugia, and the University of Rome have discovered a potential new drug to treat and stop the progression of cystic fibrosis. Thymosin α1 is a novel therapeutic single molecule-based therapy that not only corrects genetic and tissue defects, but also significantly reduces inflammation seen in cystic fibrosis patients.
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital study examines origin of blood stem cells during development and offers clues for making “donor blood” in the laboratory for therapeutic use
A new study published in Nature provides clues that could enhance physicians’ ability to pinpoint, in real-time, which patients are not responding to therapy – and intervene with additional drugs to boost the chances of shrinking tumors.
Scientists at The Wistar Institute have unveiled part of the protein complex that protects telomeres—the ends of our chromosomes.
What if a computer model could improve itself over time without requiring additional data? Paul Roebber has made weather forecasting more accurate by repurposing an idea from Charles Darwin.
Combining theory with experiment, University of Wisconsin–Madison scientists are trying to understand how life can arise from non-life. Researchers at the UW–Madison Wisconsin Institute for Discovery are conducting experiments to test the idea that lifelike chemical reactions might develop readily under the right conditions. The work addresses some of the deepest mysteries in biology, and has implications for understanding how common life might be in the universe.
Viruses outnumber the microbes on Earth. A handful of giant viruses have been discovered in the past two decades. In Science, DOE Joint Genome Institute scientists report discovering a novel group of giant viruses that they believe significantly increases our understanding of viral evolution.
A light-sensing pigment found in everything from bacteria to vertebrates can be biochemically manipulated to reset itself, an important therapeutic advantage, according to new research out of Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.
A hardy perennial is a promising source of biofuel, and a UW-Milwaukee scientist is developing a technique to make a GMO version that cannot "infect" the genes of natural plants around it.
Stony Brook University-led research team through the Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology has created a user-friendly automated computer server that calculates complex computations of modeling protein interactions with a handful of clicks from a home computer.
Two biophysicists from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have used supercomputers to show how cell membranes control the shape, and consequently the function, of a major cancer-causing protein.
Virginia Tech researchers have discovered that these tiny movements pack more information into ultrasound pulses the bats send and receive, helping them locate objects around them.
The University of Utah is one of just five institutions in the world to be awarded a $2.5 million grant to purchase a state of the art cryo-electron microscope (cryo-EM), the Beckman Foundation announced today. The microscope, which will be able to visualize the structure of proteins and DNA at an atom-by-atom scale, will be installed in the Crocker Science Center, currently under construction. The microscope’s resolution is fine enough to see details such as the double-helix and ladder structure of DNA, said biochemistry professor Wesley Sundquist.
Exposure during infancy to the common plasticizer bisphenol A (BPA) “hijacks” and reprograms genes in the liver of newborn rats, leading to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in adulthood. A new study has found how this process occurs, and researchers will present the results Saturday at ENDO 2017, the Endocrine Society’s 99th annual meeting in Orlando, Fla.
Kristen W. Lynch, PhD, has been appointed chair of the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, following eight years as a tenured faculty member in the department.
A new $1.5 million award from the National Institutes of Health will allow a University of Arkansas chemist to develop mathematical models to improve the reliability and efficiency of computer-aided drug design. The research could reduce the cost of drug discovery and lead to improvements in public health.
Ancient proteins may offer clues on how to engineer proteins that can withstand the high temperatures required in industrial applications, according to new research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.
Chemists have designed triple-threat cancer-fighting polymer capsules for guided drug delivery. They combine three traits: good imaging contrast with low-power ultrasound, stable packaging of the cancer drug doxorubicin, and ability to trigger drug release with low- or higher-power ultrasound.
Blind tadpoles were able to process visual information from eyes grafted onto their tails after being treated with a small molecule neurotransmitter drug that augmented innervation, integration, and function of the transplanted organs. The work, which used a pharmacological reagent already approved for use in humans, provides a potential road map for promoting innervation – the supply of nerves to a body part – in regenerative medicine.
Cutting-edge multidisciplinary research from across the life sciences will be presented at the Experimental Biology 2017 meeting (EB 2017), the premier annual meeting of six scientific societies in Chicago to be held April 22–26.
Scientists have developed a method to track perfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) in the body. PFAS are potentially toxic chemicals found in stain-resistant products, nonstick cookware, fire-fighting foams and, most recently, fast food wrappers.
Using a newly developed method researchers at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (IMBA) have been able to shed light on the complexity of genome reorganization occurring during the first hours after fertilization in the single-cell mammalian embryo. Their findings have recently been published in the journal Nature. The team of researchers (from three continents) have discovered that the egg and sperm genomes that co-exist in the single-cell embryo or zygote have a unique structure compared to other interphase cells. Understanding this specialized chromatin “ground state” has the potential to provide insights into the yet mysterious process of epigenetic reprogramming to totipotency, the ability to give rise to all cell types.
The Electrochemical Society (ECS) is celebrating its 115th anniversary this year by giving the world a preview of what complete open access to peer-reviewed scientific research will look like. ECS will launch the first Free the Science Week, April 3-9, and take down the paywall to the entire ECS Digital Library, making over 132,000 scientific articles and abstracts free and accessible to everyone.
Bill Kochevar, who was paralyzed below his shoulders in a bicycling accident, is believed to be the first person with quadriplegia in the world to have arm and hand movements restored with the help of two temporarily implanted technologies.
Scientists have been working diligently to create engineered tissue implants to repair or replace damaged or diseased tissue and organs; but their success hinges on the ability to build a sturdy connection linking the implant’s blood vessels and the patient’s existing vasculature. National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB)-funded researchers have created segments of engineered blood vessels to address this critical issue.
Viruses are the most abundant living organisms on the planet, yet we know very little about them, especially in aquatic environments. Michigan State University’s Joan Rose is partnering with Shedd Aquarium in Chicago to better understand how viruses affect plants, fish and aquatic mammals in human-built and controlled aquariums.
A fluorescent probe developed by Michigan Tech chemist Haiying Liu lights up the enzyme beta-galactosidase in a cell culture. The glowing probe-enzyme combination could make tumors fluoresce, allowing surgeons to cut away cancer while leaving healthy tissue intact.
The Biomechanics and Imaging Laboratory aims to develop non-invasive techniques to diagnose and evaluate treatment strategies for degenerative disease and injuries in orthopaedic tissues. To this end, researchers are combining imaging techniques, biomechanics, and modeling to create tools that help clinicians in getting a more accurate diagnosis, evaluating the effectiveness of treatments, and understanding the causes and consequences of injuries and diseases in orthopedic tissues.
A protein known as arginine methyltransferase 1 (PRMT1) may be a potential therapeutic target for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), the most common type of pancreatic cancer, and one of the most deadliest with a less than 10 percent, five-year survival rate. PRMT1 is involved in a number of genetic processes including gene transcription, DNA repair and signaling.
Van Andel Research Institute (VARI) is now home to one of the world’s most powerful microscopes—one that images life’s building blocks in startling clarity and equips VARI’s growing team of scientists to push the limits of discovery in search of new treatments for diseases such as cancer and Parkinson’s.
Emil Bogenmann, PhD, EdD, at The Saban Research Institute of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, received $1.3 million from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) of the NIH to provide biomedical research training to disadvantaged college undergraduates.
Scientists partially re-insulated ravaged nerves in mouse models of multiple sclerosis (MS) and restored limb mobility by treating the animals with a small non-coding RNA called a microRNA. In a study published online March 27 in Developmental Cell, researchers report that treatment with a microRNA called miR-219 restarted production of a substance called myelin that is critical to normal function of the central nervous system.
In a publication in the journal Nature released today (March 27, 2017), scientists from the Department of Biochemistry and Department of Chemistry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison have solved the structure of an enzyme caught in the act of attacking toluene — a chemical derived from wood and oil.
In a Phase I clinical study, researchers were able to transform the immune system by taking cells damaged in Parkinson’s disease and making them cells that protect and defend against brain injury.
The Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP) opens its new building: IMP sponsor Boehringer Ingelheim has constructed a new flagship for the Vienna Biocenter, the Life Science cluster in Vienna, with an investment of 52 million euros. Representatives from politics, industry and science celebrated the opening.
The Genetics Society of America (GSA) is pleased to announce that Richard C. Lewontin, PhD is the 2017 recipient of the Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal for lifetime achievement in the field of genetics. This award recognizes Lewontin’s extensive impact on our understanding of evolution, a broad and deep influence that has shaped the field. An unprecedented 160 distinguished biologists co-signed a letter of support to nominate Lewontin for the Morgan Medal. Lewontin is the Alexander Agassiz Professor of Zoology in the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Emeritus and a Professor of Biology Emeritus in the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University.
Results from experiments and computational modeling studies that definitively identify the "active site" of a catalyst commonly used for making methanol from CO2 will guide the design of improved catalysts for transforming this pollutant to useful chemicals.
Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM)—which enables the visualization of viruses, proteins, and other biological structures at the molecular level—is a critical tool used to advance biochemical knowledge. Now Berkeley Lab researchers have extended cryo-EM’s impact further by developing a new computational algorithm instrumental in constructing a 3-D atomic-scale model of bacteriophage P22 for the first time.
The Open Philanthropy Project has awarded a $3.5 million grant to the Center for Global Health Science and Security at Georgetown University Medical Center to support research focused on improving U.S. and international biosecurity and pandemic preparedness policy.
Instead of oil, coal, or even solar energy, self-sustaining bacterial fuel cells may power the future. Researchers at Binghamton University, State University of New York have developed the next step in microbial fuel cells (MFCs) with the first micro-scale self-sustaining cell, which generated power for 13 straight days through symbiotic interactions of two types of bacteria.
Since a couple of decades, metal-containing drugs have been successfully used to fight against certain types of cancer. The lack of knowledge about the underlying molecular mechanisms slows down the search for new and more efficient chemotherapeutic agents. An international team of scientists, led by Leticia González from the University of Vienna and Jacinto Sá from the Uppsala University, have developed a protocol that is able to detect how metal-based drugs interact with DNA.
The IGI has selected two scientists for its one-of-a-kind "Entrepreneurial Fellowship Program," pushing transformative scientific products to the market by supporting vital foundational research and professional networking for two years. Awardees are pursuing CRISPR genetic engineering applications.
When Globus Genomics launched five years ago, biologists were just getting used to the idea of being a “big data” science. At that time, the rapidly falling costs of next-generation sequencing suddenly made large-scale genetics more accessible to life scientists. However, these new methods also brought new challenges, as researchers used to working with small datasets on their desktop computer were faced for the first time with the kind of hard-drive flooding data streams more commonly seen by physicists and astronomers.
The Genetics Society of America (GSA) is pleased to announce that Jonathan Hodgkin, PhD (Oxford University) is the 2017 recipient of the Edward Novitski Prize in recognition of his extraordinary creativity and intellectual ingenuity in solving significant problems in genetics research. Hodgkin uncovered the sex determination pathway in Caenorhabditis elegans, an important and widely used model for animal development and genetics. His innovations and contributions to genetic analysis, including the use of suppressor screens and epistasis analyses, helped advance the field in many ways. Hodgkin is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Oxford.
Standard antidepressant medications don’t work for everyone, and even when they do they are slow to kick in. In an effort to find better depression treatments, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine discovered that inhibiting an enzyme called Glyoxalase 1 (GLO1) relieves signs of depression in mice. Moreover, inhibiting GLO1 worked much faster than the conventional antidepressant Prozac.
Genetic mutations that cause cancer also weaken cancer cells, allowing researchers to develop drugs that will selectively kill them. This is called “synthetic lethality” because the drug is only lethal to mutated (synthetic) cells. Researchers at UC San Diego School of Medicine and Jacobs School of Engineering developed a method to search for synthetic-lethal gene combinations. The technique, published March 20 in Nature Methods, uncovered 120 new opportunities for cancer drug development.
UPTON, NY—Even plants have to live on an energy budget. While they’re known for converting solar energy into chemical energy in the form of sugars, plants have sophisticated biochemical mechanisms for regulating how they spend that energy. Making oils costs a lot. By exploring the details of this delicate energy balance, a group of scientists from the U.
A discovery, several years in the making, by University at Buffalo researchers proves that adult skin cells can be converted into neural crest cells (a type of stem cell) without any genetic modification, and that these stem cells can yield other cells that are present in the spinal cord and the brain. The applications could be significant, from studying genetic diseases in a dish to generating possible regenerative cures from the patient’s own cells.
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