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Carp virus provides significant insights into immunology

In an article published in the journal Nucleic Acids Research, the team led by Prof. Alain Vanderplasschen, a virologist and immunologist at the University of Liège, describes 10 years of research on how a carp virus uses a protein domain called Zalpha (Zα) to inhibit the host cell’s defense mechanisms.

26 Sep 2022

Novel means to prevent and treat gonorrhea

According to scientists from the Georgia State University’s Institute for Biomedical Sciences, producing a mutation that impedes the way the bacterial pathogen Neisseria gonorrhoeae transmits gonorrhea might provide a novel means to prevent and treat the disease.

26 Sep 2022

Study highlights retrotransposition in CRISPR gene therapy clinical trials

Worldwide clinical studies for gene therapy utilizing CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing are now underway for a number of disorders. A study from Boston Children’s Hospital that was released in Nature Communications on June 27th, 2022, alerts readers to a possible CRISPR editing risk that has not yet been identified.

8 Jul 2022

National DNA Day 2022: an interview with Professor Matthew Cobb

To celebrate National DNA Day 2022, we spoke to science communicator Professor Matthew Cobb.

From The University of Manchester 25 Apr 2022

Study discovers links between DNA methylation and gene expression in children

A new study headed by ISGlobal, an organization financed by “Ia Caixa” Foundation, finds links between DNA methylation patterns and gene expression levels in blood samples from youngsters.

7 Apr 2022

Research reveals how a building block protein assembles to form poxvirus scaffold

Researchers at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University have revealed how poxviruses build their scaffold - a temporary protein coat that forms and disappears as the virus matures.

1 Apr 2022

A cryptic molecule can awaken killer viruses from their slumber

Some gut bacteria have a spooky superpower: they can reanimate dormant viruses lurking within other microbes.

24 Feb 2022

New proteomics method identifies proteins responsible for regulating R-loop levels in human cells

There are many different ways in which the genetic material DNA can be damaged, resulting in the development of diseases such as cancer. Certain forms of DNA damage are associated with so-called R-loops.

8 Feb 2022

Researchers gain detailed insight into the mechanism of a light-driven chloride pump

Many bacteria and unicellular algae have light-driven pumps in their cell membranes: proteins that change shape when exposed to photons such that they can transport charged atoms in or out of the cell.

4 Feb 2022

Researchers construct organized structures of hydrogel blocks using “sticky” DNA

Scientists from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University employed minuscule DNA strands to direct the building of viewable gel blocks.

2 Feb 2022

Study findings greatly expand the ability to engineer long-range genome edits

Researchers discovered the potential of CRISPR, a tool used by bacteria to defend themselves against viral intruders, nearly a decade ago.

24 Jan 2022

Experts determine the assembly of proteins with specialized protein needles

Protein assembly is considered to be an essential factor for the development of ordered biological structures, but how about engineering one.

10 Jan 2022

Scientists test the accuracy of enzymes that copy DNA under weightlessness

Researchers at Queen’s University boarded a modified Falcon 20 aircraft at Ottawa airport on May 22nd, 2019 as part of a scheduled “vomit comet” flight. In this mode of flight, the plane repeatedly climbs in a steep parabola to 8 km, alternating with a freefall descent.

2 Dec 2021

Improving our Understanding of Bacterial Membranes

We speak to Professor Bart Hoogenboom and Georgina Benn about current research using technology to create the sharpest images of living bacteria ever recorded.

From University College London 12 Nov 2021

Simultaneously Measuring 7,000 Proteins: Groundbreaking Proteomics from SomaLogic

In this interview, we speak to Roy Smythe, CEO of SomaLogic, about their groundbreaking proteomics technology that can simultaneously measure 7,000 proteins.

From SomaLogic 4 Nov 2021

Scientists use DNA to create what may be the world's tiniest ruler for measuring proteins

As scientists have probed the mysteries of life down to smaller and smaller scales, they have invented tools to help them understand what they observe.

22 Oct 2021

Study pinpoints the mutational hotspots in DNA

Recent research at the University of Bath reveals that tangles in unwound DNA can develop mutational hotspots in the genomes of bacteria.

From University of Bath 21 Oct 2021

Researchers use cryo-electron microscopy to resolve 3D structure of protein nanoparticle

Nanoparticles and nanocages are attractive materials that may be applied in color agents, catalysts, and drug delivery.

6 Oct 2021

Supercoiling and looping can transmit mechanical stress along the DNA backbone, shows study

When people think of DNA, they visualize a string-like double helix structure. In reality, the DNA double helix in cells is supercoiled and constrained into loops. This supercoiling and looping are known to influence every aspect of DNA activity, but how this happens has not been clear.

28 Sep 2021

Structural parameters of phosphatidylglycerol-DNA complex revealed

An interaction of DNA with lipids is of great interest because of their functions. As fatty acids and lipids can specifically bind to nucleic acids forming a code sequence of the genomic DNA, it is important to study the interaction of the oligonucleotide DNA (dA)20-(dT)20 with phosphatidylglycerol by the molecular dynamics method.

24 Sep 2021