RNA News and Research

RSS

Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a biologically important type of molecule that consists of a long chain of nucleotide units. Each nucleotide consists of a nitrogenous base, a ribose sugar, and a phosphate.

Study analyzes electrostatic interactions of proteins in Escherichia coli

Electrostatic interaction is significant for numerous biological reactions—like protein-protein interaction, enzyme catalysis, and H+ transfer.

17 Nov 2021

Mysterious protein clusters found on neurons are calcium-signaling “hotspots”, study reveals

For 30 years, mysterious clusters of proteins found on the cell body of neurons in the hippocampus, a part of the brain, both intrigued and baffled James Trimmer.

From The University of California, Davis 15 Nov 2021

Research establishes a new understanding of how DNA methylation begins in plants

Crop improvement often involves the transfer of genetic material from one organism to another to produce a valuable trait. Some major examples of crops with these so-called "transgenes" include disease-resistant cotton and beta-carotene-enhanced golden rice.

10 Nov 2021

Targeting Shp2 as a cancer therapy may worsen the disease

In recent years, much scientific effort and funding has focused on developing drugs that target an enzyme with the unwieldy name of Src homology 2-containing protein tyrosine phosphatase 2 or more briefly, Shp2.

10 Nov 2021

Researchers propose novel model for mitochondrial nucleoid self-assembly

Mitochondria, the powerhouse of mammalian cells, also perform vital roles in cell signaling, cell metabolism, and apoptosis.

8 Nov 2021

Formation of transcription factories in living cells resembles the condensation of liquids

It is essential for cells to control precisely which of the many genes of their genetic material they use. This is done in so-called transcription factories, molecular clusters in the nucleus.

5 Nov 2021

Research uncovers key component of cellular malfunction that contributes to tumor growth

Scientists have homed in on a crucial step within the sequence of chemical reactions that govern regulation of cell division, proliferation and death, and whose malfunction contributes to the growth of tumors.

3 Nov 2021

Monoclonal antibodies mitigate inflammatory consequences of SARS-CoV-2 exposure in macaques

Monoclonal antibodies protected aged, diabetic rhesus macaque monkeys from disease due to SARS-CoV-2 and reduced signs of inflammation, including in cerebrospinal fluid, according to a new study from researchers at the University of California, Davis.

From The University of California, Davis 2 Nov 2021

Study reveals what causes T cells to be non-responsive to immunotherapy

Non-small cell lung cancer is the most common type of lung cancer in humans. Some patients with NSCLC receive a therapy called immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) that helps kill cancer cells by reinvigorating a subset of immune cells called T cells, which are "exhausted" and have stopped working.

1 Nov 2021

Researchers develop new approach to selectively turn on gene therapies in target cells

Researchers at MIT and Harvard University have designed a way to selectively turn on gene therapies in target cells, including human cells. Their technology can detect specific messenger RNA sequences in cells, and that detection then triggers production of a specific protein from a transgene, or artificial gene.

From Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 29 Oct 2021

New eToeholds could make RNA therapeutics more safer and effective

RNAs are best known as the molecules that translate information encoded in genes into proteins with their myriad of activities.

29 Oct 2021

Novel sequencing technique enhances population transcriptomics in plants

Researchers from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology devised a simplified and greatly efficient 3'RNA-seq technique.

29 Oct 2021

Nonpathogenic strain of C. acnes improves skin's resistance against infection-causing bacteria

Cutibacterium acnes, a bacteria that is known to cause acne, is also widely spread on people with healthy skin.

28 Oct 2021

Intussusceptive angiogenesis contributes to growth of daughter tumors in malignant melanoma

For the first time, researchers at the University of Gothenburg have shown that metastases in patients with malignant melanoma gain access to the circulatory system not only through the outgrowth of new blood vessel branches, but also an alternative process in which one blood vessel divide into two parallel vessels bylongitudinal splitting.

28 Oct 2021

New insight into how neurons and astrocytes work together to form healthy synapses

Brain cells called astrocytes play a key role in helping neurons develop and function properly, but there's still a lot scientists don't understand about how astrocytes perform these important jobs.

26 Oct 2021

Genetic biomarker test could help personalize therapy for men with high-risk prostate cancer

A new meta-analysis finds that a genetic biomarker test accurately predicts how men with high-risk prostate cancer will respond to treatment with radiation and hormone therapy.

26 Oct 2021

Study uses artificial evolution to search DNA molecules for light producing deoxyribozymes

Once thought to function primarily as a storage molecule for genetic information, it is now known that DNA can also catalyze chemical reactions. Although such DNA enzymes (deoxyribozymes) have not been identified in nature, they can be isolated in the lab using powerful methods of artificial evolution.

22 Oct 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.