Biochemistry news

Just like old times: Generating RNA molecules in water

Chemistry / Biochemistry

3 hours ago | 4 / 5 (1) | 0

A key question in the origin of biological molecules like RNA and DNA is how they first came together billions of years ago from simple precursors. Now, in a study appearing in this week's Journal of Biological Chemistry, resear ...

Microbes to Take Over Ethanol Production?

Chemistry / Biochemistry

4 hours ago | 4 / 5 (2) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Not too long ago, it seemed that ethanol production was the wave of the future. The use of trash, wood chips or different types of plants -- usually grass or corn -- to make ethanol was considered ...

Saving the single cysteine: new antioxidant system found (w/ Video)

Chemistry / Biochemistry

23 hours ago | not rated yet | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- We've all read studies about the health benefits of having a life partner. The same thing is true at the molecular level, where amino acids known as cysteines are much more vulnerable to damage when single ...

Toward explaining why hepatitis B hits men harder than women

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 18, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

Scientists in China are reporting discovery of unusual liver proteins, found only in males, that may help explain the long-standing mystery of why the hepatitis B virus (HBV) sexually discriminates -- hitting ...

The protein Srebp2 drives cholesterol formation in prion-infected neuronal cells

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 18, 2009 | 4 / 5 (1) | 0

Prions are causing fatal and infectious diseases of the nervous system, such as the mad cow disease (BSE), scrapie in sheep or Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans. Scientists of Helmholtz Zentrum München and Technische Universität ...

Stem cells alleviate tumor treatment side effects

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 17, 2009 | 3 / 5 (2) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Human embryonic stem cells could help people with learning and memory deficits after radiation treatment for brain tumors, suggests a new UC Irvine study.

Research describes connections between Circadian and metabolic systems

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 17, 2009 | not rated yet | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- A paper by University of Notre Dame biologist Giles Duffield and a team of researchers offers new insights into a gene that plays a key role in modulating the body’s Circadian system and may ...

Fungi May Hold Key to Reducing Grapefruit Juice Interactions with Medications

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 17, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- A fungus may help solve a problem of a grapefruit compound that interacts negatively with certain prescription drugs, according to studies by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists.

Accidental discovery produces durable new blue pigment for multiple applications

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 16, 2009 | 4.5 / 5 (28) | 6

An accidental discovery in a laboratory at Oregon State University has apparently solved a quest that over thousands of years has absorbed the energies of ancient Egyptians, the Han dynasty in China, Mayan ...

Genome Engineering Could Provide New Method of Creating Diesel

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 16, 2009 | 3.3 / 5 (6) | 0

When we think of genetic engineering, our minds often jump to giant tomatoes and animal cloning. However, this is not always the case.

Scientists guide immune cells with light and microparticles (w/ Video)

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 16, 2009 | 5 / 5 (3) | 0

A team led by Yale University scientists has developed a new approach to studying how immune cells chase down bacteria in our bodies. Their findings are described in the November 15 issue of Nature Methods Advanc ...

Study reveals why certain drug combinations backfire

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 13, 2009 | 4.5 / 5 (4) | 0

Combination drug therapy has become a staple for treating many infections. For instance, doctors treat extensively drug resistant forms of tuberculosis with one drug that breaks down the pathogen's protective barriers and ...

Researchers solve structure of NMDA receptor unit that could be drug target for neurological diseases

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 12, 2009 | not rated yet | 0

A team of scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory reports on Thursday their success in solving the molecular structure of a key portion of a cellular receptor implicated in Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and other serious ...

New chemical reaction offers opportunities for drug development

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 12, 2009 | 5 / 5 (2) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at University College Dublin have solved a chemistry problem which has stumped researchers worldwide for more than a decade. The results have earned the group the cover story of the leading scientific ...

Sweet as can be: How E. coli gets ahead

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 12, 2009 | not rated yet | 0

Scientists at the University of York have discovered how certain bacteria such as Escherichia coli have evolved to capture rare sugars from their environment giving them an evolutionary advantage in naturally competitive enviro ...

Vibrations key to efficiency of green fluorescent protein

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 11, 2009 | 4.5 / 5 (6) | 1

University of California, Berkeley, chemists have discovered the secret to the success of a jellyfish protein whose green glow has made it the darling of biologists and the subject of the 2008 Nobel Prize ...

New evidence that dark chocolate helps ease emotional stress

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 11, 2009 | 4 / 5 (4) | 2

The "chocolate cure" for emotional stress is getting new support from a clinical trial published online in ACS' Journal of Proteome Research.

Exploration by explosion: Studying the inner realm of living cells

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Nov 11, 2009 | 4 / 5 (5) | 0

Scientists in Washington, DC, are reporting development and successful tests of a new way for exploring the insides of living cells, the microscopic building blocks of all known plants and animals. They explode ...