Biochemistry news

New approach to treating breast and prostate cancers

Chemistry / Biochemistry

11 hours ago | 2.5 / 5 (2) | 0

In a new approach to developing treatments for breast cancer, prostate cancer and enlarged hearts, Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine researchers are zeroing in on a workhorse protein called RSK.

Research reveals link between beer and bone health

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Feb 08, 2010 | 4.6 / 5 (5) | 1

A new study suggests that beer is a significant source of dietary silicon, a key ingredient for increasing bone mineral density. Researchers from the Department of Food Science & Technology at the University of California, ...

An answer to another of life's big questions

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Feb 05, 2010 | 5 / 5 (5) | 2 |

(PhysOrg.com) -- Monash University biochemists have found a critical piece in the evolutionary puzzle that explains how life on Earth evolved millions of centuries ago.

New on-off 'switch' triggers and reverses paralysis in animals with a beam of light

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Feb 03, 2010 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

In an advance with overtones of Star Trek phasers and other sci-fi ray guns, scientists in Canada are reporting development of an internal on-off "switch" that paralyzes animals when exposed to a beam of ultraviolet ...

New research rejects 80-year theory of 'primordial soup' as the origin of life

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Feb 02, 2010 | 4.3 / 5 (36) | 26 |

For 80 years it has been accepted that early life began in a 'primordial soup' of organic molecules before evolving out of the oceans millions of years later. Today the 'soup' theory has been over turned in a pioneering paper ...

Biochemists Provide New Key for Treating Fabry Disease, a Rare Childhood Disorder

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Feb 02, 2010 | not rated yet | 0 |

(PhysOrg.com) -- A research team led by biochemist Scott Garman at the University of Massachusetts Amherst has for the first time determined the mechanism of one of the cell’s 'recycling' enzymes, human alpha-galactosidase ...

Researcher identifies cell mechanism leading to diabetic blindness

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Feb 01, 2010 | 5 / 5 (2) | 0 |

Scientists have long known that high blood sugar levels from diabetes damage blood vessels in the eye, but they didn't know why or how. Now a Michigan State University scientist has discovered the process that causes retinal ...

New paper describes important advance in imaging of cell death

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Jan 29, 2010 | not rated yet | 0

For quite some time, the "Holy Grail" in medical imaging has been the development of an effective method to image cell death as a means to intervene early in diseases and rapidly determine the effectiveness of treatments. ...

Microbes produce fuels directly from biomass

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Jan 27, 2010 | 4.5 / 5 (12) | 3 |

A collaboration led by researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy's Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI) has developed a microbe that can produce an advanced biofuel directly from biomass. Deploying the tools ...

Vitamin D supplements could fight Crohn's disease

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Jan 27, 2010 | 5 / 5 (2) | 1 |

(PhysOrg.com) -- A new study has found that Vitamin D, readily available in supplements or cod liver oil, can counter the effects of Crohn's disease. John White, an endocrinologist at the Research Institute ...

The fungus among us: An eco-friendly way of decomposing BPA-containing plastic

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Jan 27, 2010 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

Just as cooking helps people digest food, pretreating polycarbonate plastic — source of a huge environmental headache because of its bisphenol A (BPA) content — may be the key to disposing of the waste in ...

The secret life of smoke in fostering rebirth and renewal of burned landscape

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Jan 27, 2010 | 4.5 / 5 (2) | 0

The innermost secrets of fire's role in the rebirth and renewal of forests and grasslands are being revealed in research that has identified plant growth promoters and inhibitors in smoke. In the latest discovery ...

Marine lab hunts subtle clues to environmental threats to blue crabs

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Jan 26, 2010 | not rated yet | 0 |

The Atlantic blue crab, Callinectes sapidus, long prized as a savory meal at a summer party or seafood restaurant, is a multi-million dollar source of income for those who harvest, process and market the crustacean along ...

Flash frozen under the electron microscope: Examining the mechanical properties of Alzheimer’s amyloid fibrils

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Jan 26, 2010 | 4.3 / 5 (3) | 0 |

(PhysOrg.com) -- Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, type-II diabetes, and prion diseases like BSE all involve the deposition of amyloid fibrils in tissues and organs. These are fibrous clumps of incorrectly folded ...

How to shoot the messenger

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Jan 26, 2010 | 5 / 5 (1) | 1

Cells rely on a range of signaling systems to communicate with each other and to control their own internal workings. Scientists from the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Hamburg, Germany, have ...

Researchers correct the record about behavior of important human protein tied to cancer

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Jan 25, 2010 | not rated yet | 0 |

In a study to be published this week, a research team is challenging a prevailing belief about the behavior of a human protein linked to the formation of cancer, possibly breathing new life into the search for therapies that ...

Brain protein critical to movement, memory, and learning deciphered at the Advanced Light Source

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Jan 22, 2010 | 5 / 5 (5) | 0 |

(PhysOrg.com) -- The structure of a protein that is sending electrical pulses between neurons in your brain as you read this article has been fully mapped for the first time using Lawrence Berkeley National ...

Zebrafish swim into drug development

Chemistry / Biochemistry

Jan 21, 2010 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0 |

By combining the tools of medicinal chemistry and zebrafish biology, a team of Vanderbilt investigators has identified compounds that may offer therapeutic leads for bone-related diseases and cancer.