All Articles Tagged As: proteins

Structural biology scores with protein snapshot (6/27/2009)

In a landmark technical achievement, investigators in the Vanderbilt Center for Structural Biology have used nuclear magnetic resonance methods to determine the structure of the largest membrane-spanning protein to date.The group's ability to determine the NMR structure of the bacterial protein diacylglycerol kinase, reported in the June 26 issue of Science, suggests that similar methods can now be used to study the structures of other membrane proteins. ...> Full Article

Researchers observe single protein dimers wavering between two symmetrically opposed structures (6/23/2009)

Researchers at the Scripps Research Institute, the University of California, San Diego, and Ohio State University have used a very sensitive fluorescence technique to find that a bacterial protein thought to exist in one "natural" three-dimensional structure (shape), can actually twist itself into a second form, depending on the protein's chemical environment. One folded form is active and the other is inactive, but the protein can easily morph from one state to another. ...> Full Article

Faster protein folding achieved through nanosecond pressure jump (6/3/2009)

A University of Illinois chemist says that prodding proteins to fold by suddenly removing high pressure (a technique also known as "pressure jumping") through electrical bursting makes for a "kindler, gentler way" of inducing proteins to fold. ...> Full Article

'Disordered' amino acids may really be there to provide wiggle room for signaling protein (5/27/2009)

Fox Chase researchers first to determine structure in a class of self-regulating proteins ...> Full Article

Research scientists model 3D structures of proteins that control human clock (4/14/2009)

Researchers turn to flowering plant to help them understand complexities of human sleep/wake cycle ...> Full Article

Model tissue system reveals cellular communication via amino acids (4/7/2009)

A team of researchers from the Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Engineering in Medicine has found the first evidence of cell-to-cell communication by amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, rather than by known protein signaling agents such as growth factors or cytokines. ...> Full Article

Plastic protein protects bacteria from stomach acid's unfolding power (3/26/2009)

A tiny protein helps protect disease-causing bacteria from the ravaging effects of stomach acid, researchers at the University of Michigan and Howard Hughes Medical Institute have discovered. ...> Full Article

Researchers report a forceful new method to sensitively detect proteins (3/21/2009)

Scientists at the Naval Research Laboratory recently reported the detection of toxins with unprecedented speed, sensitivity and simplicity. The approach can sense as few as a few hundred molecules in a drop of blood in less than 10 minutes, with only four simple steps from sample to answer. ...> Full Article

Protein structure determined in living cells (3/9/2009)

The function of a protein is determined both by its structure and by its interaction partners in the cell. Until now, proteins had to be isolated for analyzing them. Using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, an international team of researchers has now, for the first time, solved the structure of a protein within a living cell, the bacterium Escherichia coli. ...> Full Article

Building a better protein (2/27/2009)

Rensselaer researchers use computers to find keys to stabilizing proteins ...> Full Article

Researchers shed light on how proteins find their shapes (2/26/2009)

The researchers bring together theoretical models and experimental data to explain protein folding ...> Full Article

Researchers shake up scientific theory on motor protein (2/6/2009)

An international team of scientists led by the University of Leeds has shed new light on the little-understood motor protein called dynein, thought to be involved in progressive neurological disorders such as motor neuron disease. ...> Full Article

Modified plants may yield more biofuel (12/26/2008)

Plants, genetically modified to ease the breaking down of their woody material, could be the key to a cheaper and greener way of making ethanol, according to researchers who add that the approach could also help turn agricultural waste into food for livestock. ...> Full Article

Engineers show how tiny cell proteins generate force to 'walk' (11/28/2008)

MIT researchers have shown how a cell motor protein exerts the force to move, enabling functions such as cell division. ...> Full Article

Luminescence shines new light on proteins (11/15/2008)

A chance discovery by a team of scientists using optical probes means that changes in cells in the human body could now be seen in a completely different light. ...> Full Article

Protein Compass Guides Amoebas Toward Their Prey (10/25/2008)

Molecular switch shared by humans may also help immune cells locate infection sites ...> Full Article

Scientists unwrap the elements of life (10/23/2008)

Researchers have taken a step forward in our understanding of how the fundamental building blocks of life are put together. ...> Full Article

Border control: Study shows how proteins permit entry to a cell (10/18/2008)

The means by which proteins provide a 'border control' service, allowing cells to take up chemicals and substances from their surroundings, whilst keeping others out, is revealed in unprecedented molecular detail for the first time ...> Full Article

Stabilizing force for good communication between neurons and muscle cells found (10/12/2008)

Scientists have found what keeps unstable protein in proper conformation ...> Full Article

Cell protein suppresses pain 8 times more effectively than morphine (10/10/2008)

Researchers have discovered a new therapeutic target for pain control, one that appears to be eight times more effective at suppressing pain than morphine. ...> Full Article

Engineers mass-produce smell receptors in lab (10/1/2008)

Biological engineers have found a way to mass-produce smell receptors in the laboratory, an advance that paves the way for "artificial noses" to be created and used in a variety of settings. ...> Full Article

Bio-imaging mass spectrometry techniques reveal molecular details about complex systems (9/26/2008)

New bio-imaging mass spectrometry center at Georgia Tech aims to unravel the molecular complexities of biological systems ...> Full Article

New technology paves the way for the future of identifying proteins inside cells (9/23/2008)

Researchers create a new technology which enables scientists to identify proteins by making a map of the energy flow inside the protein ...> Full Article

Rare Earth Elements Excite Protein Probes (9/1/2008)

Researchers hope to detect lanthanide reporter-tagged proteins at the single-molecule limit in living cells ...> Full Article

Researcher shows proteins have controlled motions (8/30/2008)

Researcher believes that his research shows proteins have controlled motions ...> Full Article

Candy-coating keeps proteins sweet (8/26/2008)

Researchers have developed a fast, inexpensive and effective method for evaluating the sugars pharmaceutical companies use to stabilize protein-drugs for storage at room temperature. ...> Full Article

Chemists make beds with soft landings (8/23/2008)

Researchers create stable, highly pure helical peptide arrays ...> Full Article

Chips are down as scientists make protein scanning breakthrough (8/23/2008)

Scientists have developed a new and fast method for making biological 'chips' - technology that could lead to quick testing for serious diseases, fast detection of MRSA infections and rapid discovery of new drugs. ...> Full Article

Improved technique determines structure in membrane proteins (8/19/2008)

Understanding the form and function of certain proteins in the human body is becoming faster and easier ...> Full Article

Water is 'designer fluid' that helps proteins change shape, scientists say (8/8/2008)

According to new research, old ideas about water behavior are all wet. ...> Full Article

Modified proteins add color to research (7/28/2008)

Chemist has helped improve the colors of fluorescent proteins used by life science researchers to explore everything from cancer tumors to brain activity ...> Full Article

Lights, camera, action! 'Molecular movies' to reveal the dynamic lives of proteins (7/11/2008)

Capturing moving images of tiny protein molecules is the aim of a new research project ...> Full Article

Dividing cells find their middle by following a protein 'contour map' (7/6/2008)

Self-organization keeps schools of fish, flocks of birds and colonies of termites in sync. It's also, according to new research, the way cells regulate the final stage of cell division ...> Full Article

Using a light touch to measure protein bonds (7/3/2008)

Researchers tug at molecules with optical tweezers ...> Full Article

Researchers are first to simulate the binding of molecules to a protein (7/2/2008)

Researchers have identified a key step in the cellular recycling of ATP that allows your body to produce enough of it to survive ...> Full Article

New probe may help untangle cells' signaling pathways (6/28/2008)

Researchers have designed a new type of probe that can image thousands of interactions between proteins inside a living cell, giving them a tool to untangle the web of signaling pathways that control most of a cell's activities. ...> Full Article

Fluorescent-Probe in Worm Creates Real-Time 'View' of Cellular Stress (6/19/2008)

Stretching of molecular "spring" induces color change ...> Full Article

Researchers witness assembly of molecules critical to protein function (6/17/2008)

Research group lead by two biochemistry graduate students has isolated proteins responsible for the iron-sulfur cluster assembly process and witnessed the necessary protein interactions in vivo - within a cell. They have captured pathway intermediates and observed protein interactions between the two major players in iron-sulfur cluster assembly. ...> Full Article

Researchers discover architecture for fundamental processes of life (5/15/2008)

A team of Canadian researchers has completed a massive survey of the network of protein complexes that orchestrate the fundamental processes of life ...> Full Article

Magnet Lab Researchers Make Observing Cell Functions Easier (5/13/2008)

Now that the genome (DNA) of humans and many other organisms have been sequenced, biologists are turning their attention to discovering how the many thousands of structural and control genes -- the "worker bees" of living cells that can turn genes on and off -- function. ...> Full Article

New Clues to How Proteins Dissolve and Crystallize (5/13/2008)

Fresh evidence for the "Law of Matching Water Affinities" ...> Full Article

Researchers Tackling Unsolved Questions About Protein Structures (5/9/2008)

Researchers are exploring the evolutionary origins of protein structures. Their findings will help people better understand how proteins evolved to carry out the instructions encoded in the genes of every living thing. ...> Full Article

Researchers Launch Online Protein Folding Game (5/9/2008)

Researchers are bringing the arcane world of protein folding to the online gaming arena with the launch of "Foldit," a free game in which players around the world compete to design proteins. ...> Full Article

Japanese Mushroom Leads To Breakthrough In Protein Research (5/8/2008)

Using an enzyme of the Japanese mushroom, proteins can be identified without knowing the organism's genetic composition ...> Full Article

Researchers Find New Details Following the Path of Solar Energy During Photosynthesis (4/26/2008)

Researchers report on the energy-transferring functions within the Fenna-Matthews-Olson photosynthetic light-harvesting protein, a pigment-protein complex in green sulfur bacteria that serves as a model system because it consists of only seven well-characterized pigment molecules ...> Full Article

First-class protein crystals thanks to weightlessness on earth (4/25/2008)

Dutch chemist has developed two attractive alternatives for allowing protein crystals to grow under weightless conditions ...> Full Article

Scientists deconstruct process of bacterial division (4/19/2008)

Researchers have made a major advance in understanding how bacteria divide ...> Full Article

Statistics are insufficient for study of proteins' signal system (3/28/2008)

Ten years ago great attention was attracted by the discovery that it was possible to demonstrate signal transfer in proteins using statistical methods. ...> Full Article

Researchers unravel the secrets of spider silk's strength (3/26/2008)

The strength of a biological material like spider silk lies in the specific geometric configuration of structural proteins, which have small clusters of weak hydrogen bonds that work cooperatively to resist force and dissipate energy ...> Full Article

'Designer enzymes' created by chemists (3/22/2008)

Chemists have succeeded in creating "designer enzymes," a major milestone in computational chemistry and protein engineering. ...> Full Article

Human Proteinpedia, a portal to share human protein data among the scientific community (3/18/2008)

Storage and integration of information on human protein sequences ...> Full Article

Structure Reveals How Cells 'Sugar-Coat' Proteins (3/13/2008)

Process essential to many proteins' functions can lead to disease when gone awry ...> Full Article

Researchers crack code of 3-D structure in key metabolic protein (3/12/2008)

Using X-ray crystallography, researchers have become the first to decipher the three-dimensional structure of a membrane-bound enzyme that plays a crucial role in glycerol metabolism - a discovery that could lead to important advances against obesity, diabetes and a potential host of other diseases ...> Full Article

Nanoscale tool allows scientists to study membrane proteins one at a time (3/11/2008)

In biology, as in construction, it's all about having tools that fit the job. Researchers at Rockefeller University have now created a tiny tool, more than 10,000 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair, capable of encasing single membrane proteins from living cells. The new system, which resembles a nanoscale sushi roll, will allow investigators to individually stimulate these key proteins with specific molecules and signals in order to precisely define the biological reactions that result. ...> Full Article

New crystallization method to ease study of protein structures (3/10/2008)

Researchers have developed a new technique for crystallizing proteins that will ease experimentation into protein structures. ...> Full Article

Newly defined signaling pathway could mean better biofuel sources (3/8/2008)

A newly defined biochemical pathway in plants may provide the scientific tools to design plants that will yield larger quantities of alternative transportation fuels than currently can be produced ...> Full Article

Research Pushes the Right Buttons - Mushrooms are the New Fat (2/26/2008)

Scientists have discovered a new method to replace fat in food products. ...> Full Article

It's All About Geometry: Protein Contact Surfaces Hold Key to Cures (2/1/2008)

Supercomputer Powers Tool to Reveal Hidden Interaction ...> Full Article

Chemists solve biological challenge (1/23/2008)

Professor and PhD student modify protein creation ...> Full Article

Researchers obtain a snapshot clarifying how materials enter cells (1/8/2008)

A group of researchers has captured a key step in the metabolic process that allows materials, such as nutrients and drug treatments, to move in and out of cells. ...> Full Article

How Molecular Muscles Help Cells Divide (12/19/2007)

Time-lapse videos and computer simulations provide the first concrete molecular explanation of how a cell flexes tiny muscle-like structures to pinch itself into two daughter cells at the end of each cell division, according to a report in Science Express. ...> Full Article

Researchers find the 'breaking point' of proteins (12/9/2007)

Scientists from Oxford University have discovered the watery secrets of what makes proteins unstable ...> Full Article

The closest look ever at native human tissue (12/9/2007)

Seeing proteins in their natural environment and interactions inside cells has been a longstanding goal. Using an advanced microscopy technique called cryo-electron tomography, researchers from the European Molecular Biology Laboratory [EMBL] have visualised proteins responsible for cell-cell contacts for the first time. In this week's issue of Nature they publish the first 3D image of human skin at molecular resolution and reveal the molecular Velcro-like organisation that interlinks cells. ...> Full Article

Study unveils unknown protein motifs (12/8/2007)

Undergrad recognized for work in protein function prediction ...> Full Article

Bacteria shed light on an important group of human proteins (11/26/2007)

Researchers have found the solution of the first crystal structure of a member of the Rhesus protein family and thereby shed new light on a group of proteins of great importance in human transfusion medicine. ...> Full Article

Persistence pays off (10/26/2007)

Chemists have come remarkably close to mimicking a type of protein previously thought impossible to imitate. The long-term application of this work could be in the development of new types of glucose sensors for diabetics, or in the production of new biofuels. ...> Full Article

New Approach Builds Better Proteins Inside a Computer (10/22/2007)

With the aid of more than 150,000 home computer users throughout the world researchers have, for the first time, accurately predicted the three-dimensional structure of a small, naturally occurring globular protein using only its amino acid sequence. The accomplishment was achieved with a newly refined computational method for predicting protein structure, which the researchers say can also improve the detail and accuracy of protein structures generated with experimental techniques. ...> Full Article

Newly solved structure reveals how cells resist oxygen damage (10/19/2007)

Singlet oxygen, a byproduct of the photosynthetic process by which certain cells convert sunlight into energy, is a highly toxic and reactive substance that tears cells apart. Now scientists have become the first to solve the structure of a protein complex that protects these cells from singlet oxygen. The findings not only advance knowledge of how cells sense the presence of singlet oxygen, but also how they turn on critical genes to defend themselves from its effects. ...> Full Article

Experimental Technique Sorts DNA, Cells, Molecules in a Split Second (10/18/2007)

A simple device just a few millimeters across can separate microscopic objects such as DNA or cells in a fraction of a second—thousands of times faster than conventional methods. ...> Full Article

Learning What Makes a Simple Circadian Clock Tick (10/6/2007)

Researchers have figured out how a bacterial circadian clock ticks away using only three interacting proteins. They have shown that the cellular equivalent of this clock's pendulum and timing gear is so rugged that it can keep precise time for weeks even after its components have been isolated from bacteria and placed in a test tube. ...> Full Article

Viewing dye-packed vesicles causes them to explode (9/21/2007)

It's a long-standing question: Can just the act of observing an experiment affect the results? If the experiment uses a fluorescent dye called acridine orange, the answer is a resounding "yes." ...> Full Article

Unlocking Secrets of Protein Folding (9/17/2007)

A research team has taken a significant step toward unraveling the mystery of how proteins fold into unique, three-dimensional shapes. ...> Full Article