Stanford scientists pinpoint key proteins in blood stem cell replication
BY KRISTA CONGER
STANFORD, Calif. - A family of cancer-fighting molecules helps blood stem cells in mice decide when and how to divide, say researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Blocking the molecules' function spurs the normally resting cells to begin proliferating strangely - making too much of one kind of cell and not enough of another. Many types of human blood cancers involve a similar disruption in the expression of that same family of molecules.
New way to control protein activity could lead to cancer therapies, Stanford study shows
BY BRUCE GOLDMAN
STANFORD, Calif. — Investigators at the Stanford University School of Medicine have found a way to quickly and reversibly fine-tune the activity of individual proteins in cells and living mammals, providing a powerful new laboratory tool for identifying — more precisely than ever before — the functions of different proteins.
Scientists Find “Redesigned Hammer” That Forged Evolution of Pregnancy in Mammals
Vincent Lynch: “Resurrected genes from the extinct ancestors
of mammals helped us find a change that promoted development
of the uterus and placenta.” (credit Wagner/Yale)
Penn Biophysicists Create New Model for Protein-Cholesterol Interactions in Brain and Muscle Tissue
PHILADELPHIA –- Biophysicists at the University of Pennsylvania have used 3,200 computer processors and long-established data on cholesterol’s role in the function of proteins to clarify the mysterious interaction between cholesterol and neurotransmitter receptors. The results provide a new model of behavior for the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor, a well studied protein involved in inflammation, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia, epilepsy, the effect of general anesthetics and addiction to alcohol, nicotine and cocaine.
ANN ARBOR, Michigan.— Los científicos de la Universidad de Michigan han proporcionado la imagen más detallada de una proteína accesoria clave del virus de inmunodeficiencia humana (VIH) que burla la respuesta normal de inmunidad del cuerpo. Sobre la base de estas conclusiones, que se publican en Internet en la revista PLoS Pathogens, el equipo busca nuevos compuestos que permitan que, algún día, las personas infectadas obtengan cura y no necesiten ya más los medicamentos contra el SIDA por el resto de su vida.
UM Scientists unmask a key protein in HIV, opening the door to a new generation of powerful drugs againts AIDS
Nuevos descubrimientos en la UM sobre la forma en que el VIH elude el sistema de inmunidad podrían eliminar, un día, la necesidad de tomar medicamentos antivirales por toda la vida.
