Biosynthesis pathway of a new DNA nucleobase elucidated
DNA is composed of nucleobases represented by the letters A, T, G and C. They form the basis of the genetic code and are present in all living beings. But in a bacteriophage, another base, represented by the letter Z, exists. This exception, the only.....»»
Sweet marine particles resist hungry bacteria
A major pathway for carbon sequestration in the ocean is the growth, aggregation and sinking of phytoplankton—unicellular microalgae like diatoms. Just like plants on land, phytoplankton sequester carbon from atmospheric carbon dioxide. When algae.....»»
Early step toward leukemia drug therapy
The team has discovered that for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients, there is a dopamine receptor pathway that becomes abnormally activated in the cancer stem cells. This inspired the clinical investigation of a dopamine receptor-inhibiting drug t.....»»
TB study reveals potential targets to treat and control infection
Researchers may have found a new pathway to treat and control tuberculosis (TB), the disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). Using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNAseq), a next-generation sequencing technology, scientists were able to fur.....»»
Targeting Nsp1 protein could be a pathway for COVID-19 therapy
A study that identifies how a coronavirus protein called Nsp1 blocks the activity of genes that promote viral replication provides hope for new COVID-19 treatments......»»
Cheap, potent pathway to pandemic therapeutics
By capitalizing on a convergence of chemical, biological and artificial intelligence advances, scientists have developed an unusually fast and efficient method for discovering tiny antibody fragments with big potential for development into therapeuti.....»»
Ebola is a master of disguise
Ebola is so pernicious because it pulls a fast one on the body, disguising itself as a dying cell. A study identifies a pathway that all filoviruses use to gain entry into our cells -- and shows how they can be stopped in their tracks by at least one.....»»
Scientists find new mechanism to keep cell death pathway suppressed
A research group led by Prof. Hiroyasu Nakano at the Department of Biochemistry, Toho University Faculty of Medicine, identified Mind bomb-2 (MIB2) as an enzyme that ubiquitinates and modifies the protein cFLIP, which plays a central role in suppress.....»»
Synthesis of potent antibiotic follows unusual chemical pathway
Images of a protein involved in creating a potent antibiotic reveal the unusual first steps of the antibiotic's synthesis. The improved understanding of the chemistry behind this process, detailed in a new study led by Penn State chemists, could allo.....»»
Why Cancer Cells Waste So Much Energy
MIT News: In the 1920s, German chemist Otto Warburg discovered that cancer cells don't metabolize sugar the same way that healthy cells usually do. Since then, scientists have tried to figure out why cancer cells use this alternative pathway, which i.....»»
How plants produce defensive toxins without harming themselves
Plants produce toxic substances to defend themselves against herbivores. In a new study, scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena and the University of Münster, Germany, were able to describe in detail the biosynthesis a.....»»
Expanding the biosynthetic pathway via retrobiosynthesis
KAIST metabolic engineers present the bio-based production of multiple short-chain primary amines that have a wide range of applications in chemical industries for the first time. The research team led by Distinguished Professor Sang Yup Lee from the.....»»
The liverwort oil body is formed by redirection of the secretory pathway
Cells, the basic unit of life, are surrounded by a limiting membrane called the plasma membrane. Inside cells, there are various membrane-bounded organelles, each of which has various and distinctive functions. How these organelles, which individuall.....»»
New discovery opens novel pathway for high-titer production of drop-in biofuels
A special light-dependent enzyme, which was first discovered about three years ago, is the focal point in a new scientific discovery that enables high-yield production of drop-in biofuels from biomass......»»
Amazon asks judge to set aside Microsoft’s $10B DoD JEDI cloud contract win
It’s been more than two years since the Pentagon announced its $10 billion, decade long JEDI cloud contract, which was supposed to provide a pathway to technological modernization for U.S. armed forces. While Microsoft was awarded the contract.....»»