science newsletter: Science News SciGuru.com

Τρίτη 18 Μαρτίου 2014

Science News SciGuru.com

New Therapeutic Target Cathepsin B Gene Discovered for Alzheimer’s Disease
Fast synthesis of peptides could boost drug development
Contagious Yawning May Not Be Linked to Empathy; Still Largely Unexplained
Study finds that fast-moving cells in the human immune system walk in a stepwise manner

New Therapeutic Target Cathepsin B Gene Discovered for Alzheimer’s Disease

Posted: 17 Mar 2014 10:42 AM PDT

A team of scientists from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, the Medical University of South Carolina and San Diego-based American Life Science Pharmaceuticals, Inc., report that cathepsin B gene knockout or its reduction by an enzyme inhibitor blocks creation of key neurotoxic pGlu-Aβ peptides linked to Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Moreover, the candidate inhibitor drug has been shown to be safe in humans.

Fast synthesis of peptides could boost drug development

Posted: 17 Mar 2014 10:36 AM PDT

Small protein fragments, also called peptides, are promising as drugs because they can be designed for very specific functions inside living cells. Insulin and the HIV drug Fuzeon are some of the earliest successful examples, and peptide drugs are expected to become a $25 billion market by 2018.

However, a major bottleneck has prevented peptide drugs from reaching their full potential: Manufacturing the peptides takes several weeks, making it difficult to obtain large quantities, and to rapidly test their effectiveness.

Contagious Yawning May Not Be Linked to Empathy; Still Largely Unexplained

Posted: 17 Mar 2014 08:07 AM PDT

While previous studies have suggested a connection between contagious yawning and empathy, new research from the Duke Center for Human Genome Variation finds that contagious yawning may decrease with age and is not strongly related to variables like empathy, tiredness and energy levels.

The study, published March 14 in the journal PLOS ONE, is the most comprehensive look at factors influencing contagious yawning to date.

Study finds that fast-moving cells in the human immune system walk in a stepwise manner

Posted: 17 Mar 2014 08:00 AM PDT

A team of biologists and engineers at the University of California, San Diego has discovered that white blood cells, which repair damaged tissue as part of the body's immune response, move to inflamed sites by walking in a stepwise manner. The cells periodically form and break adhesions mainly under two "feet," and generate the traction forces that propel them forward by the coordinated action of contractile proteins.