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Building molecular 'cages' to fight disease
First complete atlas of RNA-binding proteins could point to function of genes linked to diseases
Engineered Moss produces human hormone without doping activity
New Molecular Structure Offers First Picture of a Protein Family Vital to Human Health
Trio Share 2012 Kavli Prize in Neuroscience
Researchers identify promising biomarkers and new therapeutic targets for kidney cancer
Study finds TV can decrease self-esteem in children, except white boys
Study reports first success of targeted therapy in type of non-small cell lung cancer
Mapping vaccine for deadly pathogenic fungus
Discovery may help prevent vision loss with age
Researchers find natural trans fats enhance health
Emory contributes to first-ever index for drug resistance

Building molecular 'cages' to fight disease

Posted: 01 Jun 2012 05:14 AM PDT

UCLA biochemists have designed specialized proteins that assemble themselves to form tiny molecular cages hundreds of times smaller than a single cell. The creation of these miniature structures may be the first step toward developing new methods of drug delivery or even designing artificial vaccines.

First complete atlas of RNA-binding proteins could point to function of genes linked to diseases

Posted: 01 Jun 2012 05:01 AM PDT

In one of the most famous faux pas of exploration, Columbus set sail for India and instead ‘discovered’ America. Similarly, when scientists at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany, set out to find enzymes – the proteins that carry out chemical reactions inside cells – that bind to RNA, they too found more than they expected: 300 proteins previously unknown to bind to RNA – more than half as many as were already known to do so.

Engineered Moss produces human hormone without doping activity

Posted: 01 Jun 2012 04:54 AM PDT

Erythropoietin (EPO) is a human protein hormone that is predominantly produced in kidneys. It plays a major role in the formation of red blood cells, a process known as erythropoiesis. EPO is commonly used to treat and prevent anaemia in nephrology and cancer patients. Today this pharmaceutical is produced as recombinant human EPO in animal cell cultures, especially in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. EPO is the leading biopharmaceutical with a world-wide market of about ten billion Euro per year.

New Molecular Structure Offers First Picture of a Protein Family Vital to Human Health

Posted: 31 May 2012 12:43 PM PDT

The 20 proteins in the Wnt family are some of the most important proteins in controlling how an organism develops and grows, but for 30 years scientists have not known what these vital proteins actually look like. The proteins have eluded standard visualization techniques, in large part because they do not dissolve well in the water-based liquids normally used for biochemical studies. But once Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator K.

Trio Share 2012 Kavli Prize in Neuroscience

Posted: 31 May 2012 11:07 AM PDT

The Norwegian Academy of Sciences and Letters has awarded the 2012 Kavli Prize in Neuroscience to Cornelia Bargmann, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator at Rockefeller University, Winfried Denk, a senior fellow at the Janelia Farm Research Campus who is also at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research, and Ann M. Graybiel of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The three scientists, who are recognized for elucidating basic neuronal mechanisms underlying perception and decision, will share an award of one million dollars.

Researchers identify promising biomarkers and new therapeutic targets for kidney cancer

Posted: 31 May 2012 10:24 AM PDT

Using blood, urine and tissue analysis of a unique mouse model, a team led by UC Davis researchers has identified several proteins as diagnostic biomarkers and potential therapeutic targets for kidney cancer. Subject to follow-up validation testing, inhibition of these proteins and several related pathways holds promise as a form of therapy to slow the growth of kidney tumors.

Study finds TV can decrease self-esteem in children, except white boys

Posted: 31 May 2012 10:17 AM PDT

If you are a white girl, a black girl or a black boy, exposure to today's electronic media in the long run tends to make you feel worse about yourself. If you're a white boy, you'll feel better, according to a new study led by an Indiana University professor.

Nicole Martins, an assistant professor of telecommunications in the IU College of Arts and Sciences, and Kristen Harrison, professor of communication studies at the University of Michigan, also found that black children in their study spent, on average, an extra 10 hours a week watching television.

Study reports first success of targeted therapy in type of non-small cell lung cancer

Posted: 31 May 2012 10:02 AM PDT

A novel compound has become the first targeted therapy to benefit patients with the most common genetic subtype of lung cancer, an international clinical trial led by scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and other institutions will report at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) June 1-5 in Chicago.

Mapping vaccine for deadly pathogenic fungus

Posted: 31 May 2012 09:54 AM PDT

University of Alberta researchers have made breakthrough use of 3-D magnetic resonance technology to map the structure of a common fungus that is potentially deadly for individuals with impaired immune function. The work could pave the way for development of an effective vaccine.

The researchers targeted Candida, a pathogen that in its most virulent form has led to more than 70,000 bloodstream infections in North American hospital patients. Health officials estimate that death rate from this bloodstream infection is 40 per cent.

Discovery may help prevent vision loss with age

Posted: 31 May 2012 09:29 AM PDT

An omega-3 fatty acid found in fish, known as DHA, prevented age-related vision loss in lab tests, according to recent medical research from the University of Alberta.

Yves Sauvé, a researcher in the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, and his team discovered that lab models fed DHA did not accumulate a toxic molecule at the back of the eyes. The toxin normally builds up in the retina with age and causes vision loss.

Researchers find natural trans fats enhance health

Posted: 31 May 2012 09:25 AM PDT

Faculty of ALES researcher Spencer Proctor is joining with national and international colleagues to lead new insights into the health implications of different types of trans fat.

Emory contributes to first-ever index for drug resistance

Posted: 31 May 2012 09:11 AM PDT

For non-experts, reading antimicrobial resistance data is confusing because there are so many antibiotics. If one of these measurements increases, another decreases, and the rest stay the same, have things gotten better or worse? A single number would make it easier to explain to policy-makers, says Keith Klugman, William H. Foege Chair in Global Health and a leading expert on antibiotic resistance around the world.