Navigation Links
Spiders help scientists discover how muscles relax

laments are activated."

The details of their model permitted the researchers to explain how, in relaxed muscle, the heads of each myosin molecule are inhibited from interacting with actin by interacting with each other instead. When muscle is activated, they suggest, the bonds between the myosin heads are broken. This frees each head to interact with actin and cause muscle contraction.

"We have focused on the relaxed muscle to understand the structure of the thick filaments when they are not involved in contraction, but rather fully ordered--a state more amenable to understanding their structure," Padron said. "Solving the structure of the relaxed state will allow us to investigate how these filaments are activated when they are switched on."

The scientists were surprised to find that the atomic structure of isolated myosin molecules from vertebrate smooth muscle--the type of muscle found in the digestive tract, bladder, arteries, and veins--closely matched their invertebrate striated muscle myosin filament. Kenneth Taylor's research group at Florida State University reported the atomic structure of the smooth muscle myosin molecules.

The similarity suggests, Padron said, that the interacting head structure may be common to relaxed-state myosin for smooth and striated muscle and among varied species. "This model is applicable across the whole animal kingdom and all muscle types, and that's exciting," he remarked.

Padron said he hopes to apply the research to muscle diseases that arise from malfunctioning of the muscles' on/off switches. One such disease is hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, in which the wall of the left ventricle of the heart becomes enlarged, causing sudden death. It is caused by mutations in certain genes that encode several muscle proteins--some of which are related specifically to the myosin that Padron studies.


'"/>

Source:Howard Hughes Medical Institute


Page: 1 2 3

Related biology news :

1. Wisconsin scientists grow critical nerve cells
2. UCSB scientists probe sea floor venting to gain understanding of early life on Earth
3. UAB scientists discover the origin of a mysterious physical force
4. Fox Chase Cancer Center scientists identify immune-system mutation
5. Weizmann Institute scientists develop a new approach for directing treatment to metastasized prostate cancer in the bones.
6. U-M scientists find genes that control growth of common skin cancer
7. UCLA scientists transform HIV into cancer-seeking missile
8. RNA project to create language for scientists worldwide
9. Carnegie Mellon scientists develop tool that uses MRI to visualize gene expression in living animals
10. To control germs, scientists deploy tiny agents provocateurs
11. Leprosy microbes lead scientists to immune discovery
Post Your Comments:
(Date:5/12/2008)...harmful effects of marijuana (MJ) include risk for... learning and memory. The active chemical in MJ ca...d to exert these effects by binding to cannabinoid...arious organs. Scientists have found CB receptors... kidney, and spleen. In this study, researchers i...
(Date:5/12/2008)...portant step toward demystifying the role protein ...e disease, researchers have created a stunning thr...gregate using electron microscopy. The study, in t... Academy of Sciences, reports that researchers fro...eibniz Institut in Jena, Germany, have shownfor th...
(Date:5/12/2008)...ttractive male birds attract more females and as a...on. This is the starting point of many studies loo...n birds. However, is it reasonable to assume that ... latest issue of American Naturalist, Uppsala rese...ate instrument. , The results mean that many stu...
(Date:5/12/2008)...roject (RevGenUK) is being launched at the John In...nd how plants grow. , This knowledge can be use...se conditions or to grow more sustainably with red...ant of 1 million from the Biotechnology and Biolog...t builds on the JICs expertise in TILLING, a techn...
Breaking Biology News(10 mins):Seeing Alzheimer's amyloids 2Human vision inadequate for research on bird vision 2Earth from Space 3A Splitting iceberg 14407 1Wal Mart Saves Customers More Than 241 Billion On Prescription Drugs 14404 1Wal Mart Saves Customers More Than 241 Billion On Prescription Drugs 14404 2Anxiety Helps Elderly Women Live Longer 14402 1Anxiety Helps Elderly Women Live Longer 14402 2Colorado Youth Named National Epilepsy Spokesperson 14397 1Colorado Youth Named National Epilepsy Spokesperson 14397 2
...ural ingredient of human blood that effectively bl...r human AIDS, from infecting immune cells and mult...e progression of HIV to full-blown AIDS and—becaus...troviral inhibitors—could lead to the development ... pandemic disease, researchers reported in the Apr...
...aturally occurring compounds called flavanols may ...function and chart the course for future research ...gnitive decline and dementia, according to a panel...l meeting of the American Association for the Adva...st that consumption of a special cocoa made to be ...
...rofessor of biology at the University of Californi...e of technologies in molecular biology to assess c...tes at the annual meeting of the American Associat...o on Sunday, Feb. 18. , Her research centers on ...ne ecosystems. The main focus will be on finding w...
...007, issue of the journal Neuron, published by Cel...rocesses numerical information--both abstract quan...ls. The researches said their findings will contri...titative information as well as lead to studies of...s in children. Such studies could aid in rehabilit...
Other Biology News:Discovery of an HIV inhibitor in human blood points to new drug class 2Discovery of an HIV inhibitor in human blood points to new drug class 3Flavanols in cocoa may offer benefits to the brain 2Flavanols in cocoa may offer benefits to the brain 3Studies yield insight into the numerical brain 2Studies yield insight into the numerical brain 3Studies yield insight into the numerical brain 4
(Date:5/13/2008)...PORE, May 13 /- S*BIO Pte Ltd today a...n (FDA) has granted orphan drug,designation to SB1...or the,treatment of myeloproliferative disorders (...view of preclinical data which demonstrated excell...mbined with very good,tolerability of the JAK2 inh...
(Date:5/12/2008)...ORK, May 13 /- Johnson & Johnson toda... FAA, FRS and Emeritus Professor Sir,Ravinder N. M...of,Rheumatology, Imperial College London have been... Award for Biomedical Research by an independent,s... The award salutes the most passionate and creativ...
(Date:5/12/2008)...OT, Israel, May 12 /- Meditor Pharmac...rof. Arie Schachner to serve as a,Senior Medical A...member of Meditor,s Scientific Advisory Board,sinc... Clinical Development,program., Prof. Schachner w...artment at Wolfson Medical Center and Tel Aviv Uni...
(Date:5/12/2008)...AIN VIEW, Calif., May 12 /-...orted today financial results for,its fiscal quart...the,Company,s progress with its product candidates...as reported in accordance with accounting principl... was $14.6 million, compared,to a net loss of $10....
Breaking Biology Technology:S*BIO Receives Orphan Drug Designation for JAK2 Inhibitor SB1518 for the Treatment of Myeloproliferative Disorders 2Professors Marc Feldmann and Sir Ravinder Maini Named Winners of the 2008 Dr. Paul Janssen Award for Biomedical Research 2Professors Marc Feldmann and Sir Ravinder Maini Named Winners of the 2008 Dr. Paul Janssen Award for Biomedical Research 3Professors Marc Feldmann and Sir Ravinder Maini Named Winners of the 2008 Dr. Paul Janssen Award for Biomedical Research 4Two New Appointments at Meditor Pharmaceuticals Ltd. 2Alexza Reports 2008 First Quarter Financial Results and Updates Development of Product Candidates 2Alexza Reports 2008 First Quarter Financial Results and Updates Development of Product Candidates 3Alexza Reports 2008 First Quarter Financial Results and Updates Development of Product Candidates 4Alexza Reports 2008 First Quarter Financial Results and Updates Development of Product Candidates 5Alexza Reports 2008 First Quarter Financial Results and Updates Development of Product Candidates 6Alexza Reports 2008 First Quarter Financial Results and Updates Development of Product Candidates 7Alexza Reports 2008 First Quarter Financial Results and Updates Development of Product Candidates 8Alexza Reports 2008 First Quarter Financial Results and Updates Development of Product Candidates 9Alexza Reports 2008 First Quarter Financial Results and Updates Development of Product Candidates 10
...Madison, Wis. - Following the announcement of inc...a provider of rich-media technology, once again pr...r of 2006, with full year profitability projected ...d CFO Ken Minor released upbeat results for Sonic ...ference utilizing the company,s synchronized web p...
..."Leading IT," a new WTN column by Geoff Bastow ...ion,s information technology community, including:... leading IT CEOs and CTOs, and technology trends ...g capital. , , M ilwaukee, Wis. - At the d...manic growth to its peak in March of 2000, Kenosha...
...Madison, Wis. - Ravi Kalla is more than the CEO o...h offices in Madison and India, he is pretty well ...ware, and as a member of Gov. Jim Doyle,s eHealth...ing at the implementation of electronic health rec...ntation is just a couple of years away, he has som...
...Chippewa Valley, Wis. - A new combination of tech...sts and editors in publishing, broadcasting, and g...d other large volumes of uncompressed data. , ,The...hese creative-content industries an affordable net...for specialized data transfer tasks. , ,The soluti...
Other Biology Technology:Sonic closer to turning profit corner 2Sonic closer to turning profit corner 3Sonic closer to turning profit corner 4Leadership insights from co-founder of Yesmail 2Leadership insights from co-founder of Yesmail 3Leadership insights from co-founder of Yesmail 4Leadership insights from co-founder of Yesmail 5Kalla: Have patience with electronic health records 2Kalla: Have patience with electronic health records 3Kalla: Have patience with electronic health records 4Kalla: Have patience with electronic health records 5Small Tree branches out with affordable video 2
... The VSN-5 Nutating Mixer is a combination of an o...mensional action while providing gentle, thorough ...n be used for a variety of applications including ...e, immunoblots, staining/destaining, chromatograph...
... The FastPlax Titer Kit is designed for determinat...ad of 46 days as in other methods. Classical deter...pearance of plaques, but the FastPlax Kit takes ad...AcNPV gp64 glycoprotein on the cell surface as ear...
... The Biometra TProfessional Thermocycler combines ... silver block achieves high speed and unparalleled...graphical display providing programming in a sprea...igh Performance Smart Lid opens on the push of a b...
iQ Imaging Software from Andor Technology
Biology Products: