Toxin in Biological News

Nanoparticle-delivered 'suicide' genes slowed ovarian tumor growth

... delivery of a DNA encoding diphtheria toxin suicide gene. These nanoparticles were injected ... as scientists were able to deliver diphtheria toxin genes, using a nanoparticle, to the actual tumor ... selective activity in the cancer cells (how the toxin genes were regulated once inside the cells). ...

Scientists report first remote, underwater detection of harmful algae, toxins

... detection of a harmful algal species and its toxin below the ocean's surface. The achievement was ... for organism identification as well as the toxin needed to assess the risk to humans and wildlife. ... molecular-based measurements of species and toxin abundance, and transmits results to the ...

Monash scientists debug superbug

... accepted scientific belief, our results show that toxin B, which was considered the less important toxin is actually the toxin that causes disease," Professor Rood said. ...

NYU scientists discover dangerous new method for bacterial toxin transfer

... parasites as secret pipelines for transferring toxin genes to vastly different bacterial species. ... species could engage in phage-mediated toxin gene transfer. "We happened to be looking at ... nasty toxic shock toxin. As far as we know, this toxin is produced only by Staphylococcus aureus. No ...

Brown chemist finds gray mold's killer gene

... its target in a velvety vise, releasing a toxin that poisons the host plants' cells, eventually ... Spain, has figured out how the fungus's deadly toxin is made and how it might be disarmed naturally. ... identified the set of genes that manufactures the toxin and in particular the central gene the fungus ...

Scripps research scientists identify blood component that turns bacteria virulent

... dioxide and sodium bicarbonate strongly induced toxin production in the laboratory setting. The ... "It was observed that the best medium for toxin production was one that people believed mimicked ... inside the cell greatly decreased, induction of toxin gene expression did not occur, and virulence in ...

Jefferson scientists deliver toxic genes to effectively kill pancreatic cancer cells

... to successfully deliver a deadly diphtheria toxin gene. The findings set to be published in the ... researchers found that delivery of a diphtheria toxin gene inhibited a basic function of pancreatic ... tumors following treatment with diphtheria toxin nanoparticles. The strategy is based on the ...

New 'chemical radar' among national security innovations in ACS podcast

... include biological agents such as botulism toxin and infectious agents such as anthrax and ... detection method for ricin, a dangerous plant toxin found in castor beans with no known antidote. ... produced annually, a potential source of the toxin is readily available. The test detects minute ...

Aerosol toxins from red tides may cause long-term health threat

... Environmental Health Perspectives that an algal toxin commonly inhaled in sea spray, attacks and ... document how the body's way of disposing the toxin inadvertently converts it to a molecule that ... DNA, NOAA scientists analyzed the DNA after the toxin was metabolized in the lung. Scientists have not ...

Researchers develop new ultrasensitive assay to detect most poisonous substance known

... assay to detect botulinum neurotoxin. The toxin is one of the most poisonous substances known ... Clostridium botulinum. When ingested, the toxin disables nerve function and can result in ... production and transport. One gram of botulinum toxin could kill more than 1 million people, according ...

Scientists determine drug target for the most potent botulinum neurotoxin

... toxin. They have found that they can trick the toxin to bypass its normal binding protein, thereby ... membrane, which curves inward, incorporating the toxin into a vesicle that drifts inside the cell. The toxin eventually travels from the vesicle to the ...

Underwater microscope helps prevent shellfish poisoning along Gulf Coast of Texas

... Dinophysis acuminata produces okadaic acid, a toxin that accumulates in shellfish tissues and can ... and diarrhea. Cooking does not destroy the toxin in the shellfish. The Imaging FlowCytobot, ... collected oyster samples and sent them for toxin analysis at a U.S. Food and Drug Administration ...

Defining gene's role may lead to prevention of dangerous corn toxin

... of corn and development of a potentially deadly toxin in the kernels may lead to ways to control the ... fungus growing on corn kernels. Production of the toxin decreased when the scientists disabled the gene. At certain levels, the toxin can cause illness in humans and most domestic ...

Insecticide combo delivers knockout punch

... on plants genetically modified to produce Bt, the toxin binds to chemical receptors lining the insects' ... pests from developing resistance and make the toxin more effective. "This protein, which we ... Genetically modified crops that produce the Bt toxin have managed to check the insects to some extent ...

Humans not the major target of Shiga toxin

... Washington, D.C. -- If youve survived Shiga toxin and the after-effects of food poisoning, you may ... a virus (a bacteriophage) that packs the Shiga toxin gene (Stx) may depend on it for protection from ... bacteria can produce large amounts of the Shiga toxin and release it into the surrounding environment. ...

Study on toxin that tainted spinach reveals treatment possibility

... that may explain the evolution of a lethal toxin is providing new information that could lead to ... hundreds more. The UB research on Shiga toxin Toxicity and Resistance in Tetrahymena, presented ... virus, some were induced to produce the toxin and kill the Tetrahymena. This allowed the ...

Genetic technology reveals how poisonous mushrooms cook up toxins

... of remarkably small genes that produce the toxin a unique pathway previously unknown in fungi. ... solves a mystery of how some mushrooms make the toxin but also sheds light on the underlying ... What they found was a gene that encodes the toxin directly with no need to first synthesize an ...

Developing kryptonite for Superbug

... the device so that it can provide a complete toxin profile of staph that will quickly reveal the ... the nanosensor CAMBR has developed to provide a toxin profile that will tell us very quickly, and very ... toxins, is key to creating a biosensor-generated toxin profile and insights into the virulence of ...

UD plant biologists uncover top wetland plant's hidden weapon

... as garlic mustard, Bais said. The roots exude a toxin that kills native plants. In laboratory ... chemicals. The scientists identified the toxin produced by Phragmites as 3,4,5-trihydroxybenzoic ... it on your skin, you definitely know it. The toxin works, Bais said, by targeting tubulin, the ...

Study shows genetically engineered corn could affect aquatic ecosystems

... that are related to the pests targeted by the toxin in Bt corn. Caddisflies, Royer said, "are a ... Bacillus thuringiensis, which produces a toxin that protects the crop from pests, in particular ... said, he and his colleagues wondered whether the toxin from Bt corn was getting into streams near ...

Does the victim affect snake venom composition?

... diversity. The researchers suggest that the toxin genes in sea snakes have remained relatively ... of feeding behaviour and diet. "We examine toxin genes of snakes to identify new toxins, some of ... Singapore. "A new anticoagulant or a hypotensive toxin may help us develop new cardiovascular drugs to ...

Curbing C. difficile's toxin production

... the hunger level of C. difficile, preventing toxin production when the bacteria have enough to eat. ... make the protein CodY, and compared the amount of toxin produced by the mutant strain of bacteria to the amount of toxin produced by normal bacteria. The mutant strain ...

MIT unraveling secrets of red tide

... tiny marine organisms likely produce the red tide toxin that periodically shuts down U.S. beaches and ... synthesizing just a few milligrams of red tide toxin or related compounds, using a non-cascade method, ... the cascade of reactions that leads to the toxin chain, known as a ladder polyether. "The trick ...

Transgenic maize is more susceptible to aphids

... from the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis. The toxin produced by these genes is very specific and only ... researchers rather think that by producing Bt toxin the plant's chemistry is otherwise altered. In ... energy resources for the production of the Bt toxin at the cost of producing substances that it ...

A thirst for blood sparks toxic algal blooms

... for one algal species to obtain exclusive rights on the effect of a toxin that inhibits competitors. The production of the toxin must be explained by other factors. Kills competators Marine ...

Mass Biologic Labs/UMass Med School and Medarex license C. difficile monoclonal antibody to Merck

... were developed by MBL and Medarex to target and neutralize the effects of toxin A and toxin B, respectively, the toxins produced by the bacterium C. difficile and ...

Tips from the American Journal of Pathology

... disease hippocampus. Am J Pathol 2009, 174: 1241-1251 Bacterial toxin Leads to Systemic Infection A group led by Dr. Michael Klapproth at ... entering the blood and causing systemic infection. Lymphostatin, a toxin produced by gram negative bacteria including E. coli and C. rodentium , ...

Cause of mussel poisoning identified

... been identified after a search for more than a decade. The azaspiracid toxin group can cause severe poisoning in human consumers of mussels after ... Netherlands in 1995 after consumption of mussels from Ireland. While the toxin itself has been quite well investigated, the question of the origin ...

ETH Zurich study on salmonella self-destruction

... the bacteria sacrifice themselves - if this is the sole method to get the toxin out of the cell. This is why every cell makes a decision: toxin and death or no toxin. He stresses that it would not have been possible ...

Domoic acid from toxic algal blooms may cause seizures in California sea lions

... The results, analyzed across multiple animal species, point to the toxin as a cause for behavioral changes and epilepsy that does not become ... the sea lion diet. Exposure during pregnancy concentrates the domoic acid toxin in the mother's amniotic fluid, which normally protects and aids in the ...

Using carbon nanotubes to seek and destroy anthrax toxin and other harmful proteins

... The group demonstrated this method by successfully deactivating anthrax toxin and other proteins. By attaching peptides to carbon nanotubes, we gave ... to selectively recognize a protein of interest in this case anthrax toxin from a mixture of different proteins, Kane said. Then, by exposing the ...

American Chemical Society's Weekly PressPac -- Oct. 31, 2007

... form of mass spectrometry to detect the presence of lethal factor, the key toxin produced by the anthrax bug, in the blood of monkeys with inhalation anthrax. The method took only four hours to identify the toxin and detected it at very low levels, demonstrating its potential for early ...

Decoding effects of toxins on embryo development

... access journal Genome Biology. The genetic response of zebrafish to each toxin can be read like a barcode, offering researchers a potential method for identifying the effects of the toxin on developing vertebrate embryos. Zebrafish embryos were exposed to ...

Genetically engineered corn may harm stream ecosystems

... the soil. Licensed for use in 1996, Bt corn is engineered to produce a toxin that protects against pests, particularly the European corn borer. Bt ... the caddisflies are eating Bt corn pollen, these results "suggest that the toxin in Bt corn pollen and detritus can affect species of insects other than ...

Mixing large doses of both acetaminophen painkiller and caffeine may increase risk of liver damage

... that the enzyme produces while breaking down acetaminophen. This same toxin is responsible for liver damage and failure in toxic alcohol-acetaminophen ... trigger the production of yet another liver enzyme that produces the liver toxin NAPQI. The risks are also higher for those who take large amounts of ...

Bleeding, not inflammation, is major cause of early lung infection death

... 23 in the journal Immunity. The study reveals for the first time that a toxin released by bacteria causes severe bleeding in the lungs by patients with ... died. The newly published study reveals for the first time that a toxin released by S. pneumoniae causes severe bleeding in the lungs. Normally, ...

Toxin detection as close as an inkjet printer

... paper. When the enzyme is exposed to a toxin, reporter molecules in the ink change colour in a manner that is dependent on the concentration of the toxin in the sample. This simple and cost-effective method of adhering biochemical reagents to paper is expected to bring the concept of bioactive ...

The tiny difference in the genes of bacteria

... not all Vibrio cholerae strains are pathogenic to humans. Only those strains cause severe diarrhoea known as Cholera that produce a certain bacterial toxin which attacks the intestinal wall. A less known, though also dangerous member of the genus Vibrio, is Vibrio parahaemolyticus. It is a highly ...

The tiny difference in the genes of bacteria

... not all Vibrio cholerae strains are pathogenic to humans. Only those strains cause severe diarrhoea known as Cholera that produce a certain bacterial toxin which attacks the intestinal wall. A less known, though also dangerous member of the genus Vibrio, is Vibrio parahaemolyticus. It is a highly ...

Researchers from around the globe coming to K-State June 21 for workshop on Fusarium fungus

... begin to tell those species apart with the DNA-based techniques, the breeding programs to look for resistance and the screening programs to look for toxin production become much more efficient because strategies are more focused." The ability to screen for a particular species, or even a specific ...