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Tag: "channels" at biology news

New mechanism underlying pain found

...an increase in the activity of these pacemaker ion channels and the resulting transmission of pain signals to ...eem to disrupt this rhythmic transmission." Ion channels are openings that exist within a cell that allow the passage of certain ions into a cell to regulate...

MIT designs portable 'lab on a chip'

...biological fluids such as blood are pumped through channels about 10 microns, or millionths of a meter, wide. (A red blood cell is about 8 microns in diameter.) Each channel has its own pumps, which direct the fluids to certain areas of the chip so they can be tested for the presence of specific molecules. ...

Critical hearing gene helps send auditory messages to brain

..., she said. When an inner hair cell is stimulated, channels open up allowing calcium to flow in. In turn, that influx of calcium leads small "sacs" full of neurotransmitter to fuse with the cell membrane, releasing their contents into the space, or synapse, between the sensory cells and auditory nerve endings...

New biochip helps study living cells, may speed drug development

...d their different effects on ion channels. Ion channels are particularly important in muscle and nerve cel...ams more data than patch-clamping, he said. Ion channels and pumps establish a difference in electrical potential across a cell's membrane, which cells use t...

Steep oxygen decline halted first land colonization by Earth's sea creatures

...ture, he said, but it turns out the shell actually channels water across the gill to deliver oxygen. "An unshelled mollusk has a far greater respiratory problem than a shelled mollusk," Ward said. "In many groups the shell is an active part of the respiratory system." ...

Researchers add to understanding of how brain cells communicate

... that the magnesium ion, which strongly blocks the channels of NR1/2A receptors, flows much more easily in NR1/2D receptors. In those receptors, magnesium acts more like a "permeant" ion, which means it can flow through the channel without getting stuck in the middle. In addition to computer modeling, the r...

New mechanism explains glucose effect on wakefulness

...ave discovered a role for a class of potassium ion channels whose role has remained largely unknown. Such ion channels are porelike proteins in the cell membrane that affect cellular responses by controlling the flow of...

Beaver dams create healthy downstream ecosystems

...ionally, beaver dams built away from natural river channels further redirect water across the valley, enhancing the depth, extent, and duration of inundation associated with smaller floods; they also elevate the water table to sustain plant and animal life during the dry summer season. "This study broadens t...

Surprising symbiosis: Glassy-winged sharpshooter eats with friends

...adellinicola and Sulcia muelleri. The sharpshooter channels the sweets from sap to the bacteria, which in turn feed the insect vitamins, cofactors, and essential amino acids. "Much as mosquitoes transmit malaria, the sharpshooter transmits plant disease, including Pierce's disease, which threatens vineyards...

UBC researchers find stroke death channel

...ever, therapeutic strategies targeted at glutamate channels failed to prevent brain cell death. "Our discovery was unexpected ?we're now going to change channels and pursue a completely different research direction," says MacVicar, Canada Research Chair in Neuro...

Biological motors sort molecules one by one on a chip

... the motors of biological cells in extremely small channels on a chip. Based on this, they built a transport s...k contained a third interesting aspect. The closed channels offered the possibility to observe the electrical transport of freely suspended microtubules, thus p...

Triple threat polymer captures and releases

...st partition into another domain. "We have these channels to serve as capillaries to take in guest molecules...id. "But in our case, because our sponge and the channels within it are essentially nanoscopic, the water cannot get out, at least not fast enough to allow f...

Scientists solve sour taste proteins

...he membranes of taste cells, Matsunami said. These channels in turn control the flow of calcium ions, or elect...chemicals to identify which stimuli caused the ion channels to open. To visualize the presence of calcium ions in the cell, the scientists loaded the cells with...

Combined treatment extends life expectancy for lung cancer patients

...er, if some cancerous cells have spread into small channels of the lung around the tumor, they tend to be small and not visible on a radiology scan. Thermal ablation, which sends electrical current into the tumor, may not penetrate far enough into the lung to kill these areas of cancer. When the two therapi...

Gatekeeping: Penn researchers find new way to open ion channels in cell membranes

...a new paradigm for understanding the gating of ion channels and lays the conceptual groundwork for designing n...vity in medical intervention. Voltage-gated ion channels are embedded in the cell membranes of most types of cells. It has been known for over half a century...

Even a little cooling helps after cardiac arrest

...ct, which could include activities such as digging channels or removing non-native plants, the biologists believe that wetlands managers will have a tool for gauging restoration success and its gaps. If, for example, a certain trematode species is missing, it could indicate that its hosts are lacking appropr...

How healthy is that marsh? Biologists count parasites

...ct, which could include activities such as digging channels or removing non-native plants, the biologists believe that wetlands managers will have a tool for gauging restoration success and its gaps. If, for example, a certain trematode species is missing, it could indicate that its hosts are lacking appropr...

UC Davis researchers move biotechnology closer to replacing electronic pacemakers

...aintaining a normal, evenly paced heartbeat. These channels control the flow of sodium and potassium ions in a...te the electrical impulses of the heart. "These channels are critical to normal heart function. We were able to make one protein that codes for a single chan...

Finding a better way to make biodiesel

...h the particles are honeycombs of relatively large channels that can be filled with a catalyst that reacts wit...eepers that encourage the soybean oil to enter the channels where chemical reactions take place. The results include faster conversion to biodiesel, a catalyst ...

Neuronal cell cultures kept on the straight and narrow

...n better, according to the NIST team, microfluidic channels can be used to lay down the PEM coating in patterned lines just a few micrometers wide. Neuronal cells will largely confine themselves to the pattern, enabling a variety of cell-geometry experiments, such as measuring the maximum gap between lines th...

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