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Tag: "membrane" at biology news

Drug That 'Tags' Decision-making Areas Of The Brain May Aid

...other disorders. Nicotine acts by opening specific membrane proteins,called nicotinic receptors, and changing the electrical properties ofthe cell. The human brain coordinates billions of neurons to mediatecomplex behaviors such as an infant learning to recognize his or herparents, a senior citizen learning t...

Elusive HIV shape change revealed; Key clue to how virus infects cells

... gp41, to begin a set of actions that enable HIV's membrane to fuse with the target cell's membrane. This fusion of membranes allows HIV to enter the cell and begin replicating. The structure of gp120 after it binds to the CD4 receptor and changes its shape was solved several years ago by another group. Harr...

Genome of deadly amoeba shows surprising complexity, evidence of lateral gene transfer

...f more complex organisms. For example, a family of membrane receptors appears to be one of the mechanisms by which the parasite senses the presence of its human host and translates environmental cues into signaling events, which are processed by the parasite. Another unusual feature of the genome is the pres...

Tiny particles could solve billion-dollar problem

... include a cylindrical pump containing a catalytic membrane of the gold-palladium nanoparticles. The device would be placed down existing wells where it would pump water through continuously, breaking TCE into non-toxic components. Cost is the primary hurdle to cleaning up TCE-polluted groundwater. CBEN's te...

Researchers Uncover Key Step In Manufacture of Memory Protein

...golgi apparatus, where it leached through the cell membrane without first having been converted to active mBDNF. Because they cannot make mBDNF, CPE-deficient mice have poor long-term memory. Dr. Loh added that, in the near future, an understanding of the chemical mechanism she and her colleagues deciphered ...

Bound for destruction: Ubiquitination protects against improper Notch signaling

...protein that extendsthrough both sides of the cell membrane and which is capable ofinteracting with a ligand p...pes oftransmembrane proteins. Proteins in the cell membrane must first beinternalized through a process known as endocytosis before they can bedigested by the p...

Sea skate experiment sheds light on human cell transport

... cell membrane. The vesicles are inserted into the membrane and a chemical process known as phosphorylation takes place. This activates the gates, which open to release excess water along with salts and other organic material. The researchers made their discovery by using a plant-based substance to block an ...

Purdue proves concept of using nano-materials for drug discovery

...est chambers. Each chamber would be covered with a membrane containing the proteins, and the chambers could th...pt is fairly simple - there is an inorganic porous membrane - in this case alumina, which separates the reaction chamber from a solution. The pores in this memb...

Researchers identify target for cancer drugs

...eeps Akt in check by destroying lipids in the cell membrane that normally draw Akt to the surface. In a sense,...ion, Akt breaks free. It makes its way to the cell membrane where other proteins activate it, thereby enabling Akt to contribute to tumor growth. "When a cell l...

Probing The Promise And Perils Of Nanoparticles

... the same permeability and, in general, they cause membrane destruction as well," said Banaszak Holl. Neutral polymers, however, did not damage membranes. Both Leroueil's work and the earlier research used model membranes to probe the effects of nanoparticles. Now, the research group is exploring their inter...

Nano-Probes Allow an Inside Look at Cell Nuclei

...smuggle this nanocrystal past the highly selective membrane that guards the entrance into the nucleus. In natu...nside a cell, but getting them through the nuclear membrane is very difficult," says Chen. "So we learned from the virus." So far, Chen and Gerion have been ab...

Newly Discovered Compound Blocks Known Cancer-Causing Protein

... unchecked growth. "Ras needs to be at the plasma membrane in order to function," he said. "By preventing Icmt from adding a methyl group, we can effectively shut down Ras' ability to function, stopping it from sending signals for uncontrolled growth." Initial experiments showed that knocking out the Icmt p...

New methods of gene delivery using lasers

...branes for a fraction of a second ?this causes the membrane to open up, allowing foreign genes to enter. The cell’s internal mechanism causes the membrane of the cell to heal itself thus appearing to suffer no long-lasting damage. After inserting the gene...

The Bacteria's guide to survival

...hat an artificial mechanical pull on the host cell membrane could trigger a signaling cascade in the host cells to affect the host's gene expression. Many of the genes that increased in activity due to the tugs were already known to regulate apoptosis and cellular response to stress, including mechanical str...

Scientists discover that host cell lipids facilitate bacterial movement

...h the bacterium against the membrane, forming long membrane projections called filopodia. These filopodia push... to spread from cell to cell." In most cells, two membrane lipids, PIP2 and PIP3, are associated with the formation of new actin filaments. PIP3 is synthesized...

Scientists solve structure of key protein in innate immune response

...ysaccharide (LPS), a glycolipid found on the outer membrane of certain bacteria. Once CD14 binds to LPS or another ligand, it presents the molecule to other proteins which initiate a strong pro-inflammatory response that stimulates host defenses. "Macrophages and monocytes can recognize distinct structural p...

Self-assembled nano-sized probes allow Penn researchers to see tumors through flesh and skin

...ulti-porphyrin fluorophores within the polymersome membrane can be used to optically image tissue structures d...c co-polymers. Like a living cell, the polymersome membrane has a hydrophobic core. The study shows that the fluorophores evenly disperse within this core, givi...

Molecular Motors Cooperate In Moving Cellular Cargo, Study Shows

...ll to another. Dynein moves material from the cell membrane to the nucleus; kinesin moves material from the cell nucleus to the cell membrane. The little cargo transporters accomplish their task by stepping along filaments called microtubules. To measure such minuscule motion, Selvin and colleagues at Illino...

Hirsute Or Hairless? Two Proteins May Spell The Difference

...es showed that reducing expression of E-cadherin—a membrane protein that forms the adhesive junctions between ...n by allowing proteins normally sequestered at the membrane to operate in a proliferation pathway after the number of cellular junctions diminishes. By identify...

Wisconsin researchers identify sleep gene

...tional ion channel could not be formed on the cell membrane and potassium therefore could not flow through it....you won't get slow waves," Cirelli says. "The cell membrane will remain activated, preventing long periods of deep, non-REM sleep." The researchers say that th...

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