Structure in Biological News

Enigmatic sea urchin structure catalogued

A comprehensive investigation into the axial complex of sea urchins ( Echinoidea ), an internal structure with unknown function, has shown that within that group of marine invertebrates there exists a structural evolutionary interdependence of various internal organs. The research, published in Bi...

First tri-continuous mesoporous Silica complex structure developed in Singapore

Singapore's Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN) has developed the first tri-continuous mesoporous material using a unique surfactant template. This completely new porous structure previously been predicted only mathematically (see reference below). In the current Nature Chemis...

Bird feathers produce color through structure similar to beer foam

New Haven, Conn. Some of the brightest colors in nature are created by tiny nanostructures with a structure similar to beer foam or a sponge, according to Yale University researchers. Most colors in naturefrom the color of our skin to the green of treesare produced by pigments. But the brig...

Scripps scientists find structure of a protein that makes cancer cells resistant to chemotherapy

A research team at the Scripps Research Institute has obtained the first glimpse of a protein that keeps certain substances, including many drugs, out of cells. The protein, called P-glycoprotein or P-gp for short, is one of the main reasons cancer cells are resistant to chemotherapy drugs. Unders...

The Prestige oil spill caused changes in the cell structure of mussels

This release is available in Spanish . The oil spill from the Prestige petroleum oil tanker in 2002 caused serious damage to the ecosystems in the Bay of Biscay. A PhD thesis at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) has studied the consequences of this spill for the mussels inh...

Protein structure determined in living cells

The function of a protein is determined both by its structure and by its interaction partners in the cell. Until now, proteins had to be isolated for analyzing them. An international team of researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University, Goethe University, and the Frankfurt Institute for Advanced...

Protein function and chromatin structure methods featured in Cold Spring Harbor Protocols

COLD SPRING HARBOR, N.Y. (Tues., March 3, 2009) Two new methods for analyzing the roles played by proteins in cells are featured in the March issue of Cold Spring Harbor Protocols ( www.cshprotocols.org/TOCs/toc3_09.dtl ). Thomas J. Wandless and colleagues from Stanford University ( http://w...

Scripps scientists create first crystal structure of an intermediate particle in virus assembly

The structure, described February 8 in an advance online publication of the journal Nature , provides fresh insights into the elegant dance that viral proteins perform to create the infectious structure that causes all manner of misery and disease, say researchers. While the virus they studied, H...

Long-sought protein structure may help reveal how 'gene switch' works

GAITHERSBURG, Md.The bacterium behind one of mankind's deadliest scourges, tuberculosis, is helping researchers at the Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) move closer to answering the decade...

Brain structure assists in immune response, according to Penn vet study

PHILADELPHIA - For the first time, a team of researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine have imaged in real time the body's immune response to a parasitic infection in the brain. The findings provide unexpected insights into how immune cells are regulated in the...

HWI scientist first in world to unravel structure of key breast cancer target enzyme

The molecular details of Aromatase, the key enzyme required for the body to make estrogen, are no longer a mystery thanks to the structural biology work done by the Ghosh lab at the Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute (HWI) in Buffalo, New York. Dr. Debashis Ghosh's solution of the three...

Brain structure provides key to unraveling function of bizarre dinosaur crests

ATHENS, Ohio (Oct. 16, 2008) Paleontologists have long debated the function of the strange, bony crests on the heads of the duck-billed dinosaurs known as lambeosaurs. The structures contain incredibly long, convoluted nasal passages that loop up over the tops of their skulls. Scientists at t...

Scripps research team solves structure of 'beneficial' virus

The 3-D structure of the virus, known as Seneca Valley Virus-001, reveals that it is unlike any other known member of the Picornaviridae viral family, and confirms its recent designation as a separate genus "Senecavirus." The new study reveals that the virus's outer protein shell looks like a crag...

The structure of the Mre11 protein bound to DNA

BERKELEY, CA Repairing breaks in the two strands of the DNA double helix is critical for avoiding cancer. In humans and other organisms, a molecular machine called the MRN complex is responsible for finding and signaling double-strand breaks (DSBs), then launching the error-free method of DNA rep...

Atomic structure of the mammalian 'fatty acid factory' determined

Mammalian fatty acid synthase is one of the most complex molecular synthetic machines in human cells. It is also a promising target for the development of anti-cancer and anti-obesity drugs and the treatment of metabolic disorders. Now researchers at ETH Zurich have determined the atomic structure...

Improved technique determines structure in membrane proteins

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. Understanding the form and function of certain proteins in the human body is becoming faster and easier, thanks to the work of researchers at the University of Illinois. By combining custom-built spectrometers, novel probe designs and faster pulse sequences, a team led by Illinoi...

Novel structure proteins could play a role in apoptosis

Isoforms from Novel Structure Proteins (NSP), a new family of genes discovered by researchers in the Sbarro Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine in Temple University's College of Science and Technology, could be involved in apoptosis or programmed cell death. NSPs were discove...

Scripps research scientists reveal key structure from ebola virus

Described in the July 10, 2008 issue of the journal Nature, the research reveals the shape of the Ebola virus spike protein, which is necessary for viral entry into human cells, bound to an immune system antibody acting to neutralize the virus. The structure provides a major step forward in unde...

Nature paper describes technique for extracting hierarchical structure of networks

Networks -- used throughout the sciences in the study of biological, technological, and social complexity -- can often be too complex to visualize or understand. In a May 1 Nature paper, Hierarchical structure and the prediction of missing links in networks, Santa Fe Institute (SFI) researchers...

Researchers reveal structure of protein that repairs damage to cancer cells

A team of University of Chicago scientists has shown how two proteins locate and repair damaged genetic material inside cells. One protein detects and repairs damage in malignant cells that may result from a certain type of cancer therapy. In a paper published in the April 24 issue of the journ...

Mass. General study shows how exercise changes structure and function of heart

For the first time researchers are beginning to understand exactly how various forms of exercise impact the heart. Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators, in collaboration with the Harvard University Health Services, have found that 90 days of vigorous athletic training produces signi...

Researchers 'see' structure of open nicotinic acetylcholine ion channels

The neurotransmitter acetylcholine is an essential chemical communicator, carrying impulses from neurons to skeletal muscle cells and many parts of the nervous system. Now researchers at the University of Illinois have painstakingly mapped the interior of a key component of the relay system that a...

Electronic structure of DNA revealed for 1st time by Hebrew University and collaborating researchers

Jerusalem, February 28, 2008 Utilizing a technique that combines low temperature measurements and theoretical calculations, Hebrew University of Jerusalem scientists and others have revealed for the first time the electronic structure of single DNA molecules. The knowledge of the electronic p...

Research at Argonne's Advanced Photon Source reveals structure and behavior of collagen

ARGONNE, Ill. (February 26, 2008) -- The structure and behavior of one of the most common proteins in our bodies has been resolved at a level of detail never before seen, thanks to new research performed at the Advanced Photon Source (APS) at the U.S. Department of Energys (DOE) Argonne National L...

Unique porous copper structure enables new generation of military micro-detonators

Tiny copper structures with pores at both the nanometer and micron size scales could play a key role in the next generation of detonators used to improve the reliability, reduce the size and lower the cost of certain military munitions. Developed by a team of scientists from the Georgia Tech ...

Scientists unveil structure of molecular target of many drugs

More than 40 years after beta blockers were first used clinically, scientists can finally get a detailed, three-dimensional look at the drugs molecular targetthe beta2-adrenergic receptor. This receptor hails from a family of proteins called G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) that control critica...

New research on structure of bones raises questions for treatment of osteoporosis

Researchers have discovered that the structure of human bones is vastly different than previously believed findings which will have implications for how some debilitating bone disorders are treated. Researchers from the University of Cambridge, the Animal Health Trust in Newmarket, and the BAM...

Unveiling the structure of microcrystals

Microcrystals take the form of tiny grains resembling powder, which is extremely difficult to study. For the first time, researchers from the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) and the Centre National de Recherche Scientifique used X-ray diffraction at the synchrotron to determine the ...

Scientists learn structure of enzyme in unusual virus

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Biologists have determined the three-dimensional structure of an unusual viral enzyme that is required in the assembly of new viruses. The Paramecium bursaria chlorella virus infects a green alga called chlorella, transferring its DNA into host cells. Once inside the chl...

Scientists retrace evolution with first atomic structure of an ancient protein

EUGENE, Ore.(Aug. 16, 2007)Scientists have determined for the first time the atomic structure of an ancient protein, revealing in unprecedented detail how genes evolved their functions. "Never before have we seen so clearly, so far back in time," said project leader Joe Thornton, an evolutionar...

Artificial cells, simple model for complex structure

A simple, chemical materials model may lead to a better understanding of the structure and organization of the cell according to a Penn State researcher. "Cells are interesting because they show organization even at the level of the cytoplasm, and while it is thought to be important for cell fu...

How we see objects in depth: The brain's code for 3-D structure

A team of Johns Hopkins University neuroscientists has discovered patterns of brain activity that may underlie our remarkable ability to see and understand the three-dimensional structure of objects. Computers can beat us at math and chess, but humans are the experts at object vision. (That's w...

Key to function of dinosaur crests found in brain structure

Paleontologists have long debated the function of the strange, bony crests on the heads of the duck-billed dinosaurs known as lambeosaurs. The structures contain incredibly long, convoluted nasal passages that loop up over the tops of their skulls. Scientists at the University of Toronto, Ohio ...

New technique yields more detailed picture of chromatin structure

University of Illinois researchers have developed a technique for imaging cells under an electron microscope that yields a sharper image of the structure of chromatin, the tightly wound bundle of genetic material and proteins that makes up the chromosomes. Their findings appear in Nature Method...

Protein data bank archives 50,000th molecule structure

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. The Protein Data Bank (PDB) based at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, and the University of California-San Diego (UCSD) this month reached a significant milestone in its 37-year history. The 50,000th molecule structure was released into its archive, joining other s...

Changing environment organizes genetic structure

HOUSTON -- Nov. 13, 2007 -- What is the fundamental creative force behind life on Earth" It's a question that has vexed mankind for millennia, and thanks to theory and almost a year's worth of number-crunching on a supercomputer, Rice University physicist and bioengineer Michael Deem thinks he has...

Researchers reveal structure of protein altered in autism

As a result of mapping the structure of the protein complex implicated in autism spectrum disorders, a research team led by scientists at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences has discovered how particular genetic mutations affect this...

Columbia scientists determine 3-dimensional structure of cell's 'fuel gauge'

Researchers at Columbia University Medical Center have uncovered the complex structure of a protein that serves as a central energy gauge for cells, providing crucial details about the molecule necessary for developing useful new therapies for diabetes and possibly obesity. A paper published onlin...

RNA enzyme structure offers a glimpse into the origins of life

Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, have determined the three-dimensional structure of an RNA enzyme, or "ribozyme," that carries out a fundamental reaction required to make new RNA molecules. Their results provide insight into what may have been the first self-replicating mole...

Scientists reveal structure of gateways to gene control

Scientists at Penn State University will reveal in the 29 March 2007 issue of the journal Nature the first complete high-resolution map of important structures that control how genes are packaged and regulated throughout an entire genome. "For the first time, we are seeing in very high resolution...