functions

Automatic extraction of gene/protein biological functions from biomedical text

With the rapid advancement of biomedical science and the development of high-throughput analysis methods, the extraction of various types of information from biomedical text has become critical. Since automatic functional annotations of genes are quite useful for interpreting large amounts of high-throughput data efficiently, the demand for automatic extraction of information related to gene func...

Research Reveals Functions Of Harmful Shellfish Pathogens

Providing safer shellfish is the goal of Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists who are studying the means by which pathogenic bacteria enter shellfish. In the United States, two pathogenic bacteria from the genus Vibrio are of concern: V. vulnificus and V. parahaemolyticus. These bacteria are naturally found in shellfish and seawater, particularly when water temperatures are warm,...

MSU researchers receive $4 million grant to uncover gene functions

A collaboration of Michigan State University researchers will use a $4 million grant from the National Science Foundation to uncover the functions of genes in a plant - research which may ultimately lead to improvements in human health and agriculture. In a collaborative effort spanning several departments, MSU scientists will determine the functions of roughly 4,400 nuclear genes from the...

Navigating the brain for sense of direction as paradigm for higher cognitive functions

No matter how healthy a life one leads, no person has managed to live much longer than a century. Even though the advances of the modern age may have extended the average human life span, it is clear there are genetic limits to longevity. One prominent theory of aging lays the blame on the accumulation of damage done to DNA and proteins by “free radicals,?highly reactive molecules produced by the...

Researchers unlock how cells determine their functions

Researchers at the University of California, Riverside have discovered a molecular mechanism directing the fate and function of cells during animal development. The findings could hold promise for the advancement of cancer and stem-cell research. The research is published in the Feb. 24 edition of the journal Science. UCR Biochemistry Professor Frank Sauer, with German colleague Elisabeth...

Enzyme crystal structure reveals 'unexpected' genome repair functions

The study is being published in an advance online version of the journal Molecular Cell. The research looked at XPB helicase from an archaea, a single cell organism similar to bacteria. Helicases are enzymes that unwind or separate the strands of the nucleic acid double helix, an action that is critical to transcription and nucleotide excision repair (NER), as well as other cell processes...

Gene malfunctions cause schizophrenia, depression symptoms in mice

Researchers have demonstrated for the first time that malfunction of a gene that had been associated with schizophrenia and depression does indeed cause symptoms of those disorders. They said their findings in mice offer a possible animal model for developing treatments for schizophrenia and depression. Also, they said their findings support the theory that the two disorders share common genetic...

Research finds that circadian rhythms dominate all life functions

New research from Colorado State University shows that the function of all genes in mammals is based on circadian -- or daily -- rhythms. The study, publishing in PLoS Computational Biology on June 15, refutes the current theory that only 10 percent to 15 percent of all genes were affected by nature's clock. While scientists have long known that circadian rhythms regulate the behavior of the l...