New research suggests a possible explanation for the organization of operons, jointly controlled clusters of genes that evolved in bacterial chromosomes. Operons, which are found in the chromosomes of bacteria but not in more advanced organisms, have puzzled biologists since their discovery in the 1960s. The new study suggests operons evolved as a means of reducing "noise" in biochemical signal processing.
Biophysicists have experimentally demonstrated, for the first time, how the nonspecific binding of a protein known as the lambda repressor, or C1 protein, bends DNA and helps it close a loop that switches off virulence. Findings are the first direct and quantitative determination of non-specific binding and compaction of DNA, relevant for the understanding of DNA physiology, and the dynamic characteristics of an on-off switch for the expression of genes.
For patients with type 2 diabetes, any degree of measurable urinary protein excretion —- even in what is considered the normal range —- increases their risk of experiencing heart problems, according to a new study. More than 300 million people worldwide have type 2 diabetes.
New findings of a key genetic mechanism in plant hormone signaling may help save crops from stress and help address human hunger.
A monoclonal antibody tested in an animal model prevents infection by the hepatitis C virus (HCV).
Women who have breast cancer and are treated with two chemotherapy drugs may experience more cardiac problems like heart failure than shown in previous studies, according to a new study.
Open an undergraduate biochemistry textbook and you will learn that enzymes are highly efficient and specific in catalyzing chemical reactions in living organisms, and that they evolved to this state from their “sloppy” and “promiscuous” ancestors to allow cells to grow more efficiently. This fundamental paradigm is being challenged in a new study by bioengineers who reported in the journal Science what a few enzymologists have suspected for years: many enzymes are still pretty sloppy and promiscuous, catalyzing multiple chemical reactions in living cells, for reasons that were previously not well understood.
Scientists have shown how pluripotent stem cells mobilize in wounded planarian worms, to better understand stem cell behavior in regeneration and disease.
Open an undergraduate biochemistry textbook and you will learn that enzymes are highly efficient and specific in catalyzing chemical reactions in living organisms, and that they evolved to this state from their "sloppy" and "promiscuous" ancestors to allow cells to grow more efficiently. This fundamental paradigm is being challenged in a new study by bioengineers at the University of California, San Diego, who reported in the journal Science what a few enzymologists have suspected for years: many enzymes are still pretty sloppy and promiscuous, catalyzing multiple chemical reactions in living cells, for reasons that were previously not well understood.
Researchers examined the differences between two species of mice -- one monogamous and one promiscuous -- on a microscopic and molecular level. They discovered that the lifestyles of the two mice had a direct impact on the bacterial communities that reside within the female reproductive tract. These differences correlate with enhanced diversifying selection on genes related to immunity against bacterial diseases.
The tangy taste a mustard plant develops to discourage insect predators can be the difference between life and death for the plants. A new study has used this trait and its regional variations to conquer the difficult task of measuring the evolution of complex traits in a natural environment.
Scientists have used sophisticated technologies to identify and describe the protein interactions that distinguish each member of the WTX family. They found that unlike WTX and FAM123C, FAM123A interacts with a specific set of proteins that regulates cell adhesion and migration, processes essential to normal cell functioning and which, when mutated, contribute to human diseases such as cancer or Alzheimer's.
Recent Comments