Scientists to study plant 'switchboards'
A new four-year, $3.72 million grant to North Carolina State University will allow researchers to shed light on an important mystery - how genes impact the type and amount of "glue," known as lignin,...
View ArticleStudy Reveals Unexpected Ancient Cellular Structure
(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at North Carolina State University have effectively lifted the veil from the structure of an ancient and important RNA-protein complex essential for the biosynthesis and...
View ArticleLong-term statin use associated with decreased risk of gallstones requiring...
Use of the cholesterol-lowering drugs statins for more than a year is associated with a reduced risk of having gallstones requiring surgery, according to a study in the November 11 issue of JAMA.
View ArticleTargeting brain cancer cell metabolism may provide new treatment
Inhibiting fatty acid synthesis in brain cancer cells may offer a new option to treat about 50 percent of deadly glioblastomas that are driven by amplified signaling of the epidermal growth factor...
View ArticleMaking New Enzymes to Engineer Plants for Biofuel Production
(PhysOrg.com) -- Brookhaven scientists have created a new enzyme with the potential to interfere with a key cell-wall component in plants, possibly leading to plants that are easier to "digest" and...
View ArticleStudies provide insight into key oat chemical
Studies conducted by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists are helping to increase understanding about the environmental factors that regulate production of avenanthramides (Avns), metabolites...
View ArticleUnlocking the opium poppy's biggest secret (w/ Video)
Researchers at the University of Calgary have discovered the unique genes that allow the opium poppy to make codeine and morphine, thus opening doors to alternate methods of producing these effective...
View ArticleScientists crack code of critical bacterial defense mechanism
Scientists have combined chemistry and biology research techniques to explain how certain bacteria grow structures on their surfaces that allow them to simultaneously cause illness and protect...
View ArticleSlimming aid from the cell laboratory?
Love handles, muffin tops and stomach tires - white fat tissue forms the typical curves in the notorious problem areas to store energy. Exactly the opposite happens in brown fat tissue: Instead of...
View ArticleEnzyme Trio for Biosynthesis of Hydrocarbon Fuels
(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists with the Joint BioEnergy Institute have identified a trio of bacterial enzymes that can catalyze key steps in the conversion of plant sugars into hydrocarbon compounds for...
View ArticlePET scans reveal estrogen-producing hotspots in human brain
A study at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory has demonstrated that a molecule "tagged" with a radioactive form of carbon can be used to image aromatase, an enzyme...
View ArticleErythromycin A produced in E. coli for first time
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at Tufts University School of Engineering have reported the first successful production of the antibiotic erythromycin A, and two variations, using E. coli as the...
View ArticleBirch bark ingredient comes with many metabolic benefits
An ingredient found in abundance in birch bark appears to have an array of metabolic benefits, according to new studies in animals that are reported in the January issue of Cell Metabolism. In mice,...
View ArticleStudent brings home new expertise to answer question in antibiotic resistance
Working out the structure of a complex formed when a protein binds to DNA has proved to be key in understanding how an antibiotic-producing organism controls resistance to its own antibiotic, and may...
View ArticleNewfound hijacked proteins linked to salmonella virulence
Scientists have discovered that bacteria like E. coli and Salmonella have a sneaky way of making minor alterations to their genes to boost their chances for infection.
View ArticleBiologists learn how plants synthesize their growth hormone auxin
Biologists at the University of California, San Diego have succeeded in unraveling, for the first time, the complete chain of biochemical reactions that controls the synthesis of auxin, the hormone...
View ArticleFirst observation of metamorphosis of an enzyme that catalyzes two chemical...
Professor Takayoshi Wakagi and Associate Professor Shinya Fushinobu of the Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, the University of Tokyo and colleagues were the first to clarify how an...
View ArticleEnzymatic synthesis of pyrrolysine, the mysterious 22nd amino acid
With few exceptions, all known proteins are built up from only twenty amino acids. 25 years ago scientists discovered a 21st amino acid, selenocysteine and ten years ago a 22nd, the pyrrolysine....
View ArticleVisualization of DNA synthesis in vivo
Researchers of the University of Zurich have discovered a new substance for labeling and visualization of DNA synthesis in whole animals. Applications for this technique include identifying the sites...
View ArticleInside a plant's pharma factory
A newly discovered enzyme brings scientists one step closer to understanding how plants manufacture a molecule with potent medicinal properties.
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