Pain and the brain: Sex, hormones & genetics affect brain's pain control system
...adioactive tracer attached to a molecule that only binds to mu-opioid receptors, they showed on PET scans that the endorphin systems became activated in the brains of 20 volunteers who were subjected to moderate levels of pain in their jaw muscle over 20 minutes. That activation of endorphin release also ...U-Iowa scientists gain insight on how enzyme uses oxygen to produce useful chemicals
... to the project focused on how oxygen specifically binds to iron in the enzyme. Side-on refers to the newly visualized orientation of oxygen as it binds to iron. The team used X-ray crystallography to determine the three-dimensional structure of the enz...Discovery of iron-acquisition pathway suggests new treatments for drug-resistant Staph. infections
...embrane of red blood cells. Then the protein IsdB binds with the released hemoglobin. IsdA and IsdB remov...rigid cell wall and into the cytoplasm, where IsdG binds it. IsdG appears to be involved in removing the iron from heme. In environments where heme was the ...The Fragile X syndrome protein as RNA distribution hub
...: Eberwine connected an antibody that specifically binds to FMRP to a DNA molecule that can bind to the RNA near the FMRP protein. In the presence of enzymes, the DNA molecule helps copy these RNAs into cDNA (a term for DNA made from RNA). After it is synthesized, the cDNA is amplified into hundreds of th...Purdue researchers connect life's blueprints with its energy source
..., are able to flex because an enzyme called ATPase binds the ATP molecule, breaking one of ATP's chemical bonds and releasing the energy you use when walking or talking." Guo theorizes that because RNA can also bind ATP, it might be not only life's original seed molecule, but also able to direct the releas...Stuart research funds generating dividends for veterinary medicine
...amount, dietary fiber is reduced and because water binds to fiber water in the colon is decreased when feeding grain. This work is resetting the stage for what will be the next step in finding the relationship between diet and colic, he added. In a related part of the work, researchers determined that the ......er and colleagues determined that the SIX3 protein binds to regulatory elements within the Wnt1 gene, suppressing its expression in the putative forebrain region, and thereby enabling these cells to adopt an anterior cell fate. In Six3-mutant mice these cells are not given the proper choice of anterior fat...UT Southwestern researchers identify gene that could have important role in human wasting disorder
...levated levels of cytokines because twist normally binds to the cytokine genes' control regions and shuts them off. The absence of twist means the cytokines cannot be turned off. Instead, they become over-expressed, eventually leading to cachexia, Olson said. Dr. James Richardson, professor of molecular bi...Get your blood moving: Increased blood flow could lead to healthier blood vessels
...eroids. Once inside the nucleus, the activated GR binds to the DNA to turn genes on and off. Diamond and his colleagues studied the effect of shear stress on glucocorticoid receptors in endothelial cells grown in culture by recreating in the laboratory the flow environment of the large arteries. Sustaine...New antibody library speeds search for new detection tools
...PNNL scientists can readily modify how an antibody binds to proteins. Being able to increase how tightly a protein and antibody bind together, for example, could increase antibody effectiveness for detecting pathogens or disease. The library developed at PNNL identifies antibodies more quickly, thus reduc...Scientists discover what makes human embryo attach to uterus
...s enriched with carbohydrates. L-selectin normally binds briefly to such carbohydrates, so a continual sticking and unsticking interplay between the protein and carbohydrates can progressively slow the embryos progress along the uterine wall. When the embryo comes to rest, the stage is set for it to adhere...Researchers discover how embryo attaches to the uterus
... along the uterine wall, L-selectin on its surface binds to the carbohydrates on the uterine wall, until the blastocyst gradually slows to a complete stop. After this happens, the cells that later become the fetus contribution to the placenta develop. The placental tissue from the fetus then invades the ......present in the spermatheca, MSP is released and it binds VAB-1 on both the oocyte and sheath cell membranes. The researchers demonstrated that MSP antagonizes VAB-1 inhibition of the MAPK phosphorylation cascade and thereby promotes oocyte maturation. "In the case of sex, two wrongs can sometimes make a r...MIT sugars research affecting bypass patients, drug industry
...of protamine," Sasisekharan said. "Importantly, it binds to other molecules in the blood non-specifically, in addition to heparin, potentially causing side-effects." In the clinical trials, doctors performing coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery are using a specific heparinase to cut up--and inacti...Clinical study results published in NEJM show promising data on Antegren (natalizumab)
...role in the migration of these cells. Natalizumab binds to a specific adhesion molecule on the immune cell surface known as alpha-4 integrin. By binding to alpha-4 integrin, natalizumab may inhibit immune cells from leaving the bloodstream and prevent them from migrating into the brain or the inflamed gu...Antegren (natalizumab) clinical study results published in New England Journal of Medicine
... an important role in this migration. Natalizumab binds to a specific adhesion molecule on the immune cell surface known as alpha-4 integrin. By binding to alpha-4 integrin, natalizumab is thought to inhibit immune cells from leaving the bloodstream and prevent them from migrating into the inflamed gut t...Study of possible anticancer drug reveals new mechanism of gene regulation
...e experiments done by others showed that rapamycin binds to a large, previously unknown cell protein known as target of rapamycin (TOR). TOR is found in organisms from yeast to humans, suggesting that it may serve an essential purpose in cells. Zheng and colleagues used rapamycin to inactivate TOR, enablin...JCI table of contents, December 15, 2002
...antibodies and anti-pigcytotoxicity. The conjugate binds to circulating antibodies, and the complexis quickly metabolized and excreted without apparent acute or chronictoxicity. The GAS backbone may be a promising scaffold to which to attachother antigens for the antigen-specific removal of antibodies in v...Smart polymers provide light-activated switch to turn enzymes on and off
...to the active sites, or the spots where the enzyme binds with target molecules to do their work. Depending on conditions, the polymer threads either extend or contract. One state blocks the site, while the other leaves it open which state accomplishes which function depends on the size of the target mol......the cancer cells. "We have used a polypeptide that binds to a cell surface receptor, and that molecule is over-expressed for certain cancers. We can deliver photosynthesizers to the cancer," Storrie said. The delivery vehicle is a B-fragment of a class of toxins known as shiga toxins. The A fragment is ...