Physics tip sheet #30 - January 9, 2003
...rgy ranges. This paper describes how a radioactive potassium atom is trapped with magnets and lasers to watch it decay. By carefully analyzing the paths of the decay products, details about the neutrino can be deduced. Journal article: http://link.aps.org/abstract/PRL/v90/e012501...Deadly coral toxin exposes ion pump's deepest secret
...ses threesodium ions out of the cell for every two potassium ions pumped into thecell. Just how this "uphill" ...xedstochiometric ratio of three sodium ions to two potassium ions. And, morerecently, they used ouabain to show that the three sodium ions are expelledone at a t...Abnormalities in cellular anchoring protein cause fatal heart syndrome
...cts in ion channels -- proteins involved in moving potassium and other ions in and out of heart cells so they can contract. In this case, however, the channels and the molecular transporters function normally, but the proteins that position and anchor the channels on the heart cells are awry. "It's as if the ...High-density storage of nuclear waste heightens terrorism risks
... report calling for the distribution of protective potassium iodide pills to people within 50 miles of nuclear plants, improvement of mock attack drills and reconfiguration of spent fuel storage. "It was a very good group of students and an excellent report," said von Hippel, who enlisted colleagues to conduct...Researchers discover new breast cancer gene
...unrecognized mechanism for oncogene action(namely, potassium channels). 2) KCNK9 is an attractive target for the development of novel cancer therapies. 3) The experimental overproduction of KCNK9 promotes tumor formation in controlled functional tests. This finding supports the notion that the overexpression o...MacKinnon lab's newest picture tells action potential story
...gineering. The masterpiece is a voltage-dependent potassium ion channel, the first published picture of which ...ntists who lacked the definitive picture showing a potassium channel with charge-triggered "paddles" responsible for opening and closing a passage for potassium ...Researchers discover structure of Nature's 'circuit breaker'
...and function of the voltage-sensing mechanism in a potassium channel of an archaebacterium that thrives in the ...most ancient bacteria to humans. Voltage-dependent potassium ion channels are precise molecular machines that are critical to propagating electrical impulses in ...Kefir may bolster lactose tolerance in intolerant people
...t, like yogurt, kefir is a good source of calcium, potassium and protein. But kefir also contains a wider array of microorganisms than yogurt does. "Both kefir and yogurt improve lactose digestion simply because some of the bacterial cells give up their lives in the intestinal tract, release their enzymes and ...Insulin study sheds light on physics of crystal growth
...tal-growing abilities. They need large crystals of potassium dihydrogen phosphate, or KDP, to incorporate into each of the 192 lasers that make up the world's most powerful system of laser beams. The facility is used for nuclear fusion and nuclear weapons research. Vekilov, who also has worked with KDP crysta...American Society of Plant Biologists Annual Meeting 2003
... by Tamas Borsics of the University of Hawaii on a potassium channel involved in photomorphogenesis in Arabibopsis thaliana. Following is the complete list of minisymposia: Minisymposium 1 - Nutrient Biology Minisymposium 2 - Plant Biology in the Tropics Minisymposium 3 - Hormones I Minisymposium 4 - O...U. Iowa study adds to understanding of salt-taste
...tween different types of salt (sodium chloride and potassium chloride). However, disrupting the genes did not seem to affect the fruit flies' responses to other tastes. Understanding salt-sensing mechanisms and identifying two ion-channel proteins that detect low salt in fruit flies may be directly relevant t...The 'fixed' hotspot that created Hawaii was not stationary after all, study finds
...y the radiometric dating of two chemical elements potassium and argon. When a rock forms, atoms of potassium start decaying into argon at a constant rate, regardless of changes in the rock's temperature, chemi......y deficits by down-regulation of calcium-activated potassium channels (SK3) located in the hippocampus, a brain...ound highly elevated levels of a calcium-activated potassium channel, the so-called SK3 channel, in the hippocampus of aged, but not of young mice. Most striking...JCI Table of Contents, 15 August 2003
...gurations, and facilitates sodium reabsorption and potassium secretion. ENaC regulation takes place in the kidn... CD is not a prerequisite for achieving sodium and potassium balance, stressing the more proximal nephron segments (late DCT and CNT) in achieving this equilibri...Purdue research plots new field in plant genomics
...st of their mineral nutrients, such as phosphorus, potassium and zinc, as ions dissolved in water, and the electrical charge of these ions permits them to react with other compounds inside the plant cell. Mineral nutrients are central to many processes inside plant cells, including water transport, photosynthe......pression of the b subunit of the calcium-activated potassium channel in vascular cells is critical for maintain...gested that calcium channels and calcium-activated potassium channels (BK channels), which facilitate the passage of calcium and potassium ions in and out of vas...Powerful new method helps reveal genetic basis of cancer
... well as an attractive therapeutic target, namely, potassium channels). The new method, ROMA, is essentially "RDA on a chip." Combining RDA and DNA microarray analysis with the third "pillar" of the method--i.e. knowledge of the complete human genome sequence--gives ROMA unprecedented ability to detect copy nu...When heme attacks: After trauma, the molecule that makes life possible rampages
...ron excitability." Maxi-K is a channel that moves potassium ions out of cells. In the Nature paper, Tang and his colleagues prove that the Maxi-K protein possesses sites that bind heme. If these sites were removed or altered, heme could not effect Maxi-K proteins. "Maxi-K is found in the lining of blood ves...Scientists develop advanced sensors for biological agent detection
...l strain of E. coli, which exudes large amounts of potassium even when exposed to small amounts of oxidative to... An optical system built into the chip detects the potassium and, accordingly, the oxidative toxins. "Homeland security can benefit from this analysis because ma...... pore that allows cells to control their intake of potassium ions. By determining the structure of the potassium pore, or channel, MacKinnon and his colleagues at The Rockefeller University had solved a riddle tha...