Bacterial Toxin Surprises Scientists
...ck widow spider venom and some sea anemone toxins share the same strategy--they punch huge holes in the cell membranes of their victims. Pharmaceutical companies harness this strategy in the potent antifungal medications amphotericin and nystatin. Yet until recently, ...Transgenic Rice Plants Resist Insects, Drought And Salt Damage
...roteinase inhibitor, as they eventually do to many toxins and chemical pesticides, because the protein has a different type of action on their systems, he said. And genes for the insect-, salt- and drought-resistant rice should stay where the genetic engineers put them and not escape to produce a super wee...Gene Discovery Could Overcome Aluminum Barrier To Higher Wheat Yields Worldwide
...rch Service said the gene enables wheat to resist toxins in aluminum often found in acid soils. "No plant likes aluminum," he said. "It limits crop productivity on a large scale around the world." Overseas and in this country, about 5 billion acres of acid soil harbor aluminum, he said. "Now that rye's ...New Sensor Provides First Instant Test For Toxic E. coli Organism
...hat mimic the unique cellular binding sites forthe toxins produced by E. coli 0157:H7 interactions. When these toxins areproduced, they hunt around for places to bind. When they find the rightreceptor site, they attemp...A Sensor, A Switch, A Zipper: Protein Engineers Design Potential Tool
...ay one day be used to detect environmental toxins or--in a laboratory setting--act as a switch to activate genes or as a molecular zipper to join together proteins. The newly designed structure is featured in the cover article of the June 1996 issue of Nature Struc...Purdue Researchers Prod Plants To Clean Up Pollution
...de a cell that cordons off a section and holds the toxins at bay. The mutant plants lacked the peptides that tie up and detoxify the heavy metal. In subsequent related research, Goldsbrough and Purdue co-workers identified genes in Arabidopsis for other peptides that can bind and detoxify toxic metals. T...Jefferson Scientists Discover Mechanism Of Viral Link To Disease Commonly Associated With Asbestos
...ng cancer. Cigarette smoke, air pollution, some toxins breathed by workers and other environmental carcinogens may inhibit the body's ability to make the pRb-2/p130 protein. Other collaborating institutions include Loyola University, Chicago, the University of Naples, Italy, and the...Trojan Horse Virus Controls Hiv Infection
...V could be used to shuttle into the bodyviruses or toxins to destroy infected or cancerous cells, ortherapeutic genes to protect uninfected cells against an invading virus. Moreover, such vectors could be used as novel vaccines todeliver antigenic genes to antigen-presenting cells, such as dendritic cells,f...Chemists Develop High-Throughput Method To Synthesize And Screen Novel Antibiotics
..., because some bacteria containextremely dangerous toxins which can cause severe complications.For example, the plague bacteria contains a heart toxin and thebacteria which causes meningitis contains a neurotoxin. Non-lyticantibiotics may prove to be much safer than currently availabledrugs....NIH Office Of Dietary Supplements Expands Research Support
... a protective effect against dietary and bacterial toxins found in infants whose intestinal function may be impaired by disease. In addition to these three new projects, the ODS will continue its support of five studies begun in 1996, two with the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Sk...Further Proof That An Altered Rb-2/p130 Gene Leads To Lung Cancer
...gene from cigarette smoke, air pollution and other toxins may lead to lung cancer. Such damage prevented the gene from making a key protein, pRb-2/p130 , which suppresses tumor formation. They also saw evidence that levels of the protein correlated with tumor aggressiveness. This new work st...Disease Takes Its Toll On Waterfowl Populations
... type C. The toxin is closely related to botulism toxins A and B, which are responsible for a similar food-borne disease in humans. Affected birds lose coordination and show signs of paralysis of the legs and wings and labored breathing. In advanced stages of the disease, the birds cannot hold their head...NIDR Supports Total Genome Studies Of Major Oral Pathogens
... to andinvades human epithelial cells and produces toxins that can kill or maim humancells. However, little is known about other virulence factors harbored by theorganism, and current NIDR-supported projects focus on specific factors ratherthan the total spectrum of pathologic mechanisms. Determining th......disease. Their findings suggest that environmental toxins that damage the DNA ofnerve cells may precipitate neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's,Parkinson's, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease). Glen Kisby, Ph.D. and other scientists from OHSU's Center for Res......n may be the cause, tests for natural and man-made toxins that can cause this type of disease have so far been negative. Miller said that field investigations led by the USGS Center are under way, and scientists are hoping that clues from the new locations will help to reveal the cause of the disease. ...Cellular Engineers Design Custom Cell Surfaces Able To Adhere To Synthetic Materials
...vices may warn of dangerous chemical or biological toxins in the environment.Already Bertozzi's group has used this cell-surface engineering to turn cancercells into bright targets for diagnostic probes and cell-killing toxins. "Our primary goal is to take control of the cell surface," saysBert...At Life's Most Sensitive Stage, Embryos Cope With Stress
...ifferentfor embryos than for adults." Spitting out toxins Epel's own research illustrates a coping mechanism...n coastal mud flats, resisting natural andman-made toxins washed off the land by streams. "Adult organisms often defendagainst toxins by taking the substance ...PEBBLEs Help U-M Scientists Open A Window On Cell Chemistry
...rotoxic agents. If we can learn exactly how these toxins trigger a flood of ions in and out of cells, we may be able to speed up development of antidotes or countermeasures for lethal biological warfare agents." Kopelman added that the ability to "watch what's happening inside a cell" has a wide varie...UD Environmental News: Pfiesteria Detectors To Be Described March 18
...ellates or whipsthrough water, sometimes releasing toxins that kill fish--also will clarifytechniques for recognizing true Pfiesteria versus " Pfiesteria look-alikes." Field-ready detection systems now are being developed by researchers at theNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Marine Biotox...... bodies. Researchersbelieve it should help remove toxins from the patient's own liver cells, as thepatient'...ells inside polymermembranes. The membranes allow toxins to pass through, but prevents proteins,and other cell byproducts from the pig cells to get into the ...