Latest Biomolecules Stories

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- A natural product called DLPC (dilauroyl phosphatidylcholine) increases sensitivity to insulin and reduces fatty liver in mice, leading Baylor College of Medicine researchers to believe it may provide a treatment for prediabetic patients. DLPC is an unusual phospholipid and a trace component of the dietary supplement lecithin.Dr. David D. Moore, professor of molecular and cellular biology at BCM, and his colleagues at first thought that DLPC would provide a useful tool...

Researchers have discovered a tiny protein without which the soil and lab-dwelling worm C. elegans can't deliver iron-rich heme taken in from their diets to the rest of their bodies or to their developing embryos. The finding reported in the May 27th issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication, offers important insight into the transport of the essential ingredient in worms and other animals, including humans.Researchers say it also suggests a strategy for the development of drugs...

Using a tiny bloodless worm, University of Maryland Associate Professor Iqbal Hamza and his team have discovered a large piece in the puzzle of how humans, and other organisms, safely move iron around in the body. The findings, published in the journal Cell, could lead to new methods for treating age-old scourges - parasitic worm infections, which affect more than a quarter of the world's population, and iron deficiency, the world's number one nutritional disorder.Using C. elegans, a common...

NORTH CANTON, Ohio, April 12, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Biotech Medical, Inc. is set to launch a line of innovative and revolutionary cleaning products, SpectraSan(TM) "Hungry Enzymes". The products will be available for purchase online at www.spectrasan.com and will include: a Pet Stain & Odor Eraser, Spa & Whirlpool Cleaner, Mold & Mildew Stain Cleaner, No-Rinse Floor Cleaner, All-Purpose Cleaner & Degreaser, Glass & Stainless Steel Cleaner and a Medical Instrument Spray...

Virtually all processes in the human body rely on a unique class of proteins known as enzymes. To study them, scientists want to attach these molecules to surfaces and hold them fast, but this can often be a tricky undertaking.Now Jinglin Fu and his colleagues at the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University have developed a superior method for immobilizing enzymes on surfaces, deftly controlling their orientation, improving their efficiency and rendering them more stable. The group's...

The findings could lead to novel approaches to drug designSlight oscillations lasting just milliseconds have a huge impact on an enzyme's function, according to a new study by Scripps Research Institute scientists. Blocking these movements, without changing the enzyme's overall structure or any of its other properties, renders the enzyme defective in carrying out chemical reactions.The study, published in April 8, 2011 issue of the journal Science, adds to a growing body of evidence pointing...

JUPITER, Fla., April 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Dyadic International, Inc. ("Dyadic") (OTC Pink: DYAI), a global biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development, manufacture and sale of enzyme and protein products for the bioenergy, industrial enzyme and biopharmaceutical industries, announced today that it has been issued U.S. Patent No. 7,906,309 entitled, "Expression-Regulating Sequences and Expression Products in the Field of Filamentous Fungi" and U.S. Patent No. 7,892,812...

Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Discover New Method To Boost Enzymatic Activity Proteins are critically important to life and the human body. They are also among the most complex molecules in nature, and there is much we still don't know or understand about them.One key challenge is the stability of enzymes, a particular type of protein that speeds up, or catalyzes, chemical reactions. Taken out of their natural environment in the cell or body, enzymes can quickly lose their...

A new study reveals that a group of ancient enzymes adapted to substantial changes in ocean temperature and acidity during the last four billion years, providing evidence that life on Early Earth evolved from a much hotter, more acidic environment to the cooler, less acidic global environment that exists today.The study found that a group of ancient enzymes known as thioredoxin were chemically stable at temperatures up to 32 degrees Celsius (58 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than their modern...

JUPITER, Fla., Feb. 22, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Dyadic International, Inc. ("Dyadic") (OTC Pink: DYAI), a global biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development, manufacture and sale of enzyme and protein products for the bioenergy, industrial enzyme and biopharmaceutical industries, announced today that it has launched FibreZyme® G200, a next generation, high performance enzyme designed to improve paper quality and improve the economics of various pulp and paper manufacturing...