Latest Protein structure Stories
Sections of proteins previously thought to be disordered may in fact have an unexpected biological role "” providing certain proteins room to move "” according to a study published by researchers at Fox Chase Cancer Center in this month's issue of the journal Structure (Cell Press).The researchers published the first comprehensive structural study of the protein NHERF1, which serves as a means of bringing together molecular signals between the outer membrane of a cell and the proteins...
A new study of proteins, the molecular machines that drive all life, also sheds light on the history of living organisms.The study, in the journal Structure, reveals that after eons of gradual evolution, proteins suddenly experienced a "big bang" of innovation. The active regions of many proteins, called domains, combined with each other or split apart to produce a host of structures that had never been seen before. This explosion of new forms coincided with the rapidly increasing...
Sometimes known as "nature's origami", the way that proteins fold is vital to ensuring they function correctly. But researchers at the University of Leeds have discovered this is a 'hit and miss' process, with proteins potentially folding wrongly many times before they form the correct structure for their intended purpose.The body's proteins carry out numerous functions and play a crucial role in the growth, repair and workings of cells. Sheena Radford, Professor of Structural...
Researchers from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and the University of California at San Diego (UCSD) have brought together UCSD theoretical modeling and Caltech experimental data to show just how amino-acid chains might fold up into unique, three-dimensional functional proteins.Their insights were recently published in the February 10 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).The paper details the matching of a series of protein-folding models...
The dream of designer drugs highly specific in action with zero side effects has come closer by combining atomic level computer prediction with natural selection in the laboratory. Following the 2008's first design of an artificial enzyme for catalysing a chemical reaction, there is increased collaboration among researchers to accelerate progress towards this goal. The stage for closer collaborative work between computer protein design specialists and experimental biochemists was set at a...
By Eitoku, Takeshi Terazima, Masahide ABSTRACT A new type of photochromic molecule that can be used for diffusion coefficient (D) measurements of various proteins in solution is described. The absorption spectrum of this molecule is changed upon photoexcitation by the trans-cis isomerization reaction. Target proteins were labeled by this photochromic molecule in the dark and the translational motion of the proteins was detected by the transient grating (TG) method. The TG signal was simple...
MitoSciences today announces an agreement with the Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) in Toronto, Canada, whereby SickKids will provide MitoSciences with recombinant vector systems for producing the four kinases and two phosphatases that activate and deactivate the enzyme PDH (pyruvate dehydrogenase). MitoSciences has patent pending tests for measuring PDH activity in both high-throughput and clinical platforms, and intends to use the newly accessed proteins to provide complete...
PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa., July 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Genaera Corporation announced today the presentation of new preclinical data on trodusquemine (MSI-1436), a novel inhibitor of PTP-1B and Genaera's lead drug candidate for the treatment of type 2 diabetes and obesity, during the 10th Biennial FASEB Summer Research Conference Protein Phosphatases in Snowmass Village, Colorado. The poster presentation entitled, "Trodusquemine (MSI-1436), An Allosteric Inhibitor of Protein Tyrosine...
COLUMBUS , Ohio -- Scientists are one step closer to understanding how proteins move when they perform functions essential for supporting life.For the first time, scientists have directly observed how water lubricates the movements of protein molecules to enable different functions to happen.In a paper published in the online early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Ohio State University researchers report using ultra-fast light pulses to reveal how water...
Proteins are chain molecules assembled from amino acids. The precise sequence of the twenty different types of amino acids in a protein chain is what determines which structure a protein folds into. The three-dimensional structures in turn specify the functions of proteins, which range from the transport of oxygen in our blood, to the conversion of energy in our muscles, and the strengthening of our hair. During evolution, the protein sequences encoded in our DNA have been optimised for these...
