Alzheimer’s: modulation of cell membrane influences formation of amyloid-β

Adding long-chain fatty acids can thicken cell membranes and alter the activity of a key enzyme

10-May-2023 - A characteristic feature of Alzheimer’s disease are deposits of the amyloid-β protein, which clumps together to form plaques in the brain. The amyloid-β protein is produced by an enzyme which resides in cellular membranes. A team lead by Prof. Harald Steiner and Dr. Edgar Dawkins from the ...

PCR: Activated by light

New approach could help to significantly improve diagnostic tests based on PCR

20-Dec-2021 - DNA polymerases and other enzymes that modify DNA are essential tools in biotechnology and diagnostics. They are the key component for COVID-19 diagnostics by PCR. As useful as they are, DNA processing enzymes often have important flaws. Some of them display significant activity during the ...

How the body produces an endogenous antibiotic with anti-inflammatory effects

Researchers give insights into itaconic acid synthesis

02-Oct-2019 - For a long time, itaconic acid was only known as a metabolic product of fungi. Its function was unknown, but for decades it has been used industrially for polymer production. In 2013, it was surprisingly discovered as an important metabolic product in the immune system. This newly described role ...

Fully identified: The pathway of protons

New findings pave the way for chemical reproduction of hydrogen-producing enzymes

13-Nov-2018 - The question how certain algal enzymes accomplish the high proton transfer rate for hydrogen production had in the past been subject to speculation. Dr. Martin Winkler, Dr. Jifu Duan, Professor Eckhard Hofmann and Professor Thomas Happe from Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB), together with colleagues ...

Enigma of fatty acid metabolism solved

Enzyme shape controls its activity

15-Jun-2018 - Fats are essential for our body. The core components of all fats are fatty acids. Their production is initiated by the enzyme ACC. Researchers at the University of Basel’s Biozentrum have now demonstrated how ACC assembles into distinct filaments. As the researchers report in “Nature,” the type ...

Targeting a large family of parasites

Potential drug target is identified

23-Mar-2018 - Apicomplexa form one of the largest and most diverse groups of obligate intracellular parasites, capable of infecting almost every kind of animal. It is estimated that between 1.2 and 10 million species exist, but only about 5,000-6,000 have been identified to date. These include Plasmodium (that ...

New TB drugs possible with understanding of old antibiotic

07-Dec-2017 - Tuberculosis, and other life-threatening microbial diseases, could be more effectively tackled with future drugs, thanks to new research into an old antibiotic by the University of Warwick and The Francis Crick Institute. Led by Professor David Roper at Warwick's School of Life Sciences and Dr ...

Neutrons observe vitamin B6-dependent enzyme activity useful for drug development

18-Oct-2017 - Scientists at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory have performed neutron structural analysis of a vitamin B6-dependent protein, potentially opening avenues for new antibiotics and drugs to battle diseases such as drug-resistant tuberculosis, malaria and ...

One if by editing, two if by roadblock

Human protein fights HIV as monomer and dimer

16-Oct-2017 - Fifteen years ago, a class of proteins was discovered, which give humans innate immunity to HIV-1. Unfortunately, HIV-1 is a smart virus and has evolved to battle these proteins. Northeastern researchers, with help from their collaborators, have been studying these proteins for several years to ...

When enzymes rival platinum

05-Sep-2017 - A fuel cell converts chemical energy into electrical energy via hydrogen combustion. Though it is considered to be a clean technology - because it does not emit greenhouse gases - fuel cells do use costly rare metal catalysts1, such as platinum, to oxidize hydrogen and reduce oxygen. In recent ...