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Categories: Biology: Molecular, Space: The Solar System

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Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: General Biology: Molecular
Published

Scientists regenerate neurons that restore walking in mice after paralysis from spinal cord injury      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In a new study in mice, researchers have uncovered a crucial component for restoring functional activity after spinal cord injury. The neuroscientists have shown that re-growing specific neurons back to their natural target regions led to recovery, while random regrowth was not effective.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular
Published

Unzipping mRNA rallies plant cells to fight infection      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Living things from plants to humans must constantly adjust the chemical soup of proteins -- the workhorse molecules of life -- inside their cells to adapt to stress or changing conditions. Now, researchers have identified a previously unknown molecular mechanism that helps explain how they do it. A team now reveals hairpin-like structures of mRNA that, by zipping and unzipping, help cells change the mix of proteins they produce when under stress.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: General Biology: Molecular
Published

Exercise and muscle regulation: Implications for diabetes and obesity      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

How do our muscles respond at the molecular level to exercise? Researchers have unraveled the cellular basis and signaling pathways responsible for the positive impact of physical activity on our overall health. Regulatory T cells, a type of immune cell, play a critical role in ensuring proper muscle function. These novel insights are paving the path towards precision medicines targeting metabolic disorders like obesity and diabetes, as well as muscle-related illnesses.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Exploration Space: General Space: The Solar System
Published

New Mars gravity analysis improves understanding of possible ancient ocean      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The first use of a novel method of analyzing Mars' gravitational force supports the idea that the planet once had an extensive northern ocean. In doing so, the method defines the scope of what scientists refer to as theĀ northern Martian paleo-oceanĀ in more detail.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Molecular
Published

Artificial Intelligence tools shed light on millions of proteins      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A research team has uncovered a treasure trove of uncharacterized proteins. Embracing the recent deep learning revolution, they discovered hundreds of new protein families and even a novel predicted protein fold.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Chemistry: Biochemistry Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Spider silk is spun by silkworms for the first time, offering a green alternative to synthetic fibers      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists have synthesized spider silk from genetically modified silkworms, producing fibers six times tougher than the Kevlar used in bulletproof vests. The study is the first to successfully produce full-length spider silk proteins using silkworms. The findings demonstrate a technique that could be used to manufacture an environmentally friendly alternative to synthetic commercial fibers such as nylon.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Molecular Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Physics: General
Published

Imaging the smallest atoms provides insights into an enzyme's unusual biochemistry      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A team has used neutron crystallography to image all of the atoms in a radical intermediate of a copper amine oxidase enzyme. They disclosed previously unknown details, such as precise conformational changes, that help to explain the enzyme's biochemistry. This work might help researchers engineer enzymes that facilitate unusual chemistry or are highly efficient at room temperature that are useful in chemical industry.

Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Marine Biology: Molecular Biology: Zoology Ecology: Sea Life
Published

Tiny sea creatures reveal the ancient origins of neurons      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study sheds new light on the origins of modern brain cells. Researchers find evidence that specialized secretory cells found in placozoans, tiny sea creatures the size of a grain of sand, have many similarities to the neuron, such as the genes required to create a partial synapse. From an evolutionary point of view, early neurons might have started as something like these cells, eventually gaining the ability to create a complete synapse, form axons and dendrites and create ion channels that generate fast electrical signals -- innovations which gave rise to the neuron in more complex animals such as jellyfish. Though the complete story of how the first neuron appeared remains to be told, the study demonstrates that the basic building blocks for our brain cells were forming in the ancestors of placozoans grazing inconspicuously in the shallow seas of Earth around 800 million years ago.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Molecular Ecology: Endangered Species
Published

Tracking down the formation of cardenolides in plants      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists are investigating the previously largely unknown biosynthetic pathway that leads to the formation of cardenolides in plants. In a new study, they present two enzymes from the CYP87A family as key enzymes that catalyze the formation of pregnenolone, the precursor for the biosynthesis of plant steroids, in two different plant families. The discovery of such enzymes should help to develop platforms for the cheap and sustainable production of high quality steroid compounds for medical use.

Space: Astronomy Space: Exploration Space: General Space: The Solar System
Published

New findings suggest Moon may have less water than previously thought      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A team recently calculated that most of the Moon's permanently shadowed regions (PSRs) are at most around 3.4 billion years old and can contain relatively young deposits of water ice. Water resources are considered key for sustainable exploration of the Moon and beyond, but these findings suggest that current estimates for cold-trapped ices are too high.

Space: Exploration Space: General Space: The Solar System
Published

Engineered compound shows promise in preventing bone loss in space      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Mice treated aboard the International Space Station showed significantly reduced bone loss.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular
Published

Genome editing: Reducing off-target mutations in DNA      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed a novel genome editing technique known as NICER, which results in significantly fewer off-target mutations than CRISPR/Cas9 editing. The technique uses a different type of enzyme that makes single-stranded 'nicks' in the DNA. Repair of these nicks is more efficient and accurate than repair of double-strand breaks caused by the current CRISPR/Cas9 editing. This technique represents a novel approach for the treatment of genetic diseases caused by heterozygous mutations.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

Snaps supersonic outflow of young star      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Herbig-Haro (HH) objects are luminous regions surrounding newborn stars, formed when stellar winds or jets of gas spewing from these newborn stars form shock waves colliding with nearby gas and dust at high speeds. This image of HH 211 from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope reveals an outflow from a Class 0 protostar, an infantile analog of our Sun when it was no more than a few tens of thousands of years old and with a mass only 8% of the present-day Sun (it will eventually grow into a star like the Sun).

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Marine Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Genetically modified bacteria break down plastics in saltwater      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have genetically engineered a marine microorganism to break down plastic in salt water. Specifically, the modified organism can break down polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a plastic used in everything from water bottles to clothing that is a significant contributor to microplastic pollution in oceans.

Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Molecular
Published

Researchers discover tissue-specific protection against protein aggregation      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have identified a backup mechanism of protein quality control which prevents the toxic effects of protein aggregation in specific tissues when normal methods of molecular monitoring fail. By understanding how different tissues tackle protein build up, this research could accelerate the identification of ways to protect tissues that are vulnerable to protein build up, possibly tackling both disease-associated protein aggregates and also age-dependent aggregates that accelerate the functional decline of tissues.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

Electrons from Earth may be forming water on the Moon      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Planetary scientists have discovered that high energy electrons in Earth's plasma sheet are contributing to weathering processes on the Moon's surface and, importantly, the electrons may have aided the formation of water on the lunar surface.

Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: Genetics Biology: Molecular
Published

From hagfish to membrane: Modeling age-related macular degeneration      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have successfully demonstrated that hagfish slime proteins can accurately replicate membranes in the human eye. Scientists were able to properly grow retinal cells on hagfish slime proteins and prove that the protein's behavior changes as the membrane mimics stages of aging and disease.

Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular
Published

Flu: Interferon-gamma from T follicular helper cells is required to create lung-resident memory B cells      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

During a bout of influenza, B cells interact with other immune cells and then take different paths to defend the body. One path is the B cells that differentiate into lung-resident memory B cells, or lung-BRMs, that are critical for pulmonary immunity. These long-lived, non-circulating lung-BRMs migrate to the lungs from draining lymph nodes and reside there permanently as the first layer of defense that can quickly react to produce antibodies in a future infection.

Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular
Published

Mysterious family of microbial proteins hijack crops' cellular plumbing      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Some crop pathogens use a clever trick to multiply and spread infection: they hijack the plant's cellular plumbing. In a new study, researchers unveil a class of bacterial proteins that fold into a straw-like shape and insert themselves into the plant cell membrane, allowing the inside of the leaf to become waterlogged. The researchers also figured out a possible way to block the water channel proteins and prevent infection.

Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Genetics Biology: Molecular
Published

A protein on cancer cells supports the immune response against tumors      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists identify a new and surprising function of a membrane protein on the surface of cancer cells: It supports and stabilizes an important 'co-stimulatory' factor that enhances the activation of T cells, thus improving the immune response against the tumor.