Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology
Published

Llama nanobodies: A breakthrough in building HIV immunity      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Biology researchers have developed a new antibody therapy that can neutralize a wide variety of HIV-1 strains. They found success in an unlikely source -- llamas.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry
Published

A new addition to the CRISPR toolbox: Teaching the gene scissors to detect RNA      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

CRISPR-Cas systems, defense systems in bacteria, have become a plentiful source of technologies for molecular diagnostics. Researchers have now expanded this extensive toolbox further. Their novel method, called PUMA, enables the detection of RNA with Cas12 nucleases, which naturally target DNA. PUMA promises a wide range of applications and high accuracy.

Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Paleontology: Fossils
Published

Ancient microbes offer clues to how complex life evolved      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have discovered that a single-celled organism, a close relative of animals, harbors the remnants of ancient giant viruses woven into its own genetic code. This finding sheds light on how complex organisms may have acquired some of their genes and highlights the dynamic interplay between viruses and their hosts.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology
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Harnessing big data helps scientists home in on new antimicrobials      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed a strategy to identify new antimicrobial drugs with therapeutic promise from bacterial datasets, providing clues for discovering alternatives to traditional antibiotics.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology
Published

E. coli variant may cause antimicrobial resistance in dogs, humans      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers studying antimicrobial-resistant E. coli -- the leading cause of human death due to antimicrobial resistance worldwide -- have identified a mechanism in dogs that may render multiple antibiotic classes ineffective.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Nature
Published

Building a roadmap to bioengineer plants that produce their own nitrogen fertilizer      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Nitrogen fertilizers make it possible to feed the world's growing population, but they are also costly adn harm ecosystems. However, a few plants have evolved the ability to acquire their own nitrogen with the help of bacteria, and a new study helps explain how they did it, not once, but multiple times.

Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Biology: Zoology
Published

Receptors make dairy cows a prime target for influenza      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A study helps explain why dairy cows infected by highly pathogenic avian influenza are shedding the virus in their milk. Their findings could help develop biosecurity measures aimed at slowing the spread of the illness.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Organic Chemistry
Published

A better way to make RNA drugs      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

RNA drugs are the next frontier of medicine, but manufacturing them requires an expensive and labor-intensive process that limits production and produces metric tons of toxic chemical waste. Researchers report a new, enzyme-based RNA synthesis method that can produce strands of RNA with both natural and modified nucleotides without the environmental hazards.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Chemistry: Biochemistry
Published

A comprehensive derivative synthesis method for development of new antimicrobial drugs      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A method to screen a wide variety of drug candidates without laborious purification steps could advance the fight against drug-resistant bacteria.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Microbiology
Published

Respiratory bacteria 'turn off' immune system to survive      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have identified how a common bacterium is able to manipulate the human immune system during respiratory infections and cause persistent illness.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

A stealth fungus has decimated North American bats but scientists may be a step closer to treating white-nose syndrome      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An invasive fungus that colonizes the skin of hibernating bats with deadly consequences is a stealthy invader that uses multiple strategies to slip into the small mammals' skin cells and quietly manipulate them to aid its own survival. The fungus, which causes the disease white-nose syndrome, has devastated several North American species over the last 18 years.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Nanoplastics and 'forever chemicals' disrupt molecular structures, functionality      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have made significant inroads in understanding how nanoplastics and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) -- commonly known as forever chemicals -- disrupt biomolecular structure and function. The work shows that the compounds can alter proteins found in human breast milk and infant formulas -- potentially causing developmental issues downstream.

Biology: Microbiology
Published

Researchers develop a way to make lifesaving phages accessible, transportable and much easier to use      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed a simple way to bring bacteriophage therapy into much closer reach for clinicians struggling to save patients with antimicrobial-resistant infections. The technology makes it possible to sort through hundreds or even thousands of phages in less than two hours to identify which will respond to a particular infection.

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

Opening the right doors: 'Jumping gene' control mechanisms revealed      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

International joint research led by Akihisa Osakabe and Yoshimasa Takizawa of the University of Tokyo has clarified the molecular mechanisms in thale cresses (Arabidopsis thaliana) by which the DDM1 (Decreased in DNA Methylation 1) protein prevents the transcription of 'jumping genes.' DDM1 makes 'jumping genes' more accessible for transcription-suppressing chemical marks to be deposited. Because a variant of this protein exists in humans, the discovery provides insight into genetic conditions caused by such 'jumping gene' mutations.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Invasive Species
Published

Wild plants and crops don't make great neighbors, research finds      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Native plants and non-native crops do not fare well in proximity to one another, attracting pests that spread diseases in both directions, according to two new studies.

Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

First ever 3D reconstruction of 52,000-year-old woolly mammoth chromosomes thanks to serendipitously freeze-dried skin      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An international research team has assembled the genome and 3D chromosomal structures of a 52,000-year-old woolly mammoth -- the first time such a feat has been achieved for any ancient DNA sample. The fossilized chromosomes, which are around a million times longer than most ancient DNA fragments, provide insight into how the mammoth's genome was organized within its living cells and which genes were active within the skin tissue from which the DNA was extracted. This unprecedented level of structural detail was retained because the mammoth underwent freeze-drying shortly after it died, which meant that its DNA was preserved in a glass-like state.