Researchers have uncovered details about how cyanobacteria, one of the most abundant organisms on earth, digest carbon. These bacteria build miniature factories inside themselves that turn carbon into fuel. A new study shows the bacteria organize these factories spatially, lining them up in a neat row, revealing a structural sophistication not often seen in single-celled organisms.
[10.3.2010]
Oncogenic retroviruses are a particular family of viruses that can cause some types of cancer. Thierry Heidmann and his colleagues in the CNRS-Institut Gustave Roussy-Université Paris Sud 11 "Rétrovirus endogènes et éléments rétroïdes des eucaryotes supérieurs" Laboratory have studied these viruses. They have identified a "virulence factor" that inhibits the host immune response and allows the virus to spread throughout the body. This factor is a sequence of amino acids that is located in the envelope protein of the virus.
[3.3.2010]
A simple approach shows that cells might be more flexible than once thought.
[24.2.2010]
Imagine a technology that, in a few controlled zaps, could cure cancer, purify water, boost alternative-energy production and wrangle agricultural pests — without harmful side effects for humans.
[17.2.2010]
A collaboration led by researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy's Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI) has developed a microbe that can produce an advanced biofuel directly from biomass. Deploying the tools of synthetic biology, the JBEI researchers engineered a strain of Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria to produce biodiesel fuel and other important chemicals derived from fatty acids.
[10.2.2010]
There's a new guinea pig in the search for sleep-related drugs: the zebrafish. Researchers at Harvard University have developed a screening tool that tests the effects of thousands of compounds on zebrafish behavior in an effort to discover new pathways that govern sleep. The research, published this week in the journal Science, may result in new drugs to treat insomnia and other sleep-related disorders.
[3.2.2010]
Scorpions deliver a powerful, paralyzing venom -- a complex cocktail of poisonous peptides -- that immobilize animal prey on the spot. Some of the toxins in this cocktail damage only insects, which is why a Tel Aviv University researcher is harnessing them to create a safe and ecologically sound pesticide.
[27.1.2010]
A team at Oregon State University has developed a new adjuvant, a substance that can increased the immune response when used in combination with a vaccine, based on lecithin nanoparticles. Currently only one adjuvant, aluminium hydroxide (alum), is approved for human use in the US because of safety concerns and is comparatively weak as well as only working with certain diseases.
[20.1.2010]
In research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a group specializing in drug delivery has found a way to create biodegradable, biocompatible particles with the size, shape, and flexibility of red blood cells. The group believes these artificial cells might be particularly effective not just for carrying oxygen but also as therapeutic and imaging agents.
[13.1.2010]
A team of researchers in California and Massachusetts has developed a "cocktail" of different nanometer-sized particles that work in concert within the bloodstream to locate, adhere to and kill cancerous tumors.
[6.1.2010]
BIOFORUM 2010
Lodz, Poland, May 19-21, 2010
Mendel lectures: How DNA recombination maintains genome integrity
Mendel museum, Brno, April 15, 2010
Mendel lectures: Germ cell specification in mice
Mendel museum, Brno, April 29, 2010
The Second International Conference on Biological and Environmental Sciences (2ICBES)
Mansoura and Luxor, Egypt, March 15-20, 2010
XGen Congress
San Diego, CA, United States, March 15-19, 2010
Drug Discovery Technology World Asia 2010
Singapore, March 16-19, 2010
Gate2Biotech - Biotechnology Portal - All Czech Biotechnology information in one place.
ISSN 1802-2685
© 2006 South Moravian Innovation Centre
Interesting biotechnology content:
Biotechnology - Biotechnology channel at Nature.com
Biotech events - Interesting events in biotech segment
Inner Workings Of Molecular Thermostat Point To Pathways To Fight Diabetes, Obesity
Two Proteins Enable Skin Cells To Regenerate