New research shows that cancer cells don’t just grow; they adapt when stressed. When squeezed inside tissues, they transform into more invasive, drug-resistant versions of themselves. A protein called HMGB2 helps flip this dangerous switch, giving the cells new powers to escape. The findings reveal how the tumor’s environment itself can drive cancer’s deadly flexibility.
Read moreAlcohol doesn’t just damage the liver — it locks its cells in a strange “in-between” state that prevents them from healing. Even after someone quits drinking, liver cells often get stuck, unable to function normally or regenerate. Scientists have now traced this problem to runaway inflammation, which scrambles the cell’s instructions and silences a key helper protein. By blocking these inflammatory signals in lab tests, they were able to restore the liver’s healing ability — a finding that could point to new treatments beyond transplants.
Read moreResearchers have discovered in mice how one of the few genes definitively linked to schizophrenia, called SETD1A, likely confers risk for the illness. Mice genetically engineered to lack a functioning version of the enzyme-coding gene showed abnormalities in working memory, mimicking those commonly seen in patients. Restoring the gene's function corrected the working memory deficit and counteracting its deficiency also repaired neuronal circuit deficits in adult mice — suggesting clues for potential treatment strategies.
Read moreWhether it's chocolate cake or pasta sauce, the sensation of sweetness plays a major role in the human diet and the perception of other flavors. While a lot is known about the individual proteins that signal ''sweet,'' not much is known about how the proteins work together as a receptor to accomplish this feat.
Read moreResearchers identify gene causing intellectual disability syndrome that is common in countries where consanguineous marriages are prevalent.
Read moreSwapping a single amino acid in a simple bacterial protein changes its structure and function, revealing the effects of complex gene evolution, finds a new study. The study — conducted using E. coli bacteria — can help researchers to better understand the evolution of transporter proteins and their role in drug resistance.
Read moreAs wearable sensors become more prevalent, the need for a material resistant to damage from the stress and strains of the human body's natural movement becomes ever more crucial. To that end, researchers have developed a method of adopting kirigami architectures to help materials become more strain tolerant and more adaptable to movement.
Read moreA research team has created a third approach to engineering proteins that uses deep learning to distill the fundamental features of proteins directly from their amino acid sequence without the need for additional information.
Read moreScientists demonstrate a new approach in fluorescence microscopy that can be used to locate individual biomolecules in 3D space with nanometer-scale precision.
Read moreA team has developed a new CRISPR genome-editing approach by combining two of the most important proteins in molecular biology — CRISPR-Cas9 and a reverse transcriptase — into a single machine.
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