New insight into cell receptors opens the way for tailored cancer drugs

12-Feb-2019 - New research on how cancer mutations influence a certain type of receptor on the cell membrane opens the way for the development of tailored drugs for certain cancers, such as rectal cancer and lung cancer. This according to researchers at Sweden's Karolinska Institutet and Uppsala University, ...

Structure of virus that infects bacteria in hot springs is revealed

06-Feb-2019 - Scientists have revealed the structure of a virus infecting bacteria that thrive in 160-degree hot springs in places like Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. The discovery could lead to better targeted delivery of drugs into cells and new DNA sequencing technology, according to a study by ...

Chemists design 'miniecosystems' to test drug function

21-Jun-2018 - Scripps Research scientists have solved a major problem in chemistry and drug development by using droplet-sized 'miniecosystems' to quickly see if a molecule can function as a potential therapeutic. As they report the new method will let researchers save critical time and funding by ...

Link between bacteria metabolism and communication could pave way for new antivirulence drugs

04-Jun-2018 - Researchers have discovered a link between bacteria metabolism and cell-to-cell communication, potentially providing a target for new antivirulence and antibiofilm drugs. Current drugs for bacterial infections aim to kill bacteria in large quantities, but such drugs are often eventually met ...

Toxic agents behind Parkinson's disease seen at work for the first time

First look at how toxic protein clusters disrupt the membranes of healthy brain cells.

18-Dec-2017 - Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative nervous system disorder that affects more than six million people worldwide and causes nearly 120,000 deaths per year. In new research, scientists have characterised the key agents involved in spreading Parkinson’s disease in the brain, and established how ...

Highly charged molecules behave paradoxically

28-Nov-2017 - A number of chemistry researchers from several institutions including Lund University in Sweden, have managed to identify a new mechanism that makes certain charged biomolecules attach to each other. The biomolecules in the present study serve as models for antibacterial peptides, that is, ...

Computer program finds new uses for old drugs

20-Nov-2017 - Researchers at the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have developed a computer program to find new indications for old drugs. The computer program, called DrugPredict, matches existing data about FDA-approved drugs to diseases, and predicts ...

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 ...

Mechanism involved in novel drug design with potential to treat tuberculosis

16-Oct-2017 - A team of researchers from Instituto de Medicina Molecular (iMM) Lisboa successfully used a pioneer method to chemically modify a protein's components with potential medical applications and an impact in the fight against tuberculosis. To design novel drugs it is essential to understand the ...

Seeing more with PET scans

New chemistry for medical imaging

28-Jul-2017 - Researchers have found a surprisingly versatile workaround to create chemical compounds that could prove useful for medical imaging and drug development. The chemical mechanism, discovered by scientists at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and UC ...