Molecular springs produce a fly's sense of touch and hearing
As senses go, there's nothing so immediate and concrete as our sense of touch. So it may come as a surprise that, on the molecular level, our sense of touch is still poorly understood.
As senses go, there's nothing so immediate and concrete as our sense of touch. So it may come as a surprise that, on the molecular level, our sense of touch is still poorly understood.
Cell & Microbiology
Jul 4, 2017
0
266
A host of proteins and other molecules sit on the strands of our DNA, controlling which genes are read out and used by cells and which remain silent. This aggregation of genetic material and controlling molecules, called ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jun 23, 2017
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170
Specialized cells in the gut sense potentially noxious chemicals and trigger electrical impulses in nearby nerve fibers, according to a new study led by UC San Francisco scientists. "These cells are sensors, like a window ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jun 22, 2017
0
8
In a major advance for fundamental biological research, UC San Francisco scientists have developed a tool capable of illuminating previously inscrutable cellular signaling networks that play a wide variety of roles in human ...
Cell & Microbiology
Apr 6, 2017
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25
Drug discovery may bring to mind images of white lab coats and pipettes, but when Henry Lin, PhD, recently set out to find a better opioid with fewer side effects, his first step was to fire up the computers.
Biochemistry
Apr 6, 2017
0
9
Sharks, rays and skates can hunt for prey hidden in the sandy sea floor by "listening" for faint traces of bioelectricity—they can literally sense their prey's heart beating. The basic anatomy of the electro-sensory organs ...
Cell & Microbiology
Mar 6, 2017
5
1165
A picture may be worth a thousand words. But new imaging technology that harmonizes mighty and distinctive microscopes may tell a complex story about a disease or condition – how it develops and how it can be treated precisely.
Analytical Chemistry
Mar 2, 2017
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12
After the 2003 completion of the Human Genome Project – which sequenced all 3 billion "letters," or base pairs, in the human genome – many thought that our DNA would become an open book. But a perplexing problem quickly ...
Biotechnology
Feb 3, 2017
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129
The textbook description of chromatin, the condensed form DNA takes when it is not in use, consists of rigid building-blocks called nucleosomes, which act as spindles on which inactive DNA can be spooled and archived. But ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Jan 23, 2017
0
710
A better cure for cancer – and other illnesses – could already be in existence, hidden right under our noses.
Biotechnology
Jan 5, 2017
0
14