http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Genes control everything from eye color to disease susceptibility, and inheritance - the passing of the genes from generation to generation after they have been duplicated - depends on centromeres. Located in the little pinched waist of each chromosome, centromeres control the movements that separate sister chromosomes when cells divide ensuring that each daughter cell inherits a complete copy of each chromosome. It has long been known that centromeres are not formed solely from DNA; rather, centromere proteins (CENPs) facilitate the assembly of a centromere on each chromosome. Understanding how a protein structure can be copied with enough precision to be stable, generation after generation, has been a mystery. http://phys.org/news227290875.html Biology Tue, 14 Jun 2011 17:21:32 EST news227290875 In a paper appearing in the Sept. 16 online edition of Science, Matthew Vander Heiden assistant professor of biology and member of the David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT and researchers at Harvard University report a previously unknown element of cancer cells' peculiar metabolism. They found that cells can trigger an alternative biochemical pathway that speeds up their metabolism and diverts the byproducts to construct new cells. http://phys.org/news203865483.html Medicine & Health Thu, 16 Sep 2010 14:18:31 EST news203865483 An international study led by biologists and neuroscientists from the University of Pennsylvania has identified a new genetic risk factor for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease. http://phys.org/news201956963.html Medicine & Health Wed, 25 Aug 2010 13:00:07 EST news201956963 They congregate in the environments that suit them best; some prefer the dry, desert-like conditions of our forearms while others thrive in the Amazon-style humidity of our feet. http://phys.org/news201451539.html Biology Thu, 19 Aug 2010 16:20:03 EST news201451539 When kitchens become infiltrated with fruit flies, especially during the dog days of summer, homeowners might wish that the flying pests would just turn to ice. http://phys.org/news201432800.html Biology Thu, 19 Aug 2010 10:33:58 EST news201432800 A new discovery about selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) suggests that these drugs, which are used to treat mental health disorders like depression and anxiety, have multiple effects on our cells. In a research report published in the August 2010 issue of GENETICS, researchers used yeast cells to identify secondary drug targets or pathways affected by SSRIs. Such secondary pathways could help explain why different people taking the same drug may experience different effects, and could also lead to new types of drugs altogether. http://phys.org/news201194248.html Medicine & Health Mon, 16 Aug 2010 16:30:01 EST news201194248 Within a dangerous stomach bacterium, Yale University researchers have discovered an ancient but functioning genetic remnant from a time before DNA existed, they report in the August 13 issue of the journal Science. http://phys.org/news200842170.html Biology Thu, 12 Aug 2010 15:00:04 EST news200842170 Chemists and engineers at Harvard University have fashioned nanowires into a new type of V-shaped transistor small enough to be used for sensitive probing of the interior of cells. http://phys.org/news200825986.html Nanotechnology Thu, 12 Aug 2010 14:00:02 EST news200825986 Single-molecule sequencing technology has detected and quantified novel small RNAs in human cells that represent entirely new classes of the gene-translating molecules, confirming a long-held but unproven hypothesis that mammalian cells are capable of synthesizing RNA by copying RNA molecules directly. The findings were reported in Nature by researchers from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Helicos Biosciences Corp., Integromics Inc., and the University of Geneva Medical School. http://phys.org/news200656763.html Biology Tue, 10 Aug 2010 11:50:06 EST news200656763 (PhysOrg.com) -- That age-old question, "where did life on Earth start?" now has a new answer. If the life between the mica sheets hypothesis is correct, life would have originated between sheets of mica that were layered like the pages in a book. http://phys.org/news200294333.html Biology Fri, 06 Aug 2010 07:10:01 EST news200294333 (PhysOrg.com) -- When it infects the lungs, the Legionnaire’s bacterium Legionella pneumophila causes acute pneumonia. The pathogen’s modus operandi is particularly ingenious: it infiltrates deliberately into cells of the human immune system and injects a host of proteins which then interfere in the normal cellular processes. http://phys.org/news199085061.html Biology Fri, 23 Jul 2010 06:24:54 EST news199085061 With more than 100 billion neurons and billions of other specialized cells, the human brain is a marvel of nature. It is the organ that makes people unique. http://phys.org/news197209067.html Medicine & Health Thu, 01 Jul 2010 13:18:03 EST news197209067 National Physical Laboratory is involved in a collaborative project that is helping to further the understanding of HIV viral protein structure which could lead to new molecular medicines. http://phys.org/news196360464.html Chemistry Mon, 21 Jun 2010 17:50:10 EST news196360464 Fresh discoveries about the parasite that causes sleeping sickness could lead to new avenues of research into treatments for the disease. http://phys.org/news195738492.html Medicine & Health Mon, 14 Jun 2010 17:00:04 EST news195738492 Researchers at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine and University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) have created a three-dimensional picture of an important protein that is involved in how HIV -- the virus responsible for AIDS -- is produced inside human cells. The picture may help researchers design drugs that can prevent HIV from reproducing. http://phys.org/news195306893.html Medicine & Health Wed, 09 Jun 2010 13:00:11 EST news195306893 Whitehead Institute researchers have converted established human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells and human embryonic stem (ES) cells to a base state of greater pluripotency. http://phys.org/news192117089.html Biology Mon, 03 May 2010 15:00:19 EST news192117089 (PhysOrg.com) -- Countless words have been put to paper over the years in attempts to describe the beauty of a tree -- including carefully crafted passages by the world?s most gifted writers. But those writings pale in comparison to the intricacy of a tree?s own genetic script. http://phys.org/news191771259.html Biology Thu, 29 Apr 2010 14:48:00 EST news191771259 Genetic mutation can disrupt the way human cells make proteins, which in turn leads to inherited disease. David Bedwell, a professor in the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Department of Microbiology, says scientists are closer than ever to producing drugs that fix this disrupted-protein pathway and drastically improving treatment of genetic disease. http://phys.org/news191486788.html Medicine & Health Mon, 26 Apr 2010 13:00:09 EST news191486788 Viruses have evolved a broad range of strategies that enable them to evade the immune systems of their hosts. A team of researchers led by LMU virologist Professor Jürgen Haas has been studying a novel, recently discovered mechanism that pathogenic viruses exploit for this purpose, and their latest results could point the way to new antiviral therapies. The mechanism is based on the production of short RNA molecules, called microRNAs, by the virus. http://phys.org/news191157900.html Biology Thu, 22 Apr 2010 12:25:25 EST news191157900 Using a method they developed to watch moment to moment as they move a molecule to precise sites inside live human cells, Johns Hopkins scientists are closer to understanding why and how a protein at one location may signal division and growth, and the same protein at another location, death. http://phys.org/news190479993.html Biology Wed, 14 Apr 2010 16:30:02 EST news190479993 A team of Swedish and American scientists has shown for the first time that carbon nanotubes can be broken down by an enzyme - myeloperoxidase (MPO) - found in white blood cells. Their discoveries are presented in Nature Nanotechnology and contradict what was previously believed, that carbon nanotubes are not broken down in the body or in nature. The scientists hope that this new understanding of how MPO converts carbon nanotubes into water and carbon dioxide can be of significance to medicine. http://phys.org/news189688332.html Nanotechnology Mon, 05 Apr 2010 12:12:27 EST news189688332 In a first-of-its-kind experiment, the unique conditions of spaceflight will be used to examine how cells remain healthy or succumb to disease, particularly in the face of stress or damage. http://phys.org/news189435613.html Medicine & Health Fri, 02 Apr 2010 14:00:43 EST news189435613 Sideroblastic anemia is a form of anemia caused by an inability to incorporate iron into hemoglobin, something that is essential if the molecule is to perform its vital function of carrying oxygen from the lungs to the tissues. http://phys.org/news189363375.html Medicine & Health Thu, 01 Apr 2010 17:56:27 EST news189363375 The question of whether or not nanoparticles have an effect on the human body - and if so, how - is still largely unanswered. There is little information, for instance, on whether pregnant women exposed to these minute particles pass them on to their unborn babies. Scientists from Empa and the University Hospital Zurich (Switzerland) now show first results. http://phys.org/news188226101.html Nanotechnology Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:02:46 EST news188226101 (PhysOrg.com) -- BYU research has identified equol as a naturally occurring compound that improves skin health, and the university has licensed the technology to Provo-based Nu Skin Enterprises, the $1.3 billion global anti-aging personal care and nutritional products company. http://phys.org/news187985428.html Medicine & Health Tue, 16 Mar 2010 19:30:01 EST news187985428 Within a virus's tiny exterior is a store of energy waiting to be unleashed. When the virus encounters a host cell, this pent-up energy is released, propelling the viral DNA into the cell and turning it into a virus factory. For the first time, Carnegie Mellon University physicist Alex Evilevitch has directly measured the energy associated with the expulsion of viral DNA, a pivotal discovery toward fully understanding the physical mechanisms that control viral infection and designing drugs to interfere with the process. http://phys.org/news184588836.html Biology Fri, 05 Feb 2010 10:41:09 EST news184588836 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at the University of Toronto have discovered a way to map the interactions of genes within a cell, a significant breakthrough that promises to help researchers better understand the causes of disease, and lead to more precise targeting of drug treatments. http://phys.org/news183652287.html Biology Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:31:57 EST news183652287 Famous for its antioxidant properties and role in tissue repair, vitamin C is touted as beneficial for illnesses ranging from the common cold to cancer and perhaps even for slowing the aging process. Now, a study published online on December 24th by Cell Press in the journal Cell Stem Cell uncovers an unexpected new role for this natural compound: facilitating the generation of embryonic-like stem cells from adult cells. http://phys.org/news180845703.html Biology Thu, 24 Dec 2009 12:00:11 EST news180845703 the delivery of healthy proteins directly into human cells to replace malfunctioning proteins — is considered one of the most direct and safe approaches for treating diseases. But its effectiveness has been limited by low delivery efficiency and the poor stability of proteins, which are frequently broken down and digested by cells' protease enzymes before they reach their intended target. http://phys.org/news180350481.html Nanotechnology Fri, 18 Dec 2009 09:22:44 EST news180350481 (PhysOrg.com) -- Evolution places the highest premium on reproduction, natural selection’s only standard for biological success. In the case of replicating cells, life spares no expense to ensure that the offspring is a faithful copy of the parent. Researchers have identified a new player in this elaborate system of quality control, a gene whose mutation can cause a rare but lethal disease. http://phys.org/news179522040.html Biology Tue, 08 Dec 2009 20:30:01 EST news179522040