News tagged with cell processes

'Metamaterials,' quantum dots show promise for new technologies

(Phys.org) -- Researchers are edging toward the creation of new optical technologies using "nanostructured metamaterials" capable of ultra-efficient transmission of light, with potential applications including ...

Nanotechnology / Nanophysics

created May 24, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (7) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Real-time monitoring of RNA splicing in living cells moves step closer with novel fluorescent probe

Numerous biological processes depend on molecules called lariat RNAs (LaRNAs). These lasso-shaped structures form in the cell during RNA splicing. During this process, transcribed RNA strands convert to messenger ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created May 24, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Non-invasive intracellular 'thermometer' with fluorescent proteins created

A team from the Institute of Photonic Sciences (ICFO) has developed a technique to measure internal cell temperatures without altering their metabolism. This finding could be useful when distinguishing healthy ...

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

created May 23, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

New 'metamaterial' practical for optical advances

(Phys.org) -- Researchers have taken a step toward overcoming a key obstacle in commercializing "hyperbolic metamaterials," structures that could bring optical advances including ultrapowerful microscopes, computers and solar ...

Physics / Condensed Matter

created May 15, 2012 | popularity 3.9 / 5 (7) | comments 5 | with audio podcast

What makes a worm say 'yuck'

Researchers at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) say they have uncovered a way that animals detect pathogens in their bodies that allows their systems to respond before cellular damage ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created May 15, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Researchers have a natural sidekick that may resolve the antibiotic-resistant bacteria dilemma

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria continue to be a global concern with devastating repercussions, such as increased healthcare costs, potential spread of infections across continents, and prolonged illness.

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Apr 25, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Study dusts sugar coating off little-known regulation in cells

In Alzheimer's disease, brain neurons become clogged with tangled proteins. Scientists suspect these tangles arise partly due to malfunctions in a little-known regulatory system within cells. Now, researchers have dramatically ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Apr 16, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Bioengineers develop artificial chip for testing how drugs interact with ion channels

(Phys.org) -- Ion channels, proteins embedded in cell membranes, are central to many of the human body's physiological processes, including cardiac activity. For this reason, they are also important targets for cardiac drugs. ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Apr 10, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Red wine, fruit compound could help block fat cell formation

(PhysOrg.com) -- A compound found in red wine, grapes and other fruits, and similar in structure to resveratrol, is able to block cellular processes that allow fat cells to develop, opening a door to a potential ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Apr 04, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

To drive infections, a hijacking virus mimics a cell's signaling system

New biological research reveals how an invading virus hijacks a cell's workings by imitating a signaling marker to defeat the body's defenses. By manipulating cell signals, the virus destroys a defensive protein designed ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Mar 26, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Cyborg snail produces electricity

(PhysOrg.com) -- First it was grapes, then cockroaches, and now snails have become the latest organism to generate electricity through an implanted biofuel cell. The process works similarly in all three situations: ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Mar 15, 2012 | popularity 4.2 / 5 (13) | comments 6 | with audio podcast report

The dance of the chaperones: Scientists identify key player of protein folding

Proteins are the molecular building blocks and machinery of cells and involved in practically all biological processes. To fulfil their tasks, they need to be folded into a complicated three-dimensional structure. Scientists ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Mar 08, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Immortal worms defy aging

Researchers from The University of Nottingham have demonstrated how a species of flatworm overcomes the ageing process to be potentially immortal.

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Feb 27, 2012 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (38) | comments 22 | with audio podcast

Video games lead to new paths to treat cancer, other diseases

The cure for cancer comes down to this: video games.

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Feb 16, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Discovery of extremely long-lived proteins may provide insight into cell aging

One of the big mysteries in biology is why cells age. Now scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies report that they have discovered a weakness in a component of brain cells that may explain ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Feb 03, 2012 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (13) | comments 0 | with audio podcast