New strategy to precisely target subtypes of key protein

Cyclosporine is one of the most common and effective immunosuppressant drugs used to treat chronic diseases like arthritis and psoriasis, but it comes with a risk of serious side effects. Scientists think that may be because ...

Enzyme in human salivary microbes decomposes PET-based plastics

Human saliva may contain an enzyme which can decompose the plastic polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Researchers found the promising enzyme, a hydrolase, in a database containing human metagenome samples. As they report in ...

Understanding enzyme evolution paves the way for green chemistry

Researchers at the University of Bristol have shown how laboratory evolution can give rise to highly efficient enzymes for new-to-nature reactions, opening the door for novel and more environmentally friendly ways to make ...

Researchers develop tool to drastically speed up the study of enzymes

For much of human history, animals and plants were perceived to follow a different set of rules than the rest of the universe. In the 18th and 19th centuries, this culminated in a belief that living organisms were infused ...

Imaging method reveals a 'symphony of cellular activities'

Within a single cell, thousands of molecules, such as proteins, ions, and other signaling molecules, work together to perform all kinds of functions—absorbing nutrients, storing memories, and differentiating into specific ...

A 'biomultimeter' to measure RNA and protein production in real-time

Builders of genetic circuits face the same quandary as builders of digital circuits: testing their designs. Yet unlike bioengineers, engineers have a simple and universal testing tool—the multimeter—that they can touch ...

Researchers create a protein 'mat' that can soak up pollution

In a breakthrough that could lead to a new class of materials with functions found only in living systems, scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, have figured out a way to keep certain proteins active outside ...

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