Unique genetic re-wiring of a sodium channel explains how a family of electric fish can generate the highest frequency of electrical discharge seen in any animal. In a study publishing 27 March in the open access journal ...
Biotechnology
Mar 27, 2018
2
156
Artificial ion channels developed by A*STAR researchers could pave the way for new kinds of antibacterial agents and biomedical sensors.
Materials Science
Mar 9, 2018
1
14
Most ion channels are very selective about the ions that may or may not pass through them. They may be conductive for potassium ions and non-conductive for sodium ions, or vice versa. However, a number of ion channels allow ...
Materials Science
Feb 19, 2018
0
19
Tiny pores at a cell's entryway act as miniature bouncers, letting in some electrically charged atoms—ions—but blocking others. Operating as exquisitely sensitive filters, these "ion channels" play a critical role in ...
Nanophysics
Dec 8, 2017
1
32
Pyrethroid pesticides are effective. Sometimes too effective.
Plants & Animals
Nov 21, 2017
0
269
Many Americans consume too much salt. Now in a study appearing in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, scientists report that people who can easily taste salt have differing amounts of certain proteins in their ...
Other
Nov 1, 2017
0
5
Malaria kills nearly half a million people every year, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). In some of the hardest-hit areas in sub-Saharan Africa, the mosquitoes that carry the malaria parasite have become resistant ...
Biotechnology
Jun 13, 2017
1
982
(Phys.org)—A small team of researchers from Stanford University has synthesized the neurotoxin present in the skin of the poison dart frog. In their paper published in the journal Science, the team describes how they accomplished ...
Duke University biomedical engineers have harvested genes for ion channels from bacteria that, with a few tweaks, can create and enhance electrical signaling in human cells, making the cells more electrically excitable.
Cell & Microbiology
Oct 18, 2016
0
209
When your dentist injects lidocaine into your gums, the drug blocks the pain of the oncoming drill, but it also blocks all other sensation – leaving your mouth feeling numb and swollen. What if there were a drug that could ...
Biochemistry
Jun 7, 2016
1
15
