News tagged with sodium channels

Researchers uncover reason why mole rats are oblivious to acid pain

(PhysOrg.com) -- Mole rats aren't the prettiest things; living underground as they do, they more resemble Gollum from the Lord of the Rings trilogy than other rats or mice. But they’re interesting to ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Dec 16, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (5) | comments 4 | with audio podcast report

Sodium channels evolved before animals' nervous systems, research shows

An essential component of animal nervous systems—sodium channels—evolved prior to the evolution of those systems, researchers from The University of Texas at Austin have discovered.

Biology / Evolution

created May 17, 2011 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (5) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

A common thread: No pain, no smell

(PhysOrg.com) -- In a recent study published in Nature by Jan Weiss and Frank Zufall of the University of Saarland, School of Medicine, a connection has been made between the inability to feel pain and anosmia - the inabil ...

Medicine & Health / Medical research

created Mar 25, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast report

Cystic fibrosis gene typo is a double whammy

An imbalance of salt and water in patients with cystic fibrosis makes their lungs clog up with sticky mucus that is prone to infection. The cause of the offending imbalance is a well-known genetic error, one that blocks the ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Nov 12, 2010 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

New research may lead to new ways to control honeybee parasite

(PhysOrg.com) -- Ground-breaking discoveries by Michigan State University researchers could help protect honeybees from deadly parasites that have devastated commercial colonies.

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Dec 08, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (4) | comments 0

Electric fish plug in to communicate

(PhysOrg.com) -- Just as people plug in to computers, smart phones and electric outlets to communicate, electric fish communicate by quickly plugging special channels into their cells to generate electrical ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Sep 29, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 1

The first gene-encoded amphibian toxin isolated

Researchers in China have discovered the first protein-based toxin in an amphibian -a 60 amino acid neurotoxin found in the skin of a Chinese tree frog. This finding may help shed more light into both the ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Aug 17, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Scientists model the pathways of pain-blocking meds

Benzocaine, a commonly used local anesthetic, may more easily wiggle into a cell's membrane when the membrane is made up of compounds that carry a negative charge, a new study shows. The finding could help scientists piece ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Sep 26, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Fluid equilibrium in prehistoric organisms sheds light on a turning point in evolution

Maintaining fluid balance in the body is essential to survival, from the tiniest protozoa to the mightiest of mammals. By researching recent genomic data, Swiss researchers have found genetic evidence that links this intricate ...

Biology / Evolution

created Sep 22, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 1

Scorpion venom -- bad for bugs, good for pesticides

Fables have long cast scorpions as bad-natured killers of hapless turtles that naively agree to ferry them across rivers. Michigan State University scientists, however, see them in a different light.

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Apr 27, 2011 | popularity 3 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Membrane molecule keeps nerve impulses hopping

New research from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine describes a key molecular mechanism in nerve fibers that ensures the rapid conductance of nervous system impulses. The findings ...

Medicine & Health / Neuroscience

created Jan 26, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Synthetic peptide may enhance lung transplantation

Lung transplant patients may one day benefit from a synthetic peptide that mimics the body's natural ability to reduce excess fluid accumulation, Medical College of Georgia researchers report.

Medicine & Health / Medical research

created Mar 24, 2010 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Pinch away the pain

Scorpion venom is notoriously poisonous -- but it might be used as an alternative to dangerous and addictive painkillers like morphine, a Tel Aviv University researcher claims.

Medicine & Health / Medical research

created Feb 16, 2010 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Severe Epilepsy Linked to Gene Mutation

University of Utah medical researchers have identified a gene with mutations that cause febrile seizures and contribute to a severe form of epilepsy known as Dravet syndrome in some of the most vulnerable patients - infants ...

Medicine & Health / Genetics

created Sep 14, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Evolution and Epilepsy: Improvement in Brain Electrical Signaling is Critical Both for Vertebrate Evolution and for Prev

Studies at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine on brain electrical signaling offer a fresh perspective on vertebrate evolution, provide additional evidence supporting Darwinian views of evolution, ...

Medicine & Health / Medical research

created Jan 20, 2009 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 0