Plants produce all types of curious chemicals. Some deter predators. Some smell wonderful. Some even have medicinal value. One of these hidden gems is (–)-jerantinine A (JA), a molecule with remarkable anticancer properties, ...
Biochemistry
Mar 23, 2023
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26
RNAs are having a moment. The foundation of COVID-19 vaccines, they've made their way from biochemistry textbooks into popular magazines and everyday discussions. Entire companies have been launched that are dedicated to ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Feb 23, 2023
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20
Over 34 million people in the U.S. don't have enough food. More diverse and adaptable crops are needed to address challenges in food production made worse by climate change. Small, sweet berries called groundcherries may ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 31, 2022
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20
Understanding how plants process light is key to improving crop yields. Light helps plants know when to grow and flower at the right time. Plants find light using proteins called photoreceptors. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 14, 2022
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102
Cells produce proteins like little factories. But if they make too much at the wrong times it can lead to diseases like cancer, so they control production with a process called RNA interference (RNAi). As of July 2021, several ...
Cell & Microbiology
May 31, 2022
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26
When plant geneticists find a gene that improves crop yields, they want to try to insert that same change into other crops. But Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Professor and HHMI Investigator Zachary Lippman cautions that ...
Biotechnology
Mar 28, 2022
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45
Cells use RNA as a versatile tool to regulate the activity of their genes. Small snippets of RNA can fine-tune how much protein is produced from various genes; some small RNAs can shut genes off altogether. An enzyme called ...
Cell & Microbiology
Mar 17, 2022
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70
In the face of natural selection, genetic mutations set some individuals up for success. A single change to the sequence of a gene can give an organism an advantage—and if that mutation is passed to future generations, ...
Evolution
Feb 15, 2022
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6
How does a developing plant shoot know how, where, and when to grow? Dividing cells need to pass messages from one another to coordinate growth. In plants, important messages are packaged into RNA, which are sent from cell ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Jan 13, 2022
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59
They say you can't teach an old dog new tricks, but can you do new tricks with old chemical catalysts? Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Professor John E. Moses and his team have paired a catalyst called "Barton's base" developed ...
Materials Science
Dec 6, 2021
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