Teaching nature to break man-made chemical bonds

For the first time, scientists have engineered an enzyme that can break stubborn man-made bonds between silicon and carbon that exist in widely-used chemicals known as siloxanes, or silicones. The discovery is a first step ...

New technology solves mystery of respiration in Tetrahymena

Tetrahymena, a tiny single celled-organism, turns out to be hiding a surprising secret: it's doing respiration—using oxygen to generate cellular energy—differently from other organisms such as plants, animals or yeasts. ...

How an unfolding protein can induce programmed cell death

The death of cells is well regulated. If it occurs too much, it can cause degenerative diseases. Too little, and cells can become tumors. Mitochondria, the power plants of cells, play a role in this programmed cell death. ...

How a mitochondrial enzyme can trigger cell death

Cytochrome c is a small enzyme that plays an important role in the production of energy by mitochondria. It is also involved in signaling dangerous problems that warrant apoptosis, or programmed cell death. Using solid-state ...

Scientists fill in a piece of the copper transport puzzle

Researchers have identified the protein that carries copper into mitochondria, where copper is required for the functioning of the cell's energy conversion machinery. The discovery, published in the Feb. 9 issue of the Journal ...

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