Predicting the effects of changes on living systems

Can scientists predict what happens when they introduce a change into a living system—for example, if they change the structure of a gene or administer a drug? Just as changing one letter can completely change the meaning ...

New findings reveal how influenza virus hijacks human cells

Influenza is and remains a disease to reckon with. Seasonal epidemics around the world kill several hundred thousand people every year. In the light of looming pandemics if bird flu strains develop the ability to infect humans ...

Exploring the universe of biochemical reactions

Scientists at EMBL-EBI have developed EC-BLAST: software that makes it easier to develop novel enzymes. Published in Nature Methods, the program makes it possible to quickly compare the functions of thousands of catalysts, ...

The limits of phenomenology

What's wrong with the science of science? Do the methods we use to explore new innovations in psychology, drug testing and engineering design really work? A new paper has troubling answers: Big Data isn't big enough to be ...

A new look at proteins in living cells

(Phys.org)—Proteins adorning the surfaces of human cells perform an array of essential functions, including cell signaling, communication and the transport of vital substances into and out of cells. They are critical targets ...

Pore size influences nature of complex nanostructures

Building at the nanoscale is not like building a house. Scientists often start with two-dimensional molecular layers and combine them to form complex three-dimensional architectures. And instead of nails and screws, these ...

page 3 from 5