New ways to strengthen biomimetic spider-silk

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have found that spiders have a special trick to make their silk strong, by using a natural biocompatible molecular enhancer. By using the same secret the researchers are able to create ...

Understanding the growth of disease-causing protein fibres

Amyloid fibrils are deposits of proteins in the body that join together to form microscopic fibres. Their formation has been linked to many serious human diseases including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Type 2 diabetes.

X-ray laser opens new view on Alzheimer's proteins

A new experimental method permits the X-ray analysis of amyloids, a class of large, filamentous biomolecules which are an important hallmark of diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. An international team of researchers ...

The shape of your heart matters

Curious to know if you're at risk for two common heart conditions? Your doctor may want to check the shape of your heart.

A step toward understanding how hibernation protects hearts

Wintry weather means hats and scarves for some mammals, and hibernation for others. Hibernation dramatically lowers body temperatures, heart rates and oxygen consumption—things that would be fatal to other animals. A team ...

Parkinson-related protein is 'tunable'

Fibrils of the protein alpha-synuclein, that plays a role in Parkinson's disease, form a stiffer and stronger network in water, when temperature is increased. Researchers of the University of Twente show that this has to ...

Straight to the heart

A battery-less, wirelessly-powered implantable defibrillator for atrial fibrillation is being developed by an international team of researchers in the UK, Venezuela and the US. With the ability to sense the electrical impedance ...

Collagen fibres grow like a sunflower

Collagen fibrils are a major component of the connective tissues found throughout the animal kingdom. The cable-like assemblies of long biological molecules combine to form tissues as varied as skin, corneas, tendons or bones. ...

page 8 from 9