Molecules found in mucus could prevent cholera infection

MIT researchers have identified molecules found in mucus that can block cholera infection by interfering with the genes that cause the microbe to switch into a harmful state.

Glycans are crucial in COVID-19 infection

A research group at the RIKEN Center for Computational Science (R-CCS) has found that glycans—sugar molecules—play an important role in the structural changes that take place when the virus which causes COVID-19 invades ...

Understanding the chemical communication between cells

Like the people they make up, cells communicate by bumping into one another and exchanging handshakes. Unlike people, cells perform these handshakes using the diverse range of sugar molecules coating their surface like trees ...

How SARS-CoV-2's sugar-coated shield helps activate the virus

One thing that makes SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, elusive to the immune system is that it is covered in sugars called glycans. Once SARS-CoV-2 infects someone's body, it becomes covered in that person's unique ...

A winning combination for glycoprotein synthesis

Many processes in the body are regulated by the functions of proteins. For example, almost all molecules—such as DNA, proteins, oligosaccharides, and small bioactive molecules—are generated by enzymes. However, changes ...

page 4 from 6