News by Subject Biology

-Researchers have shown that a single nucleotide change in a gene that affects production of hepcidin--a peptide involved in inflammation, immunity, and control of iron levels--is associated with greater susceptibility to extrapulmonary tuberculosis.

However, a new research mind has to emerge in our minds from recent research article 'The Relationship Between Green Building and Regional Economy: A Case Study in Guangdong, China,' published in The Open Civil Engineering Journal.

Researchers at Ruhr-Universität Bochum and the Freie Universität Berlin have clarified the crucial catalytic step in the production of hydrogen by enzymes. The enzymes, called [FeFe]-hydrogenases, efficiently turn electrons and protons into hydrogen. They are thus a candidate for the biotechnological production of the potential energy source. 'In order to produce hydrogen on an industrial scale with the aid of enzymes, we must precisely understand how they work,' says Professor Thomas Happe, one of the authors of the study.

Ten new reviews and original research reports that illustrate how the progression of research assays from qualitative outputs toward increasingly sensitive quantitative outputs is transforming life sciences and biomedical research and diagnostics by improving the ability of researchers and clinicians to detect and quantify increasingly complex assays.

As outlined in a study published today in Nature, lead author Devin Sok, Director, Antibody Discovery and Development at the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), reports the elicitation of powerful, HIV-blocking antibodies in cows in a matter of weeks -- a process that usually takes years in humans. The unexpected animal model is providing clues for important questions at a moment when new energy has infused HIV vaccine research.

MIT researchers have developed a model that predicts a single heart cell's response to dwindling supplies of oxygen. Specifically, it evaluates a cell's ability to keep producing ATP -- a cell's primary fuel source -- and stay alive, even as it is increasingly deprived of oxygen.

Whales, sharks, butterflies and lotus leaves might together hold the secret to saving the shipping industry millions and help save the planet, according to a marine biologist at the University of Portsmouth, UK.

Solutions to climate change, and particularly its effects on the ocean, are needed now more than ever. Coral bleaching caused by climate change is a huge threat to coral reefs. Recent extreme bleaching events have already killed corals worldwide and permanent destruction of reefs is projected within the century if immediate action is not taken. However, genetically engineering a group of microalgae found in corals may enhance their stress tolerance to ocean warming and save coral reefs.