Pumping bacterial toxins

In a previous issue, we discussed early work on Escherichia coli as a proof of principle for understanding how bacterial resistance to antibiotics can emerge. Now, Edward Yu’s team at Iowa State University have taken another step forward in our understanding of this pressing issue by using crystallography to reveal the structure of a protein […]

1000 disease protein structures

An interdisciplinary study hinging on X-ray crystallography and nuclear magnetic resonance studies has examined 1000 proteins from more than 40 different human pathogens, including those responsible for plague, anthrax, salmonella, cholera, tuberculosis, leprosy, amoebic dysentery and influenza. Researchers at the Center for Structural Genomics of Infectious Diseases (CSGID) and the Seattle Structural Genomics Center for […]

Spliced and diced RNA

Biomolecular NMR experts in Germany have discovered how the U2AF protein facilitates the process of splicing used by cells to make the correct template for RNA transcription and the subsequent expression of proteins. More on this in my column on NMR Knowledge Base - The NMR Resource.

Unnatural chemicals

‘Unnatural’ chemical allows Salk researchers to watch protein action in brain cells - Researchers at the Salk Institute have been able to genetically incorporate "unnatural" amino acids, such as those emitting green fluorescence, into neural stem cells, which then differentiate into brain neurons with the incandescent "tag" intact. Loudspeakers in your window - Korean scientists […]