Category Biology/Biotechnology

Scientists from the University of Nottingham have developed a new way to control harmful fungi, without the need to use chemical bioactives like fungicides or antifungals.

Fungi cause diverse, serious societal and economic problems in the UK and globally. As well as causing fatal diseases in humans, fungi devastate food crops and spoil valuable products and materials. This has led to an antifungals/fungicide industry worth around $30bn globally.

There are tight regulations around the use of fungicides and antifungals and there is also growing resistance of fungi to these agents.

In a paper published today in Science Advances, experts from the University’s Schools of Life Sciences, Pharmacy, and Engineering, show how they have developed an innovative...

New images of an enzyme in action as it interacts with the chromosome could provide important insight into how cells—including cancer cells—regulate their genes.

The enzyme, LSD1, can “turn off gene expression by removing chemical flags (methyl groups) from the nucleosome—tightly packed units of DNA and protein in chromosomes. This LSD1 histone demethylase is over-expressed in multiple cancer types, resulting in disruption to normal cell development, and the new structure could inform therapeutic interventions that target the enzyme.

A paper by Penn State researchers describing the ...

A dual-mechanism antibiotic kills Gram-negative bacteria and avoids drug resistance. Poison is lethal all on its own – as are arrows – but their combination is greater than the sum of their parts. A weapon that simultaneously attacks from within and without can take down even the strongest opponents, from E. coli to MRSA (methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus).

A team of Princeton researchers reported today in the journal Cell...

Scientists have tried to develop synthetic red blood cells that mimic the favorable properties of natural ones, such as flexibility, oxygen transport and long circulation times. But so far, most artificial red blood cells have had one or a few, but not all, key features of the natural versions. Now, researchers reporting in ACS Nano have made synthetic red blood cells that have all of the cells’ natural abilities, plus a few new ones.

Red blood cells (RBCs) take up oxygen from the lungs and deliver it to the body’s tissues...