Category Biology/Biotechnology

Distribution of the 40 nonsynonymous MT2 variants identified by exon resequencing.

New light has been shed on why people who carry a common genetic melatonin receptor mutation may be more at risk for developing type 2 diabetes. By carefully studying healthy subjects, researchers were able to chart the effect of melatonin supplements on blood sugar control. Their results suggest that taking melatonin close to mealtimes may put people with a common genetic variant more at risk.

As many as 50% of people of European ancestry carry this genetic variation in MTNR1B, a gene that encodes a melatonin receptor...

The immune system protein SARM1 (red) extends to the string-like fibers (axons) of nerve cells in the brains of mice infected with La Crosse virus. Scientists are examining how SARM1 interacts with mitochondria in the axons to induce death of the nerve cells. Credit: NIAID

Many brain disorders involve the death of neurons, or nerve cells, but how these neurons die is not well understood. A new study describes how the activation of normally protective immune responses causes nerve cells to die and identifies the protein responsible, providing a potential target for therapeutic intervention.

Researchers from NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) studied the effect of immune system proteins: toll-like receptors on neurons...

The visual cortex can essentially make decisions just like the brain’s traditional ‘higher level’ areas, finds a new study.
“As a field, we’re only at the beginning of trying to figure out how the brain works, and the visual system is a very good place to start,” said MSU Assistant Prof. Brascamp.

Study participants were placed in an MRI scanner and shown two adjacent patterns of dots on a projection screen while their brain activity was monitored. By using a set of prisms, the researchers made sure that, unlike in normal situations, the participant’s eyes were each looking at a different dot pattern, each presented on a different part of the screen.

The combination of differing patterns seen by the 2 eyes creates an optical illusion and perception switches between the two patterns as the...

Structure of the tTRBD–TBE complex

Over-activation of telomerase in 90% of malignant tumors has made the unusual enzyme a prime target for drug development efforts. Researchers at UC Santa Cruz have determined the structure of a key part of the enzyme telomerase, which is active in most cancers and enables cancer cells to proliferate indefinitely. They reveal how the enzyme carries out a crucial function involved in protecting the ends of chromosomes.

Repetitive DNA sequences at the ends of chromosomes, called telomeres, serve as protective caps. As cells divide, their telomeres get progressively shorter, until eventually the cells stop dividing. The telomerase enzyme lengthens telomeres by adding more of the repetitive DNA sequence...