Category Health/Medical

A new computational method called ‘CATCH’ designs molecular ‘baits’ for any virus known to infect humans and all their known strains, including those that are present in low abundance in clinical samples, such as Zika. The approach can help small sequencing centers around the globe conduct disease surveillance, which is crucial for controlling outbreaks.

During the Zika virus outbreak of 2015-16, public health officials scrambled to contain the epidemic and curb the pathogen’s devastating effects on pregnant women...

A new compound based on Iridium, a rare metal which landed in the Gulf of Mexico 66 M years ago, hooked onto albumin, a protein in blood, can attack the nucleus of cancerous cells when switched on by light, University of Warwick researchers have found...

A mollusk with teeth that can grind down rock may hold the key to making next generation abrasion-resistant materials and nanoscale materials for energy. The mollusk, called a gumboot chiton, scrapes algae off ocean rocks using a specialized set of teeth made from the magnetic mineral magnetite. The teeth have the maximum hardness and stiffness of any known biomineral. Although magnetite is a geologic mineral commonly found in Earth’s crust, only a few animals are known to produce it, and little is known about how they make it.

A better understanding of the biomineralization process, combined with a thorough understanding of chiton tooth architecture and mechanics, could h...

New research reveals how healthy cells in our bodies produce mucins – the main component of mucous, which protects our intestine and airway from pathogens, toxins and allergens. Scientists have already linked defects in mucins secretion to airway and colonic diseases, such as asthma or ulcerative colitis. Now, researchers at Malhotra’s laboratory in Barcelona, reveal how cells control quantities of mucin released and could become a new avenue to treat several mucin-related diseases.

Cells produce mucins at a constant rate, and when exposed to an allergen or pathogen, they produce more mucin in a rapid burst...