Potential genetic regulators of the heartbeat identified by UT Southwestern researchers

UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have mapped gene control elements in specialized cardiac cells responsible for coordinating heartbeats. The findings of the genome exploration study, published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation, provide insight into how heartbeats are regulated and could impact diagnosis and risk prediction for a variety of common arrhythmias.

UT Southwestern researchers discover gene regulation mechanism

UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have discovered a method cells use to turn genes on and off that involves portions of proteins whose function has long been a mystery. The findings, reported in Cell, could lead to new ways of controlling gene regulation and may one day lead to new treatments for a broad array of diseases.

UT Southwestern cardiologist receives NIH Outstanding Investigator Award

UT Southwestern physician-scientist Hesham Sadek, M.D., Ph.D., has received the prestigious National Institutes of Health (NIH) Outstanding Investigator Award to support his ongoing research into mechanisms behind heart regeneration that could lead to treatments for heart failure.

UT Southwestern biochemist, molecular biologist to receive HHMI Emerging Pathogens awards

Two of UT Southwestern’s Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers in biochemistry and molecular biology will lead separate teams as part of HHMI’s Emerging Pathogens Initiative (EPI) targeting infectious diseases that pose a threat to human health.

Gene editing halts damage in mice after heart attacks in UT Southwestern study

Editing a gene that prompts a cascade of damage after a heart attack appeared to reverse this inevitable course in mice, leaving their hearts remarkably unharmed, a new study by UT Southwestern scientists showed. The findings, published in Science, could lead to a new strategy for protecting patients from the consequences of heart disease.

Beyond the average cell

Models based on an average cell are useful, but they may not accurately describe how individual cells really work. New possibilities opened up with the advent of single-cell live imaging technologies. Now it is possible to peer into the lives of individual cells. In a new paper in PLOS Genetics, a team of biologists and physicists from Washington University in St. Louis and Purdue University used actual single-cell data to create an updated framework for understanding the relationship between cell growth, DNA replication and division in a bacterial system.

UT Southwestern scientists among top 1% of highly cited researchers across the globe

More than 20 UT Southwestern Medical Center scientists are among the 2022 Highly Cited Researchers listed in the top 1% of researchers from across the globe

Call for Papers – The International Halal Science and Technology Conference 2022 (IHSATEC): 15th Halal Science Industry and Business (HAISB)

The Halal Science Center, Chulalongkorn University, and Research Synergy Foundation, invites all to attend “The International Halal Science and Technology Conference 2022 (IHSATEC): 15th Halal Science Industry and Business (HAISB)” and has opened up a call for papers. The conference sessions will be on December 15-16, 2022 at Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.

Key Mechanisms of Airway Relaxation in Asthma Revealed in New Study

Many therapeutics for asthma and other obstructive lung diseases target the β2-adrenergic receptor (β2AR), a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) that rapidly supports airway relaxation when stimulated. Yet, overuse of these agents is associated with adverse health outcomes, including death, which has limited their utility as frontline therapies. Now, a mouse model study published in today’s issue of Molecular Cell, from investigators at University Hospitals (UH) and Case Western Reserve University, identifies a novel strategy to isolate the beneficial effects of β2AR stimulation. This suggests a new therapeutic approach to airway diseases as well as numerous other conditions involving the aberrant function of GPCRs.

National Researcher of the Year 2022 Decodes Drug Resistance in Animals – A Step towards Sustainable Solutions

Chula Veterinary Lecturer and “National Outstanding Researcher 2022” has revealed the genetic code that causes drug resistance in animals that affects human health, animals, and the environment, and suggests comprehensive solutions under the concept “One Health”.

Researchers at UC San Diego Identify the Skin’s Master Regulator

Researchers led by George Sen, PhD, associate professor of dermatology and cellular and molecular medicine at UC San Diego School of Medicine, have identified the master regulator controlling the expression of genes regulating how the epidermis attaches to the underlying…

Science Snapshots from Berkeley Lab

An experiment to study gravity at the quantum scale, insights into an antibiotic-building enzyme, and the backstory of an incredible new protein prediction algorithm are featured in this month’s roundup of science highlights.

Parkinson’s disease: How lysosomes become a hub for the propagation of the pathology

Over the last few decades, neurodegenerative diseases became one of the top 10 global causes of death. Researchers worldwide are making a strong effort to understand neurodegenerative diseases pathogenesis, which is essential to develop efficient treatments against these incurable diseases.…

DeepMind and EMBL release the most complete database of predicted 3D structures of human proteins

Partners use AlphaFold, the AI system recognised last year as a solution to the protein structure prediction problem, to release more than 350,000 protein structure predictions including the entire human proteome to the scientific community

Interaction identified between SARS-CoV-2 and unusual RNA structures in human cells

Replication of SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, depends on a series of interactions between viral proteins and different cellular partners such as nucleic acids (DNA or RNA). Characterizing these interactions is crucial to elucidate the process of viral replication…

New approach eradicates breast cancer in mice

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A new approach to treating breast cancer kills 95-100% of cancer cells in mouse models of human estrogen-receptor-positive breast cancers and their metastases in bone, brain, liver and lungs. The newly developed drug, called ErSO, quickly shrinks…

New discoveries reveal how acute myeloid leukemia walks a fine line between growth and cell death

Researchers revealed new insights into how acute myeloid leukemia (AML) develops and progresses, according to a study published in Molecular Cell on July 20, 2021. They describe a mechanism by which AML cells regulate a cancer-related protein, mutant IDH2, to increase the buildup of blood cancer cells—a distinguishing characteristic of the disease.