UK molecular scientist presented with prestigious Lasker Award
The Lasker Foundation has awarded UK scientist, Professor David Weatherall from Oxford University its prestigious Lasker-Koshland Award for Special Achievement in Medical Science...
BioNews
Molecule
The smallest particle of a substance that has all of the physical and chemical properties of that substance. Molecules are made up of two or more atoms - for example, a molecule of water is made up of two atoms of hydrogen and one of oxygen.
111 articles
Caffeine may help with IVF treatment side effects
Researchers have found a molecule that they believe plays a key role in ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) - a potentially life-threatening condition that can arise from IVF treatment....
Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the output from a DNA sequencing machine.
Epigenetic link to autism
US scientists have identified a genetic trait that is strongly associated with autism. The genetic change does not involve a mutation within the DNA sequence of a gene but instead involves an alteration in the physical structure of the DNA which affects the way a gene is turned on and off. The researchers hope that the new findings will lead to novel ways to diagnose and treat autism....
New genetic engineering technology paves way for artificial bacteria
US scientists have developed a new technique to help them genetically modify bacteria. This new technology may prove to be a crucial step in the eventual creation of a man-made bacterium which, if achieved, would be the first-ever synthetic organism....
Human genome sequenced for $50,000 with third generation technology
Third-generation 'single-molecule' technology has been used for the first time to read a human genome sequence. Professor Stephen Quake, from Stanford University, California, US, is only the eighth person whose genome has been published since the first breakthroughs were made in 2000. When this latest generation of technology is perfected the hope is that it will bring us one step closer to ‘the $1,000 genome' that will open the door to personalised medical treatme...
'Hero' gene variant prolongs life for people with motor neuron disease
By Heidi Colleran: An international team lead by UK researchers at the Centre for Neurodegenerative Research (CNR) at Kings College, London, have discovered a genetic variation that prolongs survival in people affected with motor neuron disease (MND). In a study of over 5,000 people in six countries - almost half of...
Work on biology's 'Guiding Star' wins Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Three US-based scientists have won the 2008 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work in identifying and manipulating the Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP). Professor Osamu Shimomura, of the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, Massachusetts; Professor Martin Chalfie, of Columbia University, New York; and Professor Roger Tsien, of...
New 'barcode' technique to study gene activity
Researchers at the University of Queensland, Australia, have developed a technique to digitally barcode gene activity, handing scientists a uniquely powerful tool for the prediction and prevention of disease. The fluorescent 'nano-string' is simply added to blood where it binds to a molecule of the researchers' choice...
Epilepsy gene pair may be 'seizure-protective'
Two defective genes, which normally cause epilepsy when inherited individually, have been found to protect against seizures when inherited as a pair, according to a report published in the journal Nature Neuroscience. The researchers, based at Baylor Medical Centre in Texas, found that mice genetically engineered to...
Research links cannabis smoking to problems in early pregnancy
Research suggests a link between cannabis smoking and increased risk of miscarriage or ectopic pregnancy...