https://phys.org/biology-news/molecular-computational en-us Medical Xpress provides the latest news on molecular and Computational biology The ability of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB), a serious respiratory infection, to form snake-like cords was first noted nearly 80 years ago. In a study published October 20 in the journal Cell, investigators report the biophysical mechanisms by which these cords form and demonstrate how several generations of dividing bacteria hang together to create these structures that enable resistance to antibiotics. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-cord-like-aggregates-bacteria-tuberculosis-infections.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Fri, 20 Oct 2023 11:00:01 EDT news617009720 In a Finnish study, significant differences in the gene activity of the fetal intestine, brain and placenta were identified, depending on the microbes in the mother's body and the compounds produced by them. The findings indicate that maternal microbes are important to her offspring's development and health. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-maternal-microbiota-affect-fetal.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Fri, 20 Oct 2023 09:32:02 EDT news617013119 Golden retrievers are one of the most popular breeds of dogs. But research shows they have up to a 65% chance of dying from cancer. In a new study, University of California, Davis, researchers set out to find if certain genetic factors could help their survival rate. But instead of searching for genes associated with a cancer diagnosis in the breed, they instead chose to look for genes associated with longer life. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-golden-longer-gene-longevity.html Molecular & Computational biology Veterinary medicine Thu, 19 Oct 2023 17:06:04 EDT news616953962 For tens of thousands of years, evolution shaped tomatoes through natural mutations. Then, humans came along. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-genome-natural-mutation-variations-tomato.html Molecular & Computational biology Agriculture Thu, 19 Oct 2023 14:00:01 EDT news616926610 To help struggling salmon populations, the state of Washington is legally required to replace hundreds of culverts that divert streams under roadways. The state transportation department is replacing old, rusting metal pipes with broad, concrete promenades that provide more gradual gradients and gentler flows for salmon swimming upstream to access more spawning grounds. The full scope of the effort will last 17 years and cost $3.8 billion. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-dna-washington-culvert-spawning-salmon.html Ecology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 13:30:57 EDT news616941052 Touch plays a fundamental role in our physical, emotional, and social well-being. From a primary way of conveying emotions to sensory integration, it is crucial for the complex growth of cognitive, emotional, social, and behavioral abilities especially during the early development of infants and children. Touch allows us to build connections with others, eases pain and stress, and helps us to understand the world around us giving crucial information such as the texture, temperature, and shape of objects. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-rigidity-function-protein-condensates-involved.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 11:49:42 EDT news616934978 Researchers at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) have created a cutting-edge platform consisting of a dual-laser nonlinear optical microscope to investigate the dynamics of muscle satellite cells (MuSCs) during the process of muscle regeneration. This breakthrough has identified new mechanisms of MuSC behavior in muscle repair, paving the way for the development of targeted therapeutic strategies for muscle-related disorders. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-microscope-platform-unveil-intricacies-skeletal.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 11:15:05 EDT news616932784 A team led by Tappei Mishina at the RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (BDR) has discovered that parasites manipulate their hosts using stolen genes that they likely acquired through a phenomenon called horizontal gene transfer. The study was published in Current Biology on October 19. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-stolen-genes-parasitic-behavior-host.html Evolution Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 11:00:01 EDT news616924497 Scientists at Tufts University School of Medicine have developed a genome-scale metabolic model or "subway map" of key metabolic activities of the bacterium that causes Lyme disease. Using this map, they have successfully identified two compounds that selectively target routes only used by Lyme disease to infect a host. Their research was published October 19 in the journal mSystems. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-subway-lyme-disease-pathways-potential.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 11:00:01 EDT news616926170 A Ph.D. researcher at the University of St Andrews studying microbes in the human gut has discovered a new molecule that acts as a "distress signal" when viruses are detected. The research is published in the journal Nature. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientists-molecule-combats-viral-infection.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 10:57:03 EDT news616931821 Researchers are studying the dramatic physical transformation that some insects undergo to give birth to live young. This includes suppressing their immune systems to accommodate babies, which is something some insects and people have in common. Understanding how these systems work can help improve treatments for fibromyalgia and other immune disorders. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-roaches-suppress-immune-birth.html Evolution Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 10:56:04 EDT news616931762 An international team of biologists, public health specialists and infectious disease experts reports that the current near-global bird flu epidemic has its roots in Europe and Africa. In their study, published in the journal Nature, the group analyzed bird flu data from multiple animal health databases. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-current-bird-flu-epidemic-europe.html Evolution Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 10:46:11 EDT news616931166 Proteins are important molecules that perform a variety of functions essential to life. To function properly, many proteins must fold into specific structures. However, the way proteins fold into specific structures is still largely unknown. Researchers from the University of Tokyo have developed a novel physical theory that can accurately predict how proteins fold. Their model can predict things previous models cannot. Improved knowledge of protein folding could offer huge benefits to medical research, as well as to various industrial processes. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-physical-theory-protein.html Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 19 Oct 2023 05:00:01 EDT news616863677 Octopuses are fascinating animals—and serve as important model organisms in neuroscience, cognition research and developmental biology. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-insights-genetics-common-octopus-genome.html Evolution Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 18 Oct 2023 15:18:04 EDT news616861082 About 40,000 years ago, Neanderthals, who had lived for hundreds of thousands of years in the western part of the Eurasian continent, gave way to Homo sapiens, who had arrived from Africa. This replacement was not sudden, and the two species coexisted for a few millennia, resulting in the integration of Neanderthal DNA into the genome of Homo sapiens. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-encounter-neanderthals-homo-sapiens-told.html Evolution Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 18 Oct 2023 14:00:02 EDT news616844870 Researchers at North Carolina State University and global collaborators have mapped the mosquito's tree of life, a major step toward understanding important traits, such as how the insects choose their hosts, feed on blood and spread disease. The findings will help researchers make better predictions to model disease transmission and understand what makes some mosquitoes better disease carriers than others. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-elucidates-evolution-mosquitoes-hosts.html Evolution Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 18 Oct 2023 12:44:02 EDT news616851841 Scientists have breathed new life into the study of a protein with an outsized link to human cancers because of its dangerous mutations, using advanced research techniques to detect its hidden regions. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-revealing-secrets-key-cancer-protein.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 18 Oct 2023 11:28:04 EDT news616847281 A research team led by Professor Megumu K. Saito (Department of Clinical Application) examined the dynamic transcriptional and epigenetic landscape during definitive hematopoiesis and revealed the non-redundant roles of ZEB2 and MEIS1 vital to producing hematopoietic stem cells from the hemogenic endothelium. The study is published in the journal iScience. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-delineating-dynamic-transcriptional-epigenetic-landscape.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 18 Oct 2023 10:46:49 EDT news616844807 Lysosomes, tiny compartments within cells known as the garbage disposals for molecules that need to be degraded, are critical to cell function and a person's health; disruption of lysosomal protein function is linked to a variety of neurodegenerative diseases. Identifying how mutations in the genes coding for these proteins lead to disorders could provide scientists not only a better understanding of disease, but also a path to new treatments. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-lysosomal-protein-driver-neurodegenerative-diseases.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 18 Oct 2023 10:39:02 EDT news616844338 Different strains of E. coli can outcompete one another to take over the gut, a new study reveals. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-multi-drug-resistant-strain-coli-bacteria.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Tue, 17 Oct 2023 14:00:01 EDT news616756154 Researchers say mapping the genetic code of the brushtail possum will benefit those working to both conserve and control the animal. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-zealand-australia-brushtail-possum-genome.html Ecology Molecular & Computational biology Tue, 17 Oct 2023 11:10:09 EDT news616759803 Tropical forests are among the most important habitats on our planet. They are characterized by extremely high species diversity and play an eminent role in the global carbon cycle and the world climate. However, many tropical forest areas have been deforested and overexploitation continues day by day. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-ai-biodiversity-animal-tropical-rainforests.html Ecology Molecular & Computational biology Tue, 17 Oct 2023 11:00:01 EDT news616752138 One double-helix strand of DNA could extend six feet, but it is so tightly coiled that it packs an entire sequence of nucleotides into the tiny nucleus of a cell. If that same DNA was instead split into two strands and divided into many, many short pieces, it would become trillions of uniquely folded 3D molecular structures, capable of bonding to and possibly manipulating specifically shaped molecules—if they're the perfect fit. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-hydrogel-aptamers-chemical-antibodies-days.html Biotechnology Molecular & Computational biology Tue, 17 Oct 2023 06:26:21 EDT news616742774 Plants emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into the atmosphere upon mechanical damages or insect attacks. Undamaged neighboring plants sense the released VOCs as danger cues to activate defense responses against upcoming threats. This phenomenon of airborne communication among plants through VOCs was first documented in 1983 and has since been observed in more than 30 different plant species. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying VOC perception to defense induction remain unclear. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-real-time-visualization-plant-plant-communications-airborne.html Plants & Animals Molecular & Computational biology Tue, 17 Oct 2023 05:00:01 EDT news616687311 In the world of threatened and endangered species conservation, the genomic revolution has raised some complicated questions: How can scientists justify assessing species genetic diversity without consulting entire genomes now that they can be sequenced? But then again, how can scientists justify the time and expense of genome sequencing when age-old measures of neutral genetic diversity are much cheaper and easier to obtain? https://phys.org/news/2023-10-genomic-analysis-snakes-link-neutral.html Evolution Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 16 Oct 2023 15:39:05 EDT news616689541 A paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences describes "a missing law of nature," recognizing for the first time an important norm within the natural world's workings. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientists-philosophers-nature-evolutionary-law.html Evolution Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 16 Oct 2023 15:00:01 EDT news616665755 Imagine the life of a yeast cell, floating around the kitchen in a spore that eventually lands on a bowl of grapes. Life is good: food for days, at least until someone notices the rotting fruit and throws them out. But then the sun shines through a window, the section of the counter where the bowl is sitting heats up, and suddenly life gets uncomfortable for the humble yeast. When temperatures get too high, the cells shut down their normal processes to ride out the stressful conditions and live to feast on grapes on another, cooler day. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-peering-cells-stress.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 16 Oct 2023 11:00:01 EDT news616665795 Gram-negative bacteria cause a variety of infectious diseases in plants and animals alike. Outbreaks of Salmonella and E. coli infections often make headlines due to their severity, and people have to resort to allopathic as well as natural remedies, increasing the burden on the health care system. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-enzyme-family-insights-bacterial-pathogenicity.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 16 Oct 2023 10:41:03 EDT news616671661 The gut microbiome—the population and variety of bacteria within the intestine—is thought to influence a number of behavioral and disease traits in humans. Most obviously, it affects intestinal health. Cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, and celiac disease, for example, are all affected by the gut microbiome. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-method-microbiome-human-gut.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 16 Oct 2023 10:12:26 EDT news616669943 Modern humans migrated to Eurasia 75,000 years ago, where they encountered and interbred with Neanderthals. A new study published in the journal Current Biology shows that at this time Neanderthals were already carrying human DNA from a much older encounter with modern humans. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-neanderthals-inherited-genome-now-extinct-lineage.html Evolution Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 16 Oct 2023 09:57:04 EDT news616669021