The AI AlphaFold can figure out the three-dimensional protein structure any string of amino acids will become. It has now exceeded its training by figuring out what makes some proteins glow.
A protein called ZNG1 helps cells make use of zinc when stores of this essential nutrient are running low.
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The climate crisis makes it important to investigate and understand the mechanisms of plant growth if we are to keep agricultural crops sustainable.
Threatened by insecurity, Nigerian farmers are increasingly abandoning their land, adding to food inflation.
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It’s too hot for bare feet, but that doesn’t mean you can cook a fry-up on the path outside your house. A frying pan is a much better tool for the job, because it conducts heat far more efficiently.
Nucleic acid vaccines use mRNA to give cells instructions on how to produce a desired protein.
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DNA and mRNA vaccines produce a different kind of immune response than traditional vaccines, allowing researchers to tackle some previously unsolvable problems in medicine.
The RiverDip experiment is one of many citizen science projects out there.
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Using a form of artificial intelligence called deep neural networks, researchers can generate new proteins from scratch without having to consult nature.
Genetic analysis can reveal how hair gets its colour.
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Every cancer is different. Grouping cancer mutations by their structure and function could help make treatments more personalized.
David Julius, one of the two recipients of the 2021 medicine Nobel Prize, used the active component in chile peppers to study how the brain senses heat.
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The joint award recognizes the long road to deciphering the biology behind the brain’s ability to sense its surroundings – work that paves the way for a number of medical and biological breakthroughs.
Training an algorithm to play proteins like Chopin can produce more melodious songs.
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Peng Zhang, The Rockefeller University and Yuzong Chen, National University of Singapore
Many features of proteins are analogous to music. Mapping these features together creates new musical compositions that help researchers learn about proteins.
Can you really fake a covid test with soft drinks?
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Scientists still still don’t fully understand how general anaesthesia affects the brain and body. A molecule found in bioluminescent stony coral may shed some light.
Messenger RNA carries the instructions for life from DNA to the rest of the cell.
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In the spotlight for its role in COVID-19 vaccines – and a Nobel Prize – mRNA is not a new invention. It’s a crucial messenger molecule at work every day in every cell in your body.
Gene-based vaccines had never been approved for humans before the coronavirus pandemic.
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The coronavirus pandemic has driven a lot of scientific progress in the past year. But just as some of the social changes are likely here to stay, so are some medical innovations.
Neutralizing antibodies attach to the tips of the spike proteins of the SARS CoV-2 virus.
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A biologist explains what proteins do in viruses, how they interact with human cells, how the vaccine delivers mRNA into the cell and how antibodies protect us.
Just 20 amino acids for chains in various combinations to create the thousands of varieties of proteins in our body.
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