enzyme
jhalper | December 26, 2011Often, simply identifying the structure of a potential drug target protein and designing a molecule to block it are not enough. Just ask Prof. Irit Sagi, a chemist turned biology researcher, who recently developed a clever technique for directing the body to design its own protein-blocking molecules.
Sagi studies an enzyme called matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9). This protein, along with other members of the MMP family, cleaves straight through the support tissues in the body - collagen and the extracellular matrix that gives organs and tissues structure. This, of course is crucial for…
jhalper | February 7, 2011Three news items were posted on our site today. The first is on two papers by a group in Spain. Normally we don't publicize papers that are not written by Institute scientists, but these are a special case. They appear to have clinched the claims of a Weizmann scientist that one can treat stroke and head trauma without trying to get drugs into the brain. The treatment would consist of upping the levels of a naturally-occurring enzyme in the blood; one of these papers showed that levels of this enzyme in the blood tests of stroke patients were the best predictor of their chances of recovery.…
jhalper | January 25, 2011Two recent papers to come out of the Weizmann Institute have possible medical applications -- one in preventing pregnancy, the other in preventing the deadly effects of nerve gas.
The first might give pause to those among us who are "believers" in antioxidants. It seems that those "nasty" molecules they eliminate -- reactive oxygen species -- have a positive role to play, at least when it comes to fertility. In the study, mopping up reactive oxygen species with antioxidants in mouse ovaries blocked ovulation. So while women who are trying to get pregnant might consider knocking off the acai…
sporte | November 3, 2008Want to learn more about Parkinson's disease? See why a single nucleotide mutation messes up the function of a protein?
I have a short activity that uses Cn3D (a molecular viewing program from the NCBI) to look at a protein that seems to be involved in a rare form of Parkinson's disease and I could sure use beta testers.
If you'd like to do this, I need you to follow the directions below and afterwards, go to a web form and answer a few questions. Don't worry about getting the wrong answers. I won't know who you are, so I won't know if you answered anything wrong.
If you have any concerns…