Creative Biomart Blog

Mon, 2021/01/04

Protein ABCB1 Warps and Squeezes Make Cancer Resistant

In 1986, Kazumitsu Ueda, a Japanese cell biochemist, discovered that a protein called ABCB1 can transport a variety of chemotherapy drugs from some cancer cells, making them resistant to treatment. How it did this has been a mystery for the past 35 years. Now, Ueda and its team published a review article entitled “ABCB1 / mdr1 / P-GP employees an ATP-dependent twist- and -squeeze mechanism to export hydrophobic drugs” in FEBS letters, summarizing their experience after years of research on this and other ATP binding cassette (ABC) transporters. Ueda is now working in the Institute of cell mate

Mon, 2021/01/04

New Research Reveals the Mutation of Cholesterol Transporter ABCA13 Associated with Schizophrenia

Scientists have long suspected that the mutation of cholesterol transporter ABCA13 in cells is related to mental illness, but it is difficult to prove this, and it is difficult to determine how it occurs. Now, in a new study, researchers from Kyoto University and other research institutions in Japan have provided evidence that mice with ABCA13 protein damage exhibit characteristic behavior of schizophrenia. They studied the function of ABCA13 and published their research results in the Journal of biological chemistry with the title of “ABCA13 dysfunction associated with psychic disorders cause

Mon, 2020/11/23

Research reveals that the endoplasmic reticulum P5A ATPase/CATP-8 maintains the “identity” of the endoplasmic reticulum by removing ectopic proteins

The correct positioning of membrane proteins on the corresponding organelles is important for maintaining the specific “identity” and physiological functions of the organelles. The correct positioning of membrane proteins relies on precise protein sorting pathways and requires corresponding mechanisms on organelles to eliminate mislocated proteins. For example, the AAA-ATPase Msp1 of the outer mitochondrial membrane can remove the protein that is incorrectly located on the outer mitochondrial membrane. However, what mechanism on the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) helps to remove the wrongly locate

Mon, 2020/11/23

In SARS-CoV-2 Infection and Cytokine Shock Syndrome, TNF-α and IFN-γ Cause Inflammatory Cell Death, Tissue Damage and Death

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause major illness and death, while treatment options are still limited. In a new study, researchers from the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in the United States have discovered a potential strategy to prevent life-threatening inflammation, lung damage, and organ failure in COVID-19 patients. The relevant research results were published in the Cell. The title of the paper is “Synergism of TNF-α and IFN-γ triggers inflammatory cell death, tissue damage, and mortality in SARS-CoV-2 infection and cytokine shock syndromes”. These authors identified dru

Fri, 2020/10/09

Research Reveals Drug Targets for Malignant Prostate Cancer

According to a new study published on Oncogene, the compound thymoquinone (TQ) selectively kills prostate cancer cells in the late stages. Led by researchers at Kanazawa University, the study reported that prostate cancer cells with the SUCLA2 gene deletion can be used as therapeutic targets. Prostate cancer lacking SUCLA2 accounts for the majority of hormone therapy or metastatic resistance, so new treatment options for this disease will bring huge benefits to patients. Hormone therapy is usually chosen to treat metastatic prostate cancer, but nearly half of patients become resistant to th

Fri, 2020/10/09

STING Is Involved in the Occurrence of Motor Neurological Diseases

In a recent study, researchers from the University of Melbourne revealed the mechanism of inflammation that slows the onset of motor neuron disease (MND), thereby providing hope for people suffering from this debilitating and incurable disease. They found that by blocking immune receptor STING, they can significantly prevent inflammation in cells of MND patients, paving the way for the development of new drugs for neurodegenerative diseases such as MND. The discovery was recently published in the journal Cell and was led by Associate Professor Seth Masters and Yulan Dr, researchers a

Fri, 2020/10/09

Research Reveals Cross-species Transmission of Primate Lentivirus

Humans continue to be threatened by viral diseases such as Ebola, Zika, and Coronavirus. Such emerging/re-emerging virus outbreaks may be caused by cross-species viruses transmitted from wild animals to humans. In order to achieve cross-species transmission, the new host must be exposed to the virus in the old host. Next, the virus acquires certain mutations that may be beneficial for replication in the new host. Finally, by continuing to spread in the new host, these viruses can adapt to the environment in the new host. However, at the beginning of this process, the virus must overcome the

Mon, 2020/09/14

New Treatment for KRAS Mutant Lung Cancer

KRAS is a common type of oncogene and is involved in at least one-fifth of all human cancers. KRAS mutations cause 32% of lung tumors and 96% of pancreatic tumors. However, after more than 30 years of research, there is still no effective treatment strategy for this oncogene. For this reason, many studies have been conducted to try to identify other molecules that show therapeutic activity along the KRAS signaling pathway. Faced with this challenge, researchers from the Experimental Tumor Group of the Spanish National Cancer Research Center (CNIO) found that the inactivation of CDK4 and RAF1 g