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What structural features of a cortisol-producing enzyme could help in treating Cushing’s disease? Can melatonin be used to treat obesity? How does a gut pathogen evade antibiotic treatment? These and other questions are addressed in our roundup.

Researchers from universities in Germany write in the Journal of Biological Chemistry that a dietary supplement of fucose, a sugar molecule found in both breast milk and seaweed, might be useful against norovirus.

The enzyme NSD2, overactive in certain cancers, is hard to work with. Researchers at NCATS have a new system to screen for NSD2 inhibitors.

How do plants survive in fluctuating temperatures? Why do some of infection-fighting molecules block viruses from entering cells, while others interfere with viral replication? How does a bacterium’s spore coating help it resist antibiotics? 

Research published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry used computer simulations to gain insights into how an enzyme activates and shuts off the production of phosphatidylcholine, commonly known as lecithin.

What’s the link between chronic diabetes and cognitive decline? How does the body protect the liver during periods of fasting? Why do some pain drugs work in rodents but not in people?

Researchers have identified a crucial link between gene expression and the process by which plants regulate their antiviral responses.

A Stanford University team writes in the Journal of Biological Chemistry that they have discovered how a disease-associated protein gets inactivated, opening the door to possible new treatments for this autoimmune disordered triggered by gluten.

How early screening can help cure a rare genetic disease in newborns. The connection of genes, brains and immune cells in a risk factor for obesity. The difference between white and brown fat cells. Read about this research and more in our roundup o…

The Maryland county that is home to the National Institutes of Health has declared a day to honor Tabor, who served as editor-in-chief of the Journal of Biological Chemistry for almost 40 years. JBC also has some big celebration plans.

Alzheimer’s patients lose up to 60 percent of plasmalogens from the membranes of brain cells. These molecules are difficult to work with, but painstaking research has revealed the protein that catalyzes their breakdown.

Disruptions in the construction of these clusters can lead to buildup of fat droplets in certain cells, providing clues about the causes of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and clear-cell renal carcinoma.

Using mass spectrometry to learn how a flexible fish evolved. Finding the anti-addictive enzyme in an African shrub. Tracing how cholesterol contributes to macular degeneration. Read about this research and more in our roundup of recent papers fro…

Mitochondria need copper to produce energy. Researchers in the U.S. and Canada report in the Journal of Biological Chemistry that they have identified the protein that performs the tricky task of carrying copper on the correct pathway.

Atrazine is a controversial pesticide. Researchers in Australia write in the Journal of Biological Chemistry that newly discovered proteins involved in its degradation may provide insights into how bacteria respond to chemicals synthesized by humans.

A gene that can both increase and decrease diabetes risk. A protein that makes tumor cells more aggressive. Citrus compounds that reverse obesity. Read about these topics and more in our roundup of recent papers from the Journal of Biological Che…

Researchers in Texas report in the Journal of Biological Chemistry that they’ve uncovered an unusual form of protein cross talk, suggesting new ways of inhibiting cancer metastasis.

What’s the link between lipids and sleep apnea? How is obesity related to fertility? What’s the fastest way to screen heart drugs? Read about these topics and more in our roundup of recent papers from the Journal of Biological Chemistry, the Journa…

Researchers in Canada write in the Journal of Biological Chemistry about pinpointing a toxin injected by one soil-dwelling bacterium into another that protects plants from disease.

Why are people with chronic kidney disease at high risk of heart failure? Can a pathogen avoid a host antibody by grabbing it? Why do some cancer cells love sugar and eschew fiber? Read about these topics and more in our roundup.

Researchers at Vanderbilt University report in the Journal of Biological Chemistry on their finding that this large enigmatic protein appears to form a bridge and recruit proteins involved in building microtubules in human cells.

Research from the University of New South Wales explains how an enzyme that helps the body make cholesterol acts as a thermostat that responds to and adjusts levels of cholesterol in the cell.

A study published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry looks at how inhibitors of an enzyme that produces a form of choline might be used to treat parasitic diseases, including malaria.

An enzyme that is not found in healthy colons appears to drive the conversion of colon tissue into cancer by attaching sugar molecules to certain proteins in the cell, researchers write in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

What can proteomics teach us about dying cancer cells? Why do some bacteria survive contact with copper? What happens when brown fat cells turn white? Read about these topics and more.

A research team at the University of Georgia reports in the Journal of Biological Chemistry on the unique role of a protein that allows cholera bacteria to resist antimicrobial peptides that are synthesized for use as last-line drugs.

Researchers at Caltech tackle the problem of producing sufficient membrane proteins in the lab for drug experiments by focusing on how efficiently a cell inserts a newly synthesized protein into the membrane.

Is there a way to kill fat cells to make weight loss last?  What’s the significance of cholesterol efflux capacity levels in octogenarians?  Read about these topics and more in our roundup of recent papers from the Journal of Biological Chemistry, t…

Which fats make a healthier mouse? How can you ensure sperm have both heads and tails? Read about these topics and more in our roundup of recent papers from ASBMB journals.

Sasha Mushegian writes about researchers in Switzerland who are looking to bacteria and fungi to preserve everything from a modern bronze sculpture to a 17th-century wooden warship.

While investigating how lithium inhibits the enzyme GSK-3, researchers discovered that GSK-3 could affect RNA splicing — and aberrant splicing causes white blood cell proliferation in leukemia.

Using yeast cells, researchers found that the proteasome, which breaks down proteins, also can both induce and stop the spread of heterochromatin in the genome.

A pair of second-line HIV drugs are expected to boost each other, but researchers write in the Journal of Biological Chemistry that co-receptor antagonists and fusion inhibitors don’t synergize as expected when certain viral proteins evolve to avoid…

A paper in the Journal of Biological Chemistry describes how mutations in antithrombin proteins occur in unexpected places, which could cause researchers to reconsider the best way to prevent obstructive blood clots.

Eczema lotion inspired by babies’ skin. Steps toward accessible vaccines. How staph bacteria steals iron. Read about these topics and more.

A rare type of glycosylation profoundly affects the function of Notch, a protein that is important for human development and cancer progression.

Researchers have uncovered a connection in the network of checks and balances underlying cellular iron regulation.

How amino acids determine cells’ responses climate change. How genes cause bile acid diarrhea. And how trypsin trips up researchers studying alternative splicing. Read about these topics and more in our roundup of recent papers from the Journal of B…

Researchers describe a new approach to efficiently produce antibodies that can bind to two different target molecules simultaneously, a long-desired innovation in cancer immunotherapy.

Alcohol plus hepatitis B raises cholesterol. A chemical cocktail reprograms mouse cells. Prion protein does more than wreak havoc. Read about these topics and more in our roundup of recent papers from the Journal of Biological Chemistry, the Journa…

A Journal of Biological Chemistry paper describes how new technology helps researchers identify the proteins that allow the mitochondria and the endoplasmic reticulum to attach to each other.