Although fully organized patient-run trials are still few and far between, patients are taking a more active role in clinical research.
Although fully organized patient-run trials are still few and far between, patients are taking a more active role in clinical research.
Insulin, long recognized as a primary regulator of blood glucose, is now also understood to play key roles in neuroplasticity, neuromodulation, and neurotrophism.
Present in every tissue of the body, ubiquitin appears to be involved in a dizzying array of functions, from cell cycle and division to organelle and ribosome biogenesis, as well as the response to viral infection. The protein plays at least two role
Gene therapies typically involve the introduction of genetic material into target cells to replace or supplement an existing, usually dysfunctional, gene. Techniques for delivering the corrective payload vary widely. Many gene therapies utilize modif
A rare peek inside the subterranean home of the naked mole-rat
Sangamo Biosciences is putting a different spin on gene therapy. Rather than replace or supplement a mutated gene with an accurate copy, Sangamo researchers are introducing a mutant copy of the gene for the HIV co-receptor CCR5 into the T cells of HI
Telomeres are repetitive, noncoding sequences that cap the ends of linear chromosomes. They consist of hexameric nucleotide sequences (TTAGGG in humans) repeated hundreds to thousands of times. Telomeres protect the protein-coding sequences of DNA on
A transition-state mimic has the power to bind an enzyme at its tipping point as strongly as any available inhibitor and more strongly than most, preventing enzymatic activity. In order to replicate the structure of an enzyme’s transition state, whic
A lot changes in a child’s body over the course of development, and not all changes occur linearly: gene expression can fluctuate, and organs can perform different functions on the way to their final purpose in the body. Here are some of the key deve
Vitamin D has a variety of actions in the body. It binds to the vitamin D receptor (VDR), which then binds to the retinoid X receptor (RXR) and activates the expression of numerous genes. Through this mechanism, vitamin D promotes calcium absorption