PROTEIN CLIENTS: Hero proteins help other proteins, such as lactate dehydrogenase shown above, avoid denaturation in lab experiments.
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Researchers at RIKEN and the University of Tokyo report the existence of a new class of proteins in Drosophila and human cell extracts that may serve as shields that protect other proteins from becoming damaged and causing disease. An excess of the proteins, known as Hero proteins, was associated with a 30 percent increase in the lifespan of Drosophila, according to the study, which was published last week (March 12) in PLOS Biology.
“The discovery of Hero proteins has far-reaching implications,” says Caitlin Davis, a chemist at Yale University who was not involved in the study, “and should be considered both at a basic science level in biochemistry assays and for applications as a potential stabilizer in protein-based pharmaceuticals.”
Nearly 10 years ago, Shintaro Iwasaki, then a graduate student studying ...
