Serpins compose the largest superfamily of peptidase inhibitors and are well known as regulators of hemostasis and thrombolysis. Studies using model organisms, from plants to vertebrates, now show that serpins and their unique inhibitory mechanism and conformational flexibility are exploited to control proteolysis in molecular pathways associated with cell survival, development, and host defense. In addition, an increasing number of non-inhibitory serpins are emerging as important elements within a diversity of biological systems by serving as chaperones, hormone transporters, or anti-angiogenic factors.

Inhibitory serpins are metastable proteins that undergo a substantial conformational rearrangement to covalently trap target peptidases. The serpin reactive center loop contributes a majority of the interactions that serpins make during the initial binding to target peptidases. However, structural studies on serpin-peptidase complexes reveal a broader set of contacts on the scaffold of inhibitory serpins that have substantial influence on guiding peptidase recognition. Structural and biophysical studies also reveal how aberrant serpin folding can lead to the formation of domain-swapped serpin multimers rather than the monomeric metastable state. Serpin domain swapping may therefore underlie the polymerization events characteristic of the serpinopathies. Finally, recent structural studies reveal how the serpin fold has been adapted for non-inhibitory functions such as hormone binding.

Researchers have discovered an enzyme crucial to a type of DNA repair that also causes resistance to a class of cancer drugs most commonly used against ovarian cancer.

Neuroscientists have long wondered how individual connections between brain cells remain diverse and "fit" enough for storing new memories. Reported in the prestigious science journal Neuron, a new study led by Dr. Inna Slutsky of the Sackler School of Medicine at Tel Aviv University describes what makes some memories stick.

The CentriVap -105°C Cold Trap collects evaporated liquid from a CentriVap® Vacuum Concentrator, protecting an accessory vacuum pump from very low freezing point liquids.

The FreeZone -105°C 4.5 Liter Benchtop Freeze Dry Systems have ice holding capacity for light to moderate loads and have dual refrigeration systems for samples with very low eutectic points including ones containing small amounts of methanol or ethanol.

Image: Dan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Scientific studies have shown that forests and other natural green environments have positive health benefits. After spending time in these types of surroundings, people report having a reduction in stress, anger and aggressiveness. Recovery time from stressful situations is faster in natural, green surroundings than in urban areas. Natural surroundings have also been found to improve mood and reduce depression. Still more reports show that spending time in nature helps to lower blood pressure, heart rate, muscle tension and stress hormone levels.

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Spider's Web Image: Lisa McDonald / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Scientists have created genetically engineered E. coli bacteria that produce spider dragline silk. Spider's silk has many amazing properties that make it an ideal material that could be used for a number of industrial and biomedical applications. In order to create this artificial silk, the researchers synthesized the spider gene that produces silk and inserted it into the E. coli bacteria.

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Nuclear transcription factors have been detected in mammalian mitochondria and may directly regulate mitochondrial gene expression. Emerging genomics techniques may overcome outstanding challenges in this field.

For laboratories looking to concentrate larger numbers of biological samples presented in a range of different formats the miVac Quattro from Genevac is the perfect high capacity sample concentrator.

SP Scientific has announced the FTS ThermoJet ES - a new generation temperature control system for precise and reliable device testing and characterization.

Background: X-inactivation in female eutherian mammals has long been considered to occur at random in embryonic and postnatal tissues. Methods for scoring allele-specific differential expression with a high degree of accuracy have recently motivated a quantitative reassessment of the randomness of X inactivation. Results: After RNA-seq data revealed what appeared to be a chromosome-wide bias toward under-expression of paternal alleles in mouse tissue, we applied pyrosequencing to mouse brain cDNA samples from reciprocal cross F1 progeny of divergent strains and found a small but consistent and highly statistically significant excess tendency to under-express the paternal X chromosome. Conclusions: The bias toward paternal X inactivation is reminiscent of marsupials (and extraembryonic tissues in eutherians), suggesting that there may be retained an evolutionarily conserved epigenetic mark driving the bias. Allelic bias in expression is also influenced by the sampling effect of X inactivation and by cis-acting regulatory variation (eQTL), and for each gene we quantify the contributions of these effects in two different mouse strain combinations while controlling for variability in Xce alleles. In addition, we propose an efficient method to identify and confirm genes that escape X inactivation in normal mice by directly comparing the allele-specific expression ratio profile of multiple X-linked genes in multiple individuals.

Sequella, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing drugs for treatment of life-threatening infectious diseases, announced today the publication of studies in the scientific journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy on synergy between SQ109, its lead drug candidate for the treatment of TB, and TMC207, Tibotec lead TB drug candidate.

QPS Holdings, LLC, a leading full-service GLP/GCP-compliant contract research organization providing testing services to support preclinical and clinical research and development, announced the completion of its acquisition of Xendo Drug Development BV (XDD), headquartered in Groningen, The Netherlands. XDD, a European contract research organization (CRO), will be known as QPS Netherlands BV and become a wholly-owned subsidiary of QPS Holdings, LLC.

Hospira, Inc. (NYSE: HSP), the world leader in generic injectable pharmaceuticals, today announced the start of a U.S. Phase I clinical trial of its biosimilar erythropoietin (EPO) in patients with renal (kidney) dysfunction who have anemia, an important step on the road toward introducing a biosimilar product in the United States.

Progenra, Inc., announced today their receipt of an Official Notice of Allowance, dated June 15, 2010, of U.S. Patent Application No. 11/156,707, "Diagnostic and Screening Methods and Kits Associated with Proteolytic Activity."

Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ONXX) today announced positive top-line results from the Phase 2b 003-A1 study of single-agent carfilzomib, a selective, next generation proteasome inhibitor, in patients with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma.

XOMA Ltd. /quotes/comstock/15*!xoma/quotes/nls/xoma (XOMA 0.34, +0.01, +1.99%) , a leader in the discovery and development of therapeutic antibodies, announced receipt of a $750,000 milestone payment under its collaboration with AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved the first generic version of Lovenox (enoxaparin sodium injection), an anti-coagulant drug used for multiple indications, including prevention of deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a potentially deadly blood clotting condition.

Maintaining up-to-date annotation on reference genomes is becoming more important, not less, as the ability to rapidly and cheaply resequence genomes expands.

Image: Genome Management Information System, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Genes are segments of DNA located on chromosomes. Genes exist in alternative forms called alleles. Alleles determine distinct traits that can be passed on from parents to offspring. Genes are inherited through gene transmission that occurs during reproduction.

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On October 18-21, 2010, the heads of global technical operations and heads of manufacturing from major biopharmaceutical players are meeting in Shanghai at BioManufacturing World and Vaccine Manufacturing World conferences, hosted by IMAPAC.

An informative new video from INTEGRA describes the operation and applications of its industry leading MEDIACLAVE Media Preparation and MEDIAJET Automated Petri Dish Filling systems.