Green plants capture light that spans the visible solar spectrum, and while a broad spectral range is required for sufficient absorption, the process requires energy to be funneled rapidly and efficiently downhill to drive charge separation and water splitting. Carotenoids, the accessory pigments in photosynthesis, play light harvesting, photoprotective, and structural roles. Understanding these roles, …
Scientists from the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability (DTU) have found four new anti-CRISPR proteins that are distributed across different environments. The new study published in Cell Host & Microbe suggests that some anti-CRISPR proteins are more widespread in nature than previously anticipated. These anti-CRISPRs can potentially be used to regulate the activity of …
Bacteria have multiple strategies to survive antibiotics: developing genetic resistance to the drugs; delaying their growth; or hiding in protective biofilms. New results from researchers at Princeton and California State University-Northridge (CSUN) have shed light on yet another approach: self-sacrifice. In a population of E. coli bacteria treated with a particular antimicrobial molecule, the researchers …
Using a piece of molecular “Velcro” to attach a light-emitting probe to a protein molecule, University of Wollongong (UOW) researchers have unlocked the mystery of how an important protein goes about repairing damaged DNA in bacteria, with implications for understanding how antibiotic resistance develops. Much like how an emergency services hub coordinates various emergency response …
A new study into the genetic makeup of over 1,400 individuals from across Spain has shown that the genetic patterns in modern individuals were shaped by population movements over the past 1,000 years. It also showed that in some regions, there are discernible patterns of genetic differences even between individuals living as close as 10km …
In a mere seven years, Cas9 has shown itself to be a formidable gene editor, employed in humans, plants, animals and bacteria to quickly and accurately cut and splice DNA, transforming biology and opening new avenues for treating disease. But a new kid on the block, CasX, may give Cas9 a run for its money. …
Researchers have pioneered a new method which allows them to rapidly recruit disease resistance genes from wild plants and transfer them into domestic crops. The technique called AgRenSeq or speed cloning has been developed by John Innes Centre researchers alongside colleagues in the United States and Australia to speed up the fight against pathogens that …
Scientists working on the gut microbiome have discovered and isolated more than 100 completely new species of bacteria from healthy people’s intestines. The study from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, Hudson Institute of Medical Research, Australia, and EMBL’s European Bioinformatics Institute, has created the most comprehensive collection of human intestinal bacteria to date. This will help …
Endangered species of hammerhead and dogfish are among the sharks being sold as food in the UK, researchers have revealed. University of Exeter scientists sampled shark products from fishmongers and chip shops, as well as shark fins from an Asian food wholesaler in the UK. The majority of chip shop samples (usually sold under generic …
Lager beer is cold, crisp, dry—and worth about half a trillion dollars worldwide. Behind the world’s most popular alcoholic beverage is a yeast adapted to the cold, and hungry for the sugars it will transform into bubbles and booze. That yeast is a hybrid, an amalgamation of the domesticated baker’s yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and a …
