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How a tumour suppressor repairs DNA

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  For the first time, scientists have witnessed new molecular behaviour in proteins that protect us from cancer. Scientists in the have identified new features of BRCA1–BARD1, a group of proteins that play a critical role in repairing damaged DNA. Using ground-breaking imaging techniques, thanks to the state-of-the-art equipment at the Astbury and Bragg centres in...

Scientists discover promising new way to personalise treatment for patients with cancer and autoimmune diseases

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Researchers at the University of Leeds have developed a new diagnostic approach that can quickly identify how a patient is responding to antibody medication. The technology, which uses special sensors called enzyme switch sensors, can detect the amount of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (TmAb) that are present in a patient’s system. TmAbs are medicines that are...

Britons getting tattoos and cosmetic procedures abroad may be at risk of Hepatitis C – here’s how to avoid it

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Dr Grace Roberts, researcher in the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology, writes for The Conversation. A growing number of people living in the UK are going abroad to have tattoos, piercings and cosmetic surgeries. Any procedure, no matter where it’s performed, can carry the risk of injury and infection. But people heading abroad for cosmetic procedures...

New project launched to accelerate drug discovery

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Researchers from the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology have joined a consortium of academics and industry partners as part of a new 9.7MЄ study. The EU-funded project, Fragment-Screen, which is being led by Instruct-ERIC, aims to develop innovative tools that could help to advance new drugs using the approach of fragment-based drug discovery. A team...

New insights into β2-microglobulin amyloid aggregation

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The aggregation of β2-microglobulin (β2m) into amyloid fibrils is associated with human disease, but subtly different variants of β2m are associated with diseases with distinct pathologies. Astbury researchers at the University of Leeds have used cryoEM to determine the structures of fibrils formed from three different variants under identical conditions in vitro. The research, from...

University of Leeds secures £5.6 million grant to understand new layer of gene regulation by ribosomes

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The five-year project will lead to a better understanding of fundamental biochemical processes of gene regulation and will identify new research strategies for tackling cancer and other diseases. Julie Aspden, Associate Professor of RNA at Leeds and principal investigator, said: “The goal of this project is not only to understand how genes are expressed by...

Congratualtions to Professor Lorna Dougan on being awarded the British Biophysical Society Elspeth Garman Prize for Public Engagement

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Professor Lorna Dougan has been awarded the British Biophysical Society Elspeth Garman Prize for Public Engagement for her pioneering work in developing and delivering creative public engagement resources to diverse communities. The prize is awarded every two years and recognises excellence in biological physics engagement. Biophysics is a vibrant scientific field, with world leading activity...

Unravelling a mystery around type-2 diabetes

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For 30 years, scientists have been trying to understand how a biological molecule self-assembles into a rogue protein-like substance, which is thought to play a key role in type-2 diabetes. A team of scientists at the University of Leeds has, for the first time, been able to identify the step-by-step changes that take place in...

Going for gold to reduce antibiotic resistance

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New research has identified a way of using nanoclusters to bolster waning antibiotics. Tiny particles of gold could be the new weapon in the fight against bacterial antibiotic resistance, according to research just published. Scientists have been investigating the use of gold nanoclusters - each made up of about 25 atoms of gold - to...

Developing new techniques to build biomaterials

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Scientists have developed an approach that could help in the design of a new generation of synthetic biomaterials made from proteins. The biomaterials could eventually have applications in joint repair or wound healing as well as other fields of healthcare and food production. But one of the fundamental challenges is to control and fine tune...