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New approach set to make peptide stapling widely available

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Scientists have created a new method to structure peptides, which they say will be cheaper and make the process of using stapled peptides in drug discovery much more widely available. The method developed by the nine-strong University of Leeds team, and exploiting synthetic chemistry developed at University College London, is more versatile, cheaper, completely reversible...

New insights into how Zika causes microcephaly

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Scientists have uncovered why the Zika virus may specifically target neural stem cells in the developing brain, potentially leading to microcephaly. The study shows that the Zika virus hijacks a human protein called Musashi-1 (MSI1) to allow it to replicate in, and kill, neural stem cells. Almost all MSI1 protein in the developing embryo is...

Manufacturing technique can make proteins less effective

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Biopharma and food businesses working with proteins now have access to better information about how a type of fluid flow used in manufacturing processes can affect the quality of their products. This process which can be highly damaging to bio-molecules, such as protein-based biopharmaceutical therapeutics, dissolved in the fluid, is known as ‘extensional flow’ and...

Scientists close in on cracking ‘Enigma code’ of common cold

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Scientists at the Universities of Leeds, York and Helsinki say they are a step closer to cracking what researchers have called the ‘Enigma code’ of the common cold virus. The research findings revealed the workings of a ‘hidden code’ within the genome of Human Parechovirus, a member of the Picornavirus family that includes the common...

Research tackling sudden death heart condition

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Over 50,000 people in Yorkshire and the Humber carry a faulty gene putting them at high risk of developing heart disease or sudden death, according to new estimates by the British Heart Foundation. Of these, nearly 11,000 people in the University’s region are living with the specific faulty gene which causes hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). University...

Scientists prove new approach to Polio vaccines works

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Scientists have identified new ways to provide vaccines against polio, which do not require the growth of live virus for their manufacture. Despite the success of vaccines produced from "virus-like particles" (VLPs) for hepatitis B and human papilloma viruses, poliovirus VLPs have proved to be too unstable to make practical vaccines. Now, a research team...

Common virus could help fight liver cancer and hepatitis

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A virus that causes childhood coughs and colds could help in the fight against primary liver cancer. Reovirus stimulates the body’s own immune system to kill off the cancerous cells, researchers from the University of Leeds discovered. In addition, Reovirus is able to kill off the hepatitis C virus – a common cause of primary...

Battling superbugs with the power of knowledge

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In the last 60 years mankind has come to rely on the wonder-cure of antibiotics to solve a multitude of ills by inhibiting disease-causing bacteria and curing potentially fatal infections. However, misuse of antibiotics can lead to some bacteria becoming immune to the effects of antibiotics, stopping us getting better. This is known as anti-microbial...

Targeting the biological host to get rid of unwanted guests

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A new approach has been developed to combat diseases caused by herpesvirus infections, including everything from cold sores to cancer. Researchers at the University of Leeds have discovered a way to prevent herpesviruses hijacking important pathways in cells which are required for the virus to replicate and cause disease. Read the full press release here...

How drug-resistant bacteria build defences

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Researchers at the University of Leeds led by Professors Sheena Radford and Neil Ranson have uncovered new information about the operation of a protein complex called BAM – the beta-barrel assembly machinery – which helps insert other bacterial proteins into the bacteria’s outermost protective layer. Read full press release here Read Lateral opening in the intact...