Human white blood cells, or leukocytes, swim using a newly-described mechanism called molecular paddling, according to new research led by University Grenoble Alpes and Aix Marseille University. Five types of human leukocytes. Image credit: Syed H. Shirazi et al, doi: 10.3233/THC-161133. Cells have evolved different strategies to migrate and explore …
Read More »World’s Smallest Molecular
Researchers Develop World’s Smallest Molecular Motor A molecular motor developed by a team of researchers from Switzerland consists of just 16 atoms. The world’s smallest molecular motor consists of a single acetylene rotor anchored to a chiral atomic cluster provided by a palladium-gallium surface that acts as a stator. Image …
Read More »‘Molecular Switch’ that Causes Mucosal Autoimmune Diseases Discovered
According to an international team of researchers led by University College London and King’s College London, the discovery of a ‘molecular switch’ that causes the mucosal inflammatory diseases ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, and celiac disease, could lead to effective new treatments for these autoimmune conditions. The discovery is reported in …
Read More »‘Genetic unicorns’ hint at how we can defy our molecular destiny
There’s a common misconception that genes determine our physiologic destiny. And it’s well and good to go around exploding such untruths — except when they turn out to be true. For a minority of people, those with inherited Mendelian disorders like cystic fibrosis, genes do in fact seem to determine …
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