Mutant prions help cells foil harmful protein misfolding Misfolded proteins are implicated in many incurable neurological diseases. A new and improved understanding of how naturally occurring variants keep proteins from bunching up and spreading provides more options for developing a treatment than scientists had realized. Mutant prions help cells The red color of the the […]

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Malaria-infected cells stiffen, block blood flow A team of researchers at Brown University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has completed the first modeling, followed by experiments, of how red blood cells are infected by a malarial parasite that attacks the brain. The researchers report that infected cells stiffen by as much as 50 times […]

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Deadly virus reveals a potential weakness A new study of the JC polyomavirus, a devastating pathogen that attacks brain cells in patients with compromised immune systems, has revealed how it binds to its targets, providing a basis for developing drugs to interrupt that process. PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — The JC polyomavirus doesn’t strike very […]

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Research team identifies new mechanism with suspected role in cancer Researchers at Brown University and Rhode Island Hospital have identified a process in which prolactin receptors can be drawn together and begin working in pairs called dimers. Overexpression of prolactin receptors in patients has been linked to cancer. PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — If women […]

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