Archive for the ‘Research Reagents’ Category

Knowledge of the three-dimensional structure of a biological molecule can yield a wealth of information about its mode of action and direct the systematic design of pharmaceutical agents. Consequently structural studies have had a major impact in many areas of medicine. Read the rest of this entry »

The core research in the NCRR center for Computational Biology Solutions is in protein folding, protein dynamics and bioinformatics. It provides a resource for a wide range of biological applications running on desktop to the highest-end computers. Read the rest of this entry »

After specific proteins are identified for further research, they are excised from the gel and treated with a succession of enzymes that cut amino acid chains into short polypeptides about 5-10 amino acids in length.

The polypeptide fragments for each protein are then separated by capillary electrophoresis and analyzed using rapid-throughput mass spectrometry. At this point, we know the amino acid sequence of the polypeptide fragments, their mass, as well as post-translational modifications that occured such as glycosylation and phosphorylation. Read the rest of this entry »

Annotation : A functional description of a clone, which may include identifying attributes such as locus name, keywords, and Medline references.

BAC : Bacterial Artificial Chromosome; see cloning vector.

BLAST  : The Basic Local Alignment Search Tool is a fast technique for detecting ungapped subsequences that match a given query sequence.

BLIMPS : The BLocks IMProved Searcher is a search tool used to compare a DNA sequence against protein patterns in the Blocks database. Read the rest of this entry »

Chromosome 7 accounts for approximately 5% of the human genome. It is estimated to be 136 centiMorgans (cM) in length and contains 170 million basepairs (170 Mb) of DNA. We are mapping and sequencing two targets along chromosome-7, one at 7q31.3, and the other at 7p14. Both are targets with little prior characterization other than the STS map, and as such, are representative of the bulk of the human genome. Read the rest of this entry »

James M. Musser and his 40-person Laboratory of Human Bacterial Pathogenesis are taking a genome-scale approach to studying the causes of infectious disease. Musser and his team are using genome sequencing, DNA microarrays, and proteomics techniques to understand how bacteria cause disease. Musser hopes to find new gene targets that will lead to the development of new treatments and vaccines.  Read the rest of this entry »

To most patients with cancer—and even to the physicians caring for them—the word “genomics” has little or no meaning. Many are vaguely aware that genomics has something to do with genes and may somehow relate to a genetic risk for cancer within families. However, when told that genomics entails an attempt to “fingerprint” their cancer, they immediately grasp the basic concept. Patients and physicians know that hardly a month passes without the popular press announcing a major breakthrough in our understanding of cancer. Read the rest of this entry »

To maintain genomic stability, mammalian cells require the action of five proteins encoded by paralogous genes to that of RAD51, a molecule involved in DNA repair, implying orquesrado operation of certain protective mechanisms.

In previous work on RAD51 protein, essential in homologous recombination, has established its relationship to repair mechanisms. Their action, in response to gene damage depends on BRCA2 (protein related to breast cancer) and a series of proteins (RAD51B, RAD51C, RAD51D, XRCC2 and XRCC3), known as the RAD51 paralogues. The paralogy, understood as a degree of specialization adopted by horizontally related genes, can deliver a complete answer to the questions raised in this paper. Read the rest of this entry »