X-ray Spectrometry / Ezine
Resistant antibiotics on the horizon
Date: Jun 1, 2009
Author: David Bradley
The crystal structure of a penicillin-binding protein 1B (PBP1b) has been obtained by a team in Taiwan. The research could represent a major step forward in the development of novel antibiotics against resistant strains of bacteria.
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C60, C80, C0, Go!
Date: May 15, 2009
Author: David Bradley
X-ray crystallography, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and other techniques have allowed German chemists to demonstrate their synthesis of the first non-carbon analogue of the C80 fullerene molecule.
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The potential of X-ray diffraction in the analysis of burned remains from forensic contexts
Date: May 11, 2009
Author:
A new and accurate method of determining the temperature and duration of burning of human remains in forensic contexts used powder X-ray diffraction to analyse human bone and teeth.
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Polymerising phosphates
Date: May 1, 2009
Author: David Bradley
X-ray crystallography has been used to identify a novel enzyme that polymerises the essential biochemical building block phosphate in eukaryotes, which include all animals, plants, fungi, and protists. The proof of principle was obtained with yeast and could pave the way to the discovery of related enzymes in other species.
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Cosmic EXAFS
Date: Apr 15, 2009
Author: David Bradley
Dutch have astronomers have, for the first time, used X-ray spectroscopy to reveal the long-sought signatures of dust in the interstellar medium, the extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS).
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High-resolution X-ray tomography of the human inner ear: a synchrotron radiation-based study
Date: Apr 13, 2009
Author:
The combination of osmium tetroxide staining and high-resolution tomographic imaging using monochromatic X rays allows visualizing cellular structures of the human inner ear.
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Promiscuous drug transporter
Date: Apr 1, 2009
Author: David Bradley
The multi-drug transporter P-glycoprotein (P-gp) detoxifies cells by promiscuously exporting chemically unrelated toxins and drugs. Now, X-ray crystallography has helped US scientists home in on the protein that also helps give cancer cells resistance to chemotherapy agents.
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Nicotine's smoking gun
Date: Mar 15, 2009
Author: David Bradley
Years of structural work and wider studies have finally culminated in an explanation for nicotine's overwhelming affinity for brain receptors and the addictive molecule's almost total disregard for the nicotine receptors found in muscle tissues.
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Trace element mapping of a single cell using a hard x-ray nanobeam focused by a Kirkpatrick-Baez mirror system
Date: Mar 9, 2009
Author:
A scanning x-ray fluorescence microscope was developed using a Kirkpatrick-Baez mirror optics that enables achromatic and highly efficient focusing. It was used to visualize the distributions of trace elements in biological samples at high spatial resolution.
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Crystal structure not to be sneezed at
Date: Mar 1, 2009
Author: David Bradley
Researchers have obtained the X-ray crystal structure of a monoclonal antibody (mAb) bound to the lethal H5N1 strain of avian influenza virus A. The structure reveals that the heavy chain of the mAb inserts into a highly conserved pocket in the of the haemagglutinin protein stem.
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