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🔦 Engineered protein switches may lead to safer, smarter medicines
#biology

Engineered protein switches may lead to safer, smarter medicines
A new way to potentially control when drugs are active or inactive in the body is introduced in a study reported Sept. 24 in Nature. The research showed that, instead of controlling how tightly proteins bind to partner molecules, scientists can now directly control how long they stay bound. This advance has broad implications for developing safer medicines.

🔥 Novel way to 'rev up' brown fat burns calories, limits obesity in mice
#biology

Novel way to 'rev up' brown fat burns calories, limits obesity in mice
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified a novel way brown fat—an energy-burning form of fat—can rev the body's metabolic engine, consuming cellular fuel and producing heat in a way that improves metabolic health. The study, in mice, reveals new avenues to exploit brown fat to treat metabolic diseases, such as insulin resistance and obesity.

♨️ Underwater thermal vents may have given rise to the first molecular precursors of life
https://phys.org/news/2025-10-underwater-thermal-vents-molecular-precursors.html

Underwater thermal vents may have given rise to the first molecular precursors of life
A study published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society has recreated in the laboratory chemical reactions that may have occurred on Earth about four billion years ago, producing the first molecular precursors for the emergence of life.

🪸 Scientists reveal the mechanism behind sea urchin twinning
#biology

Scientists reveal the mechanism behind sea urchin twinning
Researchers at University of Tsukuba examined how twin organisms can emerge from a single fertilized egg by studying sea urchin embryos. Their findings revealed that when an early-stage embryo is split in half, each portion is able to regenerate its own developmental plan. The team uncovered the dynamic cellular processes and genetic programs that allow each fragment to reorganize and grow into a complete individual.

🔦 Scientists develop faster technique to uncover hidden gene switches
#biology

Scientists develop faster technique to uncover hidden gene switches
Researchers at the Max Delbrück Center have developed a new method to discover how DNA controls genes. Their technique, published in Cell Genomics, can reveal the genetic "switches" that regulate important genes more quickly than existing methods.

🧠 Brain organoids reveal potential neural basis of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-brain-organoids-reveal-potential-neural.html

Brain organoids reveal potential neural basis of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder
Pea-sized brains grown in a lab have for the first time revealed the unique way neurons might misfire due to schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, psychiatric ailments that affect millions of people worldwide but are difficult to diagnose because of the lack of understanding of their molecular basis.