How UEA research could help build computers from DNA
2015-08-19
(Press-News.org) New research from the University of East Anglia could one day help build computers from DNA.
Scientists have found a way to 'switch' the structure of DNA using copper salts and EDTA (Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) - an agent commonly found in shampoo and other household products.
It was previously known that the structure of a piece of DNA could be changed using acid, which causes it to fold up into what is known as an 'i-motif'.
But new research published today in the journal Chemical Communications reveals that the structure can be switched a second time into a hair-pin structure using positively-charged copper (copper cations). This change can also be reversed using EDTA.
The applications for this discovery include nanotechnology - where DNA is used to make tiny machines, and in DNA-based computing - where computers are built from DNA rather than silicon.
It could also be used for detecting the presence of copper cations, which are highly toxic to fish and other aquatic organisms, in water.
Lead researcher Dr Zoë Waller, from UEA's school of Pharmacy, said: "Our research shows how the structure of our genetic material - DNA - can be changed and used in a way we didn't realise.
"A single switch was possible before - but we show for the first time how the structure can be switched twice.
"A potential application of this finding could be to create logic gates for DNA based computing. Logic gates are an elementary building block of digital circuits - used in computers and other electronic equipment. They are traditionally made using diodes or transistors which act as electronic switches.
"This research expands how DNA could be used as a switching mechanism for a logic gate in DNA-based computing or in nano-technology."
INFORMATION:
'Reversible DNA i-motif to hairpin switching induced by copper (ii) cations' is published in the journal Chemical Communications. The research was funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), The Royal Society and Novartis.
[Attachments] See images for this press release:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
2015-08-18
A nine-gene molecular prognostic index (MPI) for patients with early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) was able to provide accurate survival stratification and could potentially inform the use of adjuvant therapy in patients struggling with the disease, according to a study published August 18 in the JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for roughly 85% of all lung cancers, additionally; lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death through out the world. While gene expression profiles have been shown to ...
2015-08-18
Alexandria, VA - The American Geosciences Institute's Center for Geoscience and Society is pleased to release two reports concerning geosciences education in the United States. The reports were developed in response to the need for comprehensive monitoring of the U.S. educational system in terms of the instruction of geoscience content and participation in geoscience-related learning experiences. The reports are based on data pertaining to science education collected from all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
The "Report on the Status of K-5 Geosciences Education ...
2015-08-18
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Scientists at The Ohio State University have developed a nearly complete human brain in a dish that equals the brain maturity of a five-week-old fetus.
The brain organoid, engineered from adult human skin cells, is the most complete human brain model yet developed, said Rene Anand, professor of biological chemistry and pharmacology at Ohio State.
The lab-grown brain, about the size of a pencil eraser, has an identifiable structure and contains 99 percent of the genes present in the human fetal brain. Such a system will enable ethical and more rapid ...
2015-08-18
Baltimore, August 18, 2015--Contact precautions are recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for all patients known to be infected with or carrying multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE). Yet, the use of contact precautions--which require a patient to be isolated in a single hospital room and health care providers to wear a gown and gloves when caring for patients--is widely debated in the medical community.
To help inform best practices, a ...
2015-08-18
This news release is available in French. The atmosphere is so unstable that a butterfly flapping its wings can, famously, change the course of weather patterns. The celebrated "butterfly effect" also means that the reliability of weather forecasts drops sharply beyond 10 days.
Beyond this, there are strong fluctuations in temperature, with increases tending to be followed by decreases, and vice-versa. The same pattern holds true over months, years and decades. "This natural tendency to return to a basic state is an expression of the atmosphere's memory that is so ...
2015-08-18
CORAL GABLES, Fla. (August 18, 2015) - The Krüppel-like factor and specificity protein (KLF/SP) genes are found across many species, ranging from single cell organisms to humans. This gene family has been conserved during evolution, because it plays a vital role in regulating the expression of other genes. Understanding the evolutionary history of the KLF/SP gene family may shed light on major events in animal evolution and perhaps help discern some of the molecular mechanisms associated with certain human diseases, including many cancers.
By closely examining the ...
2015-08-18
Washington, DC - August 18, 2015 - Group B streptococcus, a mostly benign inhabitant of healthy adults, is one of the world's leading causes of neonatal sepsis and meningitis. A team of French investigators has now shown that such cases might occur when the microbe mutates within the infant following transmission from the mother. The research appeared August 17 in the Journal of Bacteriology, a publication of the American Society for Microbiology.
In the study, the investigators compared for the first time samples of group B streptococcus (GBS) from pairs of infected ...
2015-08-18
Censorship is one of the greatest threats to open communication on the Internet. Information may be censored by a user's country of residence or the information's desired destination. But recent studies show that censorship by countries through which the data travels along its route is also a danger.
Now, computer scientists at the University of Maryland have developed a method for providing concrete proof to Internet users that their information did not cross through certain geographic areas. The new system offers advantages over existing systems: it is immediately deployable ...
2015-08-18
Transmitted genes, rather than growth limitations caused by actual differences in maternal height, are the key means by which a mother's height influences her baby's birth weight and length, according to a new study published this week in PLOS Medicine. The report from Ge Zhang and Louis Muglia of Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and the March of Dimes Prematurity Research Center Ohio Collaborative and colleagues does, however, suggest that maternal height can directly mediate duration of gestation.
Compared to tall mothers, short mothers tend to deliver ...
2015-08-18
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., Aug. 18, 2015 - Shorter mothers have shorter pregnancies, smaller babies, and higher risk for a preterm birth. New research has found that a mother's height directly influences her risk for preterm birth.
Investigators at the March of Dimes Prematurity Research Center Ohio Collaborative looked at 3,485 Nordic women and their babies, and found that maternal height, which is determined by genetic factors, helped shape the fetal environment, influencing the length of pregnancy and frequency of prematurity. In contrast, birth length and birth weight ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
[Press-News.org] How UEA research could help build computers from DNA
