Editor’s Selections: Denaturing proteins in the cold, antibiotic resistance in genetically modified plants, and the diagnostic power of whole genome sequencing
March 26th, 2010 Editor's Selections 1 Comment
Vincent Racaniello selects several notable posts each week from molecular and cellular biology and virology. He blogs at virology blog.
- Proteins denature when they are too hot or too cold. But at low temperatures, proteins do not completely unfold – residual structure persists. Furthermore, unfolded ensembles of one protein generated by heat or cold may not resemble each other.
- Are antibiotic marker genes used to select genetically engineered crops a risk to human health? Probably not, because soil and gut bacteria already contain a variety of antibiotic resistance genes, and transfer of genes from a plant to a bacterium is unlikely.
- A scientist with Charcot-Marie-Tooth neuropathy, who has studied the disease his entire career, had his genome sequenced. The results identified causative alleles in SH3TC2, the SH3 domain and tetratricopeptide repeats 2 gene.
I’ll be back next Friday with more selections.
