Western Blot – News and Features

Technology Networks recently spoke with Jean-François Bellec, ProteinSimple applications scientist, to learn about Bio-Techne’s history and how its solutions enable researchers to work efficiently and ensure accuracy in their experiments. In this interview, Jean-François also highlights how the company’s offerings have supported researchers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

It is recognized that Parkinson's disease patients are more likely to develop melanoma than the general population. Scientists now report a molecular link between the two diseases in the form of protein aggregates known as amyloids.

A new study finds that differences in the symptoms of herpes could be due to variations in the way certain strains of herpes simplex (HSV-1) – the virus that causes cold sores, as well as genital herpes – activate gene expression in neurons.

Western blotting has been a core technique in molecular biology for many years, however, optimization and reproducibility can be problematic. We spoke to Dr Alexandre Lucas about the automation of western blotting and the associated benefits.

Researchers have discovered a novel, short isoform of the protein angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). The study shows that although interferon therapy increases levels of ACE2 – the receptor used by SARS-CoV-2 to gain entry inside human cells – it largely increases levels of a shorter isoform. This isoform lacks high-affinity binding sites for SARS-CoV-2’s spike (S) glycoprotein, meaning the virus is unable to associate with it.

A new diagnostic marker has been discovered by scientists that can predict the response to therapeutic treatments of patients with cervical cancer.

Proteomics is the study of the proteome—investigating how different proteins interact with each other and the roles they play within the organism. This comprehensive article reviews the principles of proteomics, technologies adopted to study the proteome, and the applications of this research field.

Streptavidin and biotin, form a very strong and specific interaction that is invaluable for many biotechnological applications used in science and medicine.

A team from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) has screened existing drug compounds that have already passed through the entire drug development pipeline, to determine if any can disrupt the interaction between the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and the host’s angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor.

In a new study by researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, a chemical compound known as anacardic acid – found in the shell of cashew nuts – promotes the repair of myelin in animal models of multiple sclerosis (MS).