news 2011

Freiburg Biochemist Describes Newly Discovered Processes in Production of Proteins in 'Nature' Freiburg, 07. The chaperone ZRF1 helps the ribosome to regulate protein synthesis. A new study shows that it also participates in the regulated translation of DNA segments into transcripts in the nucleus. Young unmarried girls used to be accompanied by chaperones at social events.

In a groundbreaking achievement that could help scientists "build" new biological systems, Princeton University scientists have constructed for the first time artificial proteins that enable the growth of living cells. The team of researchers created genetic sequences never before seen in nature, and the scientists showed that they can produce substances that sustain life in cells almost as readily as proteins produced by nature's own toolkit.

Remnants of the first stars have helped astronomers get closer to unlocking the "dark ages" of the cosmos. A team of researchers from the University of Cambridge and California Institute of Technology are using light emitted from massive black holes called quasars to "light up" gases released by the early stars, which exploded billions of years ago.