Over the course of evolution, the genomes of most living organisms have grown more complex thanks to transposable elements, a.k.a. “jumping genes,” or DNA fragments that can move and copy themselves from one chromosome location to another. Researchers from Inserm, the CNRS, Université Côte d’Azur, and Université de Montpellier were able to capture these “jumping genes” just after they moved.
Asymmetry plays a major role in biology at every scale: think of DNA spirals, the fact that the human heart is positioned on the left, our preference to use our left or right hand … A team from the Institute of biology Valrose (CNRS/Inserm/Université Côte d’Azur), in collaboration with colleagues from the University of Pennsylvania, has shown how a single protein induces a spiral motion in another molecule. Through...
Three new members have been isolated and added to the Pandoravirus family by researchers at the Structural and Genomic Information Laboratory (CNRS/Aix‐Marseille Université), working with partners at the Large Scale Biology Laboratory (CEA/Inserm/Université Grenoble‐Alpes) and at CEA-Genoscope. This strange family of viruses, with their giant genomes and many genes with no known equivalents, surprised the scientists when they were discovered a few years ago. In the 11 June 2018...
What if immune system efficacy against cancerous cells could be reinforced by a diet in which calories are not reduced but nutrients are precisely determined? This what Inserm researchers from Université Côte d’Azur, through a study of the effects of restrictive diets on tumor growth in mice, have been exploring. They have observed that a low-protein diet restricts tumor development by increasing immune response. The findings, to be published...
A team of researchers from Inserm ("Toxicology, pharmacology and cell signaling" JRU 1124) and the universities of Paris Descartes and Paris Diderot have recently discovered that flunarizine – a drug already used to treat migraine and epilepsy – enables the repair of a molecular defect related to spinal muscular atrophy, a severe and incurable disease. This discovery is the culmination of research efforts ongoing since 1995, when the Inserm...
A revolution in the field of nanotechnology! An Inserm researcher in collaboration with Harvard University has succeeded in creating 3D shapes of unprecedented sophistication, thanks to the four DNA bases A, T, C and G. In practice, these researchers can create nanoscopic (10-9 m) objects from 30,000 DNA sequences that fold and self-assemble like LEGO® bricks. In time, this will make it possible to manufacture new tools adapted...
In 1973, the rare syndrome of uncombable hair or 'pili trianguli et canaliculi' was described by a Toulouse dermatologist. More than 40 years later, Michel Simon, Inserm research director his colleagues at the 'Epidermal Differentiation and Rheumatoid Autoimmunity' Unit [UDEAR] (Inserm/CNRS/Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier University) have identified its genetic cause.
Transposable elements, also known as “jumping genes” are DNA fragments that can move or copy themselves from one location to another on the chromosomes. They have invaded the genomes of most living organisms, from bacteria to humans, via the plants. When they jump, they bring about complex modifications in genes near which or in which they insert themselves, and can thereby alter or abolish their function. This phenomenon contributes...
Chemical substances that are safe for humans when taken in isolation can become harmful when they are combined. Three research teams bringing together researchers from Inserm and CNRS in Montpellier have elucidated in vitro a molecular mechanism that could contribute to the phenomenon known as the “cocktail effect.”
Another step forward has just been taken in the area of synthetic biology. Research teams from Inserm and CNRS (French National Centre for Scientific Research) Montpellier, in association with Montpellier Regional University Hospital and Stanford University, have transformed bacteria into “secret agents” that can give warning of a disease based solely on the presence of characteristic molecules in the urine or blood.