Researchers from the University of Illinois have reported complementary discoveries that will improve scientists’ understanding of immune systems in bacteria and equip clinicians with more effective options for treating antibiotic-resistant infections. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria known as...

The human body is a stressful place for bacteria to live. They must defend against many chemical and physical stressors, in addition to the immune system. One major physical stressor is fluid flow, which constantly circulates in the bloodstream, urinary tract, and lungs. Research has...

Researchers from the University of Illinois have discovered a key factor responsible for facilitating signal transduction in Cys-loop receptors, providing insight into a longstanding question in the field of ion-channel physiology and contributing to rational drug design. Their findings appear in...

 A new mouse model mimicking the liver symptoms of myotonic dystrophy type 1 — the most prevalent form of adult-onset muscular dystrophy — provides insight into why patients develop fatty liver disease and display hypersensitivity to medications, making treatment difficult. The new model opens...

The human gut is a diverse and densely populated environment filled with bacteria and other microbes in fierce competition for resources. One major colonizer in the human colon is Bacteroides, a genus of bacteria that can break down a wide variety of complex carbohydrates indigestible by...

Investigators from the University of Illinois have created a whole-genome map that charts the occupancies of RNA polymerase enzymes in humans, discovering unexpected patterns in the process. Their findings appear in ...

Preclinical research is an important step of the drug and treatment development process that ensures the safety of a potential treatment modality for human testing. But until recently, most preclinical research studies in animals were only conducted on one sex: typically, male. This tendency to...

Thanks to a serendipitous discovery and a lot of painstaking work, scientists can now build biohybrid molecules that combine the homing powers of DNA with the broad functional repertoire of proteins — without having to synthesize them one by one, researchers report in a new study. Using a naturally...

What talks without being seen or heard? It sounds like a riddle, but neuronal communication had perplexed biochemists until a few years ago, when scientists discovered ways in which neurons talk to each other — not with cell phones or instant messaging, but through the exchange of virus-like...

For typical illnesses, the body’s immune system is a robust, pathogen-killing machine. It provides a general defense against harmful germs while also adapting and producing antibodies that target specific bacteria or viruses. After fighting off an infection like the flu, the body produces...