Bio Saga Blog - A Chronicle of Life Sciences & Informatics

Heart attacks are commonly caused by blood clots formed of blood platelets. A new research suggests that it should be possible to create a clot-busting pill that targets a receptor on the blood cells’ surface, something that high-risk patients could take at the first sign of chest pain. The key to such a pill is according to the research findings a receptor called αIIbβ3 on the platelets’ surface that is intimately involved in the aggregation process. Interfering with αIIbβ3 can prevent an unwanted thrombus and the three αIIbβ3 inhibitors currently on the market can do just that. But they also have side effects and risks and must be administered intravenously. Researchers at Rockefeller University have found a new molecule, called RUC-1 , that not only appears to sidestep these problems but, unlike existing drugs, could be taken orally.

The Protein Data Bank Japan (PDBj) curates , edits and distributes protein structural data as a member of the worldwide Protein Data Bank (wwPDB) and currently processes 25–30% of all deposited data in the world. Structural information is enhanced by the addition of biological and biochemical functional data as well as experimental details extracted from the literature and other databases. Several applications have been developed at PDBj for structural biology and biomedical studies : (i) a Java-based molecular graphics viewer, j V; (ii) display of electron density maps for the evaluation of structure quality; (iii) an extensive database of molecular surfaces for functional sites, e F-site, as well as a search service for similar molecular surfaces, e F-seek; (iv) identification of sequence and structural neighbors; (v) a graphical user interface to all known protein folds with links to the above applications, Protein Globe. Recent examples are shown that highlight the...