Biochemists discover how a ‘molecular slingshot` disrupts key proteins
Wednesday, January 26, 2011 - 06:01
in Biology & Nature
(PhysOrg.com) -- An important basic science discovery reported by University of Massachusetts Amherst biochemists this week describes how certain proteins use an unusual, spring-loaded loop mechanism to cripple their target enzymes as part of normal function. But the work also reveals how a misfire, with no target present, causes the proteins to polymerize and form damaging clumps, which lead to misfolding diseases such as familial emphysema and liver cirrhosis.