Bioinformatics - Bioinformatics News

Proteins are made up of a chain of amino acids, and scientists have known since the 1980s that first one in the chain determines the lifetime of a protein. McGill researchers have finally discovered how the cell identifies this first amino acid -- and caught it on camera.
Canadian Institute for Health Research

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Aside from representing a major advance in our understanding of the life cycle of proteins, the research has important repercussions for Johanson-Blizzard syndrome, a rare disease that causes deformations and mental retardation. This syndrome is caused by a mutation in the UBR box that causes it to lose an essential zinc atom. Better understanding of the structure of the UBR box may help researchers develop treatments for this syndrome.