Oak Brook, IL - The April edition of
SLAS Discovery is a special issue on advances in protein degradation curated by guest editors M. Paola Castaldi, Ph.D., and Stewart L. Fisher, Ph.D.
Targeted protein degradation has generated interest within the drug discovery arena due to the inhibition of one particular function of a protein not often delivering the successful results that comes from whole-protein depletion. The pharmacology of PROTACs present challenges, however, namely for the development of orally bioavailable drugs. In the article Target Validation Using PROTACs: Applying the Four Pillars Framework authors Rados?aw P. Nowak, Ph.D., and Lyn H. Jones, Ph.D., describe the application of a translational pharmacology framework (the four pillars) to expedite PROTAC development by informing pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic (PKPD) understanding and helping clarify structure-activity relationships. Nowak and Jones hope that the four pillars will serve as a useful guideline to th
Physicists on the hunt for a rarely seen magnetic spin texture have discovered another object that bears its hallmarks, hidden in the structure of ultra-thin magnetic films, that they have called an incommensurate spin crystal.
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IMAGE: The physics of massive nuclei can be studied by measuring the note at which tidal resonance between merging neutron stars causes the solid crust of the neutron stars to shatter view more
Credit: University of Bath
Space scientists at the University of Bath in the UK have found a new way to probe the internal structure of neutron stars, giving nuclear physicists a novel tool for studying the structures that make up matter at an atomic level.
Neutron stars are dead stars that have been compressed by gravity to the size of small cities. They contain the most extreme matter in the universe, meaning they are the densest objects in existence (for comparison, if Earth were compressed to the density of a neutron star, it would measure just a few hundred meters in diameter, and all humans would fit in a teaspoon). This makes neutron stars unique natural laboratories for nuclear physicists, whose understanding of the force that binds sub-atomic particles is lim
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IMAGE: A model of the zigzag carbon nanobelt (with a magnification of 50 million) produced by a 3D printer at the Equipment Development Center, Institute for Molecular Science. view more
Credit: NINS/IMS
The current method of manufacturing carbon nanotubes in essence rolled up sheets of graphene is unable to allow complete control over their diameter, length and type. This problem has recently been solved for two of the three different types of nanotubes, but the third type, known as zigzag nanotubes, had remained out of reach. Researchers with Japan s National Institutes of Natural Sciences (NINS) have now figured out how to synthesize the zigzag variety.
Credit: Matthew Henry
The recent power outages in Texas brought attention to its power grid being separated from the rest of the country. While it is not immediately clear whether integration with other parts of the national grid would have completely eliminated the need for rolling outages, the state s inability to import significant amounts of electricity was decisive in the blackout.
A larger power grid has perks, but also has perils that researchers at Northwestern University are hoping to address to expedite integration and improvements to the system.
An obvious challenge in larger grids is that failures can propagate further in the case of Texas, across state lines. Another is that all power generators need to be kept synchronized to a common frequency in order to transmit energy. The U.S. is served by three separate grids: The Eastern interconnection, the Western interconnection and the Texas interconnection, interlinked only by direct-current power lines. Any persisten