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DNA Synthesis: Flip It and Reverse It

December 17, 2021

In order to capture the distinct structural changes, the authors artificially slowed down the reaction, which would normally occur within milliseconds. The polymerase uses a push-pull process to allow the new genetic letter (highlighted in blue) to be installed onto the end of the primer strand while concurrently moving to the next position.

Every time our cells divide, the DNA inside must be copied accurately to avoid mistakes that could be harmful to our health. Known as DNA synthesis, the precise sequence of steps has until now only been hypothesized. In a recent study, timestamps have been added to step-by-step snapshots, revealing a switch-up between two of the steps that, if replicated in additional studies, would upend our current assumptions of the process.

New COVID-19 Antibody Supersite Discovered

April 5, 2021

Antibodies (shown in red, purple, turquoise and white) attach to a region called the N-terminal domain on the SARS-CoV-2 virus. (Vir Biotechnology & Veesler Lab)

Scientists at the Berkeley Center for Structural Biology contributed resources and data to a recently-published study revealing a new site on the coronavirus spike protein used by antibodies to block the invasion of the virus into healthy cells. The discovery of this new antibody binding site will help scientists as they work to continue improving treatment and vaccine formulations for COVID-19 and its variants.

Inhalable COVID-19 Protection via Synthetic Nanobodies

January 24, 2021

Three nanobodies (blue) are shown bound to the tip of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein (red/pink). The nanobodies were engineered to be extremely effective at blocking the virus from entering a host cell. (Credit: UCSF)

Using protein structures obtained in part at the Advanced Light Source (ALS), researchers from the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) produced simplified antibodies (“nanobodies”) engineered to be highly effective at blocking SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Because they are extremely stable, these nanobodies can be aerosolized, stored at room temperature, and self-administered as needed, directly to affected nasal or lung tissues using nasal sprays or inhalers.

Scientists Map Coronavirus Protein Linked to Immune Evasion, Disease Severity

January 12, 2021

A ribbon diagram rendering of the ORF8 structure predicted by AlphaFold 2 (blue), overlaid onto the actual structure (green) determined by the UC Berkeley-led team. (Credit: DeepMind)

A team of UC Berkeley and Berkeley Lab researchers used X-ray crystallography performed at the Advanced Light Source (ALS) to determine the atomic structure of ORF8, a protein secreted by the SARS-CoV-2 virus that is thought to help the pathogen evade and dampen response from human immune cells.

Experimental Drug Targets HIV in a Novel Way

October 27, 2020

Using Berkeley Center for Structural Biology (BCSB) beamline 5.0.1, researchers from Gilead Sciences investigated a promising small-molecule drug, GS‑6207, that they developed to inhibit replication of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

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