Scientists Learn to Predict Protein-Stabilizing Ability of Small Molecules

   [excerpt] Osmolytes, whose effects were first well described in 1982, work to preserve various forms of life under extraordinarily hostile conditions. They keep cells alive in human kidneys, for example, despite high concentrations of the protein-destroying chemical urea; they enable a species of frog found in the Arctic literally to be frozen solid and then thawed without harm; and they make it possible for the remarkable microscopic creatures known as “water bears” to survive complete drying, exposure to intense radiation, and temperatures ranging from a few degrees above absolute zero to that of superheated steam.

Read the full story.

Reviews and Comments are opinion statements made by the author.
They do not necessarily represent the opinions of the site editor.

View the original article here