⚗️ Category

biochemistry

360 papers

Biochemistry explores the intricate chemical processes that power life, bridging the gap between biology and chemistry to explain how molecules like proteins and DNA function within living cells. This field reveals the molecular machinery behind everything from metabolism to genetic inheritance, turning complex biological mysteries into understandable chemical interactions.

On Gist.Science, we bring you the freshest discoveries in this dynamic area directly from bioRxiv. Our team processes every new preprint uploaded to the server, transforming dense academic findings into both clear, plain-language overviews and detailed technical summaries. This dual approach ensures that whether you are a curious beginner or a seasoned researcher, you can grasp the significance of these breakthroughs immediately.

Below are the latest papers in biochemistry, complete with our curated summaries to help you navigate the cutting edge of molecular science.

⚗️ biochemistry

Impact of viral membrane oxidation on SARS-CoV-2 spike protein transmembrane anchoring stability

This study utilizes molecular dynamics simulations to demonstrate that while partial oxidation of SARS-CoV-2 membrane lipids has a negligible effect on spike protein anchoring, extensive oxidation significantly weakens this stability by disrupting lipid order and cholesterol clusters, suggesting that lipid peroxidation acts synergistically with mechanical forces to facilitate viral inactivation.

Ghasemitarei, M., Gyursanszky, C., Karttunen, M., Ala-Nissila, T.2026-03-27
⚗️ biochemistry

Uncovering Functional Distant Mutations by Ultra-High-Throughput Screening of Dehalogenases

By employing ultrahigh-throughput fluorescence-activated droplet sorting with a bulky fluorogenic substrate, researchers successfully identified distal mutations in the enzyme LinB that enhance catalytic efficiency and alter specificity by modulating conformational dynamics and substrate access, demonstrating a powerful approach to uncovering functional adaptations difficult to predict through rational design.

Faldynova, H., Kovar, D., Jain, A., Slanska, M., Martinek, M., Jakob, A., Sulova, M., Vasina, M., Planas-Iglesias, J., M (…)2026-03-26
⚗️ biochemistry

Chiral methionine oxidation reagents reveal stereospecific proteome modifications

This study introduces enantiomeric oxaziridine reagents to map stereospecific methionine oxidation sites across proteomes, demonstrating that chiral regulation of these modifications can allosterically inhibit protein function and amplify specific oxidative stress responses.

Gonzalez-Valero, A., Page, A. C. S., Bertoch, J. M., Alsarhan, F., Kim, J., Alazali, A. A., Srinivas, R. R., Xie, X., Re (…)2026-03-26
⚗️ biochemistry

Integrative Structural Modeling of Intrinsically Disordered Regions in a Human HDAC2 Chromatin Remodeling Complex

This study overcomes the limitations of standard computational tools like AlphaFold in modeling intrinsically disordered regions by employing an integrative approach that combines experimental crosslinking with multiple modeling techniques to elucidate the structural assembly of the human HDAC2:MIER1:MHAP1 chromatin remodeling complex.

Nde, J., Kempf, C., Zimmermann, R., Cesare, J., Zhang, Y., Workman, J., Florens, L., Washburn, M.2026-03-25
⚗️ biochemistry

Multi-Objective Engineering of Fibrin-Selective Thrombolytic Proteases with Enhanced Biocatalytic Efficiency and Inhibition Resistance

This study presents a multi-objective engineering framework that successfully designed Brnoteplase, a next-generation thrombolytic protease with enhanced fibrin selectivity, inhibition resistance, and catalytic efficiency, demonstrating superior therapeutic efficacy and safety in vivo compared to current FDA-approved variants.

Toul, M., Slonkova, V., Mican, J., Thalerova, S., Peskova, M., Kittova, P., Scheer, P., Hlozkova, J., Brhelova, E., Aksu (…)2026-03-25
⚗️ biochemistry

Structural dynamics between Argonaute-2 and CK1α promote target RNA release in microRNA-mediated silencing

This study reveals that the progressive base-pairing of miRNA with target RNA induces conformational changes in human Ago2, specifically moving the PAZ domain to create a binding interface for CK1α, which phosphorylates the EI region to unwind the guide-target complex and facilitate efficient RISC turnover.

Garg, A., Braviner, L., Axhemi, A., Bibel, B., Joshua-Tor, L.2026-03-25
⚗️ biochemistry

A human cell-free translation screen identifies the NT-2 mycotoxin as a ribosomal inhibitor that binds the peptidyl transferase center

This study establishes a human cell-free high-throughput screening platform to identify the NT-2 mycotoxin as a novel ribosomal inhibitor that binds the peptidyl transferase center and induces a dormant state in mammalian protein synthesis.

Schwaller, N., Andenmatten, D., Luginbuehl, J., Rabl, J., Baur, H., Chambon, M., Vesin, J., Turcatti, G., Karousis, E. D (…)2026-03-24
⚗️ biochemistry

Tracing Siderophore Precursors to Primary Metabolism for Ecological Applications

This study establishes a systematic framework linking siderophore biosynthesis to primary metabolism, demonstrating that targeted supplementation of specific precursors enhances the iron-scavenging capabilities and pathogen-suppressive activity of the beneficial bacterium *Bacillus amyloliquefaciens* against *Ralstonia solanacearum*.

He, R., Xu, J., Shao, J., Wu, Y., Tian, S., Yang, Z., Li, X., Chen, H., Qian, L., Wei, Z., Gu, S., Li, Z.2026-03-23