Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 3
Imagine a microscopic tunnel that can tell whether you might be developing cancer -- well, scientists at BRIC-RGCB, Thiruvananthapuram, are turning that imagination into reality.
In a breakthrough study, researchers have created mirror-image nanopores, tiny protein-like channels designed to act like a reflection of natural molecules.
Led by Dr. K.R.Mahendran, the team built these synthetic structures, named DpPorA, from special peptides that are flipped versions of natural proteins.
Computer simulations confirmed that the mirror-image pores are structurally opposite to their natural counterparts -- and surprisingly, this “mirror trick” makes them more stable and selective.