A Rutgers scientist is part of an international team that has determined the process for incorporating selenium — an essential trace mineral found in soil, water and some foods that increases antioxidant effects in the body — to 25 specialized proteins, a discovery that could help develop new therapies to treat a multitude of diseases from cancer to diabetes.
The research, detailed in Science magazine, includes the most in-depth description yet of the process by which selenium gets to where it needs to be in cells, which is crucial for many aspects of cell and organismal biology. First, selenium is encapsulated within selenocysteine (Sec), an essential amino acid. Then, Sec is incorporated into 25 so-called selenoproteins, all of them key to a host of cellular and metabolic processes.
Understanding the workings of these vital mechanisms in such a detailed manner is critical to the…
