Rice University News & Media

A metallic probe invented at Rice that lights up when it binds to a misfolded amyloid beta peptide has identified a binding site that could facilitate better drugs to treat Alzheimer’s disease. When the probe is illuminated, it catalyzes oxidation of the protein in a way that might keep it from aggregating in the brains of patients.

Scientists from Rice University and Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi’s Harte Research Institute have discovered that Earth’s sea level did not rise steadily when the planet’s glaciers last melted during a period of global warming; rather, sea level rose sharply in punctuated bursts.

The more than 13 trillion gallons of floodwater from Hurricane Harvey have created a massive plume of freshwater in the Gulf of Mexico that is threatening the coral reefs of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary about 100 miles offshore of Galveston.