Cell Biology

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Researchers find efficient way to produce neurons from pluripotent stem cells

Since their discovery in 2006, induced pluripotent stem cells are a glimmer of hope for many diseases. But further research of the complex regulation of pluripotent stem cell identity revealed unexpected difficulties.

13 Nov 2017

KU Leuven researchers unravel how cell division timer works

Human cells use a timer to divide: each cell gets at least 30 minutes to divide its genetic material between the nuclei of two daughter cells.

9 Nov 2017

Study finds potential chemical compound that initiated life on Earth

A new study conducted at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) has found a compound called diamidophosphate (DAP), which is expected to have played a vital role in the origins of life on Earth.

8 Nov 2017

Johns Hopkins scientists report first-ever creation of protein hydrogels inside living cells

Johns Hopkins cell biologists report what they believe is the first-ever creation of tiny protein-based gelatin-like clumps called hydrogels inside living cells.

7 Nov 2017

New optical microscopy technique reveals dimerization of ‘toll-like receptors’

The surface of every cell contains receptors that react to external signals similar to a "gate". In this way, the cells of the innate immune system can differentiate between friend and foe partly through their "toll-like receptors" (TLRs).

3 Nov 2017

Study demonstrates for the first-time neurons moving in postnatal neurogenesis

A study published recently in the Journal of Cell Biology has described how newborn precursor neurons, termed neuroblasts, which originated in a permanent pocket of stem cells in an area of the brain called the V-SVZ—traveled from their birthplace to a target destination in the olfactory bulb via a special tunnel called the RMS.

3 Nov 2017

Researchers analyze molecular processes that influence aging

Understanding the factors that control aging has been one of humanity's endless pursuits, from the mystical fountain of youth to practical healthful regimens to prolong life expectancy.

2 Nov 2017

NASA’s “Twins Study” explores the effects space travel has on the human body

Preliminary results from NASA’s Twins Study have revealed some of the bodily changes that occurred in an astronaught, who spent almost one year in space, compared with his twin brother, who remained on earth.

30 Oct 2017

Inner workings of cells probed by new Kleindiek nanomanipulator at UNSW

The mechanism of how cells work is key to understanding how tumours metastasize as well as tissue regeneration and other bodily functions. The process of mechanotransduction, or how a cell converts a physical stimuli into an electrical response is fundamental to these understandings.

From AXT Pty Ltd 30 Oct 2017

Timing of DNA damage within checkpoints matters to a cell's fate, study reports

DNA damage occurs routinely within your cells due to sun exposure, smoking and sometimes during the normal process of making new DNA.

26 Oct 2017

Scientists develop physiological approach to restore gut’s ecosystem in various diseases

The trillions of microbes living in a mammal's intestine play an important role in the host's metabolism and immunity. The composition of microbiota is maintained by antimicrobial proteins secreted from intestinal cells.

24 Oct 2017

Gene circuit can be used to switch on inside cancer cells and stimulate immune attack, study suggests

A new study, conducted by researchers at MIT, suggests that a recently developed synthetic gene circuit can stimulate the immune system to kill cancer cells when it identifies indications of the cancer. The gene circuit will only stimulate a therapeutic response when it identifies two particular cancer markers.

20 Oct 2017

Researchers discover new function in gene-regulatory protein

Researchers at Umeå and Stockholm universities in Sweden and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in the US have published a new study in the journal Molecular Cell.

20 Oct 2017

Protein identified as promising novel obesity treatment

This week Amgen published data showing that injection of a protein known as growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF15) facilitated weight loss in obese mice and primates.

20 Oct 2017

Scientists uncover surprising molecular link in critical cellular growth pathway

A team of scientists led by Whitehead Institute has uncovered a surprising molecular link that connects how cells regulate growth with how they sense and make available the nutrients required for growth.

19 Oct 2017

Genetic diversity plays major role in evolution of drug resistance

Researchers have shown that genetic diversity plays a key role in enabling drug resistance to evolve. Scientists at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and the Institute for Research on Cancer and Ageing of Nice in France, show that high genetic diversity can prime new mutations that cause drug resistance.

17 Oct 2017

Using AFM to study cell mechanics and function

My lab, broadly speaking, is interested in trying to understand interactions between cells and materials. Those could be materials that are present within living tissue or materials that we use for engineering purposes to try to do something of technological or therapeutic interest.

From Bruker Nano Surfaces and Metrology 17 Oct 2017

Columbia scientists receive grant from CZI to construct atlas of cells in human spinal cord

Scientists at Columbia's Zuckerman Institute today received a grant from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative donor advised fund, an advised fund of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, to construct an atlas of gene activity of all cells in the human spinal cord.

17 Oct 2017

Investigating new cancer therapy candidates with live-cell imaging

There are two main things that we've worked on in the lab as regards to drug studies. One is identifying new combinations of drugs, and working on why a combination of drugs should work better than each alone.

From Sartorius 16 Oct 2017

Specific regions of silenced DNA help define cell's identity, study suggests

The fundamental mechanisms governing how cells form an identity such as becoming a muscle cell or a nerve cell are not fully understood. Multiple diseases, including cancer, have been linked to cells going down the wrong developmental path during maturation.

13 Oct 2017