Histology & Microscopy

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Flu viruses can use a second entry pathway to infect cells

Most influenza viruses enter human or animal cells through specific pathways on the cells' surface. Researchers at the University of Zurich have now discovered that certain human flu viruses and avian flu viruses can also use a second entry pathway, a protein complex of the immune system, to infect cells.

18 Jul 2024

Optical metabolic imaging reveals how Toxoplasma infection changes host cell metabolism

Toxoplasma gondii is a parasite responsible for toxoplasmosis, a lifelong chronic infection prevalent in about 30% of the human population.

12 Jul 2024

Study reveals how DDM1 protein suppresses 'jumping genes' in plants

International joint research led by Akihisa Osakabe and Yoshimasa Takizawa of the University of Tokyo has clarified the molecular mechanisms in thale cresses (Arabidopsis thaliana) by which the DDM1 (Decreased in DNA Methylation 1) protein prevents the transcription of "jumping genes."

11 Jul 2024

Cryo-EM reveals structural dynamics of RNAP-DNA interactions during transcription initiation

Every living cell transcribes DNA into RNA. This process begins when an enzyme called RNA polymerase (RNAP) clamps onto DNA. Within a few hundred milliseconds, the DNA double helix unwinds to form a node known as the transcription bubble, so that one exposed DNA strand can be copied into a complementary RNA strand.

10 Jul 2024

New study reveals how RNA polymerase opens the transcription bubble in real time

Every living cell transcribes DNA into RNA. This process begins when an enzyme called RNA polymerase (RNAP) clamps onto DNA.

3 Jul 2024

High-resolution real-time imaging reveals early developmental processes in quail embryos

Researchers at The University of Queensland have for the first time captured images and video in real time of early embryonic development to understand more about congenital birth defects.

1 Jul 2024

New APIC method eliminates blurriness and distortion in microscopy

For hundreds of years, the clarity and magnification of microscopes were ultimately limited by the physical properties of their optical lenses.

28 Jun 2024

Innovative SRPFM technique enables ultra-sensitive force measurement at nanoscale in fluids

Groundbreaking research has revealed a new way to measure incredibly minute forces at the nanoscale in water, pushing the boundaries of what scientists know about the microscopic world.

24 Jun 2024

Synthetic cell mimics immune response via symmetry breaking

In a feat aimed at understanding how cells move and creating new ways to shuttle drugs through the body, scientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine say they have built a minimal synthetic cell that follows an external chemical cue and demonstrates a governing principle of biology called "symmetry breaking."

12 Jun 2024

Unveiling Pseudomonas aeruginosa's lung invasion tactics with human lung microtissues

How do pathogens invade the lungs? Using human lung microtissues, a team at the Biozentrum of the University of Basel has uncovered the strategy used by a dangerous pathogen.

10 Jun 2024

Key protein orco crucial for ant olfactory neuron survival and social behavior

While smell plays a considerable role in the social interactions of humans-;for instance, signaling fear or generating closeness-;for ants, it is vitally important.

7 Jun 2024

Novel CMOS sensor captures fast and subtle neural voltage fluctuations

Neurons communicate electrically so to understand how they produce brain functions such as memory, neuroscientists must track how their voltage changes-;sometimes subtly-;on the timescale of milliseconds.

7 Jun 2024

Advanced imaging reveals hidden differences in T cell activation

From the outside, most T cells look the same: small and spherical. Now, a team of researchers led by Berend Snijder from the Institute of Molecular Systems Biology at ETH Zurich has taken a closer look inside these cells using advanced techniques.

6 Jun 2024

Super-resolution microscopy offers high-resolution view of virus replication inside cells

A new, nano-scale look at how the SARS-CoV-2 virus replicates in cells may offer greater precision in drug development, a Stanford University team reports in Nature Communications.

31 May 2024

Researchers decode spatial structure of prime editor

Joint research led by Yutaro Shuto, Ryoya Nakagawa, and Osamu Nureki of the University of Tokyo determined the spatial structure of various processes of a novel gene-editing tool called "prime editor."

29 May 2024

New ultrasound method reveals minute vascular structures using contrast agents

A touch of the button is all it takes to improve the resolution of ultrasound images fivefold. This is down to bubbles floating in the bloodstream and a clever algorithm.

29 May 2024

Advanced techniques reveal plectasin's velcro-like action against bacteria

A small antibiotic called plectasin uses an innovative mechanism to kill bacteria. By assembling into large structures, plectasin latches onto its target on the bacterial cell surface comparable to how both sides of Velcro form a bond.

25 May 2024

Soft X-ray microscope captures living mammalian cells

Researchers have developed a new technique to view living mammalian cells.

24 May 2024

Innovative 3D-printed implants and bioluminescent tools transform sensory process studies

A sensory process such as pain is no ordinary phenomenon-;it's a symphony of neural and vascular interactions orchestrated by the brain and spinal cord.

21 May 2024

Innovative DL4MicEverywhere platform revolutionizes microscopy image analysis with AI

A team of researchers from the Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência (IGC) in Portugal, together with Åbo Akademi University in Finland, the AI4Life consortium, and other collaborators, have developed an innovative open-source platform called DL4MicEverywhere published today in the journal Nature Methods.

17 May 2024