literature, cell & molecular biology

Brain cells in older Drosophila tend to have more than two complete sets of chromosomes, and that polyploidy most likely has a protective function, a study shows.

Researchers find connective tissue has a crucial role to play in whether cancer cells metastasize.

By infecting glioblastoma cells but not healthy brain tissue, some form of the virus could serve a therapeutic purpose.

A study underscores the importance of Dna2 in maintaining the integrity of the genetic code.

The linkers gather chromosomes together into chromocenters.

Without certain DNA-binding proteins, chromosomes can escape the cell nucleus.

What happens when myosin inside red blood cells can't do its job?

Actin rings seal off the ball of cells, aiding in implantation in the uterus. But faults in the process could explain why some pregnancies fail.

By observing the activity of a protein complex in real time, researchers have uncovered new evidence for a long-standing theory.

Pectin fragments may signal plant cells to maintain a type of growth suited to darkness.

Scientists discover transcripts from the same gene that can express both proteins and noncoding RNA.
 

Mice engineered to overproduce the organelles involved in cell division spontaneously develop malignancies.

Through similar mechanisms, amino acid depletion in culture and cytokine activity in the tumor microenvironment prompt cancer cells to metastasize.

Warmth acts on a light-sensing protein similarly to the way shade does, setting off a growth spurt in plant seedlings.

See how different environmental conditions affect the activity of a molecule sensitive to both light and temperature.

Cells with the best traction on a substrate pull their neighbors toward firmer ground.

Results from experiments in mice revise a long-held hypothesis that certain protein scaffolds are needed for synaptic activity.

NSAIDs reduce this "parainflammation," hinting at how they help lower cancer risk.

Traditional stop codons have a double meaning in the protozoans' mRNA, sometimes calling for an amino acid during translation.