Three studies shed new light on how members of the bone morphogenetic protein family are regulated during embryonic development.

A recent study demonstrates a way to test the brain's ability to suppress unwanted memories.

Newly generated neurons in the adult brain are involved in at least one form of memory.

Because of their dependence on sunlight for photosynthesis, plants are also exposed to the DNA-damaging effects of ultraviolet (UV) radiation. In the 15 March Genes & Development, Roman Ulm of the Friedrich Miescher Institute in Basel and co-workers report on how plants cope with genotoxic stresses, such as UV radiation (Genes Dev 2001, 15:699-709). Ulm et al identified a mutation in Arabidopsis thaliana, mkp1, that results in hypersensitivity to the DNA-damaging agent MMS (methyl methanesul

explains how bacteria can switch between 'running' and 'tumbling' motions.

A gene that controls lifespan in yeast also regulates longevity in nematode worms.

Under specific conditions globular proteins can assume a structure resembling amyloid and prion aggregates.

Using synthetic molecules that mimic the sex hormones, it may be possible to promote the survival of osteoblasts without the complications associated with hormone replacement therapy.

A hybrid prion, created by fusing together prions from two distantly related yeast species, can adopt two distinct shapes and infect both yeast species.

Mice lacking the transcriptional repressor Mecp2 have symptoms resembling the neurological disorder Rett syndrome.

Chemokines and their receptors help guide tumour cells to their targets.

T cells injected into mice suggests that there are two discrete populations of memory T cells.