Subcellular structures are distinct, spatially organized physical systems within cells, encompassing membrane-bound organelles (e.g., mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, lysosomes), non-membranous bodies (e.g., ribosomes, cytoskeleton, centrosomes), and specialized compartments (e.g., nucleolus, stress granules). They are defined by specific molecular compositions, biophysical properties, and emergent functions such as energy transduction, macromolecular synthesis, intracellular trafficking, signal transduction, and mechanical support. As physical systems, they exhibit dynamic self-assembly, phase separation, and regulated turnover, and their organization is governed by principles of thermodynamics, molecular crowding, and active processes driven by nucleotide hydrolysis and cytoskeletal forces.
From small ions to large molecules, cellular gates control what can pass in and out of cells. But how one such gate, called pannexin-1 (PANX1), can handle vastly different cargo sizes has remained a long-standing mystery.
Cell & Microbiology
Dec 11, 2025
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Microtubules perform an active role in communication within the cell by transmitting received signals to the cell's functional units. Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI and the Department of Biomedicine at the ...
Cell & Microbiology
Dec 8, 2025
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Inside human cells, biology has pulled off the ultimate packing job, figuring out how to fit six feet of DNA into a nucleus about one-tenth as wide as a human hair while making sure the all-important molecules can still function.
Cell & Microbiology
Dec 4, 2025
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A new tool developed by Helmholtz Munich and the German Center for Diabetes Research and the University of Bonn makes spatial proteomics and lipidomics easier to use—no coding required. C-COMPASS allows scientists to profile ...
Cell & Microbiology
Dec 4, 2025
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An international study led by the University of Basel has discovered that nuclear pore complexes—tiny gateways in the nuclear membrane—are not rigid or gel-like as once thought. Their interiors are dynamically organized, ...
Cell & Microbiology
Dec 2, 2025
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The ability to self-organize is a key feature of biological systems and is widely found in nature: small building blocks that autonomously assemble give rise to macromolecules such as the cell nucleus, virus capsids, or complex ...
Cell & Microbiology
Dec 1, 2025
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Inside cells, RNAs and proteins form tiny, liquid-like droplets called biomolecular condensates. These droplets are essential for organizing cellular life, yet why some RNAs cluster more readily than others has remained unclear. ...
Cell & Microbiology
Nov 28, 2025
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Inside the cell reside many tiny assembly factories and warehouses that gather together all of the proteins and RNAs—which carry out instructions from our DNA—that a living being needs.
Bio & Medicine
Nov 26, 2025
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In stunning new time-lapse videos, biological nanoparticles scoot and flit across a starry field of glowing dots. Guided by the invisible chemistry of attraction, these microscopic travelers eventually group together to form ...
Bio & Medicine
Nov 18, 2025
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Cell division is a process of remarkable precision: during each cycle, the genetic material must be evenly distributed between the two daughter cells. To achieve this, duplicated chromosomes, known as sister chromatids, are ...
Cell & Microbiology
Nov 13, 2025
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