The art of folding mitochondrial membranes
Oliver Daumke's lab figures out how the inner membranes of mitochondria "get their groove" and assume the complex shapes they need to carry out crucial cellular functions.
Jun 01, 2017
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How nature engineered the original rotary motor
The bacterial flagellum is one of nature's smallest motors, rotating at up to 60,000 revolutions per minute. To function properly and propel the bacterium, the flagellum requires all of its components to fit together to exacting ...
Bacterial Pac Man molecule snaps at sugar
Many pathogens use certain sugar compounds from their host to help conceal themselves against the immune system. Scientists at the University of Bonn have now, in cooperation with researchers at the University of York in ...
Mechanism of protective protein identified in fight against harmful bacteria
Research from the University of Southampton, in collaboration with colleagues at A*STAR in Singapore, has provided new understanding of a protein which plays an important role in protecting bacterial cells associated with ...
Evolution of mitochondria
Mitochondria are the power stations of human cells. They provide the energy needed for the cellular metabolism. But how did these power stations evolve, and how are they constructed? Researchers from the University of Freiburg ...
Building scaffolds in the cell's power stations
A group of scientists led by Assistant Professor Dr. Martin van der Laan has decoded the molecular basis for the characteristic structures inside of mitochondria. Mitochondria are the powerhouses of cells and contain microscopic, ...
Controlling the internal structure of mitochondria
(Phys.org)—One might think of mitochondria as devices for transporting electrons to their lowest energy state. Little bags of finely-tuned respiratory chain subunits which combine electrons extracted from food with oxygen, ...
Study points to potential new target for antibiotics against E. coli, other bugs
Scientists have identified a protein that is essential to the survival of E. coli bacteria, and consider the protein a potential new target for antibiotics.
Nanopores underlie our ability to tune in to a single voice
Even in a crowded room full of background noise, the human ear is remarkably adept at tuning in to a single voice—a feat that has proved remarkably difficult for computers to match. A new analysis of the underlying mechanisms, ...
How bacteria integrate autotransporters into their outer membrane
The bacterial outer envelope is densely packed with proteins that form small pores and facilitate the passage of nutrients, toxins and signaling molecules. Professors Timm Maier and Sebastian Hiller from the Biozentrum of ...
