Hyaluronic acid research could spur new therapeutics

For more than two decades, scientists have puzzled over how vertebrates make the essential polysaccharide hyaluronic acid, which has broad medical applications. One team took a different tack and solved the mystery.

Microscopy opens doors for studying neurological diseases

The intricate functions of cellular processes have mystified scientists for decades. But with the help of tools like cryogenic electron microscopy (Cryo-EM), researchers at Penn State College of Medicine are starting to see ...

The 'airbag' that protects cells against stress

Scientists at the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC) have identified the molecular mechanisms that allow cells to survive mechanical stress. The results, published today in Nature Communications, show ...

How phytoplankton rule the oceans

Photosynthesis is a unique biological process that has permitted the colonization of land and sea by plants and phytoplankton respectively. While the mechanisms of photosynthesis in plants are well understood, scientists ...

Sociable receptors: In pairs, in groups or in a crowd

When cells migrate in the body, for instance, during development, or when neurons establish new connections, cells need to know where they are going. A 'wrong turn' will generally cause disease or developmental disorders. ...

Siberian hamsters show what helps make seasonal clocks tick

Many animals, including humans, have internal clocks and calendars to help them regulate behavior, physiological functions and biological processes. Although scientists have extensively studied the timekeeping mechanisms ...

Proteins hoist the anchor

Researchers from the Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB) and from the MPI Dortmund have for the first time successfully reproduced the recycling process of proteins regulating cellular transport in a biophysical experiment. In ...

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