Mutant prions help cells foil harmful protein misfolding

Romping clumps of misfolded proteins are prime suspects in many neurological disorders including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Creutzfeld-Jakob Disease. Those diseases are devastating and incurable, but a team of biologists ...

Some cells don't know when to stop

Certain mutated cells keep trying to replicate their DNA—with disastrous results—even after medications rob them of the raw materials to do so, according to new research from USC.

Algal library lends insights into genes for photosynthesis

It isn't easy being green. It takes thousands of genes to build the photosynthetic machinery that plants need to harness sunlight for growth. And yet, researchers don't know exactly how these genes work.

Inheritance of lifespan is sex-dependent in fruit flies

Like mother, like daughter; like father, like son. Evolutionary biologists at the universities in Bielefeld and Uppsala (Sweden) have now shown that this proverb also applies to inheriting a long life – at least for fruit ...

Mitochondrial cooperatives

Mitochondria, the organelles that supply the cell with energy, are highly dynamic and can link up to form complex tubular networks. A new study shows that this response can transiently compensate for a shortfall in energy ...

Hormone transport in plants deciphered

(Phys.org) —Plant growth is orchestrated by a spectrum of signals from hormones within a plant. A major group of plant hormones called cytokinins originate in the roots of plants, and their journey to growth areas on the ...

New gene-edited barley that could improve beer

After a spell of unexpected rain, before the harvest season, a farmer may be faced with the unpredictable problem of untimely sprouting of barley. Sprouted barley fetches considerably lower market prices and poses an economic ...

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