When it comes to speaking out, cells wait their turn

Cell communication is essential for the development of any organism. Scientists know that cells have the power to "talk" to one another, sending signals through their membranes in order to "discuss" what kind of cell they ...

New sensors streamline detection of estrogenic compounds

Researchers have engineered new sensors that fluoresce in the presence of compounds that interact with estrogen receptors in human cells. The sensors detect natural or human-made substances that alter estrogenic signaling ...

Grafting olfactory receptors onto nanotubes

(PhysOrg.com) -- Penn researchers have helped develop a nanotech device that combines carbon nanotubes with olfactory receptor proteins, the cell components in the nose that detect odors.

Scavenger cells accomplices to viruses

Mucosal epithelia do not have any receptors on the outer membrane for the absorption of viruses like hepatitis C, herpes, the adenovirus or polio, and are thus well-protected against pathogenic germs. However, certain viruses, ...

Controlling movements with light

German researchers at the Ruhr-Universitaet have succeeded in controlling the activity of certain nerve cells using light, thus influencing the movements of mice. By changing special receptors in nerve cells of the cerebellum ...

Discovery alters conventional understanding of sight

A discovery by a team of researchers led by a Syracuse University physicist sheds new light on how the vision process is initiated. For almost 50 years, scientists have believed that light signals could not be initiated unless ...

Biologists reveal novel drug binding site in NMDA receptor subunit

Structural biologists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) have obtained a precise molecular map of the binding site for an allosteric inhibitor in a subtype of the NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptor, which is commonly ...

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