Ubiquitin is a small regulatory protein that has been found in almost all cells (''ubiquitously'') with nuclei (eukaryotes). It directs proteins to recycling and other functions.
Short-lived proteins control gene expression in cells to carry out a number of vital tasks, from helping the brain form connections to helping the body mount an immune defense. These proteins are made in the nucleus and are quickly destroyed once they've done their job.
Our cells are crisscrossed by a system of membrane tubes and pockets called the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). It is crucial for the production of biomolecules and is continuously built up and degraded.
From humans to plants to single-cell organisms, there's a protein that rules them all.
A new study published in Genes, Brain and Behavior has identified several genetic variants that may be linked with mathematical abilities in children.
By studying how enzymes move from one membrane compartment to another inside a cell, scientists at the University of Illinois Chicago have figured out a way to better target cellular proteins, which play a role in many diseases.
Autophagy, commonly known as “self-eating,” is a cellular quality control mechanism that relieves the cell of protein aggregates and damaged organelles. This system is inert under ordinary conditions and is only activated in the presence of persistent cellular stress.
The University of Konstanz’s Plant Physiology and Biochemistry research group has discovered previously unrecognized molecular mechanisms by which plants acclimatize to their environment—vital basic knowledge in times of climate change.
Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the bacteria that causes tuberculosis (TB), continues to be a major infectious threat to global public health.
Chlamydia, the most common bacterial infection associated with sexually transmitted diseases, hides inside human cells using a cloaking mechanism to avoid detection and destruction.
On July 25th, 2022, a new study perspective called “SLFN11’s surveillance role in protein homeostasis” was published in Volume 9 of Oncoscience.
The use of attenuated, live viruses as vaccines is a potential method to minimize the effects of viral infectious diseases, such as influenza.
The identification of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) by pattern-recognition receptors (PRRs) is the first step in initiating an immune response to viral infection.
Ubiquitin is a tiny regulatory protein that can be present in most eukaryotic cells. It is important for changing the function of other proteins, and it is especially important for protein breakdown and localization inside the cell. Ubiquitin regulates these actions through ubiquitination (attaching to and detaching from a target protein).
Protein degraders, which cause target proteins to break down, are thought to be the “next-generation drugs” because they may eliminate disease-causing proteins from cells.
WEHI researchers have produced the first molecular images of an enzyme that controls proteins to signal and communicate with each other in human cells.
Understanding how the brain develops is crucial to formulating treatments and management protocols for a variety of developmental disorders, as well as degenerative neurological diseases. Right from the embryonic stage, brain development is facilitated by the differentiation of neurons (brain cells).
Cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM) allows scientists to investigate the assembly of DNA replication machinery where DNA is damaged.
Proteins are the building blocks of all living things and numerous studies are carried out to determine how these proteins are made and their function.
Life is organized on a 24-hour schedule. Central to this regular rhythm is the circadian clock, timekeepers that are present in virtually every organ, tissue and cell type.
A newly discovered manipulation mechanism used by parasitic bacteria to slow down plant aging, may offer new ways to protect disease-threatened food crops.