Microscopy News and Research

Latest Microscopy News and Research

Cell Division Variability Promotes Healthy Embryo Development

There is variability in when and how cells divide during the development of embryos. While researchers traditionally believed this variability was an obstacle that needed to be regulated, the Hiiragi group now found that it actually promotes healthy development.

14 Oct 2024

A Novel Mechanism for Apoptotic Cell Removal in Epithelial Tissues

In a recent discovery, a study team from Kyushu University in Japan has shed light on how the systems defend against illness and injury by identifying a calcium-based mechanism that is essential to the removal of dead cells.

10 Oct 2024

The Role of Yeast Ribosomes in Cellular Survival During Starvation

Researchers from EMBL Heidelberg and the University of Virginia School of Medicine have uncovered a fascinating mechanism by which cells respond to nutrient deprivation. This discovery holds intriguing implications for understanding cancer development.

10 Oct 2024

Scientists Map the Entire Brain of a Fruit Fly

UC Santa Barbara neuroscientists have reconstructed the entire anterior visual pathway of a fruit fly, a complex series of connections between the insect's eyes and the navigation center of its brain. With the help of artificial intelligence and manual proofreading, systems biologist Sung Soo Kim's research group and collaborators worked out the relationships between more than 3,000 neurons with unprecedented detail.

9 Oct 2024

How Comamonas Bacteria Transform Plastic Waste into Food

Researchers have long observed that a common family of environmental bacteria, Comamonadacae, grow on plastics littered throughout urban rivers and wastewater systems.

7 Oct 2024

Microbial Enzyme From Sewage Sludge Offers Hope for Plastic Waste Reduction

Plastic pollution is everywhere, and a good amount of it is composed of polyethylene terephthalate. This polymer is used to make bottles, containers and even clothing.

4 Oct 2024

Living Microbes Unearthed in 2-Billion-Year-Old Rock

Pockets of microbes have been found living within a sealed fracture in 2-billion-year-old rock. The rock was excavated from the Bushveld Igneous Complex in South Africa, an area known for its rich ore deposits. This is the oldest example of living microbes being found within ancient rock so far discovered.

4 Oct 2024

Mapping the Complex Structure and Function of CRISPR-Cas Protein Scissors

CRISPR-Cas systems help to protect bacteria from viruses. Several different types of CRISPR-Cas defense systems are found in bacteria, which differ in their composition and functions.

3 Oct 2024

Scientists Successfully Map the Entire Fruit Fly Brain

A team of scientists supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH)'s The BRAIN Initiative, including Davi Bock, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Neurological Sciences at UVM's Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine, recently made a substantial advancement in neurobiological research by successfully mapping the entire brain of Drosophila melanogaster, more commonly known as the fruit fly.

3 Oct 2024

Structural Discovery of Fanzor Proteins Offers New Directions in Genome Engineering

A revolution in biomedicine is currently underway, driven by the application of genome engineering tools such as the prokaryotic CRISPR-Cas9.

3 Oct 2024

Unraveling the Mysteries of Endosymbiotic Relationships

Endosymbiosis refers to a remarkable biological process where one organism resides within another. This unique arrangement is frequently advantageous for both organisms involved.

3 Oct 2024

The Evolutionary Secrets of Human Hearts

A team from the Max Delbrück Center's Hübner and Diecke Labs demonstrated the genetic differences between human and non-human primate hearts.

25 Sep 2024

A New Method to Correct Misplaced Proteins in Cells

Cells are highly controlled spaces that rely on every protein being in the right place. Many diseases, including cancers and neurodegenerative disorders, are associated with misplaced proteins. In some cancers, for instance, a protein that normally stands watch over DNA replicating in the nucleus is sent far from the DNA it is meant to monitor, allowing cancers to grow.

23 Sep 2024

Epigenetic Switch Found to Activate Genes in Embryos

Researchers led by the Institute of Molecular Biology have found that 5-formylcytosine (5fC), a DNA alteration, acts as an activating epigenetic switch to activate genes during the early stages of embryonic development.

19 Sep 2024

Breakthrough Discovery on How TGF-Beta Communicates in Cells

Scientists discover how TGF-Beta, a crucial protein in development and cancer, sends its message even while tethered to the cell membrane.

17 Sep 2024

New Insights into How Mutant p53 Promotes Tumor Growth

Research from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) and the National Institute of Science and Technology for Structural Biology and Bioimaging (INBEB) in Brazil has uncovered a critical mechanism by which mutations in the p53 protein-;a key tumor suppressor known as the "guardian of the genome"-;turn other proteins into cancer-promoting agents

17 Sep 2024