Thomas Tuschl has devoted his career to making discoveries that bridge the gap between bench and business—and have resulted in entirely new classes of drugs.
By focusing on the emergent features of cell collectives, instead of individual cells, scientists forge a new path for understanding how organs develop their architecture.
In developing bird skin, immature cells move around and form intricate patterns. Scientists are zeroing in on the mechanical forces guiding the process.
Linker histone H1 appears capable of distinguishing between single-stranded and double-stranded DNA, suggesting that its role in maintaining our genomes extends far beyond that of keeping chromosomes compact.
The compound attacks MRSA, C. diff, and several other deadly pathogens. Its discovery demonstrates the power of combining computational biology, genetic sequencing, and synthetic chemistry to study bacterial evolution.
A new study reveals how the drug fidaxomicin selectively targets a dangerous pathogen without causing harm to beneficial bacteria. The findings could inform the development of new narrow-spectrum antibiotics for treating other types of infection.
Protein folding diseases, from Alzheimer's to Gaucher's, may one day be treated by a unique class of protein corrector molecules that are already helping manage cystic fibrosis.
Increasingly, hospitalized patients contract infections that evade current antibiotics including colistin, long used as a last treatment option. The discovery of a new colistin variant might make it possible to outmaneuver these pathogens.
A new study finds that proteins known as linker histones control the complex coiling process that determines whether DNA will wind into long and thin chromosomes, made up of many small loops, or short and thick chromosomes with fewer large loops.
Three-dimensional images of human small ribosomal subunits offer the most detailed explanation for how the cell's protein-making machines are assembled.
Animals as small and soft as tardigrades seldom have legs and almost never bother walking. But a new study finds that water bears propel themselves through sediment and soil on eight stubby legs, in a manner resembling that of insects 500,000 times their size.
In a painstaking experiment, scientists suspended a single protein filament between two microscopic beads. Their results have shed light on an elusive process in which cells receive and respond to mechanical cues.
Rice will receive the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for research that led to a cure for hepatitis C, a viral disease affecting 170 million people worldwide. His lab worked on the virus for three decades and became the first to produce a version of it that could be grown and studied i...
New research suggests that breast and lung tumors metastasize by hijacking a neural signaling pathway, potentially opening the door to better diagnostics and treatments.
A new molecular structure explains how cells hold an alarm-triggering protein captive during cell division, preventing cells from targeting their own DNA.
How do primitive cells “know” where to go during development? Scientists studying the fish equivalent of inner-ear hair cells have shown that biochemical and mechanical cues work together to orchestrate a highly complex arrangement.
Using atomic-resolution technology, scientists have constructed the most detailed view yet of the molecular complex that decides where microtubules form.
Over 130 scientists in 18 labs are conducting research to advance the development of new, urgently needed approaches for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19.
Research that began with the analysis of two developmental syndromes ultimately helped scientists understand how diverse epigenetic mechanisms can combine to drive tissue overgrowth in cancer.
Allis, whose pioneering research established that enzymes that modify histone proteins, which package DNA in the nucleus, regulate gene expression, has been elected to the National Academy of Medicine.
Scientists have found that many receptors with high potential for drug discovery take a different configuration inside the body than in the test tube. The findings could explain why some promising drugs fail in clinical trials, and potentially open doors to new drug-development approaches.
Ruta, who investigates how the brain is modified by experience, has received a MacArthur Fellowship, an award intended to encourage people of outstanding talent to pursue their own creative, intellectual, and professional inclinations.
Cell division is critical to creating and sustaining life. It’s also incredibly difficult to study. Now, advanced technology is enabling researchers to take their understanding of this process to the next level.
For the brain to function smoothly, its cells must carefully regulate which proteins are produced and when. By studying gene regulation, researchers are now shedding light on complex brain conditions like autism and stroke.
Drugs known as potentiators alleviate some symptoms of cystic fibrosis. Researchers recently figured out how these compounds work—a finding that may lead to better drugs that patients can more easily afford.
Animals learn the hard way which sights, sounds, and smells are relevant to survival. New research in flies shows that the timing of these cues plays an important role in how mental associations arise, and elucidates brain pathways involved in this process.
In autoimmune disorders, the body’s defense system erroneously attacks normal cells, leading to serious health problems. Researchers have developed new molecules that potentially could be used to treat many of these conditions.
Recent research has shown that a drug known as MI-2 can kill cells that cause a fatal brain cancer. But only now have scientists been able to explain how the compound works: by targeting cholesterol production in tumors.
Scientists still have a lot to learn about the processes that trigger cell division, partly because they happen so quickly. A new chemical probe will make it possible to capture the workings of one of the key players.
Some cancers have been traced to changes in histones, proteins responsible for packaging DNA and regulating genes. Now, research from Rockefeller scientists shows that, among tumors, mutations to these proteins are a lot more common than previously suspected.
DNA’s two strands must be separated before its code can be read, or transcribed. By studying the structure of the enzyme RNA polymerase, researchers have elucidated how DNA unwinds and becomes legible.
Geckos are amazingly agile. In addition to running across land and up trees, the animals can prance across the surface of water. A new study reveals how they do it.
Scientists have made the first comprehensive inventory of cells present in the human placenta of the first trimester, a stage when many pregnancy complications are thought to arise. The findings could fuel new research on conditions such as preeclampsia and pre-term birth.
The gateway to cellular headquarters has 552 components. A new map that shows how all these pieces fit together could help scientists study numerous diseases.
A new report details three cases of secondary brain tumors in people with fibrolamellar hepatocellular carcinoma. The researchers say imaging tests could improve treatment for patients whose cancer spreads to the brain from the liver.
In discovering how an antibiotic kills the bacteria that cause tuberculosis, scientists open the door to new treatments for the disease—and possibly others, as well.
Scientists have used cryo-electron microscopy to capture the very first snapshots of the large ribosomal subunit—part of the ribosome responsible for forging bonds between amino acids, the building blocks of proteins—coming together.
In mining soil for natural drugs, scientists have discovered a brand-new antibiotic potent against many bacteria. They hope it could be used to treat infections that cannot be stopped with existing drugs.
New research has helped explain what goes wrong in Aicardi-Goutières syndrome, a rare brain disorder. Patients with the disease have genetic abnormalities that may put their cells at risk of accidentally triggering an antiviral response.
Günter Blobel, a Nobel Prize-winning Rockefeller biologist who discovered the mechanisms by which proteins are targeted for delivery to specific locations within cells, died February 18 at 81.
