News & HighlightsNews
First images of protein export in cells illuminate structural "highways" called microtubules as sole conduits of protein cargo
For the first time, scientists have viewed — and recorded on camera — the final pathway followed by a protein as it exits the body cell that created it. Once released from a cell, a protein is free to perform its duties as a neurotransmitter, hormone, cell surface receptor, or one of the many ot...
The protein's in the mail
New findings from Blobel lab enhance understanding of "ZIP Code" protein transport system A busy urban post office daily sorts thousands of letters and parcels, guiding each to a particular mailbox somewhere in the city. Each day, every cell of the human body manufactures millions of proteins whi...
Rockefeller scientists identify "natural" proteins that push stem cells to produce hair instead of skinRockefeller scientists identify "natural" proteins that push stem cells to produce hair instead of skin
The clearest picture to date of how two proteins determine the destiny of a stem cell that is genetically programmed to develop into either hair or skin epidermis is emerging with mouse embryos as models for human biology from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at Rockefeller University. The sci...
Link found between estrogen, changes in brain structure, and learning and memory
Scientists at Rockefeller University have discovered how estrogen initiates physical changes in rodent brain cells that lead to increased learning and memory — a finding, the researchers contend, that illustrates the likely value of the hormone to enhance brain functioning in women. Their study, ...
Rockefeller researchers identify new mechanism that ensures accurate partitioning of genetic material in dividing cells
Every minute, the human body replaces 300 million of its dying cells with new ones through the vital biological process known as cell division. When dividing and multiplying, a "parent" cell must segregate with exquisite precision each of its 46 chromosomes so that two "daughter" cells inherit al...
Researchers unearth unusual enzyme lacking genetic code
"Brute force biochemistry" still required to isolate novel proteins Since their fiery beginnings on earth over three billion years ago, bacteria have evolved some unusual strategies for dealing with the problems of life, a kind of odd bag of tricks specialized for survival. The most recent idiosy...
Backstage with a command performer
B cell chromatin study strikes physiological chord Some cells sing with the chorus, while others unwittingly achieve fame on their own. The immune system's B cell is a true diva that spends its early days preparing for the ultimate audition. Its repertoire of possible antibodies to invading micro...
Obesity not a personal failing, says leptin discoverer Jeffrey Friedman, but a battle against biology
Broad-based basic and clinical research program needed to better understand interactions of genes and environment "Jack Sprat could eat no fat, his wife could eat no lean," goes the classic children's nursery rhyme, implying that Jack's trim figure and his wife's portly profile were a conscious c...
Young plant's natural defenses amount to more than just its seed
Chua lab discovers protein that regulates early growth arrest An infant plant sleeps peacefully within its seed, entirely shielded from drought and other harsh conditions that might otherwise threaten its well-being. When the time comes at last to wake up and stretch its budding leaves, the young...
Hardworking sodium/ potassium pump fundamentally similar to free-flowing ion channel
Deadly coral toxin exposes ion pump's deepest secret Right now, in your body, tiny pumps in the fatty membranes surrounding all your cells are hard at work pushing select charged ions, such as sodium, potassium or calcium, through those membranes. Like a water pump in a high-rise apartment buildi...
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