News & HighlightsNews
Researchers discover new antibiotics by sifting through the human microbiome
Most antibiotics in use today are based on natural molecules produced by bacteria—and given the rise of antibiotic resistance, there’s an urgent need to find more of them. Yet coaxing bacteria to produce new antibiotics is a tricky proposition. Most bacteria won’t grow in the lab. And even whe...
Researchers shed new light on RNA’s journey out of a cell’s nucleus
Cells secure DNA within their nuclei like a secret code stashed in a vault. However, the tightly controlled borders of the nucleus create a challenge: In order for the cell to produce essential proteins, messages derived from DNA must somehow escape the nucleus in the form of RNA molecules. New w...
Scientists prove how genetics change behavior by studying worms’ foraging strategies
“Organisms pay attention to what other members of their species are doing,” says Cori Bargmann, a neuroscientist at Rockefeller University. “It’s a very robust phenomenon that you see from humans on Twitter to bacteria, and everything in between.” That’s why Bargmann, Torsten N. W...
Researchers watch in 3D as neurons talk to each other in a living mouse brain
No single neuron produces a thought or a behavior; anything the brain accomplishes is a vast collaborative effort between cells. When at work, neurons talk rapidly to one another, forming networks as they communicate. Researchers led by Rockefeller University’s Alipasha Vaziri are developing tech...
Genomic testing could speed research on skin disease and bring new drugs to patients faster
In an ideal world, the newest and most effective drugs for chronic inflammatory conditions would immediately help everyone who took them. Unfortunately, in the real world, it can take several months to determine whether a given patient will respond to one of these medications, which target specif...
Study uncovers how cells organize the growth of their structural filaments
To take shape, to move and to reproduce, cells need internal scaffolding composed of slender filaments known as microtubules. Before the cell can use microtubules for these and other essential functions, it must first organize them into carefully crafted bundles, which become the basis for three ...
A possible explanation for why male mice tolerate stress better than females
The nerves we feel before a stressful event—like speaking in public, for example—are normally kept in check by a complex system of circuits in our brain. Now, scientists at Rockefeller University have identified a key molecule within this circuitry that is responsible for relieving anxiety. Intr...
Study explains how an intestinal microbe protects against other, more dangerous bacteria
Antibiotics save millions of lives. But their tendency to kill helpful and harmful bacteria alike, coupled with the growing problem of antibiotic resistance, means that they are not without their downside. Probiotics consisting of beneficial microorganisms, meanwhile, have the potential to delive...
New research clarifies how cells take in cholesterol and offers insight on Ebola
Cholesterol—that waxy substance incriminated in heart attack and stroke—is a precious commodity for cells. In fact, errors in a cell’s ability to import these rod-like molecules can be fatal. In new work, researchers at The Rockefeller University and their colleagues delved into a pivotal p...
A compound that stops cells from making protein factories could lead to new antifungal drugs
Tiny, abundant biological factories, known as ribosomes, produce the cell’s most fundamental building material: protein. If ribosomes don’t work, cells can’t divide—and this can be an advantage for scientists seeking to develop drugs that target invading organisms, such as pathogenic fungi. ...
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