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Research reveals key interaction that opens the channel into the cell’s nucleus
Cells have devised many structures for transporting molecular cargo across their protective borders, but the nuclear pore complex, with its flower-like, eight-fold symmetry, stands out. Monstrously large by cellular standards, as well as versatile, this elaborate portal controls access to and exi...
Research shows how antibodies produce vaccine-like effect against tumors
The problem with traditional cancer treatments is that their effects don’t always last:  Stop the therapy and the disease may return. That’s why antibody therapy — which not only kills tumors, but also appears to train the body’s own defenses to recognize them — has such promise. New rese...
Fragments of tRNA suggest a novel mechanism for cancer progression
For years, scientists have been puzzled by the presence of short stretches of genetic material floating inside a variety of cells, ranging from bacteria to mammals, including humans. These fragments are pieces of the genetic instructions cells use to make proteins, but are too short a length to s...
Rockefeller scientists resolve long-standing debate over how many bacteria fight off invaders
Every inch of our body, inside and out, is oozing with bacteria. In fact, the human body carries 10 times the number of bacterial cells as human cells. Many are our friends, helping us digest food and fight off infections, for instance. But much about these abundant organisms, upon which our life...
Odd histone helps suppress jumping genes in stem cells, study says
A family of proteins known as histones provides support and structure to DNA, but for years, scientists have been puzzling over occasional outliers among these histones, which appear to exist for specific, but often mysterious reasons. Now, researchers have uncovered a new purpose for one such hi...
Research on the genetic roots of a blood disorder illustrates the challenges in parsing genetic data
Accumulating data, even genetic data, is easy. Understanding the meaning of those data can be more of a challenge. As genetic testing becomes increasingly popular, more and more patients and physicians are faced with tough questions: Does a particular genetic variation translate into a predisposi...
In first human study, new antibody therapy shows promise in suppressing HIV infection
In the first results to emerge from HIV patient trials of a new generation of so-called broadly neutralizing antibodies, Rockefeller University researchers have found the experimental therapy can dramatically reduce the amount of virus present in a patient’s blood. The work, reported this week in...
Under the microscope, strong-swimming swamp bacteria spontaneously organize into crystals
Insects form swarms, fish school, birds flock together. Likewise, one species of bacteria forms dynamic, living crystals, says new research from Rockefeller University. Biophysicists have revealed that fast-swimming, sulfur-eating microbes known as Thiovulum majus can organize themselves into a t...
Genetic mutation helps explain why, in rare cases, flu can kill
Nobody likes getting the flu, but for some people, fluids and rest aren’t enough. A small number of children who catch the influenza virus fall so ill they end up in the hospital — perhaps needing ventilators to breathe — even while their family and friends recover easily. New research by Roc...
To survive, a parasite mixes and matches its disguises, study suggests
Orchestrated costume changes make it possible for certain nasty microbes to outsmart the immune system, which would otherwise recognize them by the telltale proteins they wear. By taking the first detailed look at how one such parasite periodically assumes a new protein disguise during a long-ter...
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