Feature Channels: Cell Biology

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Scientists from the University of Bristol and the Natural History Museum in London have reconstructed the evolutionary history of the chelicerates

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Cells in the body are wired like computer chips to direct signals that instruct how they function, research suggests.

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Researchers examining post-mortem brain tissue from people ages 79 to 99 found that new neurons continue to form well into old age. The study provides evidence that this occurs even in people with cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease, although neurogenesis is significantly reduced in these people compared to older adults with normal cognitive functioning.

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As people age, their muscle regeneration capacity declines in part because they can no longer make enough muscle stem cells to replace damaged tissue.

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Scientists have found another hint that time of day may play a role in how the body burns fuel, with implications for weight gain and heart health.

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Roger D. Pechous, Ph.D., studies the bacteria that caused the infamous black death of the Middle Ages, shedding light on something old to potentially protect against something new: bioterrorism.

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A new Cornell University-led study finds that the genome for a widely researched worm, on which countless studies are based, was flawed. Now, a fresh genome sequence will set the record straight and improve the accuracy of future research.

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Scientists studying bacteria and other microbes didn’t anticipate their data would hold the key to studying viruses. But new techniques are allowing researchers from DOE's Joint Genome Institute to use this data to gain insights about viruses’ genes and their role in the environment.

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What kind of beer did the Pharaohs drink? In ancient times, beer was an important ingredient in people's daily diet. Great powers were attributed to beer in the ancient world

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Targeting a key gene before birth could someday help lead to a treatment for Down syndrome by reversing abnormal embryonic brain development and improving cognitive function after birth, according to a Rutgers-led study.

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Research findings opens opportunities to offer opportunities to develop new treatments to tackle metabolic diseases, like diabetes.

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There’s a fine line between helpful and harmful inflammation. WVU School of Medicine researchers Gordon Meares and Savannah Sims want to explore it. They and their colleagues are investigating how inflammation spreads throughout the brain and what makes it protective—or perilous.

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Researchers analyzed biomarkers secreted from transplanted human stem cells in the recipient blood of a rodent model of heart attack. Analysis of the blood test showed responding cells had changed their gene expression, behavior and secretions, suggesting this liquid biopsy could provide a window into stem cell activity and effectiveness.

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A new genomic approach provides a glimpse into the diverse bacterial ecosystem on the International Space Station.

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Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers report they have created a method of mapping how the central nervous system develops by tracking the genes expressed in cells. The technique, demonstrated in mouse retinas for this study, follows the activity of the genes used by individual cells during development, allowing researchers to identify patterns in unprecedented detail. This precise kind of road map, say the researchers, could be used to develop future regenerative treatments for blinding and other neurological diseases

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Results reported in Biomicrofluidics promise a new way to detect prostate cancer through a simple device, which forces cell samples through channels less than 10 microns wide. When prostate cancer cells are forced through, the metastatic cells exhibit “blebbing,” and the experiments show that highly metastatic prostate cancer cells are more likely to exhibit blebbing than normal cells or even less-metastatic cells are. The new device could be used in a clinical setting to inexpensively test large numbers of samples.

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UNLV researchers have discovered a novel method for how two parts of the brain — the hippocampus and the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) — work together to retrieve long-term memories.

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Two scientists at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have unraveled aspects of how DNA organizes and preserves genetic information. Newly published research by Cynthia Wolberger, Ph.D., and James Berger, Ph.D., whose labs sit side by side, takes a closer look at how the puzzle pieces of DNA machinery fit together.

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University of Washington researchers developed a strategy to keep proteins intact and functional in synthetic biomaterials for tissue engineering. Their approach modifies proteins at a specific point so that they can be chemically tethered to scaffolds using light.

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Study Identifies New Stem Cell Type That Can Significantly Improve Cardiac Function