A group of collaborative researchers, led by Andrew McKenzie’s group in the LMB’s PNAC Division, have identified new processes that lead to the development of a novel cell (the nuocyte) implicated in allergies. Nuocytes play a critical role in immune responses to parasitic worm infection. However, they also initiate the early generation of immune responses […]
Insight on Research
How bacteria ensure stalled ribosomes are rescued
Venki Ramakrishnan’s group, from the LMB’s Structural Studies Division, has provided structural evidence for how bacterial transfer-messenger RNA (tmRNA) rescues stalled ribosomes at the end of prematurely truncated or defective messenger RNAs and targets incompletely synthesised proteins for degradation. tmRNA (also known as 10S RNA) combines properties of both transfer RNA (tRNA) and messenger RNA […]
Link between shape shifting protein and HIV resistance
A group of collaborative researchers, led by Leo James’ group in the LMB’s PNAC Division, have discovered evidence that helps to explain why primates are more resistant to HIV than humans are. Rhesus macaques are protected against HIV by a protein, Rhesus TRIMCyp (RhTC), which targets HIV inside cells thereby preventing infection. However, how RhTC […]
Shedding light on cellular transport systems
For cells to perform their elaborate functions, various components must be delivered to the right place at the right time. This is dependent on the cellular equivalent of a railway system; tiny protein machines called molecular motor complexes transport cargoes to their destination by traversing a network of polarized tracks within the cell. However, it […]
The sweet way of detecting bacterial invasion in cells
Felix Randow’s group in the LMB’s PNAC Division has identified Galectin-8 as a novel danger receptor and factor of the cellular machinery that protects human cells against bacterial invasion. Galectin 8, a sugar-binding protein in the cytosol, was discovered to be a key component in limiting the growth of Salmonella and to participate in the […]
Novel Mechanism for Regulating Inflammation and Cancer Discovered
Matthew Freeman’s group in the LMB’s Cell Biology Division have discovered a novel protein, iRhom2, that plays a central role in the signalling pathways that regulate inflammation and cancer. The cytokine protein, TNF, is the primary trigger of inflammation in humans. To function, active TNF must be shed from cells by the protease TACE. TACE […]