Madeline Lancaster, cell biologist at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, has developed a technique allowing her to create mini brains from cell cultures. These incredible organoids, no larger than the eraser at the end of a pencil, serve as a model for Madeline’s research into early human brain development and are enabling […]
LMB In The News
LMB scientist wins ‘Best Technology’ prize in the 2017 Biomaker Challenge
The LMB’s Wolfgang Schmied, in collaboration with Stéphanie Polderdijk from the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research, won ‘Best Technology’ prize in the 2017 Biomaker Challenge for developing a low-cost chromatography system for protein purification. The Challenge aims to show the value of open, low-cost and DIY technologies as convening points for interactions between biologists and […]
BBC: Daytime wounds ‘heal more quickly’
A new study led by John O’Neill and Ned Hoyle shows how bodyclocks in skin cells influence wound healing. More…
Using cryo-EM to solve the structure of a protein complex critical for gene expression
Lori Passmore and her group have used electron cryo-microscopy to solve the structure of CPF, a protein complex critical for gene expression. Understanding the structure and function of intact CPF, and how it is assembled, has been a central question in the field of gene expression for decades. [A Log-in or subscription may be required […]
PINK1 caught on the brink of phosphorylation
Scientists have caught a rare view of an unusual kinase poised to phosphorylate its substrate. Led by David Komander, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England, U.K., the researchers reported the crystal structure of the kinase PINK1 bound to ubiquitin in the October 30 Nature. “We captured a pre-catalytic state, a snapshot of PINK1 […]
Fundamental rules for how the brain controls movements
Using the nematode as one test system, scientists at CCNR have spent the past several years understanding how a network controls itself—for instance, which individual neurons in the worm’s brain are in charge of a backward wiggle. In research published in Nature, they describe for the first time their ability to predict, test, and confirm with […]