Cytoskeleton News and Research

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NIGMS-funded researcher finds new technique to track cell’s movement

Cells are the basis of the living world. Our cells make up the tissues and organs of our bodies. Bacteria are also cells, living sometimes alone and sometimes in groups called biofilms. We think of cells mostly as staying in one spot, quietly doing their work. But in many situations, cells move, often very quickly.

11 Apr 2018

New fluorescent probe identifies cancer stem cells

Cells with stem-cell characteristics appear to be especially important in the formation and metastasis of tumors. Scientists have now developed a universal fluorescent probe for these "cancer stem cells". As reported in the journal Angewandte Chemie, this dye also selectively kills off the cells.

4 Apr 2018

Single high-fat meal can set the stage for cardiovascular disease

A single high-fat milkshake, with a fat and calorie content similar to some enticing restaurant fare, can quickly transform our healthy red blood cells into small, spiky cells that wreak havoc inside our blood vessels and help set the perfect stage for cardiovascular disease, scientists report.

29 Mar 2018

Discovery of new ALS gene points to cytoskeleton as potential target for drug development

An international team of researchers led by John Landers, PhD, at UMass Medical School, and Bryan Traynor, MD, PhD, at the National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health, has identified KIF5A as a new gene associated with the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

21 Mar 2018

Researchers create cardiomyocyte molds to mend broken hearts

2.5 billion. That's approximately the number of times the human heart beats in 70 years. And sometimes during the course of its unrelenting contractions and relaxations, the heart muscle can no longer bear the strain.

13 Mar 2018

MIPT biophysicists study structure and interaction of nanofibrous scaffold with cardiac cells

Biophysicists from MIPT have studied the structure of a nanofibrous scaffold, as well as its interaction with rat cardiac cells.

2 Mar 2018

InSysBio evaluates tau protein phosphorylation related targets for treatment of AD

InSysBio continues to investigate the mechanisms underlying Alzheimer's disease using the quantitative systems pharmacology modeling approach. The part of QSP model describing tau protein was published in the PLOS ONE journal. This is one of more than dozen InSysBio publications in AD area during last seven years.

28 Feb 2018

Tiny 'brains on chips' reveal mechanisms underlying brain's wrinkling process

Being born with a "tabula rasa" - a clean slate - in the case of the brain is something of a curse. Our brains are already wrinkled like walnuts by the time we are born. Babies born without these wrinkles - smooth brain syndrome - suffer from severe developmental deficiencies and their life expectancy is markedly reduced.

20 Feb 2018

Scientists develop fluorescent probe to identify cancer stem cells

Cells with stem-cell characteristics appear to be especially important in the formation and metastasis of tumors. Scientists have now developed a universal fluorescent probe for these “cancer stem cells”. As reported in the journal Angewandte Chemie, this dye also selectively kills off the cells.

19 Feb 2018

Nature paper unveils bacterial division

The process that allows bacteria to divide is crucial for their survival and a good target for the development of new antibiotics.

16 Feb 2018

HDAC6 inhibition could be promising therapeutic approach for peripheral neuropathies

Inhibiting HDAC6 improves the structural stability of cells and protects against neuronal damage. Leuven research uncovered that targeting this mechanism could be a promising therapeutic approach for peripheral neuropathies, whether due to Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT) or as a side effect of chemotherapy.

8 Feb 2018

Super-resolution microscopy provides insights into cells' amazing flexibility

One of today's sharpest imaging tools, super-resolution microscopy, produces sparkling images of what until now has been the blurry interior of cells, detailing not only the cell's internal organs and skeleton, but also providing insights into cells' amazing flexibility.

31 Jan 2018

Scientists develop unique technique to map elasticity of cell components

Scientists at Université de Montréal have developed a unique technique to map, on a scale of milliseconds, the elasticity of the components inside a cell.

17 Jan 2018

Biological Applications of AFM

An interview with Samuel Lesko, European Applications Manager, Bruker Nano Surfaces conducted by April Cashin-Garbutt, MA (Cantab).

From Bruker Nano Surfaces and Metrology 5 Dec 2017

Scientists study behavior of Listeria monocytogenes during asymptomatic infection

Listeriosis is a disease caused by eating foods that have been contaminated by the Listeria monocytogenes bacterium.

1 Dec 2017

Researchers explore new method of destroying tumor cells

Researchers from Lomonosov MSU Faculty of Biology have studied the stages of entosis, a process of cell death when one cell invades the other and gets digested inside of it. Entosis could become a new method of destroying cancer cells.

27 Nov 2017

Study identifies signaling pathway essential for growth of new blood vessels

A new study led by researchers at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute (SBP) identifies a signaling pathway that is essential for angiogenesis, the growth of new blood vessels from pre-existing vessels.

23 Nov 2017

APC gene mutations play dual role in development of colorectal cancer, research suggests

Adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) is a gene whose mutations are associated with a rare, hereditary form of colorectal cancer known as familial adenomatous polyposis. Research led by scientists at the Institut Pasteur and Inserm have recently demonstrated that mutations to this gene do not only lead to the emergence of colon polyps; they also harm the immune system, leaving it unable to tackle inflammation of the colonic mucosa.

24 Oct 2017

Researchers develop fluorescent sensors for detecting, tracking GTP levels in living cells

For several decades, scientists have recognized the key role that a molecule known as GTP, one of the building blocks of RNA, plays in the development of cancer and other diseases.

13 Sep 2017

IBS scientists uncover key regulator of normal as well as pathological angiogenesis

New blood vessels branch out of preexisting ones is via a process called angiogenesis. Although this is essential for survival, development and wound healing, on the flip side, it also feeds and progresses malignant tumors, as well as other diseases.

29 Aug 2017