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Categories: Biology: Botany, Biology: Molecular

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Researchers have discovered how amino acids activate a key cell, TORC1, which is a master regulator in living organisms that controls whether cells grow or recycle their contents in yeast. Notably, the team found that the amino acid cysteine is sensed by a protein called Pib2 and that the two bind together to trigger TORC1. This is important because faulty TORC1 has been linked to disease such as cancer.

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Analyses of amber show that insect larvae were already using a wide variety of tactics to protect themselves from predators 100 million years ago.

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A research group found that in female fruit flies, microorganisms enhance reproductive function, boosting the number of cells that form eggs and the number of mature eggs. This is done by controlling the release of hormones to speed up cell division in the ovaries, and limiting programmed cell death. These findings could improve reproductive medicine and could aid the development of new methods to enhance fertility.

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Scientists have uncovered how DnaA, the master key to DNA replication, opens the door to bacterial growth. This breakthroughpaves the way for new antibiotics to combat the rising tide of antibiotic resistance.

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Researchers have gained a deeper understanding of the nuanced roles of JAK inhibitors, or modulators, in inflammation across various cell types and tissues.

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A new technique to clone and reassemble DNA, dubbed CReATiNG, could simplify and lower the cost to make synthetic chromosomes. Potential applications are numerous, including pharmaceutical production, biofuel generation, cancer therapies, and environmental cleanup using modified organisms. The method adds a powerful, versatile tool to the burgeoning field of synthetic biology.

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Scientists have discovered that plants send tiny, innocuous-seeming lipid 'bubbles' filled with RNA across enemy lines, into the cells of the aggressive mold. Once inside, different types of RNA come out to suppress the infectious cells that sucked them in.

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Older tree plantations can be more attractive to animals who are looking for a new home than younger plantations, according to a new study. In the tropics, older plantations also welcome a greater variety of different plants and animals -- though sadly, Christmas tree plantations do not become more biodiverse over time.

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A research team has uncovered a previously undetected mechanism in mice -- starring the genetic molecule RNA -- that could explain how each sensory cell, or neuron, in mammalian noses becomes tailored to detect a specific odor chemical.

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The intricate process of duplicating genetic information, referred to as DNA replication, lies at the heart of the transmission of life from one cell to another and from one organism to the next. This happens by not just simply copying the genetic information; a well-orchestrated sequence of molecular events has to happen at the right time. Scientists have recently uncovered a fascinating aspect of this process known as 'replication timing' (RT) and how special this is when life commences.

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Researchers discover a new mechanism controlling the uptake of lipids from digested food.

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Aquaporin (Aqp) 10 water channels in humans allow the free passage of water, glycerol, urea, and boric acid across cells. However, Aqp10.2b in pufferfishes allows only the passage of water and glycerol and not urea and boric acid. Researchers sought to understand the evolutionary timeline that resulted in the variable substrate selection mechanisms among Aqp10s. Their results indicate that Aqp10.2 in ray-finned fishes may have reduced or lost urea and boric acid permeabilities through evolution.

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Nearly every organism on Earth follows a natural circadian rhythm that is coded by your cell's clock genes, which do exactly as you suspect from the name: regulate your body's rhythm on a 24-hour basis. Most cells in mammalian bodies have cilia of some sort, which are hair-like structures that perform a variety of functions such as movement for motile cilia and aiding in structure in function for non-motile, or primary, cilia. The primary cilia also act as a sensory organ for the cell, a function which has illuminated the primary cilia's potential role in the healing process and how bodies heal at a different rate according to our circadian rhythm. In this research, the role of the primary cilia, biological clock and wound healing is explored.

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A study appearing in Nature Communications based on field and greenhouse experiments at the University of Kansas shows how a boost in agricultural yield comes from planting diverse crops rather than just one plant species: Soil pathogens harmful to plants have a harder time thriving. While crop rotation and other farming and gardening practices long have reflected benefits of a mix of plants, the new research puts hard data to one important mechanism underpinning the observation: the numbers of microorganisms in the soil that eat plants.

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A newly identified protein helps poison dart frogs accumulate and store a potent toxin in their skin which they use for self-defence against predators.

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Almost all eukaryotic organisms, from plants and animals to fungi, can't survive without mitochondria -- the 'powerhouses of the cell,' which generate chemical energy using oxygen. However, a new study finds that multiple members of the oxymonads, a group of single-celled protists that live inside the guts of termites and other animals, have evolved to live quite happily without them.

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Early in the 1970s, paleontologists discovered strange fossilized fruits between hardened rock from one of the largest volcanic eruptions in Earth's history. The identity of these fossils remained elusive for the next several decades. Using CT scanning, scientists have now determined they are the oldest fossils from species in the Frankincense and Myrrh family.

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Plants often develop communities with microorganisms in their roots, which influences plant health and development. Although the recruitment of these microbes is dictated by several factors, it is unclear whether the genetic variation in the host plants plays a role.

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A new study has demonstrate that the ingestion of two of the most commercially available algal species are rich in protein which supports muscle remodeling in young healthy adults. Their findings suggest that algae may be an interesting and sustainable alternative to animal-derived protein with respect to maintaining and building muscle.

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Scientists recently published findings indicating that Ebola virus creates and uses intercellular tunnels to move from cell to cell and evade treatments.