An electron microscopy study revealed key details of actin filaments, which are essential structural elements of cells and muscles. Actin filaments -- protein structures critical to living movement ...

Living cells are highly organized, yet they are not assembled using rigid blueprints or by following a predetermined plan.

A tiny region in a little-known muscle protein may hold the key to a healthy, steady heartbeat, as well as possible clues to ...

Researchers have visualized at the molecular level how formins bind to the ends of actin filaments. This allowed them to uncover how formins mediate the addition of new actin molecules to a growing ...

Actin filaments - protein structures critical to living movement from single cells to animals - have long been known to have polarity associated with their physical characteristics, with growing ...

The discovery opens the door to healthier aging in humans. The cytoskeleton provides most cells with their shape, structure, and internal organization. In turn, the cytoskeleton relies on a type of ...

Model showing the release of phosphate in different parts of the actin filament. Actin in the core of the filament has a closed door while the back door at the end of the filament is open. A mutation ...

Understanding how microscopic interactions between proteins in cells produce large-scale organization and asymmetry is a fundamental question in cell biology.

“We are answering fundamental questions of life that scientists have been trying to answer for several decades”, remarks Raunser. In eukaryotic cells, actin proteins are abundant and tend to join ...

Cells in the human body are made to move. They assemble during embryo development, migrate to repair tissue, hunt pathogens, and perform a host of other tasks requiring travel. As part of the ...