Cell biology Content

Hitting Reset to Start a New Embryo

Andy Fell — July 19, 2023 - 10:38am

New work by scientists in the U.S. and China shows how a fertilized egg cell, or zygote, hits ‘reset’ so that the newly formed embryo can develop according to its own genetic program. The study was published July 17 in Nature.

'Lava Lamp' Vesicles Show How Cells Could Self-organize

Andy Fell — July 11, 2023 - 10:50am

Experiments with cell-sized vesicles show how liquids inside can spontaneously separate and form mosaics of droplets. These changes also affect the outside of the vesicle. The experiments could help us understand how biological processes emerge from physical and chemical effects.

Cyborg Cells Could Be Tools for Health and Environment

Andy Fell — January 18, 2023 - 11:00am

Biomedical engineers at the University of California, Davis, have created semi-living “cyborg cells.” Retaining the capabilities of living cells, but unable to replicate, the cyborg cells could have a wide range of applications, from producing therapeutic drugs to cleaning up pollution. The work was published Jan. 11 in Advanced Science.

Unlocking the Function of Calcium Signaling Hotspots on Neurons

Andy Fell — November 12, 2021 - 12:23pm

For 30 years, mysterious clusters of proteins found on the cell body of neurons in the hippocampus, a part of the brain, both intrigued and baffled James Trimmer.

How Cadherins Let Cells Hold On and Let Go of Each Other

Andy Fell — July 21, 2021 - 11:35am

A fundamental question in cell biology is, how do cells control how strongly to stick to each other? Sometimes, cells need to be quite tightly glued together, for example in the lining of a blood vessel. At other times, they need to be able to peel apart. Understanding how cells can stick or unstick from each other is important for understanding tissue growth and wound healing. Cancers metastasize when tumor cells can come unstuck from a tumor and spread to other tissues.

Cell Biologist Jodi Nunnari Elected to National Academy of Sciences

Andy Fell — May 03, 2017 - 4:09pm

Professor Jodi Nunnari, chair of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology in the College of Biological Sciences at the University of California, Davis, has been elected as a member of the National Academy of Sciences. She studies mitochondria, tiny structures that provide energy to living cells and which are implicated in a wide range of diseases, including heart disease, stroke and inherited conditions.

Key to Regulating Cell’s Powerhouse Discovered

Andy Fell — July 14, 2016 - 11:00am

Aging, neurodegenerative disorders and metabolic disease are all linked to mitochondria, structures within our cells that generate chemical energy and maintain their own DNA. In a fundamental discovery with far-reaching implications, scientists at �°��ϲ��Ļ��Ϣ Davis now show how cells control DNA synthesis in mitochondria and couple it to mitochondrial division.