Latest Cytoskeleton Stories

A new study in the Journal of General Physiology (www.jgp.org) uses state-of-the-art fluorescence microscopy to provide a striking 3-D picture of how class V myosins (myoV) "walk" along their actin track. The myosin superfamily of mechanoenzymes, more commonly referred to as molecular motors, play an important role in muscle contraction and other basic cellular processes. MyoV, one of the most highly studied molecular motors, has the ability to travel long distances by taking multiple...

New research explains how cells regulate their bonds during the development of new blood vessels. For the first time, the role of the protein Raf-1 in determining the strength of the bond between cells has been shown. If Raf-1 is not present, the cells cannot stick together and the formation of new blood vessels is inhibited. This discovery may one day lead to new approaches to cancer treatment. Angiogenic sprouting, the process by which new blood vessels grow from existing vessels, is a...

TUCSON, Ariz. and PROVIDENCE, R.I., Jan. 5, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) today announced it has awarded $1.0 million to Tivorsan Pharmaceuticals to help speed pre-clinical work vital to a filing of an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for a recombinant humanized form of biglycan as a potential muscular dystrophy treatment. The new funding to the Providence-based biotechnology firm...

TUCSON, Ariz., Dec. 19, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) has awarded $750,000 to Summit PLC, a UK biotechnology company, to continue development of an experimental drug that may become a viable treatment for boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). The funding comes from MDA Venture Philanthropy (MVP), a part of MDA's translational research program. DMD is one of nine types of muscular dystrophy, a group of genetic, degenerative diseases...

[ Watch the Video ] A biological model system that dead-ends in an 'absorbing state' Supplied with sufficient energy, a freight train would ride the rails as far as they go. But nature also knows systems whose dynamics suddenly turn into a kind of endless loop. Like in a hamster wheel, a train caught up in such a system would continue running, but without moving forward. Scientists from the Cluster of Excellence Nanosystems Initiative Munich have now succeeded in building a simple model...

How a molecular traffic jam impacts cell division Interdisciplinary research between biology and physics aims to understand the cell and how it organizes internally. The mechanisms inside the cell are very complicated. LMU biophysicist Professor Erwin Frey, who is also a member of the Cluster of Excellence “Nanosystems Initiative Munich” (NIM) is working with his group on one particular issue involved in the cell’s life. The professor for statistical and biological physics and his...

Biologists at Florida State devise new way to watch how cells move For better and for worse, human health depends on a cell's motility –– the ability to crawl from place to place. In every human body, millions of cells –are crawling around doing mostly good deeds ––– though if any of those crawlers are cancerous, watch out. "This is not some horrible sci-fi movie come true but, instead, normal cells carrying out their daily duties," said Florida State University cell...

Largest National Duchenne Organization Gives $98,000 for Bridge Funding HACKENSACK, N.J., Sept. 22, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy (PPMD), the largest non-profit organization in the United States focused on finding a cure for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (Duchenne), announced that it has awarded Tejvir S. Khurana, MD, PhD, Professor of Physiology at the University of Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania Muscle Institute an End Duchenne Grant for $98,000. (Logo:...

Researchers have found that a protein linked to cell division and migration and tied to increased cell proliferation in ovarian tumors is also present at high levels in breast cancer specimens and cell lines. The protein, dubbed "UNC-45A," was also determined to be more active in breast cancer cells than in normal breast cells. University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston scientists describe these findings and others in a paper now online in the Journal of Molecular Biology. "As a...

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- A new tool allows scientists to see the immune system like never before. The device, a stimulated emission depletion (STED) microscope, provides sharp images at extremely small scales. It shows how granules from natural killer cells pass through openings in dynamic cell structures to destroy tumor cells and cells infected by viruses. "This new technology enables researchers to see individual elements previously below the physical limits of imaging using light,"...