Cell Biology

Invaginations of the cell membrane called caveolae protect cells from mechanical stress, allow nutrients to enter the cell, and serve as signaling hubs. The teams of Oliver Daumke and Misha Kudryashev now describe in “Nature Communications” the structure of a protein chain that stabilizes caveolae.

Katja Simon in collaboration with researchers in the United Kingdom have shown in “Aging Cell” that the naturally occurring compound spermidine can help boost vaccine response in older adults by reducing molecular markers of immune system ageing.

Helmholtz researchers have created the first detailed protein map of specific sensory neurons that trigger pain. Their study, published in “Nature Communications,” will help researchers better understand the molecular mechanisms of chronic inflammatory pain and identify new drug targets.

Researchers at the Max Delbrück Center show that two closely related enzymes, MNK1 and MNK2, act on the brain to regulate different behaviors. Their findings, published in “Molecular Psychiatry,” could help guide development of more precise therapies for neurological disorders.

Different drugs that bind to the same receptor in the cell membrane were long thought to activate cells in the same way. A study in “Nature,” however, suggests this understanding is too simplistic and highlights a way to develop drugs that are more precise and cause fewer side effects.

Researchers at the Max Delbrück Center have found that a cellular housekeeping mechanism called autophagy plays a major role in ensuring that T stem cells undergo normal cell division. The findings, published in “Nature Cell Biology,” could help boost vaccine response in older adults.

Jana Kroll, Christian Rosenmund and their teams have captured the fleeting moment a nerve cell releases its neurotransmitters into the synaptic cleft. The work was published in “Nature Communications.”

Ashley Sanders has been awarded a full professorship from Charité –Universitätsmedizin Berlin. The tenured position will enable her and her team to expand their research on developing personalized therapies for inflammatory bowel disease and other conditions.

Can an aging immune system be coaxed into responding to vaccination like its’ younger self? In “Nature Aging,” Sebastian Hofer, Katja Simon and colleagues discuss emerging interventions that may boost older adults’ response to vaccines. They are also recruiting volunteers for a clinical trial of their own.

Max Delbrück Center and Helmholtz Imaging scientists have developed open-source software that simplifies the study of cell polarity with fluorescence microscopy. Published in “Nature Communications,” the innovation may streamline research on many basic biological processes such as tissue repair.