This liquid droplet is made from protein molecules. It acts as a glue that keeps the microtubule attached, via moving motor proteins, to an actin cable. (Illustration: Ella Maru Studios)
This liquid droplet is made from protein molecules. It acts as a glue that keeps the microtubule attached, via moving motor proteins, to an actin cable. (Illustration: Ella Maru Studios) - Researchers from Paul Scherrer Institute PSI and ETH Zurich have discovered how proteins in the cell can form tiny liquid droplets that act as a smart molecular glue. Clinging to the ends of filaments called microtubules, the glue they discovered ensures the nucleus is correctly positioned for cell division. Couplings are critical to machines with moving parts. Rigid or flexible, whether the connection between the shafts in a motor or the joints in our body, the material properties ensure that mechanical forces are transduced as desired. Nowhere is this better optimised than in the cell, where the interactions between moving subcellular structures underpin many biological processes.
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