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MIT engineers find cells hold gene expression on a spectrum, reshaping ideas about cell identity and disease. Originally published by   Aamir Khollam in interestingengineering.com, on  Sep 09, 2025  Epigenetic memory illlstrations MIT engineers have challenged a core idea in biology by showing that epigenetic memory is not simply binary . Their research reveals cells don’t just lock genes in an “on” or “off” state . Instead, they can freeze expression at many points along a spectrum , opening new questions about how cells define their identity. For decades, scientists believed DNA methylation fixed genes in permanent on or off states . This process enables cells to “remember” who they are and prevents, for example, a skin cell from morphing into a neuron. Domitilla Del Vecchio, professor of mechanical and biological engineering at MIT , said her team saw something unexpected. “The textbook understanding was that DNA methylation had a role to lock genes in either...

Originally published by Christoph Schwaiger at livescience.com on July 1, 2025 Scientists say they captured 3D images of a new organelle they're calling a "hemifusome," which may be a recycling center in human cells.   The green and orange structures in this image are hemifusomes, newly discovered organelles that may represent a previously unrecognized pathway for recycling in human cells. (Image credit: Courtesy UVA Health) A new organelle has been discovered in human cells — and scientists call it a " hemifusome ." Like the full-size organs in our bodies, the organelles within cells are specialized structures that carry out specific functions . While observing filaments that maintain the shape of cells, Seham Ebrahim , an assistant professor at the University of Virginia , and her team noticed a new structure that was consistently appearing in the 3D images they were making . Read more 

Originally published by James Gallagher at bbc.com, on November 20, 2024 An ambitious plan to map all 37 trillion cells in the human body is transforming understanding of how our bodies work, scientists report . The received wisdom said we were built from around 200 types of cell – such as heart muscle or nerve cells . Instead the Human Cell Atlas project has revealed there are thousands of cell types , with some appearing to be culprits in diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease and cystic fibrosis. In a flurry of announcements, the formation of the human skeleton and the early immune system have also been mapped out in detail. The novel insight is akin to moving from the maps of the 15th Century era of Joan of Arc and Richard III to what the phone in your pocket can load . The old maps of the body had the equivalent of major roads and significant geography but also areas cartographers labelled unknown or “ terra incognita ”. Read more  

Originally published by the Institute of Science and Technology Austria, on June 19, 2024 Snapshots of the cell railroad. Cells stretch away from a fish scale (left) into artificial lanes (red) and form trains (middle) in different sizes (right). Credit: Vercurysse, Brückner et al./Nature Physics Looking under the microscope, a group of cells slowly moves forward in a line, like a train on the tracks . The cells navigate through complex environments. A new approach by researchers involving the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) now shows how they do this and how they interact with each other . The experimental observations and the following mathematical concept are published in Nature Physics . The majority of the cells in the human body cannot move . Some specific ones , however, can go to different places . For example, in wound healing, cells move through the body to repair damaged tissue . They sometimes travel alone o r in different group sizes. Althou...

Originally published by Lisbeth Heilesen, Aarhus University, on February 27, 2024 Figure shows stress granule formation after oxidative stress in wild-type cells and cells depleted for the ac4C acetyltransferase enzyme NAT10. Credit: Pavel Kudrin A recent study by an international research team has unveiled an exciting discovery about how our cells defend themselves during stressful situations . The research, published in EMBO Reports , shows that a tiny modification in the genetic material , called ac4C, acts as a crucial defender, helping cells create protective storage units known as stress granules . These stress granules safeguard important genetic instructions when the cell is facing challenges. The new findings could help shed light on relevant molecular pathways that could be targeted in disease . Stress granules are an integral part of the stress response that is formed from non-translating mRNAs aggregated with proteins. While much is known about stress granules, ...

     Originally published by Deborah Acheampong, Simon Fraser University, on December 11, 2023 MCS-DETECT captures MERC changes induced by RRBP1 knockdown. In 2014, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry celebrated the breakthroughs in super-resolution microscopy , a technology that allows us to capture highly detailed images of small parts of cells using fluorescent microscopy. Despite its success, the resolution of super-resolution microscopy still can't show tiny distances between organelles in cells.organelles This gap is where Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Biomedical Computer Vision intersect , as researchers from SFU Computing Science and UBC School of Biomedical Engineering and Life Sciences Institute reveal how AI enhances super-resolution microscopy capabilities and contributes to cellular biology advancements. Their mission is clear: to overcome the limitations of hardware (super-resolution microscopy) through innovative algorithms (AI) . Their lates...