Microtubules are tubular polymers that are composed of two proteins, α- and β-tubulin. The orientation of these proteins in the polymers gives microtubules an intrinsic polarity. Microtubules are ...

Cellular life hinges on a network of hollow cables called microtubules dynamically lengthening and shortening according to the needs of the moment. During cell division, for instance, these cables ...

Microtubule-associated proteins (MAPs) use particular microtubule-binding domains that allow them to interact with microtubules in a manner specific to their individual cellular functions. Here, we ...

Patients with Parkinson's disease suffer a specific loss of dopaminergic neurons from the midbrain region that controls motor function. The exact mechanism of this selective neurodegeneration is ...

Each day, a human adult loses on average 50 to 70 billion cells, which die from natural causes alone. New cells replace lost ones by the complex process of cell division, which relies on what ...

Prof. Meng Wenxiang's group from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences recently reported a new mechanism by which microtubule networks instruct ...

Almost all cell types exhibit some form of polarity; cell polarity refers to the spatial differences in shape, structure and function within a cell, which enables the cell to carry out specialized ...

Female fertility depends on the successful growth and maturation of eggs (oocytes) within ovarian follicles. Within these ...

Filamentous polymers called microtubules play vital roles in chromosome segregation and molecular transport. An team has now examined how microtubule lengths vary in response to changes in the ...

University of Utah researchers have demonstrated a new method of 3D printing that avoids the leaky seams that come with the ...

A joint research team from the LKS Faculty of Medicine (HKUMed) and the Faculty of Science at the University of Hong Kong has uncovered an unexpected interaction between chemotherapeutic agents and a ...

Microtubules are cellular fibres that are part of the skeleton of the cell, termed cytoskeleton. They ensure that cells maintain their shape, carry out their functions, and divide. Microtubule fibres ...