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SCFFbw7 mediates the ubiquitylation and degradation of Myc. Now, Myc is also shown to be stabilized by ubquitylation through SCFβ-TrCP. During recovery from S phase arrest, SCFβ-TrCP mediates the addition of a polyubiquitin chain on the Myc amino terminus that is functionally distinct from that formed by Fbw7.
The conserved vertebrate transcriptional repressor Tel regulates angiogenesis by directly controlling endothelial sprouting through modulation of Notch ligand Dll4 and vessel branching through other angiogenesis factors such as sprouty and VE-cadherin
The Prdm16 transcription factor is expressed preferentially in stem cells of the nervous- and the haematopoietic-system and is required for their maintenance. Prdm16 is shown to regulate reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels in the nervous system through an effect on the hepatocyte growth Factor (HGF) promoter.
Quiescent cells contain high levels of both the cell cycle inhibitor p27, and the miRNAs that should negatively regulate it. In response to growth factor, the RNA-binding protein PUM1 interacts with the 3′UTR of p27 to induce a structural change leading to miRNA-mediated downregulation of p27.
The transcription factor Twist1 interacts with the Bmi1 polycomb group protein. This complex is proposed to regulate the epithelial–mesenchymal transition and the tumour-initiating capability of head-and-neck squamous cell carcinoma cells.
A cell-free system has been developed to image vesicle budding and fission events. This method reveals an important role for the F-BAR protein FBP17 in regulating tubulation and clathrin-dependent budding.
Keratin 8 and 18 protect hepatocytes from apoptosis. Inhibiting keratin 18 glycosylation is shown to sensitize cells to liver and pancreatic injury and apoptosis, through a pathway involving Akt and PKCθ.
How acentrosomal meiotic spindles separate chromosomes in anaphase has been unclear. Although kinetochores are required for the bi-orientation of chromosomes, chromosome separation may instead be driven by CLASP/CLS-2 mediated microtubule assembly.
An RNAi screen of protein phosphatases identifies PP2A–B55α as the main mitotic exit phosphatase in human cells. After mitosis, PP2A–B55α depletion delays the reassembly of the nuclear envelope and Golgi and the decondensation of chromatin.
Mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) lead to accumulation of proteins aggregates in airways. Mutated CFTR promotes transglutaminases-mediated crosslinking of beclin 1, a positive regulator of autophagy, to induce accumulation of LC3-binding protein p62 and prevent autophagic degradation of aggregates.
Little is known about the ultrastructure of focal adhesions, compared with their extensive molecular characterization. Cryo-electron tomography provides novel insights into the internal sub-structures at the interface between adhesions and the actin cytoskeleton.
The role of different histone H3 variants following mouse fertilization has not been addressed. The histone H3.3, and its Lys 27 are involved in the establishment of paternal heterochromatin in the pericentric region of the mouse early embryo, through a mechanism involving dsRNA.
In bacteria, chromosomes are partitioned by the Par system. Super-resolution microscopy demonstrates that ParA and ParB forms a 'spindle-like' structure and suggests that the pole protein, TipN, anchors the DNA-bound ParA filaments at the new pole.
During yeast cell division, multidrug resistance (MDR) transporters partition unequally, with the older pool remaining in the mother cell. Mutations in MDR transporter genes reduce replicative lifespan, whereas an extra copy of these genes extends it, suggesting that defective MDR proteins may influence replicative ageing.
The metabolic enzyme CTP synthase (CtpS) of Caulobacter crescentus can polymerize into cytoskeletal filaments. It functions together with the intermediate filament protein crescentin to control cell shape.
Both endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondrial membranes are thought to contribute to the formation of autophagosomes during autophagy induction. We now learn that plasma membrane is also involved, and is partly targeted to the growing autophagosome through clathrin-mediated endocytosis.
The significance of autophagy for signal transduction has been unclear. Autophagy negatively regulates Wnt signalling by promoting Dishevelled (Dvl) degradation. The von Hippel-Lindau protein ubiquitylates Dvl to faciliatate its recruitment to autophagosomes through p62.
Tissue-specific stem cells are maintained through signals from their niche. In Drosophila testis, niche-mediated STAT1/2 signals regulate germline stem cells adhesion to their niche, whereas somatic stem cells govern their self-renewal through BMP signalling.
The shelterin complex binds and protects mammalian telomeres. The shelterin component, Rap1, binds to non-telomeric regions and has extra-telomeric functions in transcriptional gene regulation.