MCB researchers unveil new actin filament behavior in the cellular cytoskeleton

Imagine a treadmill. As it moves, the track is constantly receding but is replenished at an equal rate on the opposite end. The result is a machine in perpetual motion, but which has its length stay exactly the same. For decades, biologists have regarded “treadmilling” as the standard...

Researchers uncover the molecular basis of mitochondrial dysfunction in myotonic dystrophy type 1

Myotonic Dystrophy type 1, also known as DM1, is a genetic disorder that causes progressive muscle weakness, delayed muscle relaxation, and cardiac issues that can often be life-threatening. It is the most common cause of adult-onset muscular dystrophy and affects roughly 1 in 2,000 individuals...

Long-term alcohol use suspends liver cells in limbo, preventing regeneration

Excessive alcohol consumption can disrupt the liver’s unique regenerative abilities by trapping cells in limbo between their functional and regenerative states, even after a patient stops drinking, researchers at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and collaborators at Duke University and the...

Fruit fly study reveals a gene’s hidden ability to keep regrowth on the right track

Regeneration, the ability to heal damaged or lost tissues, is both everyday and a real life superpower. Health research inspired by the remarkable regeneration of animals like starfish or the salamanders axolotls asks how future therapeutics could promote the regrowth of hard-to-heal tissues, limbs...

Colorectal cancer treated with cholesterol inhibitor in U. of I. study

University of Illinois researchers have successfully treated a common type of colorectal cancer tumor with a cholesterol inhibitor drug, demonstrating a promising treatment for the disease in animal experiments.The study,...