Biophysics

A multitude of membrane-localized receptors are utilized by cells to integrate both biochemical and physical signals from their microenvironment. The clustering of membrane receptors is widely presumed to have functional consequences for subsequent

Kinetoplastids are unicellular eukaryotic parasites responsible for human pathologies such as Chagas disease, sleeping sickness or Leishmaniasis, caused by Trypanosoma cruzi, Trypanosoma brucei, and various Leishmania spp., respectively. They harbor

The receptor binding domain (RBD) of the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 binds angiotensin converting enzyme-2 (ACE-2) on the surface of epithelial cells, leading to fusion, and entry of the virus into the cell. This interaction can be blocked by the

Polarized actin cables in S. cerevisiae are linear bundles of crosslinked actin filaments that are assembled by two formins, Bnr1 (localized to the bud neck), and Bni1 (localized to the bud tip). Actin is polymerized at these two sites, which

CD4+ T cells are essential players in orchestrating the specific immune response against intracellular pathogens, and in inhibiting tumor development in an early stage. The activation of T cells is triggered by engagement of T cell receptors (TCRs).

Bsoft is a software package primarily developed for processing electron micrographs, with the goal of determining the structures of biologically relevant molecules, molecular assemblies, and parts of cells. However, it incorporates many ways to deal

Single molecule tracking (SMT) is a powerful technique to study molecular dynamics, and is particularly adapted to monitor the motion and interactions of cell membrane components. Assessing interactions among two molecular populations is classically

Ultra-precise stimulation solely to individual mitochondria, without any influence to the whole cell, is quite difficult by traditional biochemical reagents. In mitophagy research, the mitochondria and even the whole cell usually suffer

Imaging plays a vital role in the diagnosis and treatment of skin diseases. However, pure optical imaging technique is limited to the visualization of superficial skin tissues. Ultrasonic imaging technique can detect deep tissues, but it lacks

The lumen of blood vessels is covered by endothelial cells, which regulate their permeability to ions and solutes. Endothelial permeability depends on the vascular bed and cell phenotype, and is influenced by different disease states. Most