Random news from the Archive Cells communicate with each other using sugars.
04.03.2019
Scientists from the University of Pennsylvania, Temple University (USA) and the RWTH Aachen University (Germany) used a new way to study cells - and with it they discovered that sugar molecules play a key role in cellular communication, acting as "channels" that cells and proteins are used to communicate with each other.
The human body is made up of 30-40 million cells, a large and complex network of blood cells, neurons, and specialized cells that make up organs and tissues. Until now, it has not been clear what mechanisms control the communication between them.
Using artificial synthetic cells as a model, lead author Cesar Rodriguez-Emmenegger has discovered a way to study cell membranes using atomic force microscopy. This method makes it possible to study the micromere in a three-dimensional volume.
The new approach makes it possible to image cells at very high resolution: they show shapes and structures on a scale of less than a nanometer, which is almost 10000 times smaller than the thickness of a human hair. The working group then built a model that calculates how structural elements are related to cell function.
The study is the first example of a diffraction technique that can be used in the study of whole synthetic cells. Previously, cells were divided into parts and each part was photographed separately. Using the new method, the scientists found that a low concentration of sugars on the surface of the cell membrane leads to their increased reactivity with proteins on the membranes of other cells. Sugars on the surface of synthetic cells are automatically organized into thin lamellar-layered and hexagonal structures. Thanks to these forms, which form sugar molecules, synthetic cells become recognizable to other cells.
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