The stoma is a window for material and information exchange between plant and environment. Stomata mediate the adaptation of plants to the external environment by sensing and decoding various environmental signals, such as drought, CO2, and ozone. In addition, stomata are the invasion channels of pathogenic microorganisms and participate in the immune response of plant disease resistance. Stomata control CO2 uptake and water transpiration, and their opening and closing are…
cryoEM
Unraveling the Mystery of the Structure of the Potassium-Chloride Cotransporter
Once the homeostasis of potassium, sodium, and chloride in human cells is out of balance, it will lead to a series of diseases such as hypertension, depression, and epilepsy. At the cell membrane, there is a class of proteins known as cation-chloride cotransporters that effectively regulate ion homeostasis in the cell. The group of Guo Jiangtao of Zhejiang University School of Medicine solved the 2.9-Å high-resolution cryo-EM structure of a…
A New Study Analyzed The Structure of The Important Photosynthetic Membrane Protein Super Complex of Pseudomonas Aeruginosa
Recently, a team led by academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, researcher of the Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tingyun Kuang, and researcher Jianren Shen cooperated with researchers from Jinan University and Tsinghua University revealed an important photosynthetic membrane protein super complex of Pseudomonas aeruginosa – photosystem I light-harvesting complex. I. (PSI-LHCI) 3.49 resolution structure. This study further improved the understanding of the trend of light system…
Cell: New Research Reveals an Unexpected Mechanism of Action of Antibodies
In a new study, researchers from research institutions such as the University of Washington in the United States studied monoclonal antibodies which were isolated from survivors of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) or Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) caused by the coronavirus. These monoclonal antibodies reveal an alarming immune defense strategy against deadly viruses. Atomic and molecular information for these highly potent antibodies may provide new insights into these…
Nature: Malaria Parasite Translocon Structure and Mechanism of Effector Export
Malaria is an infectious disease that is transmitted to people through the bite of mosquitoes infected with Plasmodium. It affects more than 200 million people each year and kills nearly half a million people each year. When bitten by a mosquito, the Plasmodium invades human erythrocytes, acquires a portion of the erythrocyte membrane, and forms a protective compartment around it, known as a vacuole. Normal red blood cells…
Researchers Decrypted the Black Box of Neuronal Synapses
On the Feb. 10th, 2018, it was learned from the University of Science and Technology of China that researchers at the university made breakthroughs in resolving the ultrastructure of synapses using cryo-electron microscopy and decrypting the black box[1] of synapses. Recently, The Journal of Neuroscience, an international journal of the American Academy of Neuroscience reported this discovery in the form of a journal cover. Synapse is the most…