Biochemistry

Chronic diseases such as diabetes are on the rise and are costly and challenging to treat. Whitehead Institute Member Richard Young and colleagues have discovered a common denominator driving these diverse diseases, which may prove to be a promising therapeutic target: proteolethargy, or reduced protein mobility, in the presence of oxidative stress.

Researchers in Whitehead Institute Member Richard Young’s lab and colleagues at MIT show that a machine learning model can predict which subcellular compartments a drug will concentrate in based on its chemical features. This could be used to design safer and more effective drugs, and to understand how subcellular compartments govern diverse biochemical processes.

Researchers from Whitehead Institute Member Jing-Ke Weng’s lab figured out how a newly- discovered plant enzyme performs its unique chemistry, helping plants make a heart-healthy molecule.

Family trees of lung cancer cells, built using CRISPR-based lineage tracing, reveal in depth how cancer evolves from its earliest stages to become aggressive and capable of spreading throughout the body.

A pain-causing compound in the Australian stinging tree has applications for cancer treatment, but it’s difficult to harvest enough to study. Whitehead Institute scientists present a way to synthesize the compound in the leaves of harmless tobacco plants, and potentially in a culture dish.

New research reveals that a molecule called fumarate can step in for oxygen during the process of cellular respiration, allowing mitochondria to maintain some functions in low-oxygen conditions.

Scientists turned cutting-edge CRISPR and single-cell sequencing tools on human cytomegalovirus, which affects around half of all adults, illuminating interactions between viral and host genes and adding to the list of possible drug targets. 

A new screening method from the labs of Whitehead Institute Member Jonathan Weissman, Britt Adamson at Princeton University, and Editas Medicine provides a deeper look at how cells repair DNA damage. The method could help researchers assess the action of new gene editing methods. 

The new system streamlines the process of fermenting plant sugar to fuel by helping yeast survive industrial toxins.