Cell Biology

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.

Researchers in the lab of Whitehead Institute Member Iain Cheeseman explore the developmental origins of a body plan in bat stars.

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. 

Some of the most important tools in researchers’ toolkits are the model organisms they use to study biological questions. How do researchers decide which species, out of the millions that exist, to develop as models? Whitehead Institute researchers have had a hand in establishing and promoting the use of several model organisms over the years.

Researchers propose a new framework for how satellite DNA, sometimes called “genomic junk,” is essential in the organization of chromosomes in cells. They suggest this quickly-evolving DNA is one reason different species are unable to successfully interbreed.

A paper from the lab of Whitehead Institute Member Rudolf Jaenisch suggests that the genetic material of SARS-CoV-2 can integrate into the host cell genome and be expressed in some patient-derived tissues.

Researchers at Whitehead Institute propose a new model for how the stem cells in aquatic worms called planarians commit to a specific fate. Instead of a long, slow process that occurs over many generations, the researchers suggest that the transition from “blank” stem cells to specialized cells could happen in a single division.