Protein form and function

Apicomplexan parasites are responsible for several prevalent infectious diseases including malaria. Whitehead Institute Member Sebastian Lourido and colleagues identified a protein complex that the parasites require for a critical step in invading host cells.

Transcription factors bind DNA and protein. Now, researchers in Whitehead Institute Member Richard Young’s lab find that many transcription factors can also bind RNA, which fine tunes their regulation of gene expression, suggesting new therapeutic opportunities.

Eric Smith is a postdoc in Whitehead Institute Member Iain Cheeseman’s lab studying proteins involved in cancer. We sat down with Eric to learn more about him and his experiences in and out of the lab.

How do cells decide how long to pause division after they detect errors? Whitehead Institute Member Iain Cheeseman and colleagues identified that the key player is a previously undiscovered protein that was hiding in plain sight. Read more and also check out our Behind the Science podcast looking at the unexpected nature of this discovery.

Sperm use tiny proteins to pack their DNA correctly. New research explains how and why sperm cells balance the different versions of these proteins.

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.

A new study reveals that the protein MTCH2, which is essential in a variety of cellular processes, is responsible for shuttling various other proteins into the membrane of mitochondria. The finding could have implications for cancer treatments and provides insight into a variety of MTCH2-linked conditions.

Researchers at Whitehead Institute uncover the 3-D structure of GATOR2, a protein complex that plays a critical role in a signaling pathway that regulates cell growth.

Research from Whitehead Institute Member Peter Reddien’s lab identifies a gene expressed in the skin that covers a wound as essential for regeneration to occur after large injuries in planarians.

A new screening method in the parasite Toxoplasma gondii allows researchers to look beyond whether or not a gene is essential to survival and track the gene’s product through time and physical space