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Membrane transport is the means by which small molecules and biopolymers permeate a cell membrane. Membranes are lipid bilayers exhibiting selective permeability, meaning that they are permeable to some substances and not to others. Membrane transport is mediated by membrane-transport proteins.
Electrokinetic Convection-Enhanced delivery was implemented to direct macro-molecule infusion into the brain from a hydrogel reservoir through electroosmosis, in ex vivo and in vivo rat brain models.
Vitamin C is an essential nutrient for our daily life, but how it is transported into our bodies remained unclear. Here, authors revealed multiple structures of human vitamin C transporter, providing insights into its molecular mechanisms.
The SIT1-ACE2 complex transports the amino acid proline and is the receptor of SARS-CoV-2. Here, the authors identify specific sequence requirements for proline transport and explain for how a missense mutation causes iminoglycinuria.
Extreme confinement of water and ions within nanofluidic channels gives rise to unusual transport phenomena. Here the authors investigate how electronic properties of carbon nanotube porins influence the transport efficiency of water and ions.
HGSNAT is a critical lysosomal membrane enzyme involved in the devastating lysosomal storage disease Sanfilippo syndrome. Here, Zhao et. al. reveal the mechanism for transmembrane acetylation catalyzed by HGSNAT with a series of cryo-EM structures.
Methaqualone (Quaalude) is an infamous sedative-hypnotic, used in the past for treatment of insomnia. Here, the authors use structural biology and electrophysiology to elucidate its mechanism of action at its primary target, the GABAA receptor.
A clear picture of how and why cells inevitably lose viability is still lacking. A dynamical systems view of starving bacteria points to a continuous energy expenditure needed for maintaining the right osmotic pressure as an important factor.
In this work, Morgenstern and colleagues describe an approach involving functionalized nanobodies which decrease the activity of voltage-gated Ca2+ channels associated with β1 subunits and promote their removal from the surface membrane of neurons and muscle.
Using organic solvent shortens formation time of membrane nanosheets comprising proteins and copolymers, while tuning protein structure tailors the pore geometry, resulting in superior water permeation.
Cellular organelles extensively communicate with each other by close interactions, known as membrane contact sites. Schuldiner and Bohnert comment on the progress of this rapidly developing field, highlighting that the complexity of interactions at membrane contact sites is only now starting to emerge.