Inside the cell, calcium ions are released from a structure called the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Forces applied to the bead cause ion channels in the ER to open mechanically (shown... After using optical tweezers to squeeze a tiny bead attached to the outside of a human stem cell, researchers now know how mechanical forces can trigger a key signaling pathway in the cells.

Scientists protected 75 percent of rhesus monkeys infected with Ebola virus that were treated with a compound targeting the expression of VP24, a single Ebola virus protein--suggesting that VP24 may hold the key to developing effective therapies for the deadly disease.

This image shows small yellow dots surrounding bright yellow cell nuclei in each cell are Wolbachia. The cytoskeleton (in red) allows seeing the shape of the cells. We, as most animals, host many different beneficial bacteria. Being beneficial to the host often pays off for the bacteria, as success of the host determines the survival and spread of the microbe. But if bacteria grow too much they may become deadly. In a new study published in the latest edition of the scientific journal PLOS Biology*, a research team from Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciencia (IGC; Portugal) found that a single genomic change can turn beneficial bacteria into pathogenic bacteria, by boosting bacterial density inside the host.