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Scientists Uncover New Organelle That Reshapes Tissue During Cell Division
Confirmed
In Short: Scientists have discovered a nitrogen-fixing organelle that reshapes tissue during cell division, providing new insights into cellular processes.
Scientists have made a groundbreaking discovery: a nitrogen-fixing organelle that reshapes tissue during cell division. This finding, detailed in a paper published in Cell, reveals a new level of complexity in cellular processes.
The organelle, known as a nitroplast, was found within marine haptophyte algae Braarudosphaera bigelowii. It is the fourth known instance of primary endosymbiosis, where a prokaryotic cell is engulfed by a eukaryotic cell and evolves into an organelle.
According to Larabell, a researcher at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the team used X-ray imaging to show that the replication and division of the algal host and endosymbiont are synchronized. This synchronization provides strong evidence of the organelle's role in reshaping tissues.
Zehr, a co-author of the study, noted that the size ratio between the organelle and its algal host is consistent across different species, indicating that this is not a quirk but a fundamental cellular process.
The discovery involved decades of work and a bit of luck. Researchers found that around half of the proteins in the organelle are produced by the algal host cell and then directed to the nitroplast, highlighting the intricate relationship between the host and the organelle.
Coale, a postdoctoral scholar at UC Santa Cruz, emphasized that this is a rare instance of an organelle arising from endosymbiosis. He noted that the process of moving from an endosymbiont to an organelle is marked by the tight coupling of replication and division.
The team's findings have significant implications for understanding cellular processes and could lead to new insights into how complex life evolved.
That’s the beauty of our technology," said Larabell. "We can get numbers to make quantitative statements. We have numbers at each stage of the cell cycle to show that this isn’t a quirk.
What's confirmed
- Scientists have made a groundbreaking discovery: a nitrogen-fixing organelle that reshapes tissue during cell division. This finding, detailed in a paper published in Cell, reveals a new level of complexity in cellular processes.
- The organelle, known as a nitroplast, was found within marine haptophyte algae Braarudosphaera bigelowii. It is the fourth known instance of primary endosymbiosis, where a prokaryotic cell is engulfed by a eukaryotic cell and evolves into an organelle.
- According to Larabell, a researcher at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the team used X-ray imaging to show that the replication and division of the algal host and endosymbiont are synchronized. This synchronization provides strong evidence of the organelle's role in reshaping tissues.
- Zehr, a co-author of the study, noted that the size ratio between the organelle and its algal host is consistent across different species, indicating that this is not a quirk but a fundamental cellular process.
- The discovery involved decades of work and a bit of luck. Researchers found that around half of the proteins in the organelle are produced by the algal host cell and then directed to the nitroplast, highlighting the intricate relationship between the host and the organelle.
- Coale, a postdoctoral scholar at UC Santa Cruz, emphasized that this is a rare instance of an organelle arising from endosymbiosis. He noted that the process of moving from an endosymbiont to an organelle is marked by the tight coupling of replication and division.
- The team's findings have significant implications for understanding cellular processes and could lead to new insights into how complex life evolved.
- That’s the beauty of our technology," said Larabell. "We can get numbers to make quantitative statements. We have numbers at each stage of the cell cycle to show that this isn’t a quirk.
What's still developing
- “The first time we think it happened, it gave rise to all complex life. Everything more complicated than a bacterial cell owes its existence to that event,” he said, referring to the origins of the mitochondria.
- “That’s exactly what happens with organelles,” said Zehr.
- Researchers have discovered a type of organelle, a fundamental cellular structure, that can turn nitrogen gas into a form that is useful for cell growth.
- These areas, called centromeres, are responsible for billions and billions of perfect DNA matches made over the course of our lifetimes, ensuring that cells can divide successfully.
- Researchers at Virginia Tech are uncovering surprising reasons behind these differences, including how abnormal cancer cells recruit healthy tissue to support tumor growth and why the size of certain cancer cells could help predict their danger.
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