New details of the transmission of stimuli in living organisms unveiled
Researchers unveil new details about how cells in a living being process stimuli. The study, partly funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation SNSF, focuses on so-called G-proteins, which help transmit external stimuli that reach a cell into its interior. Using a technique developed at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI, the study authors discovered which parts of the G-proteins are vital for their functioning. In particular, they demonstrated that only a few amino acids, protein building blocks, have a major influence on their function. Other amino acids, however, can be altered without compromising their function. The new findings significantly improve our understanding of processes such as sensory perception and hormone activity, and aid the development of new drugs. Researchers from PSI, ETH Zurich, the pharmaceutical company Roche and the British MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology report their results in the journals Nature and Nature Structural and Molecular Biology.