Research
Fluorescent probes reveal fluid-like barriers inside nuclear pores of living human cells
Phys.org ·
The Brief
- Researchers used fluorescent probes to examine nuclear pores in living human cells.
- Each nucleus has several thousand nuclear pores, and the pore scaffold structure is well known.
- The probes reveal fluid-like barriers inside the pores, which the source describes as previously unclear.
Why it matters
The study offers direct observations of how the nuclear pore's internal environment may control which molecules pass into and out of the nucleus in living cells.
Who’s affected
- cell biologists
- researchers studying nuclear transport and gene regulation
- #nuclear pores
- #cell biology
- #fluorescent probes
- #nuclear transport
- #living cells
Our genetic material is hidden inside the nucleus of our cells, well protected by a double membrane. All molecules wishing to pass through must thread their way through one of several thousand nuclear pores. The scaffold structure of these pores is well known. However, exactly…