Stowers News

KANSAS CITY, MO—The term “migration” may evoke grand images of birds flying south for the winter, but this phenomenon also occurs, on a smaller scale, deep within our bodies. Cells migrate whenever embryos develop, wounds heal, cancers metastasize, and immune systems respond to infection. However, the cellular and molecular mechanisms that drive collections of cells as they migrate from one region to another remain unclear.

KANSAS CITY, MO—Research from the Stowers Institute provides evidence suggesting that cancer cells might streamline their genomes in order to proliferate more easily. The study, conducted in both human and mouse cells, shows that cancer genomes lose copies of repetitive sequences known as ribosomal DNA. While downsizing might enable these cells to replicate faster, it also seems to render them less able to withstand DNA damage.

KANSAS CITY, MO—Competing regulatory genes "talk" to each other to maintain balance of cell state, according to new research from the Stowers Institute for Medical Research.

KANSAS CITY, MO—Proteins, those basic components of cells and tissues, carry out many biological functions by working with partners in networks. The dynamic nature of these networks – where proteins interact with different partners at different times and in different cellular environments – can present a challenge to scientists who study them.