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In this Perspective, Spitale, Chang and Chu discuss recent technological advances that will aid in the functional characterization of long noncoding RNAs, which up to now has posed a substantial challenge.
RNA interference (RNAi) is a process by which small noncoding RNAs direct molecular machinery to silence gene expression. In this Review, Ipsaro and Joshua-Tor discuss the mechanisms and structures that govern RNAi in higher organisms.
Proteins with charged amino acid residues encounter an electric force as they transit through membranes holding membrane potential. Von Heijne and colleagues measure this force to assess how membrane electrostatics contributes to translocation dynamics.
CtIP helps maintain genomic stability by promoting DNA double-strand-break repair. Structural and biophysical analyses now show that the N terminus of human CtIP forms a tetrameric structure that is required for resection of broken DNA ends to permit their repair by homologous recombination.
