Volume 16 Issue 10, October 2015

The orientation of CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF)-binding sites located in enhancers and promoters dictates the directionality of CTCF binding and thus chromatin topology and gene expression.

A feedback loop involving non-muscle myosin II and Rho-associated protein kinase I provides a robust mechanism for stabilizing epithelial junctions.

Optineurin and NDP52 are primary mitophagy receptors that are recruited to damaged mitochondria by PINK1-dependent phospho-ubiquitin.

The 2015 Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research goes to E. Witkin and S. Elledge for their studies on DNA damage response pathways.

Pseudouridine is the most abundant internal post-transcriptional modification of spliceosomal small nuclear RNAs and ribosomal RNAs. Transcriptome-wide maps of RNA pseudouridylation have recently established that pseudouridines are also found in mRNAs, potentially representing a new mechanism of proteomic diversification.

Recent findings revealed the extent to which mitochondrial translation and other cellular processes are mutually controlled. Mitochondrial translation is coordinated with the assembly of respiratory chain complexes and is positively regulated by microRNAs imported from the cytoplasm. In turn, mitochondrial translation stress activates retrograde signalling pathways that suppress cell proliferation.

The chromatin-based epigenetic changes that occur during ageing and the role of chromatin modifiers in lifespan have recently been highlighted. The importance of epigenome remodelling by environmental stimuli for transcriptional and genomic stability is emerging, and such remodelling could provide new targets to counter ageing or age-related diseases.

Centrosomes are important microtubule organizers. As many proteins are concentrated at centrosomes, including cell cycle and signalling regulators, centrosomes are also likely to coordinate important cell decisions. Recent findings have shed light on the functions of centrosomes in animal cells and on the mechanisms of centrosome assembly and maturation during mitosis.

At each ovulation cycle, the single-layer epithelia that encapsulate mammalian ovaries undergo rupture and rapid repair. Recent studies have identified stem cell pools that ensure ovarian epithelial homeostasis, thus providing insights into the regulation of stem cell function and the contribution of stem cells to ovarian tumorigenesis.