Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain
the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in
Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles
and JavaScript.
The authors investigate how the transcription machinery selects the correct direction to produce coding transcripts. Their results propose a universal mechanism by which Integrator licenses bidirectional transcription to determine the direction of eukaryotic pre-mRNA transcription.
Liu et al. reveal that human TOPORS is a SUMO1-selective SUMO-targeted ubiquitin ligase (STUbL). The parallel action of TOPORS and the STUbL RNF4 defines a general mechanistic principle governing pathways driven by direct SUMO–ubiquitin crosstalk.
The first membrane protein structure was reported almost 40 years ago. In this issue, we are publishing a set of papers that serve to underline the incredible advances in our understanding of the biology of these multifaceted molecular machines.
In this Perspective, the author describes the recent progress in understanding solute carrier (SLC) biology and discusses the roles of new families of atypical SLCs.
Using cryo-electron microscopy and integrative modeling, the authors defined the structure of vimentin intermediate filaments, revealing a helical tube built of five protofibrils that enclose a fiber of low-complexity N-terminal domains.
Here the authors show that the nucleus undergoes a transient ‘metamorphosis’ within a nuclear–cytoplasmic DNA damage response linked to health and disease. Through this process, the nuclear envelope projects tubules that capture damaged DNA, mediating its repair.
Combining high-speed atomic force microscopy (AFM) with localization AFM and principal component analysis, the authors present six structures of a glutamate transporter and associate the conformational states to the molecule’s activity timeline.
The Gabija system constitutes one of the most prevalent anti-phage defense systems and is composed of GajA and GajB. Here, using cryo-EM and biochemistry, the authors show that GajA and GajB form a supramolecular complex with a stoichiometry of 4:4 to promote anti-phage defense.
The authors report that the γ-tubulin ring complex (γ-TuRC), an essential regulator of microtubule formation, selectively nucleates microtubules with 13-protofilaments and characterize the structural transformations associated with this function.
Using cryo-electron tomography, Dendooven et al. determined the structure of the native budding yeast γ-tubulin ring complex (γTuRC) capping spindle microtubules and showed that γTuRC adopts an active closed conformation to function as a perfect geometric template for microtubule nucleation.
Here, using cryo-EM, biochemistry and cell biology, the authors reveal the unique assembly, catalytic mechanism, multimodal substrate recruitment and regulation of the atypical ubiquitin ligase complex CUL9–RBX1.
Precise protease positioning and gating of the proteasome core require the ordered assembly of 28 subunits. Cryo-EM structures of seven intermediates visualize five dedicated chaperones and three propeptides mediating step-by-step assembly of the human 20S proteasome.
To prevent promiscuous protein degradation, proteasomes are initially assembled as inactive complexes. Their activation is autocatalytic and coupled to assembly. Here the authors uncover key aspects of the autocatalytic activation mechanism.
The authors describe the structure of an adenylyl cyclase 5 and Gβγ complex, which potentially influences a neural signalling pathway modulating motor function. Mutations in the Gβγ binding site on AC5 are linked to heritable forms of dyskinesia.
The authors report the structures of human CHT1 in the outward-open, inward-occluded and inward-open states, reveal the mechanism of HC-3 inhibition and choline recognition and elucidate the regulatory role of the intracellular helix IH1.
Here the authors structurally characterize respiratory supercomplexes, revealing that, in addition to the known ‘canonical’ respirasome, mammalian mitochondria contain two novel respirasome types, one of which incorporates supercomplex assembly factor SCAF1.
Pregnancy loss is common in humans, but maternal genetic factors modulating its incidence are largely unknown. In a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies, researchers identified a genetic variant that seems to increase risk of pregnancy loss by dysregulating meiotic recombination between homologous chromosomes during egg formation.