Human cells have a magic clock...

According to physicists organization network, scientists in the United States use advanced fluorescence microscope technique, the first living cells to the human body within the nucleus shape change of dynamic research, found that the nucleus showed rapid volatility, this kind of "internal clock signal" marked the first time human find characterization of physical properties of the cell cycle change material to understand life and disease causes provides new way.

Previous studies, only will develop to a certain point life cycle of cells after extraction, extracted cells had split in stopped state of "death", through such research, scientists already know that in the life cycle of a cell nucleus shape and size of the big change will happen.

But due to technical limitations, unable to trace the change in the nucleus of living cells, so the shape of the nucleus of the cell life cycle whether each time change, has been unknown.

Published in the American journal of the national academy of sciences, according to the latest research in the department of physics at New York university Alexandra, cut, and colleagues using fluorescence microscopy, observation of living cells within the nucleus shape at all time points quickly and subtle change.

Before they found a within human nuclei did not detect the activity type: under the fluorescent microscope, the nuclear envelope every few seconds will be flashing fluorescent, means its size every few seconds will fluctuate, and, more importantly, this shape wave amplitude throughout the cell cycle of showing a decreasing trend.

The nuclear envelope is the outermost structure of the nucleus, which protects the DNA molecules from damage and is the gateway to material exchange, he explained.

If the membrane is structurally and functionally wrong, it can lead to developmental genetic disorders such as cardiomyopathy, muscular dystrophy, and cancer.

He said: "the nuclear envelope fluctuation process as the cell's internal clock, its fluctuation signal can tell people cells in which stage of the life cycle, behind the mechanism to recognize the important component of healthy cells and the cause of diseased cells is of great significance."

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