Life or death, choice of cells

2000/07/11 Roa Zubia, Guillermo - Elhuyar Zientzia

• Osasuna

The only scientific challenge offers a thousand ways of research. The new perspectives of a problem show us many times more tricks of nature. That's what happens if we pull an article published in the last issue of the journal Nature Structural Biology.

For some apoptosis is not new. It is the ability of cells to break their life. Two years ago in the journal Nature announced a protein that paralyzes this process. This protein has now been thoroughly studied.

Cells, like all organisms, live and die. However, they usually have special processes. All three are important in medicine, but the latter, related to various diseases, has been the subject of great research attention.

Optional suicide

Cells have two ways to kill. External factors can break your dead and suicidal life. External factors may be mechanical rape or poisonous chemicals. Even when these factors do not involve total improvement, they can cause significant damage. For example, when cell membrane mechanisms are damaged, the lack of necessary water can kill it. If the membrane is broken and the internal organelles are removed, inflammation of the tissue may occur.

On the other hand, cells are able to commit suicide in cases where the situation is aggravated. The controlled mechanism of death is called apoptosis and can launch it to prevent the damage they can cause in the body.

Apoptosis can be activated by many processes. It is a widely used mechanism in cultivation. For example, in the formation of the fingers of the fetuses should release a membrane. This membrane is released with apoptosis. In the month of women the same happens with the inner membrane of the uterus and the connections between neurons also require the exhaustion of intermediate cells.

Programmed suicide is also used in cells that threaten health. For example, when a virus contaminates a cell, it should be killed. Another example is the cells that have participated in the immune system. They commit suicide to stop their activity.

But the body tricks don't end there. As has been said, two years ago the protein that inhibits apoptosis was discovered. It has been given the name of surbíblico and the cellular semiclocation appears when the process starts. During embryo development, it has also been found in large amounts in many types of human cancer.

Control of apoptosis can be very interesting. The induction capacity of cell suicide can lead to the treatment of certain tumors. The opposite can also be very effective. However, the first step is to unravel the structure of surbibin, which is the Joseph P of Structural Biology Laboratory in California. What they have achieved in the team led by biologist Noel.

Analysis of the concrete structure

Noel's group has studied Surbi through x-rays. It is a very curious looking protein. It consists of two main parts, a tangled chain that houses a zinc atom and a long helix shaped one. Researchers have found that to work this protein it is essential to join two units. In fact, Noel's team has found naturally formed paired associations.

Analyzing the range of these junctions, researchers consider that the design of small molecules that can divide both specimens can be addressed. This type of molecules would prevent the effect of the surbín and facilitate apoptosis. This would lead to the suicide of growing tumor cells. However, to achieve this, much work is missing. Experiments are very long, so it takes years to get results. For example, it should be remembered that two years ago the Surbi was found.