By Neelabja Adkuloo
A team of scientists at New York University (NYU) has discovered that living human cells have an internal clock which can indicate when they will die. The research, published on 11th September in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, has opened new opportunities for better understanding of onset of diseases.
Earlier findings
It has long been known that the size and shape of a cell nucleus change drastically during its lifespan. But whether or not the nucleus changes its shape over brisk periods of time has been a question that has troubled researchers for the longest while. The technical limitations of carrying out such measurements in living cells had kept the scientists in the dark, until now.
The cell dynamics
Dr Zidovska, Fang-Yi Chu and Shannon Haley used a one-of-its-kind fluorescent microscope to study rapid shape changes of the cell nucleus. They found that the nucleus had a previously undetected kind of motion. Its envelope exhibited a tendency to flicker over a period of a few seconds. The fast fluctuations appeared to decrease during the cells lifespan, thus serving as a cell cycle stage indicator.
Scientists believe that disorders such as cancer, cardiomyopathy, muscular dystrophy and inherited diseases are related to the nucleus envelope defects. This ground shattering discovery stands to enhance our knowledge of both living and diseased human cells. Its also touted to have crucial implications for treatment of the aforesaid diseases.
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