Nuclear Envelopeâs Ins and Outs Studied with Virtual and Model Pores
Cell nucleus, illustration.
March 31, 2021
Selective transport through the nuclear pore complex presents a very complicated caseâa lot of ins, a lot of outs, a lot of what-have-yous. To have any hope of unraveling the case, scientists based at the University of Groningen and Delft University of Technology knew that they would have to keep a lot of strands in their heads, that is, strands of disordered proteins called nucleoporins, which fill nuclear pores and either allow or thwart the passage of molecules. Nucleoporins are known to work quicklyâthey oversee the transport of some 1,000 molecules per secondâbut exactly how they work has been a mystery.