Smuggling route for cells protects DNA from parasites
(WorldNews Denmark)

2019.08.08|Lisbeth Heilesen Microscopy image of an entire fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster; body outline in green) with a protein central to the smuggling route (Nxf3) shown in red. Image Credit: Daniel Reumann, IMBA. Our cells have safety mechanisms that keep genetic parasites - such as viruses and transposons - in check while important genes of the host cell can remain active. Researchers have now shown that the molecular safety mechanisms of the host cell `smuggle` genetic information molecules around the cell, which are then used to recognize and shut down the parasites. While information for the production of our cells` proteins constitutes less than two percent of our DNA, two-thirds...