It is one of the most fundamental questions in science: how can lifeless molecules come together to form a living cell? Bert Poolman, Professor of Biochemistry at the University of Groningen, has been ...

The journey started with an enigma in the zebrafish embryo: some endothelial cells, actively involved in the initial stages of the development of the earliest blood vessels, were dividing in an ...

It's long been assumed that when a parent cell divides into two daughter cells, the parent assumes a spherical shape, which then splits into two cells that have roughly the same, round size. But a new ...

Cell division is an essential process for all life on Earth, yet the exact mechanisms by which cells divide during early embryonic development have remained elusive—particularly for egg-laying species ...

Before a cell commits fully to the process of dividing itself into two new cells, it may ensure the appropriateness of its commitment by staying for many hours -- sometimes more than a day -- in a ...

For successful cell division, chromosomal DNA needs to be packed into compact rod-shaped structures. Defects in this process can lead to cell death or diseases like cancer. A new study has shown how ...