Issues
RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS
CELL SCIENTISTS TO WATCH
PERSPECTIVE
Functional residuomics – analyzing how missense mutations impact cellular systems
Summary: Functional residuomics maps how single amino acid changes shape protein function and cellular homeostasis, offering a new lens on structure–function relationships and disease.
REVIEW
Mitochondrial topoisomerases, nucleoid architecture and mtDNA repair in human disease
Summary: mtDNA maintenance and energy production depend on nuclear-encoded topoisomerases. We discuss topoisomerases in mtDNA maintenance and repair, highlighting their potential as therapeutic targets.
RESEARCH ARTICLES
Adherens junctions limit septate junction length in Drosophila midgut enterocytes but are not required for polarity
Summary: Drosophila midgut epithelium does not require Cadherins for polarity in the midgut, but these proteins are required to limit the extent of the septate junctions.
Proteasome-dependent Orc6 removal from chromatin upon S-phase entry safeguards against minichromosome maintenance complex reloading and tetraploidy
Summary: Orc6, a replication initiation complex subunit, is removed from chromatin following DNA replication; reduced proteasome activity retains it on chromatin, leading to tetraploid formation.
TOOLS AND RESOURCES
MatriCom, a single-cell RNA-sequencing data mining tool to infer cell–extracellular matrix interactions
Highlighted Article: MatriCom is a web application devised to mine single-cell RNA-sequencing datasets to infer extracellular matrix (ECM)–ECM and cell–ECM communication systems across cell populations in tissues or organs.
MitoRUSH as a tool to study the efficiency of mitochondrial import in complex I-deficient cells
Summary: Two assays are used to assess protein import into mitochondria in intact mammalian cells, demonstrating that it is affected in cells with dysfunctional respiratory complex I.
A single-chain antibody-based AID2 system for conditional degradation of GFP-tagged and untagged proteins
Highlighted Article: We describe a single-chain antibody-based auxin-inducible degron system that enables degradation of GFP-tagged and untagged proteins and could be applied in model and non-model organisms.
FIRST PERSON
JCS fast-track option
Have a paper that has been reviewed elsewhere? JCS is pleased to consider such manuscripts for fast-tracked decision making. Send us your manuscript together with the full set of reviews and decision letters, and we will make an initial decision within one week.
Special Issue – Cell Biology of Mitochondria
Our special issue on ‘Cell Biology of Mitochondria’ is now complete. Explore this issue and read the Editorial from our Guest Editors Ana J. García-Sáez and Heidi McBride.
Save the date – Imaging Cell Dynamics
We are delighted to announce that we will be hosting a 2026 Imaging Cell Dynamics meeting. This meeting will provide a unique opportunity to bring together experts working at the interface between cell biology and imaging. Save the date for 11-14 May 2026 and register for more information.
Origin and evolution of mitochondrial inner membrane composition
In this Review, Kailash Venkatraman and colleagues provide an examination of the morphological similarities between prokaryotic intracytoplasmic membranes and mitochondrial inner membranes, and whether cristae evolution has driven specialisation of the mitochondrial lipidome.
Resolution in super-resolution microscopy
Super-resolution microscopy (SRM) has emerged as a powerful tool for biological discovery. In this Perspective, Kirti Prakash and colleagues compile expert opinions on crucial, yet often overlooked, aspects of SRM that are essential for maximising its benefits and advancing the field.
