The Scripps Research Institute Scientists Identify Critical "Quality Control" for Cell Growth

Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have identified a series of intricate biochemical steps that lead to the successful production of proteins, the basic working units of any cell. The study, which appears in the July 6, 2012 edition of the journal Cell, sheds light on the assembly of a structure called the ribosome, a large and complex protein-producing machine inside all living cells. Ribosomes are the targets of many commercially used antibiotics and represent a promising area of research because of the importance of ribosome assembly and function for cell growth. There are well-established links between defects in ribosome assembly and cancer, making this pathway a potential new target for anti-cancer drugs.