2023-07-28 09:24:36
New research results in the specialist journal “Cell Reports” show that very specific amounts of the micronutrient zinc are necessary for body cells to be able to multiply.
Zinc is essential for many bodily functions – for cell growth, the formation of DNA, for the immune system, as a component of proteins and much more. However, science knows surprisingly little about the exact mode of action. A research team from the University of Colorado has now been able to elucidate the role of zinc in cell division with the help of specially developed sensors that change color as soon as they bind to zinc. In this way, the team found that cell reproduction stops when zinc levels are too high or too low. A phenomenon was also discovered that the researchers call the “zinc pulse”: Immediately after cell division, there is a temporary increase in the zinc level, which then falls again after about an hour.
Prof Amy Palmer said: “These fluorescence sensors were a major breakthrough because they allowed us to measure zinc in single cells over many hours. We can watch how the cell prepares for division, how it divides and how the two daughter cells go through the same process.” The special thing about this is that the sensors do not interfere with the normal processes of the cells.
The new technology also allows other zinc effects to be researched in more detail. About 17 percent of the world’s population has a zinc deficiency, which can be severe, which can, among other things, disrupt growth and development in children and impair immune function and wound healing. It is possible that the zinc pulse plays a role here, because cells do not divide without it. “We don’t yet know exactly why this happens, but we suspect that the two new daughter cells need a lot of zinc to grow. If they don’t have that pulse, they can’t continue and have to take a break,” Palmer said.
Which: DOI 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112656
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