28 June 2013
A synchrotron technique has enabled researchers to achieve new structural insights into an important process at the frontline of our cellular defences against viral pathogens.
The Australian and German collaborators were investigating a family of receptors that detect and bind to foreign double-stranded ribonucleic acid (RNA), such as viral genetic material, in the cytoplasm. The binding process stimulates production of signalling molecules that disrupt viral replication and help alert surrounding cells in readiness to fight a viral invasion.