Structural flexibility of the human vault particle revealed by high-resolution cryo-EM and molecular dynamics simulations
Fabio Lapenta, Karen Palacio-Rodriguez, Sergio Cruz-León, Simone Marrancone, Jana Aupič, Nils Marechal, Alexandre Durand, Dihia Moussaoui, Sonia Covaceuszach, Bhavani Gangupam, Claudia D’Ercole, Cristian Parra, Davide Cotugno, Giulia Tomaino, Paolo Tortora, Ario de Marco, Alberto Cassetta, Alessandr · 2026
Read Structural flexibility of the human vault particle revealed by high-resolution cryo-EM and molecular dynamics simulations by Fabio Lapenta, Karen Palacio-Rodriguez, Sergio Cruz-León, Simone Marrancone, Jana Aupič, Nils Marechal, Alexandre Durand, Dihia Moussaoui, Sonia Covaceuszach, Bhavani Gangupam, Claudia D’Ercole, Cristian Parra, Davide Cotugno, Giulia Tomaino, Paolo Tortora, Ario de Marco, Alberto Cassetta, Alessandr (2026) in the Tower of Babel, a free online library of public-domain works preserved in clean, searchable text. No sign-up. The full text is served as a plain-text file at a predictable URL, where text is present: https://antarctic-labs.com/tower-of-babel/pmc-13347060.txt.
Description
A large team of scientists maps how the human vault particle flexes in a paper from 2026. Vaults are huge barrel-shaped complexes found in many cells, yet their job is still unclear. Each vault is built from two matching half shells with a roomy hollow inside. That hollow hints at a transport role, which would require the shell to open and close.
Sharp microscope images revealed two states of the particle, one symmetric and one not. Computer simulations showed breathing motions and porous surfaces in both states. Breaking key contacts between the halves reduced shell assembly in tests. The authors say these contact points explain the vault's flexibility.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Fabio Lapenta, Karen Palacio-Rodriguez, Sergio Cruz-León, Simone Marrancone, Jana Aupič, Nils Marechal, Alexandre Durand, Dihia Moussaoui, Sonia Covaceuszach, Bhavani Gangupam, Claudia D’Ercole, Cristian Parra, Davide Cotugno, Giulia Tomaino, Paolo Tortora, Ario de Marco, Alberto Cassetta, Alessandr |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2026 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 77 KB |
| VERSION | 1.0 |
| LICENSE | CC BY 4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |