Hitting the Target

Our body is made up of a myriad of different cell types, each defined by their own specific set of proteins and roles to play. And within these categories, every individual cell has the potential to vary slightly, creating a unique and complex community. Known as cellular heterogeneity, small differences between cells make it difficult to efficiently target all the members of a given type for treatment, a problem perhaps most acute in cancer research. Pictured are cells grown in a dish, malignant (in red) and pre-malignant (in blue), all expressing a gene circuit aimed at detecting cancer. Here this means that the cells have been transformed with an artificial set of genes which become active if certain cancer-related proteins are present, eventually producing a protein with green fluorescence. Variation between individual cells affects the gene circuit’s response, creating a kaleidoscope of colours and a host of complications for researchers.

Written by Emmanuelle Briolat

Emmanuelle Briolat

Writer

A researcher specialising in visual signals in Lepidoptera, camouflage and the effects of light pollution, Emmanuelle’s writing covers a range of topics, from biomedical research to children’s books about moth defences.

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• Image from work by Mathieu Morel and Roman Shtrahman, and colleagues
• Department of Materials and Interfaces, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
• Image copyright held by original authors; image reproduction permitted by PNAS
• Published in PNAS, July 2016