Researchers have investigated a system in the body known as the Wnt signaling pathway. It helps cells receive and interpret signals from their surroundings, according to the media outlet El15.
Previously, scientists believed that cells responded gradually to these signals.
However, the new research, published in Science Advances, shows that cells only respond once a certain threshold has been reached.
It functions more like a switch that is either on or off.
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Threshold reached
The study focused on the protein DVL, which plays an important role in cellular communication.
The researchers found that the protein changes shape when it reaches a specific threshold. Only then can the signal be transmitted further within the cell.
This discovery has given scientists a better understanding of an important stage in the cells’ decision-making process.
According to the researchers, this mechanism may help explain how normal cells can, in some cases, develop into cancer cells.
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In the long term, this new knowledge could contribute to research into treatments that may slow down or stop tumor growth.
Sources: El15 and Science Advances.
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