Research Highlights in 2013

Nanobodies turn any GFP-expressing cells into targets for in vivo functional manipulation.

A stepwise strategy of targeted synthesis enables researchers to reconstruct cellular glycomes in vitro.

Genomic position effects are probed in a highly parallel fashion with a clever combination of existing methods.

High-throughput sequencing of massive mutant libraries helps researchers catalog determinants of protein stability.

Stem cells grown in three-dimensional cultures self-organize into tissues that resemble the developing human brain.

Informed by existing molecular recognition motifs, researchers design effective scaffolds for directed evolution of post-translational modification–specific antibodies.

Interfacing synthetic diverters with a native yeast signaling pathway adds a robust layer of cell fate control.

Dissecting the effect of a host's genetic background on circuit performance will allow better design.

Single-cell measurements enable more sophisticated studies of the genetic basis of gene expression phenotypes.

A tiny silicon chip internalized by cells measures intracellular pressure changes.

By bundling together receptor domains, researchers identify important extracellular protein-protein interactions that are otherwise too weak to detect.

Researchers sequence single-cell genomes to target uncharted microbial diversity.

Optogenetic tools enable light-mediated control over transcription and epigenetic states in specific endogenous loci of the mammalian genome.

A handful of new 'GCaMPs' with improved properties for imaging neuronal activity are now available.

Protein engineering and small-molecule probe design allows the study of individual members of large protease families.

Antibody-like probes report the localization and amount of endogenous proteins in living cells.

Researchers leash cells to molecular tethers as an easy way to measure single-molecular binding forces.

Targeted nucleases based on the CRISPR/Cas9 system can in some cases cleave at imperfectly matched 'off-target' sites.

The first fluorescent protein cloned from a vertebrate species is a promising tool for clinical diagnostics and research.

Two methodological advances enable tracking of the walking behavior of fruit flies at single-leg resolution.