cell biology papers | Gist.Science

Cell biology is the study of life at its most fundamental unit: the cell. This field explores how these microscopic building blocks function, communicate, and replicate to sustain living organisms, from the simplest bacteria to complex human tissues. By understanding the machinery inside a cell, scientists unlock secrets about growth, disease, and the very nature of existence itself.

At Gist.Science, we track every new preprint uploaded to bioRxiv within this dynamic category. Our team processes each submission to provide both accessible plain-language explanations and detailed technical summaries, ensuring you can grasp complex discoveries without getting lost in dense jargon. Below are the latest papers in cell biology, offering a fresh look at the inner workings of life as they are shared with the world.

📄 cell biology

PCNA-Pol κ-Polδ /USP18 axes stabilize replication fork and restart to reduce cisplatin cytotoxicity

This study reveals that in cisplatin-resistant head and neck squamous carcinoma cells, DNA polymerase kappa (Polκ) mitigates drug toxicity not primarily through lesion bypass, but by forming two critical axes with PCNA—Polδ to drive proliferation and USP18 to stabilize DNA repair proteins and replication forks—thereby maintaining genomic stability and offering a novel therapeutic target.

Subhadarsini, I., Sahu, J. K., Thakur, S., dash, r., Acharya, N.2026-06-10

📄 cell biology

SubCell: Proteome-aware vision foundation models for microscopy capture single-cell biology

The paper introduces SubCell, a proteome-aware deep learning model trained on the Human Protein Atlas that outperforms existing methods in capturing single-cell biology, generalizes across datasets without fine-tuning, and enables the construction of a proteome-wide hierarchical map of cellular organization while enhancing gene function prediction through multimodal integration with protein sequences.

Gupta, A., Wefers, Z., Kahnert, K., Hansen, J. N., Misra, M. K., Leineweber, W. D., Cesnik, A., Lu, D., Axelsson, U., Ba (…)2026-06-08

📄 cell biology

Intestinal fructose metabolism drives unsaturated fat absorption and synergizes with GLP-1 receptor agonism to promote weight loss

This study demonstrates that inhibiting the intestinal enzyme ketohexokinase (KHK) blocks fructose-driven unsaturated fat absorption and synergizes with GLP-1 receptor agonists to promote significant weight loss, revealing fructose metabolism as a critical regulator of dietary lipid handling and obesity.

Echeverria, C. E., Ahmed, M., Gao, J., Stewart, S. L., Nathoo, I., Debarba, L. K., Lafourcade, C. A., Ahmed, T., Shamiev (…)2026-06-08

📄 cell biology

Msc1 accumulates at and excludes nuclear pore complexes from nucleus-vacuole junctions.

The study demonstrates that the yeast nuclear envelope protein Msc1 accumulates at nucleus-vacuole junctions during the diauxic shift to exclude nuclear pore complexes from these sites, thereby maintaining nuclear pore homeostasis as cells enter quiescence.

Medina-Suarez, S., Estevez-Silva, H. M., Rodriguez-Herrera, N., Machin, F.2026-06-08

📄 cell biology

A U1-U3 snRNA-snoRNA interaction couples SF3B1 mutation to chromatin-state rewiring and genome instability

This study reveals that SF3B1 mutations drive tumorigenesis by enhancing a pathological U1-U3 snRNA-snoRNA interaction that mislocalizes SETD2 to chromatin-associated RNAs, causing aberrant chromatin remodeling, R-loop formation, and genome instability, which can be therapeutically targeted by blocking this specific RNA pairing.

Xia, P., Li, H., Ji, Y., Ju, C.-w., Pan, Y., Mo, J., Zhu, X., Zhao, L., Lyu, R., Niewold, E., Fernandez, M., Ai, Y., Wei (…)2026-06-08

📄 cell biology

TMEM55B regulates lysosomal acidification and ER-lysosome calcium signaling to promote lipolysis

This study identifies TMEM55B as a critical regulator that, in complex with PDZD8 at ER-lysosome membrane contact sites, coordinates lysosomal acidification and calcium signaling to drive lipolysis and cholesterol metabolism.

Mukae, N., Maki, H., Shirane, M.2026-06-04

📄 cell biology

Functions and trafficking mechanisms of RIC-8 in C. elegans and mammalian cilia

This study elucidates the developmental regulation, intraflagellar transport-dependent trafficking mechanisms, and essential roles of the G-protein chaperone RIC-8 in the inversin compartment of C. elegans cilia and in human ciliogenesis.

Campagna, C., Descoteaux, A. E., Poole, A., Peet, E., Malaiwong, N., O'Donnell, M. P., Nechipurenko, I.2026-06-04

📄 cell biology

The HuBMAP Framework for Advancing Data FAIRness

The HuBMAP consortium addresses the challenge of operationalizing FAIR principles by developing and implementing a standardized, metadata-centered workflow that harmonizes diverse assay data into a compliant, open-access ecosystem, serving as a replicable model for other scientific communities.

Fisher, S. A., Hardi, J., Morgan, R., Nordgren, E., Kant, P. M., Honick, B., Rosario, J., O'Connor, M. J., Blood, P. D. (…)2026-06-04

📄 cell biology

LFCT: A Benchmark Dataset for Low-Frame-Rate Cell Tracking in Long-Term Live-Cell Microscopy

This paper introduces LFCT, a comprehensive benchmark dataset featuring multi-day, low-frame-rate live-cell microscopy sequences with detailed ground-truth annotations, designed to evaluate and advance cell tracking algorithms capable of handling sparse temporal sampling and large inter-frame motion.

Gachloo, M., Biswas, T., Lu, X., Greene, C. M., Hargett, C. K., Simancik, K. R., Birtwistle, M. R., Iuricich, F.2026-06-03

📄 cell biology

Primary cilia in the growing limb are preferentially orientated,uncoupled from centriolar position

This study reveals that primary cilia in the growing mouse limb exhibit a preferential 45-degree orientation independent of their basal body position and ambulatory loading, suggesting a cell-intrinsic mechanism that ensures robust signal integration during endochondral ossification despite mechanical perturbations.

Johnson, T., Miotla-Zarebska, J., Midha, S., Vincent, T. L., Wann, A. K., Jule, A. M., Randall, G., Apolinova, K., Sanso (…)2026-06-02

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