“SLC38A9”

Between 1961and 1965, biomedical researchers deciphered the genetic code—i.e. how codons of RNA call for the assembly of proteins by a precise order of amino acids. Now, a half-century later, scientists at the Whitehead Institute (Cambridge, MA) have discovered the first nutrient sensor in cells that causes the master switch of metabolism, “mTORC1,” to turn on and off. This sensor, named “SLC38A9” and embedded in the lysosomal membrane, reacts to arginine. And, presumably there are more sensors for the other amino acids. MORE

Image Credit: MIT, Whitehead Institute