Cute molecules and the scientists who adore them: Maria Costanzo
Maria Costanzo, former predoc at EMBL Barcelona, talks about YAP, her favourite protein in the shape of a heart
Maria Costanzo from EMBL Barcelona is fascinated by the YAP protein (Alphafold P46938, UniProt P46938) – its fascinating abilities and its heart shape. Credit: Isabel Romero Calvo (illustration), Carla Manzanas (photography)/EMBL
The cute side of science
Behind every discovery lies a story. Often this story is of a scientist and their passion and awe for nature’s design.
We’ve asked some of our scientists, from across EMBL sites, to talk about the molecules that capture their imaginations and make them smile. These stories reveal the surprising beauty, humour, and charm in the molecular structures that power life itself. We invite you to explore them and fall in love with the molecules, like these scientists have.
“My favourite protein is called YAP. It enables the cell to read its surroundings – a bit like the cell tapping its way through darkness – which I find really fascinating!
“YAP receives signals via the cell’s molecular ‘gossip chain’, called the Hippo pathway, in which information from the cell’s surroundings is passed from one protein to another. Based on this, the cell knows whether it’s in the middle of a cellular crowd or has space around it, and whether to proliferate or not.
“Based on these signals, YAP can pick between two options: either to enter the cell nucleus and act on various genes to trigger cell division/differentiation, or to get degraded instead. What a tough dilemma for a protein! 😉
“My first acquaintance with YAP was while studying size regulation during embryonic development, which, in certain stages, relies on YAP reading the extracellular cues and telling the cells what identity to acquire.
“Leaving aside the technical details, I really like the YAP’s shape as well, as it makes me think of a beating heart!”
Maria Costanzo (Italy), Predoctoral Fellow, Ebisuya Group, EMBL Barcelona
