Posttranslational modifications control microtubule behavior, yet assigning roles to particular signals was hampered by lack of defined in vitro systems. In this issue of Cell, Valenstein and Roll-Mecak establish a biochemical platform to interrogate consequences of microtubule polyglutamylation, thereby providing important insights into the specificity and quantitative nature of cellular infor...

The ancient essential process of ribosomal protein synthesis requires twenty sets of aminoacyl-tRNAs (aa-tRNAs), one for each canonical amino acid. Since Crick proposed his adaptor hypothesis (1) it was commonly accepted that all organisms possess twenty aaRSs, each enzyme specific for attaching one amino acid to tRNA. It is now clear that aa-tRNA formation is more varied, as the biosynthetic r...

Post-translational modifications act as rheostats of protein activity. Many them reflect environmental variations and allow the cell to give an adapted response these changes. In this cover article #Ref, Céline Schulz collaborators provide in-depth overview still underrated role nutrient-dependent post-translational modification O-GlcNAcylation in regulation metabolism lipids, a very heterogeno...