Scientists from Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) and Rice University have discovered a new way to analyze the moving parts of large proteins - a breakthrough that will make it easier for structural biologists to classify and scrutinize the active sites of proteins implicated in cancer and other diseases.

Cell membranes are like two-dimensional fluids whose molecules are distributed evenly through lateral diffusion. But many important cellular processes depend on cortical polarity, the locally elevated concentration of specific membrane proteins.