Credit: Image: M.L. Kraushar/Charité Protein synthesis is a finely tuned process in the cell by macromolecules known as ribosomes. Which regulators are responsible for controlling protein synthesis in the brain, and how do they exert their control on the ribosome? To address this question, a team of researchers from Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin studied the structure of the brain's ribosomal complexes in great detail. The team was able to identify a new factor which is also involved in controlling brain development. Details of this research have been published in Molecular Cell*. Proteostasis refers to maintaining a delicate balance of protein levels in the cell, which is of particularly crucial importance to neurons. Abnormal protein production is a characteristic feature of many brain disorders. High precision protein production is of immense importance during the early development of a complex part of the cerebral cortex known as the neocortex. It is particularly important in the production of membrane proteins, which play an important role in cell-to-cell sites of synaptic contact between nerve cells. As the cell's 'molecular protein factories', ribosomes are at the heart of the regulatory processes involved in proteostasis. A range of molecules can influence ribosome function, and are responsible for controlling the production of specific proteins in different tissues and at different developmental stages. The way in which these various factors interact with the ribosome during development remains widely unknown. However, a group of Charité researchers has successfully observed protein production by ribosomes in the developing brain.