Tacc Podcasts

The Supersized Science podcast features research and discoveries nationwide enabled by advanced computing technology and expertise at the Texas Advanced Computing Center of the University of Texas at Austin. Jorge Salazar, a science writer at TACC, hosts the podcast. A new mechanism has been determined for the first time for the passive transport of biomolecules through the nuclear pore complex, which are apertures that perforate the otherwise iron-clad membrane surrounding the cell nucleus and act like crossing guards for macromolecular traffic in and out of the nucleus. If the crossing-guard misfires, it can cause human diseases such as cancer, viral infections, and neurodegenerative conditions. The research team developed their model through supercomputer simulations on the Frontera and Stampede2 systems of TACC — and they hope their work will help guide the development of future therapeutics. The work was published in the journal Nature Communications in August 2022. On the podcast to talk more about i