Secret identities aren't just for superheroes anymore. Researchers…

Secret identities aren't just for superheroes anymore. Researchers have found that a 1 present in everything from amoebas to people is living a double life. Once it binds to DNA, the protein, called RfaH, rips 2 —and then refolds into a different shape , to do a different job. RfaH is a transcription protein—attached to or freed from a stretch of DNA, it 3 if a gene is expressed or not. But once the protein has carried out its task, its helical 4 unravels. Within seconds, it refolds into a barrel structure, which has a new role, this time in 5, where it helps the cell produce amino acids for new proteins. The study is in the journal Cell. The next step is to find out if the barrel can refold into the helix. After that, researchers want to see if proteins 6 to RfaH— which are present in all life on Earth—are capable of 7 molecular contortion. Which would mean a lot more bang for our protein buck.