SnapShot: Convenient, Comprehensive, and Now Clickable

Since its debut in Cell nearly 3 years ago, SnapShot has quickly become one of our most highly downloaded features. Conceived as handy one-page reference guides—cheat sheets—for important topics in cell and molecular biology, SnapShots have encapsulated diverse subjects ranging from silencing by small RNAs to the plant immune response. Building on this success, we are now loosening the tether between SnapShot and the printed page. The result: Enhanced SnapShot.Enhanced SnapShots include features only possible online—animations, embedded captions, and dynamic visuals—all accessible by the click of a mouse. The goal of an Enhanced SnapShot is to provide everything currently available with the print SnapShot plus additional layers of information that are accessible through an easy to navigate webpage.To demonstrate the capabilities of this new format, we have updated and enhanced two of our most popular SnapShots: The TGFβ Pathway Interactome by Ian Taylor and Jeffrey Wrana, and Nuclear Transport by Elizabeth Tran, Timothy Bolger, and Susan Wente. The updated TGFβ interactome lets you dig deeper into the complex TGFβ signaling network, with tailored views and in-depth information for different facets of the pathway. The Enhanced Snapshot on nuclear transport features animations of cargo movement into and out of the nucleus and has helpful links between its table and figure. Just follow the links below to access the two webpages.The Enhanced Snapshots are available in two formats with identical content and functionality: a web page and an interactive pdf file that you can download and view offline. You will need Acrobat Reader 8.0 or later to view the interactive features of the pdf file.Enhanced SnapShot: The TGFβ Interactome (interactive pdf file)xDownload (1.06 MB ) Enhanced SnapShot: The TGFβ Interactome (interactive pdf file)Enhanced SnapShot: Nuclear Transport (interactive pdf file)xDownload (2.66 MB ) Enhanced SnapShot: Nuclear Transport (interactive pdf file)In upcoming issues, be on the lookout for the blue Enhanced SnapShot logo letting you know that there is more to discover. Starting with the next issue, we will be publishing a two-part SnapShot by Daniel Wilson and colleagues on Antibiotic Inhibition of Protein Synthesis. The first installment, in our September 18th issue, will present a table of antibiotics and their mechanisms of action. The second enhanced installment, in our October 2nd issue, integrates this information and more within a clickable figure that depicts the steps of protein synthesis.Given that embedding information is central to the concept of Enhanced SnapShots, each one will hold surprises, and we hope that their interactive nature will make them fun and educational to explore. In the larger context of science communication, it is our expectation that Enhanced SnapShots, the first citable Cell format designed principally for the web, will pilot new ways of seamlessly integrating text, figures, and animations in an online environment.