The number of monikers early cell biologists attached to the nuclear lamina reflected their uncertainty about its function and architecture, and whether it was widespread or confined to a few specialized cells. Electron micrographs often disclosed a layer of varying thickness nestled against the backside of the nuclear membrane, which various researchers dubbed the “dense lamella,” “fibrous lamina,” “zona nucleum limitans,” or just plain “lamina.” Günter Blobel (Rockefeller University, New York, NY) had his mind on the signal hypothesis, for which he won the Nobel Prize in 1999 (see “Lost in translation: the signal hypothesis” JCB 170:338), but he decided to take a crack at deciphering the lamina.
Aaronson and Blobel (1974) used detergent to peel away the membranes from isolated nuclei. The husks that remained held their shape. This sturdy layer, they proposed, was the lamina, and the results suggested two of its...
