Young Phosphorylation Is Functionally Silent

In cell biology, important discoveries often relate to mechanisms that are conserved throughout evolution. Yet what makes any species unique are specific molecular changes accumulated during the course of evolution. Thus, it is just as important to identify differences between species as it is to characterize their underlying similarities (1). On page 229 of this issue, Studer et al. present such an evolutionary comparative analysis, revealing similitudes and, remarkably, substantial differences in the phosphorylation landscapes of fungal species (2).