Cells curb the amount of specific proteins at any desired time via the control of mRNA degradation. As mRNA nucleotides tail plays a role in this process, biologists at the Center for RNA Research, within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS, South Korea), have identified how mixed tails made of different nucleotides protect mRNA from degradation for longer. Published in Science, these findings could lend new insights to the understanding of gene regulation in healthy and diseased states.