Dear Reader ,
Here is your customized PHYSorg.com Newsletter for March 9, 2011:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
- Physicists measure current-induced torque in nonvolatile magnetic memory devices- Missing DNA helps make us human
- Scientists discover anti-anxiety circuit in brain region considered the seat of fear
- New electromechanical circuit sets record beating microscopic 'drum'
- Mutation identified that might allow H1N1 to spread more easily
- Voyager seeks the answer blowin' in the wind
- Physicists grow micro-machines from carbon
- Bridgelux demonstrates silicon substrate LED that produces 135 lumens per watt
- Genetic analysis finds that modern humans evolved from southern Africa's Bushmen
- New microscope decodes complex eye circuitry (w/ Video)
- Web-crawling the brain
- When leukemia returns, gene that mediates response to key drug often mutated
- Shuttle Discovery ends flying career, museum next
- Researchers identify materials that may deliver more 'bounce'
- New study proves the brain has three layers of working memory
Space & Earth news
Shuttle Discovery approaches Earth for last landing
The oldest and most traveled space shuttle, Discovery, is headed for its last landing on Earth Wednesday before becoming the first of three to retire in a US museum.
Trees pay us back: Urban trees make a good investment
As California celebrates Arbor Day this week (March 7), let's pause to ask ourselves: What is the true value of a tree? It may be priceless in the beauty it brings to a street, city park or backyard, but can an actual dollar amount be placed on its worth? The USDA Forest Service Pacific Southwest Research Station's (PSW) scientists have found that for every $1 spent on planting and caring for a tree, the benefits that it provides are two to five times that investment. Benefits include cleaner air, lower energy costs, increased property values and improved water quality and storm water control.
Scientists to study effects of shipping containers lost at sea
Each year, an estimated 10,000 shipping containers fall off container ships at sea. Although many of these containers float at the surface for months, most eventually sink to the seafloor. No one knows what happens to these containers once they reach the deep seafloor.
US shuttle Discovery on track for final landing
The US space program's oldest and most traveled shuttle, Discovery, was on track to make its final Earth landing Wednesday after a near-perfect last mission to the space station.
Under US, Asia-Pacific to focus on green trade
The United States, taking the helm of the APEC forum, hopes to spur green growth in the Asia-Pacific region by knocking down trade barriers on environmental goods, a senior official has said.
Discovering mammoth undersea mountains
(PhysOrg.com) -- In the latest evidence of the vastness remaining to be explored in the world’s oceans, scientists aboard Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego’s research vessel Melville are mapping a series of colossal and previously uncharted undersea mountains in remote areas of the South Atlantic Ocean.
James Webb Space Telescope's 'chassis' gets taken out for a spin at NASA
The Integrated Science Instrument Module, or ISIM, is the structural heart of the James Webb Space Telescope, what engineers call the main payload. It will house the four main scientific instruments of the telescope. The ISIM is like a chassis in a car providing support for the engine and other components.
NASA infrared satellite data sees system 96P developing tropically near Vanuatu
The low pressure area called System 96P in the South Pacific appears to be getting organized in infrared satellite imagery from NASA. System 96P is showing signs of strong convection and that has prompted the government of Vanuatu to issue tropical cyclone warnings today.
Satellite measures gravity's effect on climate change
After nearly two years in space, the European satellite GOCE has collected the raw data needed to map variations in Earth's gravity field, the European Space Agency has said.
Satellites keeping busy with this week's severe weather
Satellites have been busy this week covering severe weather across the U.S. Today, the GOES-13 satellite and NASA's Aqua satellite captured an image of the huge stretch of clouds associated with a huge and soggy cold front as it continues its slow march eastward. Earlier this week, NASA's Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission satellite captured images of severe weather that generated tornadoes over Louisiana.
Climate researchers: Russian heat wave was natural
(AP) -- Global warming isn't directly to blame for last summer's deadly - and extraordinary - heat wave in Russia, researchers said in a report Wednesday that came with a climate warning.
Messenger to enter mercury orbit
On March 17, the MESSENGER spacecraft will execute a 15-minute maneuver that will place it into orbit about Mercury, making it the first craft ever to do so, and initiating a one-year science campaign to understand the innermost planet.
The impact of plate tectonics
Helping to settle a debate over plate tectonics that has divided geologists for decades, scientists at Harvard University have moved a step closer to understanding the complex physical deformation of one of the most densely populated earthquake zones on Earth: the Tibetan Plateau.
Vast areas of low latitude subsurface ice found on Mars
There could be more subsurface ice on Mars than previously thought, and vast stretches of it may lie just south of the equator. Indeed, one of the proposed landing sites for the Mars Science Laboratory could hold the mother lode of enticing scientific prospects. Observations from two spacecraft, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and Mars Express, have revealed potential subsurface ice deposits in areas just south of the equator, including one near Holden Crater, with an estimated reservoir of perennial subsurface water ice of about 50 – 500 kg m-2 just two or three meters beneath the surface. This is the first evidence of ice at “tropical” latitudes on Mars as low as 25 degrees.
Polar ice adding more to rising seas: study
(PhysOrg.com) -- The Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets are losing mass at an accelerating pace, according to a new NASA-funded satellite study. The findings of the study -- the longest to date of changes in polar ice sheet mass -- suggest these ice sheets are overtaking ice loss from Earth's mountain glaciers and ice caps to become the dominant contributor to global sea level rise, much sooner than model forecasts have predicted.
The most distant mature galaxy cluster
Astronomers have used an armada of telescopes on the ground and in space, including the Very Large Telescope at ESO's Paranal Observatory in Chile to discover and measure the distance to the most remote mature cluster of galaxies yet found. Although this cluster is seen when the Universe was less than one quarter of its current age it looks surprisingly similar to galaxy clusters in the current Universe.
Baby stars born to 'napping' parents
(PhysOrg.com) -- Cardiff University astronomers believe that a young star's long "napping" could trigger the formation of a second generation of smaller stars and planets orbiting around it.
Shuttle Discovery ends flying career, museum next
Discovery ended its career as the world's most flown spaceship Wednesday, returning from orbit for the last time and taking off in a new direction as a museum piece.
Mars' missing carbon dioxide may be buried
(PhysOrg.com) -- Rocks on Mars dug from far underground by crater-blasting impacts are providing glimpses of one possible way Mars' atmosphere has become much less dense than it used to be.
Voyager seeks the answer blowin' in the wind
(PhysOrg.com) -- In which direction is the sun's stream of charged particles banking when it nears the edge of the solar system? The answer, scientists know, is blowing in the wind. It's just a matter of getting NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft in the right orientation to detect it.
Technology news
Cuba says US waging 'cyberwar' against Havana
Cuban authorities are accusing the United States of waging "cyberwar" against the communist-ruled island -- an effort that Havana claims includes an American contractor on trial for espionage.
Can ordinary people make money on Twitter?
Reports this week that celebrities are earning up to $10,000 per tweet on Micro-blogging site Twitter has caught the attention of ordinary social media users who are now asking how they can make money too.
NXP builds a smarter way to energy efficiency with world's lowest standby power
NXP Semiconductors today announced a new generation of GreenChip power solutions which feature the lowest standby capability in the industry, reaching levels below 10mW. The NXP GreenChip power ICs, also known as Switch Mode Power Supply controller ICs, are designed for adapters for mobile devices such as cell phone chargers, tablets and notebooks, as well as major home appliances or white goods.
Obamas take Facebook stand against bullying
US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Wednesday took a public stand against bullying on Facebook, on the eve of a White House summit on an issue they said affected every young American.
Kinect for Xbox - the story behind the science
Have you ever wondered about the story behind one of the most exciting computer gaming inventions of late? If so you’re in luck, because Jamie Shotton, one of the developers of Kinect for Xbox, will be telling the story behind it at Cambridge Science Festival later this month.
Kayak simplifies airfare shopping
One of the primary applications of the internet is its ability to find just about anything. But unless you know exactly where to look, chances are you use some kind of search engine to do the locating for you. Google, for example, is one of the most popular search engines out there. It's uncanny how the thing for which you are looking is usually somewhere within the first page of hits. In fact, more often than not it's usually within the first five on that first page.
Student innovator uses sound waves, T-rays for safer detection of bombs
Benjamin Clough is dedicated to making the world a safer place for emergency first responders, police and military personnel, chemical plant employees, and many others. The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute doctoral student has developed a novel method for extending the distance from which powerful terahertz technology can remotely detect hidden explosives, chemicals, and other dangerous materials.
Online travel sites seek to ground Google-ITA deal
When Google and Yahoo! forged an advertising pact in 2008, Thomas Barnett headed the anti-trust division of the US Department of Justice, which stepped in and torpedoed the deal.
Internet banking surges in southeast Asia
Online banking sites in Southeast Asia saw a sharp rise in users last year, as institutions grew more Internet-savvy and customers got used to paying their bills on the web, research showed on Wednesday.
The birth of electrical engineering
In September 1882, Thomas Edison opened the first commercial power plant in the United States, serving 59 customers in a square mile of Lower Manhattan. That same fall, MIT made electrical history of its own, with the establishment of the country’s first electrical-engineering curriculum.
OpenStudio visualizes energy use in buildings
Look around you. Odds are, you are indoors reading this story using a computer or mobile device, perhaps sipping on a favorite cup of coffee. If you are indoors at this moment, you're draining energy from one of the largest consumers of energy in the U.S. -- a building.
Power to the plane
Work has begun on a record-breaking, 120-meter wingspan plane and it’s up to a small team of engineers from Newcastle University to make sure it gets off the ground.
Nokia Siemens delays Motorola purchase
Finnish-German giant Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) said Wednesday its purchase of Motorola's wireless network infrastructure assets would be delayed again, with no timeline specified for completion of the deal.
NY Times is the new sponsor of a rock-paper-scissors supercomputer
(PhysOrg.com) -- You probably played at least a few games of Rock-Paper-Scissors as a kid. In this game you pretty much have three options, and each of them has both an item to beat, and an item lose to lose to. Rock beats scissors, scissors cut paper and paper covers rock. All you have to due is choose and see how it falls out. It all seems so simple.
Sales of Microsoft's Kinect top 10 million
Microsoft said Wednesday that sales of the gesture-sensing Kinect for the Xbox 360 videogame console had topped 10 million units, making it the fastest-selling consumer electronics device ever.
Facebook develops new privacy policy
Facebook is rewriting its privacy policy in plain-spoken English, and preparing new tools to show users how their personal data is used.
Turing award goes to 'machine learning' expert
A Harvard University professor has been awarded a top technology prize for research that has paved the way for computers that more closely mimic how humans think, including the one that won a "Jeopardy!" tournament.
Bridgelux demonstrates silicon substrate LED that produces 135 lumens per watt
(PhysOrg.com) -- Silicon substrate LED's are cool, but you won't find them in your TV, or in the headlights of your car. They simply do not throw off enough light to be used in commercial applications. Or, at least they did not used to be able to.
Medicine & Health news
Psychiatrist discusses dangers of 'E-personality' in latest podcast
(PhysOrg.com) -- Psychiatrist Elias Aboujaoude, MD, discusses the Internet's psychological impact and how our online traits are unconsciously being imported into our offline lives in this podcast.
Depression after miscarriage can continue even after healthy birth
Women who experience depression and anxiety after a miscarriage continue to experience these symptoms even if they subsequently go on to have a healthy child, according to a study of pregnant women from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC).
PBS-Bio uncovers how Unibioscreen drug kills cancer
Predictive Biomarker Sciences (PBS-Bio) has uncovered how the experimental drug UNBS1450, produced by Unibioscreen, kills cancer cells.
Alcohol abuse history influences quality of life following liver transplant
A history of alcohol abuse significantly impacts quality of life for patients after liver transplant, according to researchers at Henry Ford Hospital.
Redefining normal blood pressure
As many as 100 million Americans may currently be misclassified as having abnormal blood pressure, according to Dr. Brent Taylor from the Veterans Affairs Health Care System in Minneapolis and the University of Minnesota and his colleagues. Their findings show that these people are not actually more likely to die prematurely than those with 'normal' blood pressure, i.e. below 120/80. Taylor and colleagues' article in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, published by Springer, also shows that in those under 50, diastolic blood pressure* is the more important predictor of mortality, whereas in those over 50, systolic blood pressure* is the stronger predictor. The authors argue it is time to consider a new definition of 'normal' blood pressure.
What's in a name? Broadening the biological lexicon to bolster translational research
So-called model organisms have long been at the core of biomedical research, allowing scientists to study the ins and outs of human disorders in non-human subjects.
New mouse models generated for MYH9 genetic disorders
Researchers have created the first mouse models of human MYH9 genetic disorders, which cause several problems -- including enlarged platelets and sometimes fatal kidney disease.
International panel revises 'McDonald Criteria' for diagnosing multiple sclerosis
International Panel Revises "McDonald Criteria" for Diagnosing MS -- Use of new data should speed diagnosis -- Publication coincides with MS Awareness Week
What factors motivate smokers to quit?
This week people across the country will vow to give up something for Lent, and those items could include sweets, chocolate or cigarettes.
Barrow researcher launches depression study
A top medical researcher at Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona, has launched a clinical trial to pinpoint brain activity in depressed people by using scientifically designed sad and heartrending photos and music. Results will be used to help neurosurgeons at the new Barrow Center for Neuromodulation treat clinically depressed patients with deep brain stimulation.
Researchers find smoking may increase risk for lung disease
A team of researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) have found that approximately one out of every twelve adult smokers have abnormal lung densities present on chest computed tomography (CT) images suggestive of interstitial lung disease which is associated with substantial reductions in lung volumes. In addition, despite being positively associated with smoking, these lung densities were inversely not associated with emphysema. This research is published online on March 10th in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Gene fusion mechanisms offer new clues to origin of pediatric brain tumors
A detailed analysis of gene fusions present at high frequency in the most common pediatric brain tumors has been performed for the first time in a study published online today in Genome Research, shedding new light on how these genomic rearrangements form in the early stages of cancer.
Maryland lawmakers could ban smoking in cars with children
A bill to ban smoking in a car with a child, which has been stopped in committee four years running, may finally make it to the floor of the Maryland House of Delegates this year.
New heart drugs don't mean old ones should be discarded, researchers say
In performing procedures to open narrowed coronary arteries, cardiologists use powerful drugs to prevent clotting and make the blood thinner — but not so thin that it causes major bleeding. But one of the old anti-clotting standards has fallen out of favor in recent years amid concerns over increased risk of bleeding, coupled with the advent of newer drugs and techniques.
Sunlight can influence the breakdown of medicines in the body
A study from Karolinska Institutet has shown that the body's ability to break down medicines may be closely related to exposure to sunlight, and thus may vary with the seasons. The findings offer a completely new model to explain individual differences in the effects of drugs, and how the surroundings can influence the body's ability to deal with toxins.
New research reveals important role for parathyroid glands and their control of calcium
(PhysOrg.com) -- A new University of Georgia study has revealed that one of the body's most misunderstood organs, the parathyroid gland, plays a vital role in controlling the amount of calcium in the body’s blood system.
Stem cell study aims to reduce amputations
UC Davis Vascular Center researchers have embarked on a highly anticipated study that involves using a patient's own stem cells to increase blood circulation to the lower leg with the hope of preventing amputation due to severe arterial disease or diabetes.
Students dogged by stress get help from therapy pups
College is stressful, no doubt about it. In fact, a 2009 recent study by mtvU and the Associated Press found that 85 percent of students reported feeling stressed on a daily basis.
Black men at both ends of economic spectrum at risk for depression
Jobless African-American men might be at a greater risk of suffering from depression, new research shows. More surprising, at the other end of the income spectrum, African-American men making $80,000 and upward are also among those at higher risk.
Reading in two colours at the same time
The Nobel prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman once wrote in his autobiographical book (What do you care what other people think?): "When I see equations, I see letters in colors - I don't know why [...] And I wonder what the hell it must look like to the students."
Cigarettes to vanish from shelves in England
Cigarettes will disappear under the tobacconist's counter from next year in England under new measures announced Wednesday.
Which side of the brain rotates a mental picture?
Consider the simple situation in which you are walking around the kitchen and decide to pick up your own cup of tea, which is identical to others lying on the table. Your brain chooses the correct cup of tea by using different types of information that you have stored about the position of the cup in relation to the kitchen table. The information can be represented in qualitative terms (left, right, above, below) or quantitative terms (distances and angles).
Protein study helps shape understanding of body forms
Scientists have shed light on why some people are apple-shaped and others are pear-shaped.
Aspirin's ability to protect against colorectal cancer may depend on inflammatory pathways
The reduced risk of colorectal cancer associated with taking aspirin or other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may be confined to individuals already at risk because of elevations in a particular inflammatory factor in the blood. In a paper in the March issue of Gastroenterology, investigators from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute report finding that higher baseline levels of a novel inflammatory marker indicated increased risk of developing colorectal tumors and also predicted who might benefit from taking aspirin or NSAIDs.
Researchers using salmonella to fight cancer
University of Minnesota researchers are using salmonella – the bacteria commonly transmitted through food that sickens thousands of U.S. residents each year – to do what was once unthinkable: help people.
High-volume portable music players may impair ability to clearly discriminate sounds
Growing numbers of people enjoy listening to music on portable music players or cell phones, and many tend to turn up the volume, especially in noisy surroundings. In a study published March 2, 2011 in the open-access journal PLoS ONE, researchers explore the potential effects of this behavior on hearing.
Abnormal neural activity recorded from the deep brain of Parkinson's disease and dystonia patients
Movement disorders such as Parkinson's diseases and dystonia are caused by abnormal neural activity of the basal ganglia located deep in the brain. The basal ganglia are connected to the cerebral cortex in the brain surface through complex neural circuits. Their basic structure and connections, as well as the dysfunctions in movement disorders, have been examined extensively by using experimental animals. On the other hand, little is known about the human brain that is much more complex in either normal or diseased states.
How do we combine faces and voices?
Human social interactions are shaped by our ability to recognise people. Faces and voices are known to be some of the key features that enable us to identify individual people, and they are rich in information such as gender, age, and body size, that lead to a unique identity for a person. A large body of neuropsychological and neuroimaging research has already determined the various brain regions responsible for face recognition and voice recognition separately, but exactly how our brain goes about combining the two different types of information (visual and auditory) is still unknown.
First international index developed to predict suicidal behavior
Although thousands of people commit suicide worldwide each year, researchers and doctors do not have any method for evaluating a person's likelihood of thinking about or trying to commit suicide. An international group of scientists, in which the Hospital del Mar Research Institute (IMIM) has participated, has devised the first risk index in order to prevent suicides.
Cerebral spinal fluid guides stem cell development in the brain
the clear and watery substance that bathes the brain and spinal cord—is much more important to brain development than previously realized.
More reasons to be nice: It's less work for everyone
A polite act shows respect. But a new study of a common etiquette—holding a door for someone—suggests that courtesy may have a more practical, though unconscious, shared motivation: to reduce the work for those involved. The research, by Joseph P. Santamaria and David A. Rosenbaum of Pennsylvania State University, is the first to combine two fields of study ordinarily considered unrelated: altruism and motor control. It is to be published in a forthcoming issue of Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
Gene variant influences chronic kidney disease risk
A team of researchers from the United States and Europe has identified a single genetic mutation in the CUBN gene that is associated with albuminuria both with and without diabetes. Albuminuria is a condition caused by the leaking of the protein albumin into the urine, which is an indication of kidney disease.
In adolescence, the power to resist blooms in the brain
Just when children are faced with intensifying peer pressure to misbehave, regions of the brain are actually blossoming in a way that heighten the ability to resist risky behavior, report researchers at three West Coast institutions.
New genetic deafness syndrome identified
Ten years ago, scientists seeking to understand how a certain type of feature on a cell called an L-type calcium channel worked created a knockout mouse missing both copies of the CACNA1D gene.
Pinpointing air pollution's effects on the heart
Scientists are untangling how the tiniest pollution particles – which we take in with every breath we breathe – affect our health, making people more vulnerable to cardiovascular and respiratory problems. While scientists know that air pollution can aggravate heart problems, showing exactly how it does so has been challenging.
A-ha! The neural mechanisms of insight
Although it is quite common for a brief, unique experience to become part of our long-term memory, the underlying brain mechanisms associated with this type of learning are not well understood. Now, a new brain-imaging study looks at the neural activity associated with a specific type of rapid learning, insight. The research, published by Cell Press in the March 10 issue of the journal Neuron, reveals specific brain activity that occurs during an "A-ha!" moment that may help encode the new information in long-term memory.
Using stem cells to regrow muscle, bone
Among the most debilitating of diseases are degenerative ones, in which a person’s health slowly declines over time. And some of the worst of these diseases involve the deterioration of muscle or bone.
Preemie birth preventive spikes from $10 to $1,500
(AP) -- The price of preventing preterm labor is about to go through the roof.
Researchers identify new biomarker for Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, the human form of mad cow disease
Neena Singh, MD, PhD and colleagues at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have identified the first disease-specific biomarker for sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD), a universally fatal, degenerative brain disease for which there is no cure. sCJD is one of the causes of dementia and typically leads to death within a year of disease onset.
Researchers identify new form of muscular dystrophy
A strong international collaboration and a single patient with mild muscle disease and severe cognitive impairment have allowed University of Iowa researchers to identify a new gene mutation that causes muscular dystrophy.
Passive smoking increases risk to unborn babies, study says
Pregnant non-smokers who breathe in the second-hand smoke of other people are at an increased risk of delivering stillborn babies or babies with defects, a study led by researchers at The University of Nottingham has found.
New clue to controlling skin regeneration--as well as skin cancer
(PhysOrg.com) -- How do organs "know" when to stop growing? The answer could be useful in regenerative medicine, and also in cancer - where these "stop growing" signals either aren't issued or aren't heeded. Researchers in the Stem Cell Program at Children's Hospital Boston have now found a regulator of gene activity that tells epidermal stem cells when it's time to grow more skin, as well as a "crowd control" molecule that can sense cell crowding and turn the growth off.
Learning to see consciously
Our brains process many more stimuli than we become aware of. Often images enter our brain without being noticed: visual information is being processed, but does not reach consciousness, that is, we do not have an impression of it. Then, what is the difference between conscious and unconscious perception, and can both forms of perception be changed through practice? These questions are important not only for basic research, but also for the treatment of patients with perceptual deficits due to brain lesions e.g. following a stroke. Scientists at the MPI for Brain Research in Frankfurt/Main could now show that seeing can be trained. Their tests revealed that the brain regions underlying the learning effects on conscious perception are different than the ones underlying the learning effects on the mere processing of stimuli.
Super sense of smell not innate
World-class "noses" in the perfume and wine business are not born with an outsized sense of smell but acquire it through years of professional sniffing, according to new research.
Novel method could improve the performance of proteins used therapeutically
Whitehead Institute scientists have created a method that site-specifically modifies proteins to exert control over their properties when administered therapeutically. The technique should be useful to increase potency, slow metabolism, and improve thermal stability of therapeutically useful proteins, such as interferon alpha 2 (IFN-alpha 2), which is used to treat variety of diseases, including leukemia, melanoma, and chronic hepatitis C.
'GPS system' for protein synthesis in nerve cells gives clues for understanding brain disorders
Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania explain how a class of RNA molecules is able to target the genetic building blocks that guide the functioning of a specific part of the nerve cell. Abnormalities at this site are in involved in epilepsy, neurodegenerative disease, and cognitive disorders. Their results are published this week in the journal Neuron.
New microscope decodes complex eye circuitry (w/ Video)
The sensory cells in the retina of the mammalian eye convert light stimuli into electrical signals and transmit them via downstream interneurons to the retinal ganglion cells which, in turn, forward them to the brain. The interneurons are connected to each other in such a way that the individual ganglion cells receive visual information from a circular area of the visual field known as the receptive field. Some ganglion cells are only activated, for example, when light falls on the centre of their receptive fields and the edge remains dark (ON cells). The opposite is the case for other ganglion cells (OFF cells). And there are also ganglion cells that are activated by light that sweeps across their receptive fields in a particular direction; motion in the opposite (null-) direction inhibits activation.
Web-crawling the brain
The brain is a black box. A complex circuitry of neurons fires information through channels, much like the inner workings of a computer chip. But while computer processors are regimented with the deft economy of an assembly line, neural circuits are impenetrable masses. Think tumbleweed.
When leukemia returns, gene that mediates response to key drug often mutated
Despite dramatically improved survival rates for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), relapse remains a leading cause of death from the disease. Work led by St. Jude Children's Research Hospital investigators identified mutations in a gene named CREBBP that may help the cancer resist steroid treatment and fuel ALL's return.
New study proves the brain has three layers of working memory
Researchers from Rice University and Georgia Institute of Technology have found support for the theory that the brain has three concentric layers of working memory where it stores readily available items. Memory researchers have long debated whether there are two or three layers and what the capacity and function of each layer is.
Mutation identified that might allow H1N1 to spread more easily
In the fall of 1917, a new strain of influenza swirled around the globe. At first, it resembled a typical flu epidemic: Most deaths occurred among the elderly, while younger people recovered quickly. However, in the summer of 1918, a deadlier version of the same virus began spreading, with disastrous consequence. In total, the pandemic killed at least 50 million people — about 3 percent of the world’s population at the time.
Scientists discover anti-anxiety circuit in brain region considered the seat of fear
Stimulation of a distinct brain circuit that lies within a brain structure typically associated with fearfulness produces the opposite effect: Its activity, instead of triggering or increasing anxiety, counters it.
Biology news
UF researcher creates plan to protect U.S. banana supply
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The banana consumers know today could disappear from U.S. store shelves because of a tropical disease, just as its predecessor did more than 50 years ago, and a University of Florida researcher warns that awareness is needed to stop history from repeating itself.
California leads nation in organic agriculture production
California dominates the nation in organic production of agricultural commodities, according to a nationwide survey of organic producers that was analyzed by a UC Davis agricultural economist.
Foals' umbilical cords can be banked for future stem-cell treatments
Horse owners now have the opportunity to collect umbilical cord tissue immediately after a foal is born and save it as a future source of therapeutic stem cells through the Regenerative Medicine Laboratory at UC Davis’ School of Veterinary Medicine.
Combating cucurbit yellow stunting disorder virus
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists are working to give melon growers some relief from cucurbit yellow stunting disorder virus, or CYSDV.
Tiger poo repels Australia's pests: scientist
Tiger poo is an effective new weapon in warding off animal pests, scientists said Wednesday, after years of experimenting with big cats' faeces collected from Australian zoos.
Mexico approves GM maize pilot project
Mexico has approved its first pilot project to grow genetically-modified (GM) maize, a move expected to draw fire from environmental groups who fear its impact on treasured local corn.
New role for phosphorylation in heterochromatin
A great many cellular processes are switched on or off by the modification of a given enzyme or other protein by addition of a phosphate molecule, known as phosphorylation. This regulatory activity occurs widely in the cytoplasm, but can take place in the nucleus as well. Recent work has shown the HP1α, a protein that guides the formation of heterochromatin, a form of the DNA-protein structure know as chromatin, is also subject to this post-translational modification, but the biological meaning of this event has remained unresolved.
Modeling retinitis pigmentosa with iPS cells
Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a cluster of genetically determined eye disorders that cause visual defects such as night blindness and narrowing of the field of vision, due to progressive loss of rod photoreceptors. As many as 45 different genes have been linked to the inheritance of this disease, which suggests diversity in etiology and makes development of a standardized animal model problematic. Thus, despite a range of clinical trials of nutritional and drug-based interventions for RP, the disease remains untreatable. Better platforms for modeling the disease and testing drug candidates in vitro are urgently needed.
Conserved kinase protects cells from endosomal traffic jam
Some molecules have a single, highly specific function in physiology, while others have a much broader remit. Kinases in the IKK (inhibitor of nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) kinase) family are of the latter sort, playing a variety of roles in the immune system, cancer, and differentiation. Previous work with a related kinase, IKKε, in Drosophila has shown that this protein regulates the cytoskeleton and cell elongation in a number of contexts. It has yet to be shown, however, how it accomplishes this.
Viruses teach researchers how to protect corn from fungal infection
Smut fungi are agents of disease responsible for significant crop losses worldwide. Principal Investigator, Dr. Thomas Smith and Research Associate Member, Dr. Dilip Shah at The Donald Danforth Plant Science Center collaborated on a project to develop a variety of corn that is highly resistant to corn smut caused by the fungus, Ustilago maydis. The results of this research are published in the recent article, "Transgenic maize plants expressing the Totivirus antifungal protein, KP4, are highly resistant to corn smut," in Plant Biotechnology Journal .
Researchers develop synthetic compound that may lead to drugs to fight pancreatic, lung cancer
Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have identified a chemical compound that may eventually lead to a drug that fights cancers that are dependent on a particular anti-viral enzyme for growth.
Commercial fish species discovered in Arctic
Spurred by the rush to develop the Arctic's offshore oil and gas riches, scientists are unlocking some mysteries about the marine environment off Alaska's northern coast.
Study shows how plants sort and eliminate genes over millennia
Hybrid plants with multiple genome copies show evidence of preferential treatment of the genes from one ancient parent over the genes of the other parent, even to the point where some of the unfavored genes eventually are deleted.
New study shows some sharks follow 'mental map' to navigate seas
A new study led by a University of Florida researcher uses tracking data of three shark species to provide the first evidence some of the fish swim directly to targeted locations.
Genetic analysis finds that modern humans evolved from southern Africa's Bushmen
A team of Stanford University scientists, using the largest-ever genetic analysis of remote tribal people, have determined that the human family tree is rooted in one of the world's most marginal and primitive people - the Bushmen of southern Africa.
'Singing' mice -- the ongoing debate of nature vs. nurture
What happened to being "quiet as a mouse"? Researchers have recently shown that, rather than being the silent creatures of popular belief, mice emit ultrasonic calls in a variety of social contexts, and these calls have song-like characteristics. So if mice sing, where do they get their music? Are they born with the songs fully formed in their heads, or do they learn them from their peers? This question is of great interest to scientists as, while many organisms produce genetically regulated vocalizations, only a select few species (such as ourselves) can actually learn these vocalizations. If it turns out that mice can indeed learn new songs, it would provide a very convenient mammalian model of vocal learning.
Missing DNA helps make us human
A new study demonstrates that specific traits that distinguish humans from their closest living relatives – chimpanzees, with whom we share 96 percent of our DNA – can be attributed to the loss of chunks of DNA that control when and where certain genes are turned on. The finding mirrors accumulating evidence from other species that changes to regulatory regions of DNA – rather than to the genes themselves – underlie many of the new features that organisms acquire through evolution.
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