White blood cells are the principle mediators of immune system function, yet efforts to influence their role in illness have been hampered due to a lack of understanding of the surface structure of these cells – until now. Dartmouth Medical School researchers characterize the structure of white blood cells and challenge assumptions about how a certain immunodeficiency disorder affects the white blood cell surface in the September 1 issue of Blood, the journal of the American Society of Hematolog
Scientists have capitalized on genomic data to define novel diagnostic tests and to gain insight into the evolutionary and genetic history of the deadly pathogen Bacillus anthracis (anthrax).
Researchers at Northern Arizona University (NAU), the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) and The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR) used nearly 1000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to define the genetic and evolutionary types of several anthrax isolates with extremely h
Research runs counter to Darwin’s theory of natural selection
A team of biochemists from UC Riverside published a paper in the June 11 issue of the Journal of Molecular Biology that gives one explanation for why humans and primates are so closely related genetically, but so clearly different biologically and intellectually.
It is an established fact that 98 percent of the DNA, or the code of life, is exactly the same between humans and chimpanzees. So the key to what it mea
A team of scientists has found that a protein involved in a congenital neurological disorder also plays a role in DNA damage repair and thus cancer prevention. The research appears as the “Paper of the Week” in the August 13 issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry, an American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology journal.
Primary microcephaly is a rare neurological disorder that results in an abnormally small head due to improper brain formation and growth. Children
Immune cells transform into blood-vessel cells in ovarian cancer
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine discovered that in ovarian cancer immune cells can change into blood-vessel cells, and eventually promote the life-sustaining vasculature of the tumor. These findings were initially observed in a mouse model of ovarian cancer that the investigators generated and then confirmed in human ovarian cancer. This work may lead to new approaches to fighting solid
An enzyme found in nearly all animal and human cells acts as a natural brake to prevent potentially deadly runaway inflammation, UCSF scientists have discovered. The discovery in research with mice suggests a promising target for treating a range of inflammatory diseases in which the body’s immune reaction to bacterial invasion spirals out of control, the researchers report.
The enzyme, known as A20, controls the first step in the series of signals that unleash immune system sold
Does estrogen help cognition? Many women ponder that question as a quality-of-life issue while deciding on estrogen therapy since it has been linked to potential disease complications. Now, a new study at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign suggests that the stress of any given task at least partially determines if hormones will help the mind.
Reporting in the August issue of Behavioral Neuroscience, four researchers show the introduction of a single stressor — water temp
Canadian researchers identify new player in breast cancer
Canadian researchers at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (Montreal, QC) and McMaster University (Hamilton, ON) have identified a new player in breast cancer. This gene, beta1-integrin, has been shown to be critical in the initiation of tumour growth and development in a mouse model of cancer.
“We are the first to demonstrate the requirement for beta1-integrin in the induction breast can
In an effort that may someday lead to the treatment of hearing loss and balance disorders, which currently affect about 28 million Americans, Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) visiting investigators Jeffrey Corwin and Stefan Heller are working this summer to make large numbers of mouse stem cells “grow” into inner ear sensory hair cells-acoustic receptors that are a critical part of the auditory system.
The work is important because, in humans, inner ear sensory hair cells are a p
New England’s favorite summertime delicacy, the chowder clam, has just been elevated to a whole new status. An international team of scientists-who credit studying surf clam (Spisula solidissima) cells with important research breakthroughs in the study of diseases such as cancer, premature aging, and muscular dystrophy-has convened at the Marine Biological Laboratory to begin sequencing some of the clam’s active genes.
The effort, called the Clam Project, is the first step toward
Experiment proves that ’fly-fishing mechanism’ theory of protein-to-protein communication holds water
Proteins pass messages to other proteins much like fly-fishermen flicker their lines against water, or so a current leading theory holds. The repeated weak slapping of protein surfaces against one-another is the critical first step in a chain of events that rule all subsequent cellular behavior.
But this vital exchange between single molecules has defied direct o
Streptococcal bacteria may infect humans by using a bacterial enzyme to “hijack” the blood-clotting system, according to new research by Howard Hughes Medical Institute scientists.
In studies published in the August 27, 2004, issue of the journal Science, the researchers establish that the enzyme streptokinase is responsible for the pathogen’s ability to infect humans while exhibiting little activity against other mammals.
The scientists genetically altered strains of
As the debate continues on the ethics and therapeutic potential of embryonic versus mature stem cells, Medical College of Georgia researchers are exploring a third group of cells that appears critical to development and capable of making all major types of human tissue.
“VENT cells are a unique category of multi-potent cells,” Dr. Douglas P. Dickinson, molecular biologist, says of this cell type that escapes from the bottom of the neural tube early in development, after the tube clo
Columbia University Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine researchers have identified a possible cause of an inherited form of Parkinson’s disease, which may be related to more common forms of the disease. The findings are reported in the August 27, 2004 issue of Science.
While the cause of most cases of Parkinson’s disease is unknown, a few cases are inherited and can be traced to mutations in four different genes, including the alpha-synuclein gene. This is the
Initiative targets highly innovative research
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has announced its first three Chemical Bonding Centers–multi-faceted research groups that will each tackle a “big problem” in chemistry, in an atmosphere that’s intended to be flexible, tolerant of risk, and open to thinking far outside the box.
The new Chemical Bonding Centers (CBCs) will be based at the Massachusetts General Hospital, the University of California at Santa Barbara, and the
A University of Alberta researcher has discovered two new species of shrimp–adding to an unusual family that already includes varieties who can shoot bubbles that create sound waves, stunning their prey.
Dr. Arthur Anker, a post-doctoral fellow in the University of Alberta’s Department of Biological Sciences, focuses his research on a family of shrimp known as snapping shrimp–scientifically known as alpheidae–and has recently discovered two new species.
Shrimp from
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