Longitudinal and functional study of 700 aging mice provides a treasure trove of data for those studying aging and age-related diseases. A compound that extends lifespan in a tiny nematode worm slows bone loss in aging mice. That surprising result comes from a longitudinal and functional study of 700 aging mice at the Buck Institute, a project that provides a treasure trove of data for researchers aiming to develop therapeutics to slow aging and age-related diseases. The study is currently…
Mosses and flowering plants took different genetic routes to evolve a similar defense mechanism A team led by plant biologists at the Universities of Freiburg and Göttingen in Germany has shown for the first time that mosses have a mechanism to protect them against cold that was previously known only in flowering plants. Professor Ralf Reski at the Cluster of Excellence Centre for Integrative Biological Signalling Studies (CIBSS) at the University of Freiburg and Professor Ivo Feussner at the Center…
Harvard-led researchers have produced the most comprehensive genome of one of the world’s largest flowers. On January 22 in Current Biology, a team of Harvard-led researchers presented the most complete genome yet assembled of one of the major Rafflesiaceae lineages, Sapria himalayana. The species is found in Southeast Asia and its mottled red and white flower is about the size of a dinner plate. (It’s more famous cousin, Rafflesia arnoldii, produces blossoms nearly three feet in diameter, the largest in…
Cryo-electron microscopy study allows researchers to visualize structural changes in an E. coli enzyme synthesizing ribosomal RNA that shift it between turbo- and slow-modes depending on the bacteria’s growth rate. The enzyme that makes RNA from a DNA template is altered to slow the production of ribosomal RNA (rRNA), the most abundant type of RNA within cells, when resources are scarce and the bacteria Escherichia coli needs to slow its growth. Researchers used cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to capture the structures…
New insights to an icon of evolutionary biology Analysis of digitized collection specimens supports an old hypothesis. For a long time, the long neck of giraffes has fascinated evolutionary biologists and anatomists. Despite its enormous length of approximately 2 meters it is made up of only 7 vertebrae, just like in us humans, in tiny shrews and almost all other mammals. New methods help researchers of the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (HU) and the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU) in Germany to find…
New Emmy Noether group at the University of Potsdam conducts joint research with Fraunhofer IAP On January 1, 2021, the new Emmy Noether Group “Next Generation Antimicrobial Polymers” started its work at the University of Potsdam in close cooperation with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research IAP. The goal is to develop antimicrobial polymers that can replace antibiotics. “The fight against antibiotic resistance is unfortunately becoming increasingly important. After all, if we as a society lose the ability to…
Nerve cells communicate with one another via synapses. Neuroscientists at the University of Zurich and ETH Zurich have now found that these connections seem to be much more powerful than previously thought. The larger the synapse, the stronger the signal it transmits. These findings will enable a better understanding of how the brain functions and how neurological disorders arise. The neocortex is the part of the brain that humans use to process sensory impressions, store memories, give instructions to the…
Shelled pteropods, microscopic free-swimming sea snails, are widely regarded as indicators for ocean acidification because research has shown that their fragile shells are vulnerable to increasing ocean acidity. A new study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, shows that pteropods sampled off the coasts of Washington and Oregon made thinner shells than those in offshore waters. Along the coast, upwelling from deeper water layers brings cold, carbon dioxide-rich waters of relatively low pH to the surface. The research, by a…
Scientists have discovered how bacteria commonly responsible for seafood-related stomach upsets can go dormant and then “wake up”. Vibrio parahaemolyticus is a marine bacterium that can cause gastroenteritis in humans when eaten in raw or undercooked shellfish such as oysters and mussels. Some of these bacteria are able to turn dormant in poor growth conditions such as cold temperatures – and can remain in that state of hibernation for long periods before resuscitating. University of Exeter scientists have identified a…
Chemists at the University of Jena harness synergy effect of gallium Chemists at Friedrich Schiller University Jena have demonstrated the value of “teamwork” by successfully harnessing the interaction between two gallium atoms in a novel compound to split the particularly strong bond between fluorine and carbon. The gallium compound is also cheaper and more environmentally friendly than conventional alternatives. Sustainable and inexpensive “Such reactions are usually carried out using transition metals, such as nickel or iridium,” explains Prof. Robert Kretschmer,…
Until recently, oligodendrocytes were primarily thought to be a kind of cellular insulating tape that accelerates the transmission of electrical signals in the brain. A study by the University of Bonn now shows that they are also important for the energy supply of neurons in some brain regions. The findings are published in the journal Cell Reports. The human brain has about as many neurons as glial cells. These are divided into four major groups: the microglia, the astrocytes, the…
A mathematical framework enables accurate characterization of shapes In nature, many things have evolved that differ in size, color and, above all, in shape. While the color or size of an object can be easily described, the description of a shape is more complicated. In a study now published in Nature Communications, Jacqueline Nowak of the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology (MPI-MP) and her colleagues have outlined a new and improved way to describe shapes based on a…
Cell velocity, or how fast a cell moves, is known to depend on how sticky the surface is beneath it, but the precise mechanisms of this relationship have remained elusive for decades. Now, researchers from the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC) and Ludwig Maximilians Universität München (LMU) have figured out the precise mechanics and developed a mathematical model capturing the forces involved in cell movement. The findings, reported in the journal Proceedings of the…
Images of a protein involved in creating a potent antibiotic reveal the unusual first steps of the antibiotic’s synthesis. The improved understanding of the chemistry behind this process, detailed in a new study led by Penn State chemists, could allow researchers to adapt this and similar compounds for use in human medicine. “The antibiotic thiostrepton is very potent against Gram-positive pathogens and can even target certain breast cancer cells in culture,” said Squire Booker, a biochemist at Penn State and…
In a large genome study, a Kiel University research team demonstrates correlations between certain gene variants and the composition of bacterial colonization in the human body For several years, scientists worldwide have been investigating the extent to which microorganisms living in and on the human body influence central life processes and thus health and disease. Today they assume that there is a connection between the totality of the microbial colonization in the human body, called the microbiome, and the development…
How do tumours develop in the cervix? Many new details are now known about this question. This is also thanks to Dr. Cindrilla Chumduri from the Biocentre at the University of Würzburg. Organoids are increasingly being used in biomedical research. These are organ-like structures created in the laboratory that are only a few millimetres in size. Organoids can be used to study life processes and the effect of drugs. Because they closely resemble real organs, they offer several advantages over…
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