Researchers at The Jackson Laboratory reveal that hematopoietic stem cells age differently in genetically identical mice, offering new pathways for interventions to preserve health with aging. Our bone marrow—the fatty, jelly-like substance inside our bones—is an unseen powerhouse quietly producing 500 billion new blood cells every day. That process is driven by hematopoietic stem cells that generate all of the various types of blood cells in our bodies and regenerating themselves to keep the entire assembly line of blood production…
Direct reciprocity facilitates cooperation in repeated social interactions. Traditional models suggest that individuals learn to adopt conditionally cooperative strategies if they have multiple encounters with their partner. However, most existing models make rather strong assumptions about how individuals decide to keep or change their strategies. They assume individuals make these decisions based on a strategy’s average performance. This in turn suggests that individuals would remember their exact payoffs against everyone else. In a recent publication, researchers from the Max Planck…
Scientists in Germany have revealed how an unstructured protein traps cancer-promoting molecules. Each second of our lives, cells in our body grow and divide to ensure we stay healthy. However, this process has a dark side: if cell growth and divisions become excessive, that may cause cancer. To keep a safe balance, our cells are equipped with several molecular mechanisms to limit their own growth and division. EMBL Hamburg’s Wilmanns Group, in collaboration with research groups from the Center for…
The endosymbiont Symbiodolus clandestinus, living inside insect cells, has remained undiscovered until now. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology report its discovery in at least six insect orders. Using fluorescence in situ hybridisation, they showed that Symbiodolus is present in all life stages and tissues of infected insects. The symbiont is abundant in reproductive organs of adult females, eggs, and larvae, suggesting transovarial transmission. The interactions with host insects are not yet understood, but Symbiodolus likely impacts…
Looking under the microscope, a group of cells slowly moves forward in a line, like a train on the tracks. The cells navigate through complex environments. A new approach by researchers involving the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) now shows how they do this and how they interact with each other. The experimental observations and the following mathematical concept are published in Nature Physics. Snapshots of the cell railroad. Cells stretch away from a fish scale (left) into…
Poor lighting conditions can reduce quality of life. Our eyesight declines with age: Poor lighting or strong contrasts between light and dark can limit the ability of older people to react in everyday life, resulting in a negative impact on the sleep-wake-rhythm. As neuroscientists at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Tübingen and the University of Basel confirm, this is also due to the diminishing ability of the eye´s pupil to dilate sufficiently. Their results have now been…
In a new study published in the journal Cell, a team of researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena, Germany, describes for the first time how odors are encoded in the antennal lobe, the olfactory center in the brain of migratory locusts. Using transgenic locusts and imaging techniques, the researchers were able to show a ring-shaped representation of odors in the brain. The pattern of olfactory coding in the antennal lobe is the same at all…
Beta-catenin discovered as a new key player in the formation of the main body axis during mammalian embryogenesis. Formation of the body axes is a critical part of embryonic development. They guarantee that all body parts end up where they belong and that no ears grow on our backs. The head-tail axis, for example, determines the orientation of the two ends of the body. It was previously assumed that this axis is largely determined by the interplay between the Nodal…
Viruses, including the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, can get passed from person to person via contaminated surfaces. But can some surfaces reduce the risk of this type of transmission without the help of household disinfectants? As reported in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, wood has natural antiviral properties that can reduce the time viruses persist on its surface — and some species of wood are more effective than others at reducing infectivity. Enveloped viruses, like the coronavirus, can live up…
Researchers Develop Biocatalytic Process for Nitrile Production. A research team from TU Graz and the Czech Academy of Sciences has used two enzymes to eliminate the need for highly toxic cyanide in the production of nitriles. If the household cleaner emits a lemon-like odour, this may be due to a nitrile called citronellyl nitrile. These versatile chemical nitrile groups are also used in the manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients, superglue and chemical-resistant gloves. The prevalent production process used so far…
An unusually large brain may be the first sign of autism — and visible as early as the first trimester, University of California San Diego researchers found. Some children with profound autism experience lifelong difficulties with social, language and cognitive skills, and even lack the ability to speak. Others experience more mild symptoms that improve with time. The disparity in outcomes has been a mystery to scientists, until now. A new study, published in Molecular Autism by researchers at University…
An international research team led by Dr Florian Auras from Dresden University of Technology (TUD) has succeeded in developing a new type of material in the rather young research field of covalent organic frameworks. The new two-dimensional polymer is characterised by the fact that its properties can be controlled in a targeted and reversible manner. This has brought the researchers a step closer to the goal of realising switchable quantum states. These results were recently published in the renowned journal…
Dorothee Dormann and Edward Lemke propose a new concept to measure the individual risk of getting age-related diseases. Could measuring protein clumps in our cells be a new way to find out our risk of getting age-related diseases? Professor Dorothee Dormann and Professor Edward Lemke of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU), who are also adjunct directors at the Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB) in Mainz, propose the concept of a “protein aggregation clock” to measure ageing and health in a…
Aldehydes are essential compounds in the chemical industry and are used in the manufacture of medications, vitamins, and fragrances. The selective oxidation of alcohols into aldehydes without secondary reactions is thus of great importance. Overoxidation often occurs with many conventional methods, causing unwanted byproducts such as carboxylic acid and esters to be formed. Traditional alcohol oxidation methods also often require the use of solvents and environmentally harmful chemicals. They not only produce harmful waste but also pose significant health risks…
Things aren’t always as they seem. Take pancreatic cancer, for example. In up to one in 10 cases, researchers have documented a peculiar characteristic. Some of the pancreatic cells appear to have lost their identity. It’s as if they forget what they are. “This is very bizarre. You see pancreatic cancer, which usually somewhat resembles the original organ, losing those features and basically becoming akin to skin or esophagus—these other very unrelated tissues, ” explains former Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory…
A new approach enables dressings that adhere firmly to the skin at body temperature, but can be removed easily and painlessly in combination with a cold pack. The dressing adheres firmly to the skin or wound site without restricting the patient’s freedom of movement. It can be removed easily and painlessly by cooling, e.g. with a cold pack. In addition, no adhesive residue sticks to the healing tissue. TLB has been commissioned to exploit this pioneering technology and offers wound…
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