Three Major Papers Advance Understanding of Meiosis in C. elegans

Most cells in the body contain two copies of every chromosome, one from each parent. Sex involves gently scrambling the genetic material of the chromosomes to produce variations within each species, creating individuals variously equipped to meet life’s challenges. The secret of sex is meiosis, a specialized kind of cell division in which a cell replicates and then divides twice (not just once, as nonsex cells do),

Dr. Kathleen Collins and a graduate researcher in her lab at UC Berkeley have identified a second RNAi pathway in Tetrahymena thermophilia – introducing a heretofore unprecedented layer of complexity to small RNA biology in unicellular organisms.

The researchers describe a distinct class of 23-24-nt small RNAs that accumulate ubiquitously throughout the Tetrahymena life cycle. This novel class of small RNAs has unique features compared with the previously identified class of 27-30-nt RNA

Once described as DNA’s less-famous chemical cousin, RNA, or ribonucleic acid, recently has moved to center stage.

RNA, the genetic material that circulates throughout cells, orchestrates the building of proteins based on instructions provided by DNA, catalyzes chemical reactions and can alter expression of proteins that may lead to cancer and other diseases.

But finding compounds that bind to and inhibit an RNA sequence — as a potential new approach to designing d

Sweet taste’s ability to reduce pain is related to both sweet liking and body weight

It’s no secret that children like sweet-tasting foods and beverages. It’s also known that sweet taste acts as an analgesic in children, reducing their perception of pain. Now researchers at the Monell Chemical Senses Center report in the current issue of the journal Pain that the analgesic efficacy of sweet taste is influenced both by how much a child likes sweet taste and by the child&#14

Bats have an “ear” for flying in the dark because of a remarkable auditory talent that allows them to determine their physical environment by listening to echoes. But an Ohio University neurobiology professor says bats have a “feel” for it, too.

John Zook’s studies of bat flight suggest that touch-sensitive receptors on bats’ wings help them maintain altitude and catch insects in midair. His preliminary findings, presented at the recent Society for Neuroscience meeting, revive pa

The ubiquitous and usually harmless E. coli bacterium, which has one-seventh the number of genes as a human, has more than 1,000 of them involved in metabolism and metabolic regulation. Activation of random combinations of these genes would theoretically be capable of generating a huge variety of internal states; however, researchers at UCSD will report in the Dec. 27 issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) that Escherichia coli doesn’t gamble with its metabolism. In a surp

Women with genetic variant were more likely to see their cancer return

One of the most commonly prescribed drugs for breast cancer, tamoxifen, may not be as effective for women who inherit a common genetic variation, according to researchers at the University of Michigan and the Mayo Clinic. The genetic variation affects the level of a crucial enzyme that activates tamoxifen to fight breast cancer.

The study, co-led by researcher James Rae, Ph.D., at the University of Mi

The recently emerged field of bacterial riboswitches may be a good hunting ground for effective targets against bacterial infection, according to a report by Yale researchers in the journal Chemistry and Biology.

Riboswitches are RNA elements that control gene expression in essential metabolic pathways. Researchers in the laboratory of Ronald R. Breaker, the Henry Ford II Professor of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology at Yale, showed that a riboswitch controlling vitam

System provides insight into chemical process with potential industrial applications

When threatened by predators, sea slugs defend themselves by ejecting a potent inky secretion into the water consisting of hydrogen peroxide, ammonia and several types of acids. A team of researchers with the Atlanta-based Center for Behavioral Neuroscience (CBN) has found that this secretion is produced from normally inert chemicals stored separately in two glands. The discovery, published in the D

Findings suggest need to expand targets of new treatments

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill scientists have demonstrated in a living organism that cancers may cause surrounding supportive cells to evolve and ultimately promote cancer growth.

The new research offers what is believed to be the first evidence that mutations within cancer cells can signal surrounding tissue cells to alter their molecular composition in ways that promote tumor growth and proliferatio

Sangamo BioSciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: SGMO) today announced that data from its program to develop a ZFP Therapeutic(TM) for HIV/AIDS were presented at the 45th Annual Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC) in Washington, DC. The study represents the first demonstration that cells can be made resistant to HIV infection by treatment with Sangamo’s proprietary zinc finger DNA-binding protein nucleases (ZFNTM) designed to specifically disrupt the CCR5 gene.

How can we keep ahead in the battle against infectious diseases? The current threat of avian flu has sent panic around the globe and even in hospitals, where you might hope to be safe from disease, MRSA is a cause for concern in the health service. Sure-fire curses for these conditions seem a long way off and governments, policymakers and the public are often at a loss to know how to respond.

However, a multidisciplinary team of researchers at The University of Nottingham believe

Researchers at Columbia University Medical Center have identified an inherent feature of stem and progenitor cells that may promote initiation and progression of cancerous tumors.

In a study published in the December issue of Cancer Cell, the team showed that stem and progenitor cells are susceptible to a specific error during cell division that can result in severe chromosomal defects. This susceptibility may explain how a tumor-initiating cell, also known as a cancer stem cell

For two decades, doctors have followed an ethically-established agreement about the appropriate use of artificial nutrition and hydration (ANH) for patients who are seriously ill or in a persistent vegetative state. Generally, patients or their surrogates have been able to accept or refuse ANH based upon considerations that guide most treatment decisions, i.e., potential benefits, risks, burden, religious and cultural beliefs. The Terri Schiavo case – which included very open, dramatic disagreemen

Researchers have developed a new computerized system to easily monitor the levels of glucose in the blood of patients in intensive care. A study published today in the open access journal BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making reports that GRIP, a computer software that assists in the monitoring of glucose levels in critically ill patients, saves nurses time and effort and is more efficient than the paper-based method currently used in many intensive care units (ICUs). Monitoring blood glucos

The sweet taste of temperature

Why does a beer taste better if it comes from the fridge and does a warm beer taste bitter? Why is red Bordeaux wine best drunk at room temperature? And what causes that unique taste sensation of ice cream? Researchers from the Physiology section of the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (K.U.Leuven, Belgium) have discovered, together with their Japanese and American colleagues, how the temperature sensitivity of our sense of taste works. Today, they pu