Stir this clear liquid in a glass vial and nothing happens. Shake this liquid, and free-floating sheets of protein-like structures emerge, ready to detect molecules or catalyze a reaction. This isn't the latest gadget from James Bond's arsenal -- rather, the latest research from the U. S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) scientists unveiling how slim sheets of protein-like structures self-assemble.
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FINDINGS: Whitehead Institute scientists have determined that master transcription factors determine the genes regulated by key signaling pathways. In this way, signaling pathways are targeted to genes that are most relevant to each cell type and tailor gene expression to control cell state, growth, differentiation, and death.
Researchers have now identified and characterized adult stem cells that have the capacity to regenerate lung tissue. The findings, which come from studies of isolated human stem cells and of mice infected with a particularly nasty strain of H1N1 influenza virus, could lead to new regenerative therapies for acute and chronic airway diseases, according to the report published in the October 28th issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication.
New discoveries about follicular lymphoma, a currently intractable form of cancer, highlight the power of functional genomics in cancer gene discovery. A report in the Oct 28th issue of Cell, a Cell Press publication, demonstrates how genetic insights can be translated directly into therapies.
The findings are but one example of what has now become possible given the avalanche of data on cancer genomes.
As the planet continues to warm, it appears that seaweeds may be in especially hot water. New findings reported online on October 27 in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, based on herbarium records collected in Australia since the 1940s suggest that up to 25 percent of temperate seaweed species living there could be headed to extinction. The study helps to fill an important gap in understanding about the impact that global warming is having on the oceans, the researchers say.
BOSTON, MA (Oct 27, 2011)—Researchers have built a map that shows how thousands of proteins in a fruit fly cell communicate with each other . This is the largest and most detailed protein interaction map of a multicellular organism, demonstrating how approximately 5000, or one third, of the proteins cooperate to keep life going.
Boston (Oct. 27, 2011)—Guided by insights into how mice recover after H1N1 flu, researchers at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, together with researchers at A*STAR of Singapore, have cloned three distinct stem cells from the human airways and demonstrated that one of these cells can form into the lung's alveoli air sac tissue. What's more, the researchers showed that these same lung stem cells are rapidly deployed in a dynamic process of lung regeneration to combat damage from infection or chronic disease
GALVESTON, Texas -- One of the things that makes inhalational anthrax so worrisome for biodefense experts is how quickly a relatively small number of inhaled anthrax spores can turn into a lethal infection. By the time an anthrax victim realizes he or she has something worse than the flu and seeks treatment, it's often too late; even the most powerful antibiotics may be no help against the spreading bacteria and the potent toxins they generate.
Multiple sclerosis is caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. For a long time, pathogens were believed to be such external influences. According to scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried, however, it is apparently not harmful bacteria that trigger multiple sclerosis, but beneficial ones – specifically, the natural intestinal flora, which every human being needs for digestion.
TORONTO, ON -- The mere presence of a predator causes enough stress to kill a dragonfly, even when the predator cannot actually get at its prey to eat it, say biologists at the University of Toronto.
"How prey respond to the fear of being eaten is an important topic in ecology, and we've learned a great deal about how these responses affect predator and prey interactions," says Professor Locke Rowe, chair of the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (EEB) and co-principal investigator of a study conducted at U of T's Koffler Scientific Reserve.
A recent study accepted for publication in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism found that higher levels of testosterone were associated with reduced loss of lean muscle mass in older men, especially in those who were losing weight. In these men, higher testosterone levels were also associated with less loss of lower body strength.
A recent study has found that a childhood behavioral intervention to lower dietary intake of total fat and saturated fat and increase consumption of foods that are good sources of dietary fiber resulted in significantly lower fasting plasma glucose levels and lower systolic blood pressure when study participants were re-evaluated in young adulthood. The study was accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (JCEM).
Georgetown researchers examine 21-year series of nipple sparing mastectomy cases and find no cancers
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A new study suggests some women needing a lumpectomy or mastectomy to treat their breast cancer have another potential option that is safe and effective, say researchers at Georgetown. They say the procedure known as a nipple sparing mastectomy is also a viable surgical option for women who choose to have their breasts removed because of their increased risk of developing the disease. For both groups of women, the surgery offers a chance for a more natural looking and normal feeling reconstructed breast as compared to other forms of mastectomy.
Insulated in a luxuriously thick winter coat, reindeer are perfectly prepared for the gripping cold of an Arctic winter. But the pelt doesn't just keep the cold out, it keeps the warmth in too: which is fine when the animals are resting, but what happens when they are active and generating heat?
Philadelphia, PA, -- Although corticosteroid injections are one of the most common treatments for shoulder pain, there have been relatively few high-quality investigations of their efficacy and duration of action. In a study scheduled for publication in the December issue of the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, researchers report on the first comparative study of the two most commonly corticosteroid doses administered for shoulder pain.