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Genes, environment, or chance?

Biologists attribute variations among individual organisms to differences in genes or environment, or both. But a new study of nematode worms with identical genes, raised in identical environments, has revealed another factor: chance.

It's another source of variation for scientists to consider. "Researchers have been exploring whether organisms evolve different ways to cope with genetic and environmental variation," said author Scott Rifkin, an assistant professor of biology at UC San Diego. "This study adds random variation to that mix."

MSU researcher links potentially deadly infection, frequent cow exposure

EAST LANSING, Mich. — A common bacteria found in many healthy adult females that can cause life-threatening infections when passed to newborns could be introduced to some women through frequent contact with cows, according to a research team led by a Michigan State University pediatrician.

The recently published findings that Group B streptococcus could be a zoonotic disease – transmitted between different species – may have significant public health implications, said Dele Davies, chairperson of MSU's Department of Pediatrics and Human Development.

Transforming skin cells into stem cells using a molecular toolkit

In an effort to sidestep the ethical dilemma involved in using human embryonic stem cells to treat diseases, scientists are developing non-controversial alternatives: In particular, they are looking for drug-like chemical compounds that can transform adult skin cells into the stem cells now obtained from human embryos. That's the topic of a fascinating article in Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), ACS' weekly newsmagazine.

Rock-Paper-Scissors can solve anything; and even lead to new species?

SANTA CRUZ, CA--New research on lizards supports an old idea about how species can originate. Morphologically distinct types are often found within species, and biologists have speculated that these "morphs" could be the raw material for speciation. What were once different types of individuals within the same population could eventually evolve into separate species.

Biologists discover how biological clock controls cell division in bacteria

A team of biologists has unraveled the biochemistry of how bacteria so precisely time cell division, a key element in understanding how all organisms from bacteria to humans use their biological clocks to control basic cellular functions.

The discovery, detailed in the February 19 issue of the journal Cell, provides important clues to how the biological clocks of bacteria and other "prokaryotic" cells—which lack cell nuclei—evolved differently from that of "eukaryotic" cells with nuclei that comprise most other forms of life, from fungi to plants and animals.

UCLA study reveals how genes interact with their environment to cause disease

A UCLA study reveals how human genes interact with their environment to boost disease risk. Published in the Feb. 18 online edition of the American Journal of Human Genetics, the findings shed light on why the search for specific gene variants linked to human diseases can only partly explain common disorders.

Penn researchers find genetic link to leukemias with an unknown origin

PHILADELPHIA – Although leukemia is one of the best studied cancers, the cause of some types is still poorly understood. Now, a newly found mutation in acute myeloid leukemia patients could account for half of the remaining cases of adult acute leukemia with an unknown origin.

Does green tea help fight glaucoma and other eye diseases?

Scientists have confirmed that the healthful substances found in green tea — renowned for their powerful antioxidant and disease-fighting properties — do penetrate into tissues of the eye. Their new report, the first documenting how the lens, retina, and other eye tissues absorb these substances, raises the possibility that green tea may protect against glaucoma and other common eye diseases. It appears in ACS's bi-weekly Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

Sanford-Burnham scientists identify natural compound that inhibits cancer cell migration

LA JOLLA, Calif., February 18, 2010 -- Investigators at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham, formerly Burnham Institute for Medical Research) led by Kristiina Vuori, M.D., Ph.D., have discovered that the natural compound sceptrin, which is found in marine sponges, reduces cancer cell motility (movement) and has very low toxicity. Metastasis is one of the deadliest aspects of cancer, so restricting aberrant cell movement is an important step towards advancing treatments. The research was published online in ACS Chemical Biology, in collaboration with Phil S.

Happiness is ... looking forward to your vacation

It takes more than a vacation to make people happy. Indeed, vacationers tend to be happier than non-vacationers in the lead up to their break, but once they are back, there is very little difference between the two groups' levels of happiness. These findings¹ by Jeroen Nawijn from Erasmus University in Rotterdam and NHTV Breda University of Applied Sciences and his team are published online in Springer's journal Applied Research in Quality of Life.

Mayo Clinic reports its first lung transplantation by donation after cardiac death

ROCHESTER, Minn. - Lung transplantation is a well-known therapy for patients with end-stage lung disease, but, as with other patients waiting for organs for transplantation, there are more recipients waiting than donors available. A potential solution for patients with end-stage lung disease is donation after cardiac death (DCD). Mayo Clinic reports its - and Minnesota's - first lung transplantation from DCD in the February issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

Understanding global climate change through new breakthroughs in polar research

The latest findings from research on Antarctica's rich marine life are presented this week at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Marine Biologist Huw Griffiths from British Antarctic Survey (BAS) is involved in a major international investigation into the distribution and abundance of Antarctica's vast marine biodiversity – the Census of Antarctic Marine Life (CAML).

Most maternal deaths in sub-Saharan Africa could be avoided

More than 500,000 women die each year worldwide due to complications arising from pregnancy and childbirth. Half of these women live in sub-Saharan Africa. A research team from the King Juan Carlos University (URJC) in Madrid says these women are not dying as a result of any illness, but rather from a lack of basic healthcare measures.

"Maternal mortality is a good indicator of a country's healthcare situation and of the inequalities between men and women", José Luis Álvarez, the lead author of this study and a researcher at the URCJ in Madrid, tells SINC.

University of Minnesota scientist finds that big plant seeds don't always beat out small seeds

University of Minnesota College of Biological Sciences researcher Helene Muller-Landau has developed a new theory explaining why some plant species produce a small number of large seeds while others produce a large number of small seeds.

Untreated poor vision in elderly linked to dementia, University of Michigan study shows

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Elderly people with visual disorders that are left untreated are significantly more likely to develop Alzheimer's disease -- the most common form of dementia, according to a University of Michigan Health System study.

The study used Medicare data and shows that those with poor vision who visited an ophthalmologist at least once for an examination were 64 percent less likely to develop dementia.