Topic: Science News!
!poISOnioxc started this discussion 15 years ago #6,775
Microscopic Worms Could Help Open Up Travel Into Deep Space
A space flight by millions of microscopic worms could help us overcome the numerous threats posed to human health by space travel. The Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) have also given experts an insight into how to block muscle degradation in the sick and elderly.
Many of C. elegans' 20,000 genes perform the same functions as those in humans. Experts in human physiology from the School of Graduate Entry Medicine wanted to study the effectiveness of RNA interference (RNAi), a tried and tested technique which regulates gene expression in diseased tissue, and whether this technique could be employed to reduce or control the dramatic muscle loss experienced by astronauts during spaceflight.
The results of this research, published June 1, 2011 in the journal PLoS ONE, have shown that RNAi, which is already the subject of more than a dozen clinical trials to target illnesses ranging from cancer to asthma, functions normally in space flight and could be used as a viable option to treat and control muscle degradation in spaceflight. Their discovery will not only be of interest to astronauts but will also help people who suffer from muscle wasting caused by illness and old age.
A space flight by millions of microscopic worms could help us overcome the numerous threats posed to human health by space travel. The Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) have also given experts an insight into how to block muscle degradation in the sick and elderly.
Many of C. elegans' 20,000 genes perform the same functions as those in humans. Experts in human physiology from the School of Graduate Entry Medicine wanted to study the effectiveness of RNA interference (RNAi), a tried and tested technique which regulates gene expression in diseased tissue, and whether this technique could be employed to reduce or control the dramatic muscle loss experienced by astronauts during spaceflight.
The results of this research, published June 1, 2011 in the journal PLoS ONE, have shown that RNAi, which is already the subject of more than a dozen clinical trials to target illnesses ranging from cancer to asthma, functions normally in space flight and could be used as a viable option to treat and control muscle degradation in spaceflight. Their discovery will not only be of interest to astronauts but will also help people who suffer from muscle wasting caused by illness and old age.
(Edited 49 seconds later.)
Anonymous B joined in and replied with this 15 years ago, 1 minute later[^] [v] #118,664
Stop trying to be a quality poster Carebear.
!poISOnioxc (OP) replied with this 15 years ago, 1 minute later, 3 minutes after the original post[^] [v] #118,668
!poISOnioxc (OP) double-posted this 15 years ago, 2 minutes later, 6 minutes after the original post[^] [v] #118,670
@118,664 (B)
Autism Changes Molecular Structure of the Brain: Discovery Points to a Common Cause for Multifaceted Disease
Now a UCLA study is the first to reveal how the disorder makes its mark at the molecular level, resulting in an autistic brain that differs dramatically in structure from a healthy one.
The researchers focused on gene expression -- how a gene's DNA sequence is copied into RNA, which directs the synthesis of cellular molecules called proteins. Each protein is assigned a specific task by the gene to perform in the cell.
By measuring gene-expression levels in the cerebral cortex, the team uncovered consistent differences in how genes in autistic and healthy brains encode information.
The researchers' next step was to identify the common patterns. To do this, they looked at the cerebral cortex's frontal lobe, which plays a role in judgment, creativity, emotions and speech, and at its temporal lobes, which regulate hearing, language and the processing and interpreting of sounds.
When the scientists compared the frontal and temporal lobes in the healthy brains, they saw that more than 500 genes were expressed at different levels in the two regions.
In the autistic brains, these differences were virtually non-existent.
"In a healthy brain, hundreds of genes behave differently from region to region, and the frontal and temporal lobes are easy to tell apart," Geschwind said. "We didn't see this in the autistic brain. Instead, the frontal lobe closely resembles the temporal lobe. Most of the features that normally distinguish the two regions had disappeared."
Two other clear-cut patterns emerged when the scientists compared the autistic and healthy brains. First, the autistic brain showed a drop in the levels of genes responsible for neuron function and communication. Second, the autistic brain displayed a jump in the levels of genes involved in immune function and inflammatory response.
Autism Changes Molecular Structure of the Brain: Discovery Points to a Common Cause for Multifaceted Disease
Now a UCLA study is the first to reveal how the disorder makes its mark at the molecular level, resulting in an autistic brain that differs dramatically in structure from a healthy one.
The researchers focused on gene expression -- how a gene's DNA sequence is copied into RNA, which directs the synthesis of cellular molecules called proteins. Each protein is assigned a specific task by the gene to perform in the cell.
By measuring gene-expression levels in the cerebral cortex, the team uncovered consistent differences in how genes in autistic and healthy brains encode information.
The researchers' next step was to identify the common patterns. To do this, they looked at the cerebral cortex's frontal lobe, which plays a role in judgment, creativity, emotions and speech, and at its temporal lobes, which regulate hearing, language and the processing and interpreting of sounds.
When the scientists compared the frontal and temporal lobes in the healthy brains, they saw that more than 500 genes were expressed at different levels in the two regions.
In the autistic brains, these differences were virtually non-existent.
"In a healthy brain, hundreds of genes behave differently from region to region, and the frontal and temporal lobes are easy to tell apart," Geschwind said. "We didn't see this in the autistic brain. Instead, the frontal lobe closely resembles the temporal lobe. Most of the features that normally distinguish the two regions had disappeared."
Two other clear-cut patterns emerged when the scientists compared the autistic and healthy brains. First, the autistic brain showed a drop in the levels of genes responsible for neuron function and communication. Second, the autistic brain displayed a jump in the levels of genes involved in immune function and inflammatory response.
Ks !KansasxqvM joined in and replied with this 15 years ago, 30 seconds later, 6 minutes after the original post[^] [v] #118,671
I love good news, thanx for sharing, interesting read.
Anonymous B replied with this 15 years ago, 4 minutes later, 10 minutes after the original post[^] [v] #118,682
!poISOnioxc (OP) replied with this 15 years ago, 9 minutes later, 19 minutes after the original post[^] [v] #118,689
@previous (B)
Do you have this new gene?
New Gene That Causes Intellectual Disability Identified
This international study combined Dr. Vincent's gene mapping of a family with Joubert syndrome, with the use of a protein network map established by researchers at Genentech Inc., Stanford University and the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF). Together this approach identified two genes associated with the group of disorders called ciliopathies.
Joubert syndrome, which is a ciliopathy, affects brain functioning, resulting in intellectual deficits, movement and coordination problems and other symptoms such as kidney and eye problems. This syndrome is reported to affect approximately 1 in 100,000 children, although this is likely to be a significant underestimate of the true prevalence.
Ciliopathies are caused by genetic defects to a part of the cell called the cilium. The cilium is crucial as it is involved with cell signaling pathways during cell development in different parts of the body. The other ciliopathy gene identified in this study leads to a condition called nephronopthisis, which is also associated with kidney and eye problems
Do you have this new gene?
New Gene That Causes Intellectual Disability Identified
This international study combined Dr. Vincent's gene mapping of a family with Joubert syndrome, with the use of a protein network map established by researchers at Genentech Inc., Stanford University and the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF). Together this approach identified two genes associated with the group of disorders called ciliopathies.
Joubert syndrome, which is a ciliopathy, affects brain functioning, resulting in intellectual deficits, movement and coordination problems and other symptoms such as kidney and eye problems. This syndrome is reported to affect approximately 1 in 100,000 children, although this is likely to be a significant underestimate of the true prevalence.
Ciliopathies are caused by genetic defects to a part of the cell called the cilium. The cilium is crucial as it is involved with cell signaling pathways during cell development in different parts of the body. The other ciliopathy gene identified in this study leads to a condition called nephronopthisis, which is also associated with kidney and eye problems