UC Riverside researchers discover new way to identify cell growth
... that can stop cancerous cell growth." All higher organisms derive from a single cell, the fertilized egg that divides to generate different cell types, tissues and organs. Once the task has been completed, cells stop dividing and enter a dormant phase of the cell cycle. So any advance in recognizing the comp...UNC scientists block cellular enzyme activity involved in cancer progression
... amino acids are conserved in the FAK molecules of organisms as diverse as insects and humans. Schaller and his colleagues then engineered a mutant FAK molecule devoid of positive charges on that small patch of FERM and found that their mutant protein was nonfunctional. Whereas breast cancer cells responded to...NASA researchers customize 'lab-on-a-chip' technology
... technology in laboratories and in the field where organisms live in extreme environments on Earth, astrobiologists can compare Earth-life with that which may be found on other planets. "The micro array chip system developed to go to Mars will be lightweight, portable and capable of detecting organic molecules...Concerns remain about UVB damage to amphibians
...ately or later in life. "Given the numerous other organisms and biological systems that other scientists have already demonstrated to be impacted by UV, it makes sense that some amphibians too would be sensitive to UV radiation," said Lee Kats, a professor of biology at Pepperdine University and another auth...Microbes found in Mayan ruins may deteriorate stone from inside out
...population on the interior where no photosynthetic organisms were detected. Additional tests on the interior bacterial communities suggest that they break down limestone as they grow. "Surface analysis of microbial growth and disinfection of stone objects and buildings can no longer be considered sufficient,"...'Noisy' genes can have big impact
... as gene expression involved in the development of organisms proceed in a very orderly fashion, paradoxically, they depend on chemical reactions that are inherently probabilistic, like flipping a coin," said O'Shea. "And since these processes involve small numbers of molecules, they should be significantly aff...UW-Madison scientists find a key to cell division
...cell division in the growth and development of all organisms and, critically, of abnormal cell division, when the key proteins fail. These failures can lead to infertility, birth defects, cancer and neurological problems such as Huntington's and Alzheimer's diseases. "Going from one cell to two, or cytokinesis...Antibiotics alter GI tract microbes and increase lung sensitivity to allergens
...the GI tract, the number of yeast and other fungal organisms increases. In previous studies, researchers in Huffnagle's lab discovered that fungi secrete molecules called oxylipins, which can control the type and intensity of immune responses. Huffnagle says this suggests the intriguing possibility that funga...White tea beats green tea in fighting germs
...hite Tea Extract can actually destroy in vitro the organisms that cause disease. Study after study with tea extract proves that it has many healing properties. This is not an old wives tale, it's a fact." White tea was more effective than green tea at inactivating bacterial viruses. Results obtained with the b...Indoor mold, building dampness linked to respiratory problems and require better prevention
...dampness reduction, or a safe level of exposure to organisms and chemicals linked to dampness. Better standardized methods for assessing human exposure to these agents are greatly needed, the report says. It calls for studies that compare various ways to limit moisture or eliminate mold and to evaluate wheth......rch on the effects of artificial night lighting on organisms and ecosystems....Are bacteria turning our own weapons against us?
...d find this gene distributed throughout many other organisms like plants and yeasts. But in the case of α2m, they only found the gene in two groups: in animals, and in bacteria which invade animals. The gene never seems to occur anywhere else. "This suggested that bacteria have stolen it from multi-cellul...Discovery in parasite movement may offer insights into malaria
...-borne malaria parasite Plasmodium. "The way these organisms move and the way their movement is controlled is absolutely critical to their ability to cause disease," said Dr. Con Beckers, associate professor of cell and developmental biology at UNC's School of Medicine. "Movement is necessary for these parasit...Super-effective 'jumping gene' created
...ajor -- genetic shifts that drive evolution. While organisms like yeast have just a few dozen jumping genes in their genomes, mammals' genomes contain hundreds of thousands of copies of their jumping genes' DNA, making it difficult to know where or when -- or even if -- a jump has happened. In a second paper......hey encounter and to collect small samples of such organisms as sponges, soft corals and cone snails for further study. The scientists will test the potential of chemicals produced by these animals to fight disease first through simple experiments on board the ship and later with more elaborate tests in their ...Tips from the Journals of the American Society for Microbiology
...s. However, researchers have found that there are organisms resistant to silver and that lengthy exposure time is necessary for disinfection to occur. Ultra-violet (UV) radiation is a more recently developed method shown to inactivate protozoa in water. The main concern associated with UV radiation is eleva...Gene maps of simpler life forms point the way to human disease gene
...onstrates how maps of the genetic codes of simpler organisms can shed light on human disease, a computerized comparison of the complete genetic codes of a type of algae, a weed and humans has led medical researchers to a gene linked to a human illness. The comparison allowed researchers at Washington Universit...From algae, weeds and people: new genetic clues to complex obesity syndrome
...ease." That's because even very distantly related organisms -- the alga and humans, for example -- may share g...omonas. The alga provides easier access than other organisms to examine cilia and related structures called flagella, which also help with cells' own movement. ...Motion that powers sperm provides key to unravelling rare genetic disorder
...play a fundamental role in the development of many organisms including humans," explains Dr Beales. "Here we confirm the role they play in Bardet-Biedl syndrome, but it's clear their malfunction is linked to a number of health problems such as obesity, kidney disease, blindness and mental retardation." "The wa...Biologists uncover genetic links to broad range of human disorders resulting from cilia dysfunctions
...started with the entire genomes of a wide range of organisms ranging from the unicellular parasite responsible for malaria to humans. The UCSD biologists analyzed more than 150,000 genes using an ingenious computer-analysis strategy, devised by Avidor-Reiss, to search for genes uniquely involved in cilia form...