Researchers Discover Novel Gene Family Responsible For Pacemaker Activity In Brain And Heart
...n to aresting state. "A pacemaker channel senses that a cell has just fired and tells itthat it can't rest, it has to fire another action potential," says Steven Siegelbaum, Ph.D.,professor of pharmacology at Columbia University College of Physicians &Surgeons and a Howard Hughes investigator. He a...Yes Virginia, Plants Are Alive!
... "Children learn about the world through their senses by playfullyinteracting with theirsurroundings," said Robin C. Moore. "What better place to be motivated to playand learn than in a garden -- here, real science can be an adventure!" The NewYork Botanical Garden has met the challenge of making natur...Scientists Discover Key Cog In Receptor That Governs Ripening
...cules like ethylene. The theory isthe protein that senses gets help somehow." One idea was a transition metal,metals like copper, silver and gold, which mediate reactions in organicchemistry, for example. The new discovery, says Bleecker, confirms that theory, but also has animportant evolutionary twist. Th...Errant nerve cells risk a clockwork death
...so found evidence that the tip of the growing axon senses this survivalprotein and sends a signal back to the main nerve cell body to thwart thesuicide program. Experiments are underway to isolate the survival signals....Expect rapid, pervasive innovation in 21st century
... Bill Gates' home. "When he walks into a room, it senses that it's Bill Gates walking into that room so the lightsturn on a certain way, and the colors and temperature change to his liking," says Fuchs, who believesthat such innovations will become commonplace in the 21st century. "There are going to be a...University of Pittsburgh researchers uncover mitochondrial defect involved with inherited cancers
...gan located in the carotid artery in the neck that senses blood oxygen levels. This discovery is important because for the first time it ties a genetic defect in mitochondria (energy producing organelles inside the cell) to tumor development. Results of the study appear in today's issue of the journal...Brain cell 'chorus' appears as attention increases
... different signals have to be connected. What your senses perceive will influence how much attention you pay to them, but, he said, "it seems like a good idea if you can have two different but related signals that you can use to represent these two things." An increase in the number of nerve cells firing in...UCSD study of uncoordinated fruit flies provides molecular clues to hearing problems in humans
...lectrical responses in the brain. "The mechanical senses are conserved through evolution, from the tiniest organisms to humans, because they all perform this critical function, which is to respond to mechanical stimulation," said Charles S. Zuker, a professor of biology who headed the study. "Our enjoymen...Manatees saved by ONR-supported technology
... a garage door opener that immediately stops if it senses someone or something beneath the door. At Port Canaveral, a break in the acoustic signal alerts the gates to stop closing, giving any manatees time to get clear of the gates. The ONR Materials Division initiated development of the piezoelectric mate...Researchers find unusual protein in bacterium
...oned by air, [the protein's] oxygen-binding domain senses when oxygen is present in the environment and causes the bacteria to swim away from it," says Donald M. Kurtz, Jr., Ph.D., the principal investigator of the study and a professor of chemistry at the University of Georgia, located in Athens, Ga. He c...Chemical from venom of Chilean tarantula could aid treatment of heart attack, other major diseases
...ave been implicated in functions as diverse as the senses of touch and hearing, muscle contraction and coordination, and blood pressure and volume regulation. This is the first report of a substance -- in this case a small protein -- that specifically blocks stretch-activated channels. Until now, it has ...Foods puffed up with air can aid weight management
... But this study does show that you can trick your senses into believing you have eaten more food by pumping up the size of the portion with air." The study is detailed in the current issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in a paper, "Increasing the Volume of a Food by Incorporating Air Affec...Researchers identify molecule that senses osmotic pressure in vertebrates
...ity have identified a molecule in vertebrates that senses osmotic pressure -- the measure of saltiness essential for living cells -- and may provide an inroad into understanding inner ear function and the sense of touch. The findings are reported in the October 27 issue of Cell. The molecule, called VR-O....... It has been a biological puzzle how a nerve that senses many odors can distinguish between them. Scientis...group has determined that this nerve pair not only senses at least five attractive odors, but can also distinguish between the odors. The lab recently discov...National survey reveals profound lack of scientific knowledge
Public senses it is falling behind in scientific understandingand looks to scientists to provide reliable information San Francisco, CA, April 24, 2001.A national survey developed by the California Academy of Sciences and polling organization Harris Interactive,...Neuroscientist studies brains of bizarre-looking mammals
...aring is not that valuable either. That leaves the senses of touch and smell pre-eminent. His first research subject was the star-nosed molean animal that looks very much like an ordinary mole except that it has a peculiar star of fleshy appendages ringing its nose. Although they range from Canada, down th......Stamford, CT) The science of smell: how the nose senses odor - The olfactory system determines how we perceive fragrances and other odors, and also provides neuroanatomical pathways by which odorous compounds affect our memory and emotions. In the nose, odorants bind to an extremely large family of recep...Chemists characterize regulators of zinc intake and export in cells
...site happens when it combines with zinc. When ZntR senses any extra zinc after the intake pump has been shut off, ZntR binds with the zinc, turning on the export pump. Any unwanted and potentially dangerous zinc is pumped out of the cell. The researchers determined the concentrations of zinc required with...Structure shows repair protein cradling broken DNA
...he role of Ku in DNA repair, the details of how Ku senses and initiates repair were still sketchy. The biochemistry is very clear, Goldberg said. Ku is sitting in the nucleus ready to sense DNA damage and to bind to DNA ends. What remained unclear, however, was how Ku was able to distinguish between broken...Fresh evidence points to marine bacteria as a source of anti-cancer drug
...ells, for example, it seems to bring them to their senses and make them behave like normal blood cells. The drug is now in clinical trials for use in humans....