Mice Missing Protein Burn More Fat

Scientists in Philadelphia who have been performing genetic tests on mice have recently made a discovery that could help people fight obesity. Yuxiang Sun of Baylor College of Medicine released a report on Decembere 13th that described his discovery concerning the hormone ghrelin. He performed tests in which mice were genetically modified so that they lacked the ghrelin receptor. These mice burned more energy and stayed thinner than mice that lacked only ghrelin or had both the hormone and the receptor. The reason that they gave for this discovery has that when there was an absence of the receptor, the brown fat cells in the mice made more of a protein called UCP1. This protein is responsible making the power plants of a cell less efficient. Therefore, since UCP1 is causing the brown fat cells to be less efficient, the fat cells end up burning themselves for energy and even end up using fat from white fat cells.
This discovery is crucial to the fight against obesity, because humans also have brown fat cells. If scientists where to create a drug that removed ghrelin receptors from thee brown fat cells in humans, it is possible that humans could automatically burn the amount of calories equivalent to that burned on a 2.5 mile walk. This drug could change the lives of so many people, as there would be a way for people to reach healthy weight and fight obesity without changing their diet and exercise routine.
At this time, Yuxiang Sun is working to determine whether the burned brown fat is directly related to the absence of the receptor or if the mutation caused a change to the nervous system of the mice. In order to find the answer to this question, Sun is simply removing the ghrelin receptor from only the brown fat cells. The sooner Sun is able to determine the cause of the increased fat burning, the sooner other scientists will be able to construct a drug that pinpoints this fat burning area.
If I were to change something about the article, I would rearrange the information that the author presented the reader with. The information in the article jumped back and forth between the hormone, the brown fat and humans, making it difficult to understand her train of thought.

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/67610/title/Mice_missing_protein_burn_more_fat

New Planet: Small but Tough

Recently, a new planet has been found beyond our solar system by NASA’s Kepler spacecraft. The most interesting part of this discovery is that it is the smallest planet found outside our solar system and it is the first found to be made of solid materials. Kepler – 10b, as the planet is now titled, has a mass about 5 times larger than Earth’s and a diameter only 1.4 times larger than Earth’s. The partially molten new planet was discovered, also, to be too hot to contain any liquid water and therefore life. Scientists find that this new discovery is a great step forward. Solid rocky planets are ideal to scientists because chemical reactions that form the building blocks of life are believed to happen most readily on solid surfaces.
In March 2009, the Kepler spacecraft was launched. A few months later, the craft recorded a “periodic dip in light from a star called Kepler -10.” This dip suggested to scientists that the star has a planet that whips about Kepler -10 in a 20 hour orbit. Kepler researches studied the dimming closely and after looking through the Keck I Telescope atop Hawaii’s Mauna Kea it was noted that some 565 light-years from Earth a planet was tugging slightly on Kepler – 10. In order to examine the new planet, the Kepler team inspected the star at one-minute intervals using the spacecraft. Through an analysis of the strength and frequency of tiny flickers of light from within the star, the team noted the planet’s precise measurements, which revealed that Kepler -10b must be “composed entirely of solid silicate and metal grains.” The estimated temperature of the planet’s surface reached up to 1,500 degrees Celsius. In February, the team also plans on announcing “newly discovered exoplanets”, just like Kepler – 10b
Author Ron Cowen, did a great job explaining this article. It was a very interesting topic, however was confusing as well. I found that during the article I was confused as to which space object the author was describing. I was hard to tell if it was talking about the start or the planet. Also, I believe that the article never mentioned the Kepler Team’s director, which I would have found to be very helpful. Although this was an interesting article, I wish that it was clearer.

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/68586/title/New_planet_small_but_tough

AP Biology Genetic Disease Projects

          For their second project of the second marking period, the AP Biology classes were asked to research a genetic disease. Unlike the first project for this marking period, which require the students to produce a triptych poster the students were given a wider range of choices. Their project could be be a well-made PowerPoint Presentation, a Web Site presentation, a comic strip, a storyboard, an animation, video or almost anything. The end product should be a Museum Quality Presentation on a Genetic Disorder. The display should incorporate your creative and artistic talents as well as scientific information.

           The final presentation must include the following sections/information: 

History of the Disease

         A description of when the disease was first identified and by whom.

Symptoms of the Disease

          A description and discussion of how the disease affects those who have the disease and also how it may affect their families.

Cause of the Disease

          A description and discussion of the known/hypothesized etiology of the disease. Be sure to be very specific in this section, if possible describe the exact “mutation” that is thought to produce the ineffective products that are at the root of the disease.

Treatments for the Disease

          A description of any procedures that may be used to alleviate/cure the affected individual’s symptoms.

Identification of the Disease

          A description of any protocols that may be used to determine carriers and/or individuals who might have the disease and the probabilities of their passing the disease to their offspring.

Bioethical Considerations

          A description and discussion of any ethical problems/considerations that may arise in relation to the disease.

The following students' Powerpoint presentations can be seen by clicking on the provided links, which will upload their Powerpoint Shows:

S. Blessing - Sickle Cell Anemia

K, Bopp - Cystic Fibrosis

H. Bothwell - Neimann-Pick Disease

A. Cody - Alzheimer's Disease

L. Detwiler - Macular Degeneration

R. Faselt - Angelmann Syndrome

S. Monaco - Cancer

K. Noonan - Noonan Syndrome

G. Sargent - Werner's Syndrome
X. Tao - Autism

The following are the students' triptych poster presentations:

Nicole - Down's Syndrome

Erin - Muscular Dystrophy

Caitlin - Autism

Ryan - Hemophilia

Jane - Albinism

100-Year-Old Specimens at California Museum Help Determine When Avian Pox Hit Galapagos

Using the vas assortment of Galapagos birds that have been collected over many years a group of scientists have been able to pinpoint the year the avipoxvirus or avian pox hit the Galapagos Islands. The year was 1898. The avipoxvirus is a pox virus that only affects birds. It's symptoms are pustules full of pus lining the skin and diphtheria-like symptoms. Diphtheria is an upper respiratory tract illness. Also this virus can be passed on to humans, but only if the birds are in very close contact with the human. All this research happened in San Fransico's Academy of Sciences. They found the year that the avipoxvirus hit the Galapagos by inspecting the birds skin for lesions associated with avian pox. They found 226 candidates that had lesions. The lesions started occurring on the birds around 1898 and after. Then the scientists took 58 specimens and took tissue samples to show further evidence to back up their theory. In the end 21 of the 59 specimens scored positive for avipoxvirus. They found this by using histology or taking the tissue and examining it under a microscope and if it had hints of the virus then the bird was positive for avipoxvirus. The scientist also used genotyping, which is screening for viral DNA. In the end the scientists concluded that with this invaluable collection of Galapagos birds we can continue to provide insight into the evolutionary and ecological processes of the islands. Also that with the combination of the collection, modern genetics and histology they have found the arrival date of an important virus that threatens even todays populations of unique birds.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110113213104.htm

The cost of sleep deprivation

Findings have shown that missing a night of sleep burns roughly 135 calories, the equivalent of two slices of bread or a 225 ml glass of semi-skimmed milk. In terms of physical exertion, this amounts to walking just under two miles. On the flip side, eight hours of sleep saved the same approximate amount of energy.
Professor Kenneth Wright, lead author of the study and Director of Colorado University's Sleep and Chronobiology Laboratory, said that 'While the amount of energy saved during sleep may seem small, it was actually more than we expected,' 'If one considers the amount of positive energy storage needed to explain the obesity epidemic is 50 calories a day, the energy savings represented by sleep is physiologically meaningful."
The findings showed that compared to a typical night of sleep, the amount of energy expended by the subjects during 24 hours of sleep deprivation increased about seven per cent. In contrast, energy expenditure decreased to five per cent during the recovery episode, which included 16 hours of wakefulness .
The study proves there is a direct correlation between the sleep–wake cycle and how the body uses energy. It also demonstrates that sleep deprivation is metabolically costly.

http://www.biologynews.net/archives/2011/01/12/sleepmode_the_energy_cost_of_sleep_deprivation.html