Cells Reprogrammed to Treat Diabetes

            Researchers from Georgetown University Medical Center have taken a step closer to curing diabetes. They have sperm cells can also be stem cells that then can be converted into insulin-producing cells. Ian Gallicano is a developmental biologist at Georgetown who is responsible for this discovery. He started by isolating a sperm cell and converting it back to its embryonic state. From there the cells can be made into cells from any part of the body. They then used chemicals to bring the cells to mimic beta-islet cells (cells in the pancreas). This is very important; these stem cells can then replace the cells in the pancreas that are infected with diabetes.

            However they have be unsuccessful in making these cells produce a substantial amount of insulin. For now the can only sustain a mice’s insulin levels for about a week. To sustain a human the cells would need to produce much more insulin that is 10% of secretion by the pancreas cells.

            Because the scientists have not reached their goal, the cure for diabetes, they continue to move toward their goal. These men are also looking for stem cells that would be beneficial to women with diabetes. This is because the cells derived from the testes are only useful to men with the disease. Gallicano does, however think that the trick’s they have already discovered in developing stem cells will lead his team to help women as well.

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/67513/title/Cells_reprogrammed_to_treat_diabetes

posted for M. Pascale

Artificial Spider Silk From Trangenic Silkworms

          Recently, the research and developmental efforts of the University of Notre Dame, the University of Wyoming, and Kraig Biocraft Labratories, Inc. have succeeded in producing transgenic silkworms that are capable of spinning artificial spider silk. Natural spider silks have many unusual properties including significantly higher tensile strength and elasticity than naturally spun silkworm fibers; the artificially produced spider silk maintains the strength and flexibility of native spider silk. 

           

          Spider silk fibers already have many important medical and non-medical applications. Some biomedical applications are use as fine suture materials, improved wound healing bandages, and natural scaffolds for tendon and ligament repair or replacement, while some non-medical uses are bulletproof vests, strong and lightweight structural fabrics, a new generation of athletic clothing, and improved automobile airbags. Until now, it was only possible to produce small quantities of artificial spider silk and even then there was no commercially viable way to produce and spin these silk proteins. Yet, these trangenic silk worms have made mass production possible.

             

          Scientists now believe that, using this discovery as a stepping stone, they can produce a much broader range of physical properties or silks with predetermined properties by using recombinant DNA. These trangenic silkworms were generated by creating and using a powerful and unique genetic engineering tool called “piggyBac”. PiggyBac is a piece of DNA known as a transposon that can insert itself into the genetic machinery of the cell, therefore altering the cell’s genetically determined properties.

             

          "Using this entirely unique approach, we have confirmed that transgenic silkworms can be a potentially viable commercial platform for production of genetically engineered silk proteins having customizable properties of strength and elasticity," Fraser, the creator of piggyBac said. "We may even be able to genetically engineer fibers that exceed the remarkable properties of native spider silk."

           

          I found this article very clear and easy to follow. Someone reading this article who may have no prior knowledge of biology would be able to clearly grasp the general concept of how trangenic silkworms are a breakthrough in the silk industry. This article was very interesting and informative; prior to reading it I had no idea of the vast possibilities of spider silk.

 http://www.macroevolution.net/artificial-spider-silk.html

posted for S. Monaco

There's a New 'Officer' in the Infection Control Army

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101209185600.htm

When one’s body becomes infected, the protein CARD11 instructs white blood cells to either make more antibodies and white blood cells in order to attack the invader or to simply stop the task. However, scientists have recently discovered that CARD11 is controlled by GAKIN, a different protein, which administers the information given to each white blood cell. Joel Pomerantz, Ph.D., an assistant professor of Biological Chemistry in the Institute for Basic Biomedical Sciences, and his group of researchers discovered the role of GAKIN in immune cell activation by linking the gene that codes for luciferase to a gene that CARD11 turns on in response to an infection. Their results showed that the more GAKIN they added to the cells, the less the cells glowed. Thus, they concluded that GAKIN moves CARD11 away from the proteins that are needed to activate CARD11.

GAKID is crucial, because if too many T or B cells, particular types of white blood cells, are sent to battle disease, cancer or autoimmune disease can result. And now that researches, like Pomerantz and his team, have identified the importance of this protein, there will be new drugs that can be introduced to enhance one’s immune system. Drugs to slow down hyperactive immune cells in cases like autoimmunity and cancer can also result.

I think that the author did a nice job of explaining his point. While I was initially unfamiliar with the proteins GAKIN and CARD11, this article had a good explanation of their functions within the cell. Additionally, I enjoyed the time it took to actually discuss what was taking place in their study and how they drew the conclusions they did. Such aspects allowed me to really understand what was going on within the article. I also enjoyed the connection the article made to reality. It stated that this discovery may be able to help those with cancer and other diseases. It’s amazing to think that the role that one protein plays in an immune system may help one of the deadliest diseases.

Works Cited:

ScienceDaily 10 December 2010. 12 December 2010 /releases/2010/12/101209185600.htm>.

Salt Infusion Could Be a Remedy for Damaged Cells

     According to a paper in the Journal of Neuroscience, sodium helps tadpoles regenerate amputated tails.  This discovery is important because in the future it could help scientists find ways to treat spinal cord damage or limb loss in humans.  Scientists found that after administering a drug high in sodium ions to the tadpoles, the injured cells regenerated as late as 18 hours after amputation.  Young tadpoles have the ability to regenerate lost tails, but this ability quickly fades with age.  Sodium ions appear to reactivate this ability.  If a regenerative treatment for humans was developed, it would be hugely important to the medical field. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/12/science/12obsalt.html?_r=1&ref=biology_and_biochemistry

Posted for J. Pennoyer

Light Can Generate Lift

John Gray AP Biology
Block C Even Mr. Ippolito



Light Can Generate Lift

Sanders, Laura. "Light Can Generate Lift." Science News. 05 Dec. 2010. Web. http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/67050/title/Light_can_generate_lift.


In the past light has been used as a means of energy. Light collected by solar panels could be used to power machines as complex as automobiles. Light had even been used to physically push extremely light objects in the opposite direction of a beam of light blasting it. Since then, signifigant advances have been made in the study of light and its ability to physically move objects. When a stream of light is arranged in the right way, a stream of light can be used to raise a tiny object into the air in the same way that airplane wings lift a jet off the ground. Where before light could only push objects now it can create the more complicated force called lift. The force known as “lift” is what it sounds like, it is when a flow of energy causes an object to move perpendicularly. Given its novelty, light’s new ability hasn’t been used in any practical endeavors yet (we’re not going to be able to power a jet’s flight with it yet.) However, scientists are already thinking of ways the fledgling technology could be implemented in small ways. For instance, it could enable better steering methods on solar sails.

Our planet is has been in a constant energy crisis for the past decade; when even a resource as abundant as fresh water is in a higher demand than can be met it is clear that an energy crisis is at hand. Fossil fuel’s are in high demand and the demand for them pushes up the cost of them. But the tactile cost of oil is only one cost of that industry, one has to think of the externality costs of the industry. The want for oil causes conflicts in countries with a lot of it and the burning of fossil fuels is bad for the environment. The advancement of light technologies is critical to the displacement of these problems. If people were able to lift planes off of the ground without the use of fossil fuels the demand for oil would drop drastically. Light is the most abundant source of energy in the solar system and it’s free. It is critical, in the coming years, that people tap into this source of energy and develop new technologies that harness it because if people could, our energy would be much cleaner and less costly.

The article was good but there were wrong with it. The biggest problem I had with the article was that sometimes it would mention things that I was not privy to. For instance, when I read the article at first I had no idea what solar sails are. When they explained their experiment with the rods I had to read it through a few times to understand what was going on. Perhaps that isn’t the fault of the person who wrote the article because at this point we’ve gotten into territory where things are just very complcated. Also, the article did not touch on why the new technology will be useful as it advances more; I would have liked to hear some speculation on what visionary technologies might be made possible by the new technology.

Blood Vessel Dysfunction Linked to Heart Disease Also Impacts Alzheimer's

Blood Vessel Dysfunction Linked to Heart Disease Also Impacts Alzheimer's

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101202161923.htm

Alzheimer’s disease is a terminal disease which is also more commonly known as senile dementia. Alzheimer’s is incurable, and varies greatly in the symptoms it presents. Most sufferers of Alzheimer’s are well into old age when they begin to develop it. The most common symptoms are long-term memory loss, mood swings, confusion and aggression and it is thought to be associated with (and caused) by plaques and tangles in the brain. Now, scientists have discovered that individuals who suffer from cardiovascular health issues may be also prone to Alzheimer’s. Patients with cardiovascular issues tend to have a deficiency of nitric oxide in the endothelium. This deficiency triggers an increased production of a certain enzyme which creates plaque in the brain. Therefore, one with any type of cardiovascular disease may be more likely to develop Alzheimer’s.  Dr. Zvonimir S. Katusic of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota said, "If you look at any risk factor for cardiovascular disease -- the standard risk factors like high cholesterol, diabetes, hypertension, smoking, sedentary lifestyle, aging -- all of these have been associated with loss of nitric oxide in the endothelium, a condition known as endothelial dysfunction.” Studies that are being conducted at the Mayo Clinic may soon reveal more evidence of this link.

Alzheimer’s affects about 26.6 million people around the world and it is predicted that by 2050, 1 in 85 adults will suffer from Alzheimer’s. While there are ailments that slow down some of the symptoms of this condition, there is no definitive cure at this point in time. This is why this new discovery is so important in medical research. By learning more about the causes of Alzheimer’s – which are still not fully understood by medical experts because they are so vague – and other diseases it is linked to may help with finding a cure. By studying the link between blood vessel dysfunction and Alzheimer’s we may be able to also find a link between their cures and prevention methods. For example, since exercise may help slow down cardiovascular health, it may also provide cognitive benefits which delay the aging of the brain.

            This article was very effective in its purpose, taking care to cover all the aspects of this new discovery. Unlike many other science articles, it did not merely mention the name of a disease or protein; it rather took the time to explain what something meant before revealing its importance to the article. This gave me a fuller understanding of this topic, allowing me to absorb more out of the article than I would have if it had not been so informative and explanatory. Also, the article made sure to give specific examples of the possible results of this discovery, allowing the readers to fully understand why this new connection between Alzheimer’s and cardiovascular issues is so impactful in the medical realm. 

Posted for C. Louka

Weird Alien Life on Earth - And Earth Microbes on Alien Planets

          In a study examining whether terrestrial bacteria could survive on Mars, scientists from Princeton University, the Kennedy Space Center, and Michigan State University, exposed a bacterium, originally isolated from Siberian permafrost here on Earth, to harsh conditions like those on Mars -- low temperatures and atmospheric pressures, and extreme dryness and ultraviolet irradiation flux. Though certain terrestrial microbes might pose a significant contamination threat on Mars, the researchers reported their bacterium could not survive the UV levels typically found on the martian surface. Another article describes exposure of Arctic bacteria to simulated martian conditions, including UV irradiation equivalent to about 80 days on the surface of Mars, freeze-thaw cycles, low pressure, and comparable atmospheric gas composition. In the report, scientists from the University of Aarhus in Denmark say that even a 2-centimeter layer of dust provided significant protection to bacteria, and that they were better able to survive at even greater depths. Bacterial DNA and proteins were more resistant to destruction than the bacteria themselves. So it appears that all an Earth microbe would have to do to survive on Mars would be to dig in for the duration.
    
          This article was very interesting and well written. It presented the findings of why the Arthur believed why alien life was on earth as well as how living things from earth would be able to exist on other plants in a logically and simply way making it easy for the reader to understand what is being described in the article.

http://www.macroevolution.net/weird-alien-life.html