Heyyyyyyyyy.
I have been doing some reading and found some articles. In addition to putting the links and titles, I have tried putting a little summary below them (I have tried to be accurate but if I make some errors please point them out).
Newborn insects trapped in amber show first evidence of how to crack an eggWhile these amber-trapped bugs may not hold the secret to creating a Jurassic park – they do suggest an earlier evolutionary existence of the egg than the fossil record had previously proved. These “four green lacewing newborn larvae” were preserved in amber dated at 130 million years old and, within the screenshot of the green lacewing larval development which they provided, show distinctly hatching from an egg structure. Interestingly, the mechanisms of the hatching suggested by the preserved insects as well as the egg structure are highly similar to those of modern-day relatives. While expected by some researchers, this new finding does provide hard evidence for a new earliest emergence of an “a sophisticated hatching mechanism which endures to this day”
Feisty hummingbirds prioritize fencing over feedingHummingbirds feed of nectar from all sorts of shaped flowers and in order to do so, have highly specialized and specifically shaped beaks to reach that nectar (usually soft, long and slender). However, scientists studying the shapes of different hummingbird beaks have noticed some rather unintuitive features of the beaks of certain males (like being serrated, hook-shaped and very stiff) which would impede nectar collection and seem, for that purpose, unintuitive. Although, by using high-speed video to observe their fighting behaviors, this group has identified the purpose of these initially unintuitive structures in providing a fighting advantage. Here the group has then identified the competing pressures of being able to feed on nectar from flowers, and being able to fight off completion, on the shape and form of the hummingbird beak; finding that certain males have success in suffering a reduced feeding ability for the ability to fight off surrounding competition.
Living a stronger and longer life: What scientists are learning from wormsA group of scientists working with worms, namely Millimetre-long roundworms called nematodes, have uncovered interesting aging patterns and mechanisms. The researchers discovered a molecule called SLO-1 which they describe to be involved in the process of aging as it “dampens neurons' activity, slowing down the signals from neurons to muscle tissue and reducing motor function”. Most interestingly they found that blocking the activity of SLO-1 in young nematodes caused detrimental effects to lifespan while blocking the molecule's effect in mid-adulthood actually increase lifespans of the nematodes. Since SLO-1 is known to be present in many other species, further studies are encouraged to better understand this molecule and its role in aging.
Why the number of single male Magellanic penguins is rising at this breeding colony
Washington biology professor P. D. Boersma and her team have been watching the Magellanic Penguins at Punta Tombo closely and have identified two frightening trends. Fisrtly, the population is declining, and secondly, the male to female ratio keeps on increasing. After some population analysis and investigating, the group has suggested that this is due to the much higher rates of juvenile female Magellanic Penguins dying compared to Juvenile male penguins, causing the skewed gender ratio of up to 3 males per female. They then suggest that the falling population numbers are a result of this observed skewed gender ratio
Extraordinary treefrog discovered in the Andes of EcuadorAfter hiking for 2 days up to “a largely unexplored range in the eastern Andes” the team of field biologists was rewarded with the discovery of a new species of tree frog. Perhaps not the ‘extraordinary’ the article claims, but it certainly had interesting “enlarged claw-like structure located at the base of the thumb. Its function is unknown, but it could be that it is used either as a defense against predators or as a weapon in fights between competing males”. Sadly though, this new-found treefrog is already endangered.
Essential amino acid in humans, methionine, controls cell growthMethionine is an essential amino acid in humans and is, in fact, the start amino acid of all polypeptide chains. No multiple research groups are suggesting that it may be a signaling metabolite for the control of cell growth. This discovery was made primarily by cancer research groups when it was found that the amino acid played controlled cancer growth rates to a certain degree. However, Currently, the exact mechanisms are unknown.
Scientists engineer shortcut for the photosynthetic glitch, boost crop growth 40%Here is exposed photosynthesis’ dirty little secret – that it has been wasting energy doing photorespiration. As the article explains “Unable to reliably distinguish between the two molecules, Rubisco grabs oxygen instead of carbon dioxide about 20 percent of the time, resulting in a plant-toxic compound that must be recycled through the process of photorespiration”. Researchers have managed to shortcut this photorespiration process in plants and have shown an increase in growth rate of up to 40% in “real-world agronomic conditions”.
Warming warning over turtle feminizationGreen turtles may not know it, but they are in for an interesting ride. Turtle sex is determined by the temperature which at current is working out pretty good for them, with 52% being female, however, our good friend climate change is here to mess with that whole thing. As per the temperature projections from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) scenarios, researchers have calculated that up to 93% of green turtle hatchlings may be female by 2100. This will apparently have detrimental effects on the green turtle populations (who would have guessed). In addition, they also comment that the higher temperatures will lead to higher mortality rates and that rising sea levels will ruin nesting grounds. Sorry miniturtle and calebark, but it ain't looking good for your green brothers and (mostly) sisters.
A cause of possible genetic problems in mitochondria is revealed
Scientists from the Andalusian Centre for Molecular Biology and Regenerative Medicine (CABIMER) have further understood the action of mitochondrial protein complex Degradasome. Degradasome acts to degrade (who would have guessed!) mRNA molecules as an integral part of maintaining the mitochondrial genome. With the impaired functionality of the protein complex, RNA accumulates and forms abnormal RNA-DNA hybrids which themselves can build up and essentially clog up the DNA replication process of the mitochondria. This may allow for greater understanding and, subsequently the treatment, of numerous mitochondrial diseases which may arise or involve the reduced functionality attributed to the aberrant activity of Degradosome.
Scientists produce 'designer triacylglycerols' in industrial microalgae Firstly a bit of background chem. Triacylglycerol (TAG) is an important biomolecule in many organisms and are composed of three fatty acid tails and a glycerol backbone. These fatty acids are variable and different TAGs can have different combinations of tails. Two of these are "linoleic acid (LA) [which] can lower blood cholesterols and prevent atherosclerosis... and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) [which] can treat hypertension and inflammation" . These are two important fatty acids for human function, yet we (as humans) cannot produce these as we have not the enzymes for it, so instead we rely on consuming TAGs which contain these fatty acids. However, this chienese research group have described a method by which an industrial microalgae strain can be modified to produce TAGs of desirable fatty acid composition. This work is said to be the foundation for "producing on a large scale "designer TAGs," whether present in nature or not, for tailored or even personalized health benefits"
Imaging nerve-cell interactionsOut of the way uDISCO, vDISCO is here and better!
uDISCO was a bioimaging technology produced by Dr. Ali Ertürk and his research group which aimed to render organisms transparent such that systems, tissues or cells of choice can be stained and visualized as part of an intact organism. However, where uDISCO offered only a partial transparency in many cases, the new and improved vDISCO technology allows for much greater transparency. Interestingly, the actual staining and visualization of systems as part of the technology is achieved through "staining specific proteins with antibodies that have been labeled with fluorescent markers".
The group is primarily using this technology to visualize the whole nervous system of mice to "characterize the full complexity of the nervous systems of small mammals, and [to] also... trace the cellular interactions that lead to inflammation and wound healing"
Mammoth DNA found in Cambodia market itemsWith an estimated 30,000 elephants being killed every year for their ivory, there are many efforts to track down illegal trade routes and the illegal sale of elephant ivory. One group of scientist focusing on Cambodia - where the sales of ivory seem to be increasing - found amidst elephant ivory products, "trinkets made from woolly mammoth ivory". Needless to say, they were surprised
The Prickle1 gene regulates the differentiation of frontal bone osteoblasts in a new animal model.A new study finds that the Prickle1 gene plays a regulatory role in the migration and differentiation of osteoblast precursors in the developing skull in mice models.
Osteoblasts are specialized cells which function to build bone both in development and in adults where new bone is continuously being 'rebuilt'. This study used mice with a missense allele of the Prickle1 gene named Beetlejuice. These Beetlejuice mutants showed "defective migration and differentiation of osteoblasts in the skull primordia (developing skull)", attributing to a "mechanically compromised skull"
The article goes into much greater depth as to what is actually going on and the methodology of the experiments, but this is the general findings of the experiment.
Huge trove of British biodata is unlocking secrets of depression, sexual orientation, and more
The UK Biobank is a massive collation of the genetic and health information of half a million brits run by researchers at Oxford University. With a key goal of making this treasure-trove of data equally and freely available to all qualified researchers, they actually gave qualified research groups three weeks to download the masses of data which was encrypted before giving out a key to unencrypt the data, such that internet speeds did not deleteriously affect the access of some groups to the data.
And then the big-data crunching began with research groups all around the world finding correlations between genetics and all sorts of healths aspects as well as behavior. Among the findings were suggestions of "how particular genes contribute to heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer's, and other conditions, as well as genes' role in shaping personality, depression, birth weight, insomnia, and other traits. More controversially, data from the trove also pointed to DNA markers linked to education level and sexual orientation"
Of course much of this is simply trends within the data and by no means offer the hard mechanistic understandings of certain relationships between genes and health characteristics, but they do point researchers in the right directions for the discoveries of such things.
The article further explains some of the findings in greater depth, explaining statistical results from some studies, however much of the article is convincing of the importance of big open data projects like the UK Biobank to serve the acceleration of scientific research.
Another related article "
Genetic data on half a million Brits reveal ongoing evolution and Neanderthal legacy
" explains the efforts and findings of another research group using the UK Biobank data to study Neanderthal traits within modern-day human populations. Using fancy genetics, these researchers were able to identify Neanderthal gene variants (alleles) and correlate them to different traits. This one group found that "Neanderthal [gene] variants that boost the odds that a person smokes, is an evening person rather than a morning person, and is prone to sunburn and depression"
Another group attempting a similar goal found "Neanderthal alleles help cause baldness and mental illness and boost certain immune functions"
And yet another group is uncovering genetic causes of humans more 'rounded' skulls compared to the more 'elongated' heads of neanderthals.
This article continues to talk about much more research into genetic correlations to health aspects and behavior and hints upon genetic trends in humans occurring as we speak. If you are into genetics and evolution I would recommend this article.
‘Nanoscavengers’ could protect people from sarin gas, other nerve agentsNerv agents like sarin gas are in a class of chemicals called organophosphates and function by - once being quickly taken into the blood - inhibiting the breakdown of acetylcholine which in turn causes muscles spasming followed by often by respiratory failure or a cardiac arrest.
There do exist some antidotes for nerve gasses, but they rely upon quick administration within as short a time after exposure to the nerve agent as possible - not always the most achievable thing. As such, it is a current approach of scientists to be creating 'nanoscavaging' molecules which can be administered as a preventative and remain in the body to degrade organophosphates before they cause severe effects. The issues with this current approach are that attempts have been allround pretty unsuccessful in producing scavaging molecules which remain in the body long enough to serve their function properly, often as a result of clearance by the host immune system. This group here describes their (more successful) approach to producing a scavenger molecule which involves grabbing an organophosphate-targeting enzyme and wrapping it up in a "flexible polymer gel coating" such to allow the enzyme to evade the harsh judgment of the immune system. Studies of the efficacy of this treatment revealed that "Rats given a single injection of the “nanoscavenger” were completely protected... for up to 5 days without side effects" and "guinea pigs [were] protected from multiple sarin injections for 8 days"
The authors of the findings suggest two major uses of this potential technology would be for soldiers entering areas with the potential of nerve gas exposure, as well as for farmers working with pesticides (since pesticides contain lower levels of organophosphates)