Bigger horns equal better genes
... studies have shown that greater genetic diversity correlates with a greater chance of survival. "The size of the horns reliably advertises the genetic quality of the ibex—and the bigger, the better," said Dr. David Coltman, an evolutionary geneticist at the University of Alberta and co-author of the study,...Study shows lizard moms dress their children for success
...rotect their territories. In females, throat color correlates with different reproductive strategies. According to Lancaster, the maternal effect on back pattern is important because survival in these lizards depends on different combinations of traits in different circumstances. Females use social cues to p...Traumas like Sept. 11 make brains more reactive to fear
... study suggests that there may be long-term neural correlates of trauma exposure, even in people who have looked resilient," said lead author Barbara Ganzel, Cornell M.S. '99, Ph.D. '02, a postdoctoral researcher in human development at Cornell. "Up until now, there has been very little evidence of that." Usi...'Night owls' report more insomnia-related symptoms
...cturnal sleep, sleep period variability and waking correlates and consequences of insomnia. Compared to the morning and intermediate types, people with insomnia who prefer evening activities (i.e., “night owls? reported the most sleep/wake irregularities and waking distress, even after adjusting for severity...Genes and biomarkers that allow doctors to choose the right therapy for the right patient
...se. Predictors based on combinations of molecular correlates of response were able to quantitatively predict individual cell line responses. "The concordance of our markers of response to lapatinib with those observed clinically suggests that the molecular markers identified in the cell line collection can...Cells use 'noise' to make cell-fate decisions
...ular behavior. "The amplitude of cellular noise correlates with the probability of triggering differentiation," Dr. Süel said. "This is experimental evidence that a genetic circuit utilizes noise to drive a biological process." Typically, scientists examine genes and proteins individually to try to determ...Progress made in HIV vaccine development
...e of a functional HIV-specific CD4 T cell response correlates with long term non-progression of HIV disease." Harriet L. Robinson, PhD, from Emory University and Kent J. Weinhold, PhD, from Duke University commented on the impact of these results in their accompanying editorial. "The DNA studies are a landma...Pair of microRNA molecules controls major oncogene in most common leukemia
...n both directions. High expression of these miRNAs correlates with low expression of TCL1, in the indolent form of cancer that is less likely to progress. A low level of miR-29 and miR-181 is associated with a much more aggressive cancer." Drugs that boost production of these two natural TCL1 inhibitors migh...Mutant mice show key autism traits
...s well as providing new insight into the molecular correlates mediating social- and anxiety-related behaviors in the postnatal CNS." ...A dichotomy in migration patterns found for sea turtles in east Atlantic
... compose both groups, the coastal feeding strategy correlates with larger animal size. These new findings revise our understanding of the turtle's life history and indicate that a multifaceted approach to fishing regulation--in both coastal and oceanic waters--will be required to effectively conserve these anim...Imaging study links key genetic risk for Alzheimer's disease to myelin breakdown
...ty insulation coating the brain's internal wiring, correlates strongly with the presence of a key genetic risk factor for Alzheimer disease. The findings are detailed in the January edition of the peer-reviewed journal Archives of General Psychiatry and add to a growing body of evidence that myelin breakdown i...Are dancers genetically different than the rest of us? Yes, says Hebrew University researcher
.... One is the Tellegen Absorption Scale (TAS), that correlates aspects of spirituality and altered states of consciousness, and the other is the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire (TPQ), a measure of the need for social contact and openness to communication. The genetic and questionnaire results of the d...Face perception is modulated by sexual orientation
...opposite-sex faces, thus providing putative neural correlates for the assessment of potential mates for reproductive purposes. However, the researchers in fact did not find neural evidence in support of such dissociation between attractive faces of the opposite sex, reflecting reproductive benefits, and attract...Study finds evolution doesn't always favor bigger animals
...when everything must adapt to a warmer world? Size correlates with many aspects of the biology of an animal so changes in size are likely to translate into substantial ecological changes. A better prediction of the biological effects of future global change requires that, among other things, we understand how c...Gene needed for butterfly transformation also key for insects like grasshoppers
...s, and the researchers found that juvenile hormone correlates with the expression of the broad gene during the nymphal stage. Juvenile hormone disappears in the last nymphal stage and the broad gene is no longer expressed, allowing the insect to make the final transition to adulthood. "This is the first time t...Cortex matures faster in youth with highest IQ
...wing that levels of activation in prefrontal areas correlates with IQ, note the researchers. They suggest that the prolonged thickening of prefrontal cortex in children with superior IQs might reflect an "extended critical period for development of high-level cognitive circuits." Although it's not known for cer...Olfactory system detects pheromones that control reproduction
...ted that one should be able to identify functional correlates of the anatomical circuit linking olfactory neurons and LHRH-producing neurons. They studied the sexual behavior of mutant mouse strains that lacked either a functional olfactory epithelium or vomeronasal organ. They also studied the behavior of norm......reas are arguably the areas of the brain where the correlates of visual consciousness lie." Tse's findings may ... the head.) Tse's team concluded that, "the neural correlates of conscious visual visibility for masking stimuli lie in the occipital lobe, but after visual area ......ly observed in chronic infections due to HIV-1 and correlates with high viral load, reduced CD4 counts and susceptibility to opportunistic infections, and is only partially reverted by anti-retroviral therapy. By identifying the active component of HIV-1 which stimulates pDC function, and consequently other ant...... says Dr. Singer, "we know that expression of ZBP1 correlates with benign tumors, while suppression of ZBP1 is associated with metastasis--when motile cancer cells break off from the primary tumor and invade other areas of the body. So a drug that could force tumor cells to express ZBP1 might prevent cancers fr...