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Tag: "factor" at biology news

Researchers find gland that tells fruit flies when to stop growing

...ch as the prothoracic gland has been found to be a factor in size assessment, she said, and it provides a more complete picture of how an organism's growth is controlled. Mirth is lead author of the work, which is published in the Oct. 25 edition of the journal Current Biology and was funded by the UW Roya...

Scientists discover the molecular switch for nerve cells' insulating jelly rolls

...NYU School of Medicine, identified the long-sought factor that determines whether or not nerve cells will be wrapped in thick layers of myelin, producing the biological equivalent of a jelly roll. Using a sophisticated system for growing nerve cells in laboratory dishes, the team identified a gene called n...

'Acid rain' and forest mass: Another perspective

...re historically this element has been the limiting factor in productivity. In this research, the recycling of nutrients was studied in two, five-year period stages and in two young radiata pine forests (the first stage) and in two oak woods (the second). To this end, weekly samples of rain, transcolation (...

Russian 'surrogate' alcohols are a killer

... Heavy alcohol consumption is a major contributing factor to the very high death rate among Russians. Ongoing research shows that many Russians drink "surrogate" alcohols, such as "samogon" or moonshine, medicinal compounds, and other spirits such as aftershave products. New analyses indicate that these pr...

Polymer gel can block toxic leakage problem in gene therapy

...an reduce the misdirected virus dissemination by a factor of 100 to 1,000 times," said Fan Yuan, an associate biomedical engineering professor at Duke's Pratt School of Engineering who led the studies. "That's enough of a reduction to solve the problem." The work was supported by the National Science Found...

Nanoparticles, nanoshells, nanotubes: How tiny specks may provide powerful tools against cancer

...ancer cells ?were specific for insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF1R), which is commonly found on cancer cells. When cancer cells and antibodies bind together, there is a measurable change in electric current, according to Panchapakesan. He and his group placed antibody-nanotube combinations betwee...

FSU biologists describe key role of signal-transcribing gene during cell cycle

...and leukemia. "We now know that the transcription factor Cut is the key there," said Deng. Assisted by FSU graduate student and co-author Jianjun Sun, Deng conducted the study using the powerful Drosophila (fruit fly) genetic model. Over the course of a year, they tracked the cell-to-cell communication in...

Bigger brain size matters for intellectual ability

...handers only, indicating that brain asymmetry is a factor in men. Spatial intelligence was also correlated with brain size in women, but less strongly. In men, spatial ability was not related to overall brain size. These results suggest that women may use verbal strategies in spatial thinking, but that in...

First big influenza genome study reveals flu evolution

...ts to identify several predominant flu strains and factor them into the next season's flu vaccine. Predictions are tricky, however, because influenza is constantly changing. In the 2002-03 flu season, the Nature study reports, a minor H3N2 variant reassorted, or genetically mixed, with the dominant strain...

New view of cancer: 'Epigenetic' changes come before mutations

...eered to have a double dose of insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2) had more primitive precursor cells in the lining of the colon than normal mice. When these mice also carried a colon-cancer-causing genetic mutation, they developed twice as many tumors as mice with normal IGF2 levels. The extra IGF2 stemmed...

Scientists pinpoint inflammation gene

... regulates SEPS1 expression as the most important factor among the individuals with the highest levels of inflammation. This allowed an Australian research team at Deakin University led by ChemGenex Pharmaceuticals to conduct laboratory investigations to discover the function of the SEPS1 gene and this p...

Synthetic Protein Eases Arthritis Symptoms in Mice

...f inflammation is a chemical called tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha). TNF-alpha starts a chemical chain reaction leading to inflammation by binding to two cell surface receptors, TNFR-1 and TNFR-2. Naturally occurring PLAD helps both forms of TNFR assemble and prepare to receive TNF-alpha. Synthetic ...

Phenotype is influenced by nature, nurture and noise

...tists report that noise could also be an important factor in determining phenotype. In a paper in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences released online Sept. 30, the scientists led by bioengineering professor Jeff Hasty reported that a newly developed computer model shows that a combination of u...

Changes to embryos can elicit change in adult fish

..., researchers showed that the gene bmp4 is a major factor in controlling the jaw-closing system. When the team injected bmp4 protein into the developing embryos of another fish species, the zebrafish, they saw that the mechanical advantage (and thus the biting power) of the jaw increased. "This experiment...

Overfishing may drive endangered seabird to rely upon lower quality food

... Becker said this study illustrates an additional factor related to the decline of the marbled murrelet. "For this bird, the primary conservation concerns have been loss of habitat, particularly the coastal old-growth forests where the bird nests," he said. "But it's possible that they're getting a double ...

Engineered Stem Cells Show Promise For Sneaking Drugs Into The Brain

...tem cells to produce and deliver a critical growth factor that has already shown clinical promise for treati...They then engineered the cells to produce a growth factor known as glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF). In some small but promising clinical tr...

MIT researcher presents new view of how the cortex forms

...hat transcription factors are key. A transcription factor is a protein that binds DNA at a specific site where it regulates transcription, or the process of copying genetic material. In the brain's early prenatal development, transcription factors control the birth and growth of new neurons, neurons' move...

The bioweapon is in the post

...p up. The need for expert human checks may be one factor deterring some companies from screening orders. Others like to reassure customers who may be worried about commercial confidentiality that their sequence data will remain secret. But whatever the reasons, some firms freely admit that they run no sequ...

UCLA discovery will aid in treatment of patients with a deadly brain cancer

..., Mischel said. A protein called epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is commonly amplified in glioblastoma, making it a prime focus for therapies. Drugs such as Tarceva and Iressa target EGFR, blocking the cell signals that drive amplification of the protein and speed cancer growth. A subset of gliobla...

Common viruses may cause cancer

...on triggered by viruses is a possible contributing factor in the development of human cancer. The study also raises concerns about the use fusogenic viruses as vectors for human gene therapy or in other clinical applications owing to the possibility that such viruses might cause cancer. The idea that aberr...

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