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This page shows you the most recent publications within this specialty of the MedWorm directory. This is page number 37.

Tantalizing Glimpses into a Fragmented Genome
by Mary Hoff
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - January 29, 2013 Category: Biology Authors: Mary Hoff Source Type: research

Strigolactone Can Promote or Inhibit Shoot Branching by Triggering Rapid Depletion of the Auxin Efflux Protein PIN1 from the Plasma Membrane
by Naoki Shinohara, Catherine Taylor, Ottoline Leyser Plants continuously extend their root and shoot systems through the action of meristems at their growing tips. By regulating which meristems are active, plants adjust their body plans to suit local environmental conditions. The transport network of the phytohormone auxin has been proposed to mediate this systemic growth coordination, due to its self-organising, environmentally sensitive properties. In particular, a positive feedback mechanism termed auxin transport canalization, which establishes auxin flow from active shoot meristems (auxin sources) to the roots (...
Source: PLoS Biology: Archived Table of Contents - January 29, 2013 Category: Biology Authors: Naoki Shinohara et al. Source Type: research

Glucocorticoid-mediated regulatory network [Systems Biology]
The complexity and specificity of metazoan transcription are determined by combinatorial control of the composition and activity of regulatory complexes. To investigate the basis of this specificity, we focused on the glucocorticoid receptor (GR), a single regulatory factor that integrates multiple signals to give rise to many distinct patterns of...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Chen, S.-h., Masuno, K., Cooper, S. B., Yamamoto, K. R. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

H3K4 demethylase controls transposon activity [Plant Biology]
Transposable elements (TEs) are ubiquitously present in plant genomes and often account for significant fractions of the nuclear DNA. For example, roughly 40% of the rice genome consists of TEs, many of which are retrotransposons, including 14% LTR- and ∼1% non-LTR retrotransposons. Despite their wide distribution and abundance, very few...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Cui, X., Jin, P., , Gu, L., Lu, Z., Xue, Y., Wei, L., Qi, J., Song, X., Luo, M., An, G., Cao, X. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

Gibberellin 13-oxidase [Plant Biology]
Bioactive gibberellins (GAs) control many aspects of growth and development in plants. GA1 has been the most frequently found bioactive GA in various tissues of flowering plants, but the enzymes responsible for GA1 biosynthesis have not been fully elucidated due to the enzymes catalyzing the 13-hydroxylation step not being identified....
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Magome, H., Nomura, T., Hanada, A., Takeda-Kamiya, N., Ohnishi, T., Shinma, Y., Katsumata, T., Kawaide, H., Kamiya, Y., Yamaguchi, S. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

Role of Brg1 in NCC for cardiovascular development [Developmental Biology]
Development of the cerebral vessels, pharyngeal arch arteries (PAAs). and cardiac outflow tract (OFT) requires multipotent neural crest cells (NCCs) that migrate from the neural tube to target tissue destinations. Little is known about how mammalian NCC development is orchestrated by gene programming at the chromatin level, however. Here we...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Li, W., Xiong, Y., Shang, C., Twu, K. Y., Hang, C. T., Yang, J., Han, P., Lin, C.-Y., Lin, C.-J., Tsai, F.-C., Stankunas, K., Meyer, T., Bernstein, D., Pan, M., Chang, C.-P. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

Rod-to-cone reprogramming [Developmental Biology]
A prime goal of regenerative medicine is to direct cell fates in a therapeutically useful manner. Retinitis pigmentosa is one of the most common degenerative diseases of the eye and is associated with early rod photoreceptor death followed by secondary cone degeneration. We hypothesized that converting adult rods into cones,...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Montana, C. L., Kolesnikov, A. V., Shen, S. Q., Myers, C. A., Kefalov, V. J., Corbo, J. C. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

PIPKIII-deficient mice [Cell Biology]
The metabolism of membrane phosphoinositides is critical for a variety of cellular processes. Phosphatidylinositol-3,5-bisphosphate [PtdIns(3,5)P2] controls multiple steps of the intracellular membrane trafficking system in both yeast and mammalian cells. However, other than in neuronal tissues, little is known about the physiological functions of PtdIns(3,5)P2 in mammals. Here, we provide...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Takasuga, S., Horie, Y., Sasaki, J., Sun-Wada, G.-H., Kawamura, N., Iizuka, R., Mizuno, K., Eguchi, S., Kofuji, S., Kimura, H., Yamazaki, M., Horie, C., Odanaga, E., Sato, Y., Chida, S., Kontani, K., Harada, A., Katada, T., Suzuki, A., Wada, Y., Ohnishi, Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

RNF2 degrades p53 [Cell Biology]
Large numbers of studies have focused on the posttranslational regulation of p53 activity. One of the best-known negative regulators for p53 is MDM2, an E3 ubiquitin ligase that promotes p53 degradation through proteasome degradation pathways. Additional E3 ligases have also been reported to negatively regulate p53. However, whether these E3...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Su, W.-j., Fang, J.-s., Cheng, F., Liu, C., Zhou, F., Zhang, J. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

TRB3 regulates Notch activation in breast cancer [Cell Biology]
Expression of the Notch ligand Jagged 1 (JAG1) and Notch activation promote poor-prognosis in breast cancer. We used high throughput screens to identify elements responsible for Notch activation in this context. Chemical kinase inhibitor and kinase-specific small interfering RNA libraries were screened in a breast cancer cell line engineered to...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Izrailit, J., Berman, H. K., Datti, A., Wrana, J. L., Reedijk, M. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

H1 linker histone promotes epigenetic silencing [Cell Biology]
Epigenetic silencing in mammals involves DNA methylation and posttranslational modifications of core histones. Here we show that the H1 linker histone plays a key role in regulating both DNA methylation and histone H3 methylation at the H19 and Gtl2 loci in mouse ES cells. Some, but not all, murine H1...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Yang, S.-M., Kim, B. J., Norwood Toro, L., Skoultchi, A. I. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

NONO couples the circadian clock to the cell cycle [Cell Biology]
Mammalian circadian clocks restrict cell proliferation to defined time windows, but the mechanism and consequences of this interrelationship are not fully understood. Previously we identified the multifunctional nuclear protein NONO as a partner of circadian PERIOD (PER) proteins. Here we show that it also conveys circadian gating to the cell...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Kowalska, E., Ripperger, J. A., Hoegger, D. C., Bruegger, P., Buch, T., Birchler, T., Mueller, A., Albrecht, U., Contaldo, C., Brown, S. A. Tags: Feature Articles Source Type: research

Conformational variability of Ltn1 [Biophysics and Computational Biology]
Ltn1 is a 180-kDa E3 ubiquitin ligase that associates with ribosomes and marks certain aberrant, translationally arrested nascent polypeptide chains for proteasomal degradation. In addition to its evolutionarily conserved large size, Ltn1 is characterized by the presence of a conserved N terminus, HEAT/ARM repeats predicted to comprise the majority of...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Lyumkis, D., Doamekpor, S. K., Bengtson, M. H., Lee, J.-W., Toro, T. B., Petroski, M. D., Lima, C. D., Potter, C. S., Carragher, B., Joazeiro, C. A. P. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

Structure of Rift Valley fever virus Gc [Biophysics and Computational Biology]
Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV), like many other Bunyaviridae family members, is an emerging human and animal pathogen. Bunyaviruses have an outer lipid envelope bearing two glycoproteins, GN and GC, required for cell entry. Bunyaviruses deliver their genome into the host-cell cytoplasm by fusing their envelope with an endosomal membrane....
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Dessau, M., Modis, Y. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

Titration of bilayer incorporated lysine [Biophysics and Computational Biology]
The ionization states of individual amino acid residues of membrane proteins are difficult to decipher or assign directly in the lipid–bilayer membrane environment. We address this issue for lysines and arginines in designed transmembrane helices. For lysines (but not arginines) at two locations within dioleoyl-phosphatidylcholine bilayer membranes, we measure pKa...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Gleason, N. J., Vostrikov, V. V., Greathouse, D. V., Koeppe, R. E. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

Thermodynamic costs in cancer cell invasion [Biophysics and Computational Biology]
Metastasis, the truly lethal aspect of cancer, occurs when metastatic cancer cells in a tumor break through the basement membrane and penetrate the extracellular matrix. We show that MDA-MB-231 metastatic breast cancer cells cooperatively invade a 3D collagen matrix while following a glucose gradient. The invasion front of the cells...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Liu, L., Duclos, G., Sun, B., Lee, J., Wu, A., Kam, Y., Sontag, E. D., Stone, H. A., Sturm, J. C., Gatenby, R. A., Austin, R. H. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

Frustration in multidomain protein misfolding [Biophysics and Computational Biology]
Frustration from strong interdomain interactions can make misfolding a more severe problem in multidomain proteins than in single-domain proteins. On the basis of bioinformatic surveys, it has been suggested that lowering the sequence identity between neighboring domains is one of nature’s solutions to the multidomain misfolding problem. We investigate folding...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Zheng, W., Schafer, N. P., Wolynes, P. G. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

Caulobacter chromosome in vivo configuration [Biophysics and Computational Biology]
We measured the distance between fluorescent-labeled DNA loci of various interloci contour lengths in Caulobacter crescentus swarmer cells to determine the in vivo configuration of the chromosome. For DNA segments less than about 300 kb, the mean interloci distances, 〈r〉, scale as n0.22, where n is the contour length, and...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Hong, S.-H., Toro, E., Mortensen, K. I., de la Rosa, M. A. D., Doniach, S., Shapiro, L., Spakowitz, A. J., McAdams, H. H. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

Rules of the hydrophobic factor [Biophysics and Computational Biology]
The hydrophobic free energy in current use is based on transfer of alkane solutes from liquid alkanes to water, and it has been argued recently that these values are incorrect and should be based instead on gas–liquid transfer data. Hydrophobic free energy is measured here by gas–liquid transfer of hydrocarbon...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Baldwin, R. L. Tags: Biological Sciences Source Type: research

Snapshots of a protein folding intermediate [Biophysics and Computational Biology]
We have investigated the folding dynamics of Thermus thermophilus cytochrome c552 by time-resolved fluorescence energy transfer between the heme and each of seven site-specific fluorescent probes. We have found both an equilibrium unfolding intermediate and a distinct refolding intermediate from kinetics studies. Depending on the protein region monitored, we observed...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Yamada, S., Bouley Ford, N. D., Keller, G. E., Ford, W. C., Gray, H. B., Winkler, J. R. Tags: Physical Sciences Source Type: research

Gene activity profiles of Arabidopsis seed regions [Plant Biology]
Seeds are complex structures that consist of the embryo, endosperm, and seed-coat regions that are of different ontogenetic origins, and each region can be further divided into morphologically distinct subregions. Despite the importance of seeds for food, fiber, and fuel globally, little is known of the cellular processes that characterize...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Belmonte, M. F., Kirkbride, R. C., Stone, S. L., Pelletier, J. M., Bui, A. Q., Yeung, E. C., Hashimoto, M., Fei, J., Harada, C. M., Munoz, M. D., Le, B. H., Drews, G. N., Brady, S. M., Goldberg, R. B., Harada, J. J. Tags: PNAS Plus Source Type: research

Stimulon of Pseudomonas syringae in and on plants [Plant Biology]
Some strains of the foliar pathogen Pseudomonas syringae are adapted for growth and survival on leaf surfaces and in the leaf interior. Global transcriptome profiling was used to evaluate if these two habitats offer distinct environments for bacteria and thus present distinct driving forces for adaptation. The transcript profiles of...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Yu, X., Lund, S. P., Scott, R. A., Greenwald, J. W., Records, A. H., Nettleton, D., Lindow, S. E., Gross, D. C., Beattie, G. A. Tags: PNAS Plus Source Type: research

AKIP1 in cardiac injury [Cell Biology]
cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) regulates a myriad of functions in the heart, including cardiac contractility, myocardial metabolism, and gene expression. However, a molecular integrator of the PKA response in the heart is unknown. Here, we show that the PKA adaptor A-kinase interacting protein 1 (AKIP1) is up-regulated in cardiac myocytes...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Sastri, M., Haushalter, K. J., Panneerselvam, M., Chang, P., Fridolfsson, H., Finley, J. C., Ng, D., Schilling, J. M., Miyanohara, A., Day, M. E., Hakozaki, H., Petrosyan, S., Koller, A., King, C. C., Darshi, M., Blumenthal, D. K., Ali, S. S., Roth, D. M. Tags: PNAS Plus Source Type: research

Chemical-induced dimerization by fusicoccin [Cell Biology]
Chemically induced dimerization is an important tool in chemical biology for the analysis of protein function in cells. Here we report the use of the natural product fusicoccin (FC) to induce dimerization of 14–3-3–fused target proteins with proteins tagged to the C terminus (CT) of the H+-ATPase PMA2. To prevent...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Skwarczynska, M., Molzan, M., Ottmann, C. Tags: PNAS Plus Source Type: research

Similarity between cold and alcohol denaturation [Biophysics and Computational Biology]
Proteins denature not only at high, but also at low temperature as well as high pressure. These denatured states are not easily accessible for experiment, because usually heat denaturation causes aggregation, whereas cold or pressure denaturation occurs at temperatures well below the freezing point of water or pressures above 5...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Vajpai, N., Nisius, L., Wiktor, M., Grzesiek, S. Tags: PNAS Plus Source Type: research

A NONO-gate times the cell cycle [Cell Biology]
When a cell divides, a series of tightly regulated events are sequentially passed through to end up with two healthy daughter cells. A dysregulation of these steps such as an escape from cell cycle control checkpoints may lead to tumor formation. In recent years, it became increasingly clear that our...
Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - January 29, 2013 Category: Science Authors: Maier, B., Kramer, A. Tags: Commentaries Source Type: research

CGAL: computing genome assembly likelihoods
A likelihood based approach for better estimation of genome assembly quality
Source: Genome Biology - January 29, 2013 Category: Genetics & Stem Cells Authors: Atif RahmanLior Pachter Source Type: research

Accelerated exon evolution within primate segmental duplications
A new study looks at segmental duplication genes in humans and macaques to elucidate the exon evolution in primates
Source: Genome Biology - January 29, 2013 Category: Genetics & Stem Cells Authors: Belen Lorente-GaldosJonathan BleyhlGabriel SantpereLaura VivesOscar RamirezJessica HernandezRoger AngladaGregory CooperArcadi NavarroEvan EichlerTomas Marques-Bonet Source Type: research

A 10-step guide to party conversation for bioinformaticians
Alicia Oshlack rises to the challenge of not being a bioinformatics bore
Source: Genome Biology - January 29, 2013 Category: Genetics & Stem Cells Authors: Alicia Oshlack Source Type: research

An exploration of student experiences of using biology podcasts in nursing training
Conclusions: Nursing students found the availability of biology podcasts helpful for their learning. Successful implementation of these tools to support learning requires teaching staff to understand and promote the importance of these tools.
Source: BMC Medical Education - January 29, 2013 Category: Universities & Medical Training Authors: Alison MostynClaire JenkinsonDamion McCormickOonagh MeadeJoanne Lymn Source Type: research

The ICP22 protein selectively modifies the transcription of different kinetic classes of pseudorabies virus genes
Conclusions: Our results show a strong dependence of PRV gene expression on the presence of functional us1 gene. ICP22 is shown to exert a differential effect on the distinct kinetic classes of PRV genes and to disrupt the close correlation between the transcription kinetics of ie180 and other PRV transcripts. Furthermore, DNA replication exerts a severe constraint on the viral transcription.
Source: BMC Molecular Biology - Latest articles - January 29, 2013 Category: Molecular Biology Authors: Irma TakácsDóra TombáczBeáta BertaIstván PrazsákNándor PókaZsolt Boldogk¿i Source Type: research

The influence of habitats on female mobility in Central and Western Africa inferred from human mitochondrial variation
Conclusions: Our analyses highlight an aspect of the influence of habitat variation on human genetic diversity that has yet to be understood. Rather than depending simply on geographic linear distances, patterns of female genetic variation vary substantially between savannah and rainforest environments. Our findings may be explained by the effects of recent gene flow constrained by environmental factors, which superimposes on a background shaped by pre-agricultural peopling.
Source: BMC Evolutionary Biology - Latest articles - January 29, 2013 Category: Molecular Biology Authors: Valeria MontanoVeronica MarcariMariano PavanelloOkorie AnyaeleDavid ComasGiovanni Destro-BisolChiara Batini Source Type: research

Comprehensive phylogenetic analysis of all species of swordtails and platies (Pisces: Genus Xiphophorus) uncovers a hybrid origin of a swordtail fish, Xiphophorus monticolus, and demonstrates that the sexually selected sword originated in the ancestral lineage of the genus, but was lost again secondarily
Conclusions: This comprehensive molecular phylogeny of the entire genus Xiphophorus provides evidence that a second swordtail species, X. monticolus, arose through hybridization. Previously, we demonstrated that X. clemenciae, another southern swordtail species, arose via hybridization. These findings highlight the potential key role of hybridization in the evolution of this genus and suggest the need for further investigations into how hybridization contributes to speciation more generally.
Source: BMC Evolutionary Biology - Latest articles - January 29, 2013 Category: Molecular Biology Authors: Ji Hyoun KangManfred SchartlRonald WalterAxel Meyer Source Type: research

Satellite visualization tool for high-res observation accessible from anywhere with internet access
(Elsevier) A paper published in the February issue of Computers & Geosciences, describes a case study in which an earth-observing satellite tool, the Tool for High-Resolution Observation Review, using minimal coding effort, is converted into a practical web-based application, THOR-Online.
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - January 29, 2013 Category: Biology Source Type: news

Israel Prize awarded to Tel Aviv University biochemist
(American Friends of Tel Aviv University) Tel Aviv University's professor Nathan Nelson has won the 2012 Israel Prize for his research into molecular biology and proteins.
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - January 29, 2013 Category: Biology Source Type: news

Cultural evolution changes bird song
(University of Guelph) Thanks to cultural evolution, male Savannah sparrows are changing their tune, partly to attract "the ladies."According to a study of more than 30 years of Savannah sparrows recordings, the birds are singing distinctly different songs today than their ancestors did 30 years ago - changes passed along generation to generation, according to a new study by University of Guelph researchers.
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - January 29, 2013 Category: Biology Source Type: news

NSF-funded team samples Antarctic lake beneath the ice sheet
(National Science Foundation) In a first-of-its-kind feat of science and engineering, a National Science Foundation funded research team has successfully drilled through 800 meters (2,600 feet) of Antarctic ice to reach a subglacial lake and retrieve water and sediment samples that have been isolated from direct contact with the atmosphere for many thousands of years.
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - January 29, 2013 Category: Biology Source Type: news

Clemson University researchers to study oil and gas operations' impact on Gulf Coast pelicans
(Clemson University) A federal agency has turned to Clemson University's South Carolina Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit to collect data that will help it assess the environmental impact of oil and natural gas operations on the marine and coastal environments of the northern Gulf of Mexico's outer continental shelf.
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - January 29, 2013 Category: Biology Source Type: news

New study will predict how trees will adapt to rapid climate change
(University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science) The National Science Foundation has awarded a $1.5 million grant to researchers at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science's Appalachian Laboratory to study climate adaptation in forest trees and predict the areas where trees are most and least adapted to changing climates in the future.
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - January 29, 2013 Category: Biology Source Type: news

National Academy of Inventors honors 3 University of Houston professors
(University of Houston) The National Academy of Inventors (NAI) has named three University of Houston faculty members NAI Charter Fellows.
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - January 29, 2013 Category: Biology Source Type: news

Beer's bitter compounds could help brew new medicines
(University of Washington) Researchers using a century-old technique have determined the precise configuration of substances from hops that give beer its distinctive flavor. That could lead to formulation of new pharmaceuticals to treat diabetes, some cancers and other ailments.
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - January 29, 2013 Category: Biology Source Type: news

Hydrogen sulfide: The next anti-aging agent?
(American Society for Microbiology) Hydrogen sulfide may play a wide-ranging role in staving off aging, according to a paper published online ahead of print in the journal Molecular and Cellular Biology. In this review article, a team from China explores the compound's plethora of potential anti-aging pathways.
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - January 29, 2013 Category: Global & Universal Source Type: news

Serum receptor activator of nuclear factor κB ligand (RANKL) levels predict biochemical recurrence in patients undergoing radical prostatectomy
Conclusions Greater activity of the RANKL pathway in the serum of patients with prostate cancer undergoing radical prostatectomy is a risk factor for BCR. The RANKL pathway seems to contribute to the biological behaviour of prostate cancer even at the organ‐confined stage of the disease.
Source: BJU International - January 29, 2013 Category: Urology & Nephrology Authors: Tilman Todenhöfer, Jörg Hennenlotter, Philipp Leidenberger, Alexander Wald, Andrea Hohneder, Ursula Kühs, Johannes Mischinger, Stefan Aufderklamm, Georgios Gakis, Gunnar Blumenstock, Arnulf Stenzl, Christian Schwentner Tags: Translational Science Source Type: research

Brupbacher Prize goes to cancer researcher Michael Karin
(University of Zurich) Molecular biologist Michael Karin is to receive this year's Charles Rodolphe Brupbacher Prize for Cancer Research in recognition of his studies on the role of chronic inflammation in the development of tumors. The award, which carries CHF 100,000 in prize money, is considered one of the highest accolades for cancer researchers worldwide. The awards ceremony takes place in Zurich this Thursday in the framework of an international symposium on "Breakthroughs in Cancer Research and Therapy."
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - January 29, 2013 Category: Global & Universal Source Type: news

Kinase dysfunction and kinase inhibitors.
This article reviews the biology of protein kinase dysfunction in human and animal cancers, and the application of specific kinase inhibitors to veterinary cancer patients. PMID: 23331696 [PubMed - in process]
Source: Veterinary Dermatology - January 28, 2013 Category: Veterinary Research Authors: London CA Tags: Vet Dermatol Source Type: research

The contribution of stem cells to epidermal and hair follicle tumours in the dog.
Conclusions and clinical importance - Our results show that K15 can be a reliable marker for investigating the role of stem cells in hair follicle tumours of the dog, while nestin was judged to be a nonoptimal marker. Furthermore, our study suggests that hair follicle stem cells are present in the bulge region of hair follicles and could possibly play a role in tumourigenesis of canine tumours originating from this portion of the follicle, namely trichoblastomas, tricholemmomas and trichoepitheliomas. The loss of K15 expression in squamous cell carcinomas compared with normal skin suggests that this event could be impor...
Source: Veterinary Dermatology - January 28, 2013 Category: Veterinary Research Authors: Brachelente C, Porcellato I, Sforna M, Lepri E, Mechelli L, Bongiovanni L Tags: Vet Dermatol Source Type: research

UCLA to play key role in worldwide effort to map human brain
UCLA's Laboratory of Neuro Imaging (LONI) has entered into a partnership with academic centers from Europe and around the world in a massive, unprecedented effort to understand the human brain. The European-led Human Brain Project (HBP), announced Jan. 28, will pull together all the world's existing knowledge about the brain and reconstruct it, piece by piece, in super-computer–based models and simulations. The 10-year, 1.19 billion–euro ($1.6 billion) effort is backed by the European Commission and will begin with 87 partners in 27 countries. UCLA's LONI has long been at the forefront in developi...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - January 28, 2013 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news

Why are there redheads? Birds might hold the clues
Biologists examined the survival rates and chestnut feather coloration of barn swallows and other species of birds, to unearth factors favoring the evolution of pheomelanin in spite of its costs. They found that under conditions of low stress, birds with larger amounts of pheomelanin survived better, suggesting the pigment may serve a beneficial role.
Source: ScienceDaily Headlines - January 28, 2013 Category: Science Source Type: news

Who Was the First Human Ancestor? - Instant Egghead
From the time of Charles Darwin science has painted a picture of our earliest ancestor in the image of a chimpanzee. Scientific American editor Katherine Harmon explains how new fossil evidence is redrawing the lines of human evolution.
Source: Scientific American - Official RSS Feed - January 28, 2013 Category: Science Tags: Evolution,Biology Source Type: research

Potential applications of miRNAs as diagnostic and prognostic markers in liver cancer.
Abstract Primary liver tumors are mainly represented by hepatocellular hepatocarcinoma (HCC), one of the most aggressive and resistant forms of cancer. Numerous studies have reported the key role of microRNAs (miRNAs) in development, cell proliferation, apoptosis, and tumor biology. The alteration of cancer-related miRNA expression can be associated with tumorigenesis. In HCC, deregulated miRNAs frequently act as oncogenes or altered tumor suppressors. Distinct subtypes of hepatic cancer can also be related to an aberrant expression of particular miRNAs, arguing for the significance of using miRNAs as tumor biomark...
Source: Molecular Medicine - January 28, 2013 Category: Molecular Biology Authors: Gailhouste L, Gomez-Santos L, Ochiya T Tags: Front Biosci Source Type: research