Genetics & Molecular Biology

PEPcase  and salinity tolerance

PEPcase and salinity tolerance

PEPcase determinations As a key enzyme in C4-photosynthesis and Crassulacean Acid Metabolism (Kluge, 1983), phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (EC 4.1.1.31) has been studied intensively in several…
Aggression gene = reduced murder sentence

Aggression gene = reduced murder sentence

Instead of using someone else's urine in random drug testing, perhaps criminals can step it up a notch on the scientific ladder and use someone else's genome. Can your genes ever absolve you of…
Molecular markers

Molecular markers

The development of molecular techniques for genetic analysis has led to a great augmentation in our knowledge of crop genetics and our understanding of the structure and behavior of various crop…
Your Bad Driving May Be Genetic

Your Bad Driving May Be Genetic

Are accident rates higher for people with a particular gene variant?    Bad drivers may, in part,  have their genes to blame, suggests a new study by UC Irvine neuroscientists. People…
Nepotism Has Its Benefits

Nepotism Has Its Benefits

Nepotism has a bad connotation in the workplace or French politics but being surrounded by relatives does lead to better group dynamics and more cooperation in some animals, and certainly spiders,…
Alcohol Tolerance 'Switch' Found

Alcohol Tolerance 'Switch' Found

Lightweight drinkers rejoice, it may be nature that keeps you from pounding shots like Indiana Jones squeeze Marion in "Raiders of the Lost Ark". Researchers at North Carolina State University have…
The Heart: So Elegant, Yet So Complex

The Heart: So Elegant, Yet So Complex

The human heart, a tireless organ that beats within our chests continuously for decades, continues to amaze me, in spite of my having studied it for several years now.  My continued amazement…
'Junk RNA'? Not Anymore

'Junk RNA'? Not Anymore

For many years, so called 'junk RNA' was thought to be nothing more than cellular trash. Recent research, however, has called this view into question as scientists have discovered the importance of…