Genetics & Molecular Biology

Researchers Catch Photosynthesis Oxygen Formation In Action

One of your earliest science memories in school is learning that, during photosynthesis, plants take in carbon dioxide sunshine and produce oxygen. Later we all learned that in lakes and oceans a similar process happens due to cyanobacteria.  What has rem ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 11 2014 - 12:52pm

Quantum Biology? Vibrations Improve Efficiency Of Photosynthesis

Biophysics researchers recently used short pulses of light to peer into the mechanics of photosynthesis to try and determine the role of molecule vibrations in the energy conversion process that powers life on earth.    Through photosynthesis, plants and ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 13 2014 - 11:30pm

Mystery Food Allergy- Genetic Pathway Found

Eosinophillic esophagitis (EoE) is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the esophagus. The condition is triggered by allergic hypersensitivity to certain foods and an over-accumulation in the esophagus of white blood cells called eosinophils. EoE can cause ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 13 2014 - 10:00pm

Why Worms Don't Get Drunk

Neuroscientists have created mutant worms that don't get intoxicated by alcohol, by inserting a modified human alcohol target into the worms. An alcohol target is any neuronal molecule that binds alcohol, of which there are many. One important aspect ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 15 2014 - 6:00pm

Heart Cell In A Living Animal Reprogrammed To Cure Disease For First Time

Cardiologists have developed a minimally invasive gene transplant procedure that changes unspecialized heart cells into 'biological pacemaker' cells that keep the heart beating.  The laboratory animal research is the result of a dozen years of r ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 17 2014 - 5:32am

SAVI: Gene Linked To Fatal Inflammatory Disease In Children Identified

Investigators have identified a gene that underlies a very rare but devastating autoinflammatory condition in children. Several existing drugs have shown therapeutic potential in laboratory studies, and one is currently being studied in children with the ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 17 2014 - 12:30am

Draft Of The Wheat Genome Completed

The International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium recently published a chromosome-based draft sequence of wheat's genetic code- its genome. ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 17 2014 - 3:00pm

Natural Hormone Trigger For Ovulation Could Make IVF Safer

Researchers have successfully used a new and potentially safer method to stimulate ovulation in women undergoing IVF treatment.  One in six couples in the UK experiences infertility, and 48,147 women underwent IVF treatment in 2011.  ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 20 2014 - 9:45am

Not 80: Just 8.2 Percent Of Our DNA Is 'Functional', Says Study

In 2012, scientists involved in the ENCODE (Encyclopedia of DNA Elements) project stated that 80% of our genome is functional- that it has some biochemical function.  The finding was controversial, with critics arguing that the biochemical definition of & ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 25 2014 - 12:11am

6 New Genetic Risk Factors For Parkinson's Disease Found

Using data from over 18,000 patients, scientists have identified more than two dozen genetic risk factors involved in Parkinson's disease, including six that had not been previously reported.  Affecting millions of people worldwide, Parkinson's ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 27 2014 - 3:18pm