Menu

Blog

Page 9202

Nov 2, 2018

How do jumping genes cause disease, drive evolution?

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, evolution, genetics

Almost half of our DNA sequences are made up of jumping genes—also known as transposons. They jump around the genome in developing sperm and egg cells and are important to evolution. But their mobilization can also cause new mutations that lead to diseases, such as hemophilia and cancer. Remarkably little is known about when and where their movements occur in developing reproductive cells, the key process that ensures their propagation in future generations, but can lead to genetic disorders for the hosts.

To address this problem, a team of Carnegie researchers developed new techniques to track the mobilization of jumping genes. They found that during a particular period of , a group of jumping-genes called retrotransposons hijacks special called nurse cells that nurture the developing eggs. These jumping genes use nurse cells to produce invasive material (copies of themselves called ) that move into a nearby egg and then mobilize into the egg’s DNA. The research is published in the July 26 on-line issue of Cell.

Animals have unwittingly developed a powerful system to suppress jumping gene activity that uses small, non-coding RNAs called piRNAs, which recognize jumping genes and suppress their activity. Occasionally, jumping genes still manage to move, suggesting that they employ some special tactics to escape piRNA control. However, tracking the mobilization of jumping genes to understand their tactics has been a daunting task.

Read more

Nov 2, 2018

The explosive science behind fireworks

Posted by in categories: chemistry, science

Jump to media player The surprisingly simple science behind the clever chemistry that helps your night go off with a bang.

Read more

Nov 2, 2018

Quantum Navigation Could be as Accurate as GPS, Without Satellites

Posted by in categories: quantum physics, satellites

Where in the world is Quantum Sandiego?

Read more

Nov 2, 2018

How Virtual Reality Can Help Fight Dementia

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, neuroscience, virtual reality

Immersive experiences have been used for video games and entertainment. But a new therapy could make VR an accessible therapy for dementia patients.

11.02.18 9:58 PM ET

Read more

Nov 2, 2018

😉 Photo

Posted by in category: space

Can you find the smiling face in this patch of space, captured by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope? The unprecedented resolution of Hubble’s camera is high enough to locate and study regions of star formation — and see galaxies in all shapes, colors and sizes. Zoom in: https://go.nasa.gov/2QgtQzp

Read more

Nov 2, 2018

Cell-laden contact lens being developed to treat eye injuries

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

Currently, if someone has a damaged cornea (the surface of the eye), it’s covered with a “bandage” made from the amniotic membrane of human placentas. While this does help repair the eye, an Australian scientist is developing what he believes may be a better alternative – a wound-healing contact lens.

Read more

Nov 2, 2018

20th Century Fox is using AI to analyze movie trailers and find out what films audiences will like: Movie Trailer

Posted by in categories: entertainment, robotics/AI

Even AI likes a trip to the movies.

Read more

Nov 2, 2018

Depression: Three new subtypes identified

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, neuroscience

The scientists also used functional MRI scanners to study the participants’ brain activity, enabling them to map 78 brain regions and examine the connections between these areas.

“The major challenge in this study,” explains first study author Tomoki Tokuda, who is a statistician at OIST, “was to develop a statistical tool that could extract relevant information for clustering similar subjects together.”

Tokuda developed a new statistical method that allowed the researchers to break down more than 3,000 measurable features into five data clusters. The measurable features included the incidence of childhood trauma and the initial severity of the depressive episode.

Read more

Nov 2, 2018

New Amazon Day shipping option lets you pick the day you get deliveries

Posted by in category: futurism

The online retailer creates a program to offer more shipping choices and predictability.

    by

  • Ben Fox Rubin

Read more

Nov 2, 2018

The Dark Web Isn’t Actually That Different From the Rest of the Internet

Posted by in category: internet

But here’s how it got the scary name.

Read more