Video of protein movement within a neuron shows how our brains renew themselves. If, like us, you spend most of your time wondering exactly what's going on in other people's heads, then this video is for you. Okay, so it might not reveal the reason why that jerk cut you off at the junction, or why that co-worker didn't show up to your date exactly, rather, it's a little more literal than that.
This is video footage of proteins moving within a single neuron. The USC researchers were able to capture this video by using bioluminescent proteins from a jellyfish to visually track their movement. Not only is this mind-boggling to the layperson (just think how small these things are) it's also mind-revealing. Comments. Paul Zak: Trust, morality -- and oxytocin. Juan Enriquez: Will our kids be a different species? Genome Brings Ancient Girl to Life | Wired Science. This replica of a tiny finger bone from Denisova Cave yielded an entire genome.
Photo: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology By Ann Gibbons, ScienceNOW In a stunning technical feat, an international team of scientists has sequenced the genome of an archaic Siberian girl 31 times over, using a new method that amplifies single strands of DNA. The sequencing is so complete that researchers have as sharp a picture of this ancient genome as they would of a living person’s, revealing, for example that the girl had brown eyes, hair, and skin.
“No one thought we would have an archaic human genome of such quality,” says Matthias Meyer, a postdoc at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany. Pääbo’s group first gave the field a jolt in May 2010 by reporting a low-coverage sequence (1.3 copies on average) of the composite nuclear genome from three Neandertals. But these genomes were too low quality to produce a reliable catalog of differences. Antibiotics Might Be Fueling Obesity Epidemic | Wired Science. Expanding waistlines may be caused by more than bad diets and sedentary habits. Antibiotics could be disrupting our gut bacteria, helping people pack on fat like farm animals. This scenario is, for now, a hypothesis, but one that’s fleshed out in two new studies. In the first, mice given antibiotics experienced profound changes to internal microbe communities that process food and regulate metabolism.
In the other study, body weight in children rose with antibiotic exposures as infants. “Early life antibiotics are changing the microbiome, and its metabolic capabilities, at a critical time in development,” said microbiologist Martin Blaser of New York University. “These changes have downstream effects on metabolism, including genes related to energy storage.” 'Our microbiome is part of human physiology. The changes have been linked to a host of diseases, from cancer, autism and heart disease to obesity. Farmers don’t just use the drugs to fight infections, but to enhance growth. Older dads linked to rise in mental illness. 22 August 2012Last updated at 13:11 ET By Pallab Ghosh Science correspondent, BBC News Most mutations are linked to the father's age rather than the mother's, experts believe A genetic study has added to evidence that the increase in some mental and other disorders may be due to men having children later in life. An Icelandic company found the number of genetic mutations in children was directly related to the age of their father when they were conceived.
One prominent researcher suggested young men should consider freezing their sperm if they wanted to have a family in later life. The research is published in Nature. According to Dr Kari Stefansson, of Decode Genetics, who led the research, the results show it is the age of men, rather than women, that is likely to have an effect on the health of the child. "Society has been very focused on the age of the mother.
Male-driven Dr Stefansson's team sequenced the DNA of 78 parents and their children. Continue reading the main story “Start Quote. Oldest Bones from Modern Humans in Asia Discovered. Newfound pieces of human skull from "the Cave of the Monkeys" in Laos are the earliest skeletal evidence yet that humans once had an ancient, rapid migration to Asia. Anatomically modern humans first arose about 200,000 years ago in Africa. When and how our lineage then dispersed out of Africa has long proven controversial. Archaeological evidence and genetic data suggest that modern humans rapidly migrated out of Africa and into Southeast Asia by at least 60,000 years ago.
However, complicating this notion is the notable absence of fossil evidence for modern human occupation in mainland Southeast Asia, likely because those bones do not survive well in the warm, tropical region. Now a partial skull from Tam Pa Ling, "the Cave of the Monkeys" in northern Laos helps fill in this mysterious gap in the fossil record. [See Photos of "Monkey Cave" Fossils] Rough terrain, persistent scientists There were many challenges working in this area. Oldest bones of modern humans.
My X Ray swallows.