Mother's diet affects the 'silencing' of her child's genes A mother's diet before conception can permanently affect how her child's genes function, according to a study published in Nature Communications. The first such evidence of the effect in humans opens up the possibility that a mother's diet before pregnancy could permanently affect many aspects of her children's lifelong health. Researchers from the MRC International Nutrition Group, based at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and MRC Unit, The Gambia, utilised a unique 'experiment of nature' in rural Gambia, where the population's dependence on own grown foods and a markedly seasonal climate impose a large difference in people's dietary patterns between rainy and dry seasons. Through a selection process involving over 2,000 women, the researchers enrolled pregnant women who conceived at the peak of the rainy season (84 women) and the peak of the dry season (83 women). Explore further: Dieting for obese mothers just before pregnancy may not be enough
Stem cell therapy regenerates heart muscle damaged from heart attacks in primates Heart cells created from human embryonic stem cells successfully restored damaged heart muscles in monkeys. The results of the experiment appear in the April 30 advanced online edition of the journal Nature in a paper titled, "Human embryonic-stem cell derived cardiomyocytes regenerate non-human primate hearts." The findings suggest that the approach should be feasible in humans, the researchers said. "Before this study, it was not known if it is possible to produce sufficient numbers of these cells and successfully use them to remuscularize damaged hearts in a large animal whose heart size and physiology is similar to that of the human heart," said Dr. Charles Murry, UW professor of pathology and bioengineering, who led the research team that conducted the experiment. A physician/scientist, Murry directs the UW Center for Cardiovascular Biology and is a UW Medicine pathologist. Murry said he expected the approach could be ready for clinical trials in humans within four years.
Study questions Neandertal inferiority to early modern humans If you think Neanderthals were stupid and primitive, it's time to think again. The widely held notion that Neanderthals were dimwitted and that their inferior intelligence allowed them to be driven to extinction by the much brighter ancestors of modern humans is not supported by scientific evidence, according to a researcher at the University of Colorado Boulder. Neanderthals thrived in a large swath of Europe and Asia between about 350,000 and 40,000 years ago. In the past, some researchers have tried to explain the demise of the Neanderthals by suggesting that the newcomers were superior to Neanderthals in key ways, including their ability to hunt, communicate, innovate and adapt to different environments. "The evidence for cognitive inferiority is simply not there," said Villa, a curator at the University of Colorado Museum of Natural History. The researchers found that none of the hypotheses were supported by the available research.
The big bad wolf was right: Among wasps, bigger eyes evolved the better to see social cues Some wasps have developed bigger eyes, and thus better vision, to read the social cues written on the faces of their sister wasps, according to a new University of California, Berkeley, study. "The Big Bad Wolf had it right," said lead author Michael Sheehan, a UC Berkeley postdoctoral fellow. "When Little Red Riding Hood said, 'Goodness, what big eyes you have,' he replied, 'The better to see you with.'" For some paper wasps, Sheehan said, "We found convincing evidence that the wasps evolved better vision for the purpose of telling one another apart. This is consistent with the idea that hearing, smelling, seeing or other sensory capabilities in animals, including humans, may have evolved in response to communication signals like we see in the wasp." Biologists have generally assumed that senses such as vision and hearing evolved to improve hunting success or survival, but were not affected by social interactions. Natural selection favors sharper vision
Engineers grow functional human cartilage in lab Researchers at Columbia Engineering announced today that they have successfully grown fully functional human cartilage in vitro from human stem cells derived from bone marrow tissue. Their study, which demonstrates new ways to better mimic the enormous complexity of tissue development, regeneration, and disease, is published in the April 28 Early Online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). "We've been able -- for the first time -- to generate fully functional human cartilage from mesenchymal stem cells by mimicking in vitro the developmental process of mesenchymal condensation," says Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic, who led the study and is the Mikati Foundation Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Columbia Engineering and professor of medical sciences. "This could have clinical impact, as this cartilage can be used to repair a cartilage defect, or in combination with bone in a composite graft grown in lab for more complex tissue reconstruction."
Biological Scaffold Kick-starts Muscle Regrowth after Extreme Injuries Five people who suffered serious leg injuries have been able to regrow muscle tissue in their legs thanks to a new regenerative medicine treatment. The new treatment requires intensive surgery to remove scar tissue, after which a biological scaffold is sutured in. Within two days, the patients began an intensive physical therapy regimen that helps direct the development of stem cells in the body that are drawn to the implant. Once the stem cells reach the implant, they start making new muscle tissue. The aggressive physical therapy is demanding but critical, said study senior author Stephen Badylak, a regenerative medicine researcher at the University of Pittsburgh, at a teleconference on Tuesday. Three of the five patients involved in the U.S. Although the body has a natural ability to regenerate some muscle after injury, extreme trauma can create gaps that are too large for normal processes to fill, so the gaps are instead filled with scar tissue.
New material for flat semiconductors Researchers around the world have been working to harness the unusual properties of graphene, a two-dimensional sheet of carbon atoms. But graphene lacks one important characteristic that would make it even more useful: a property called a bandgap, which is essential for making devices such as computer chips and solar cells. Now, researchers at MIT and Harvard University have found a two-dimensional material whose properties are very similar to graphene, but with some distinct advantages—including the fact that this material naturally has a usable bandgap. The research, just published online in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, was carried out by MIT assistant professor of chemistry Mircea Dincă and seven co-authors. Research on such two-dimensional materials, which often possess extraordinary properties, is "all the rage these days, and for good reason," Dincă says. The new compound, Ni3(HITP)2, shares graphene's perfectly hexagonal honeycomb structure.
Ground breaking technique offers DNA 'Sat Nav' direct to your ancestor's home 1,000 years ago Tracing where your DNA was formed over 1,000 years ago is now possible due to a revolutionary technique developed by a team of international scientists led by experts from the University of Sheffield. The ground breaking Geographic Population Structure (GPS) tool, created by Dr Eran Elhaik from the University of Sheffield's Department of Animal and Plant Sciences and Dr Tatiana Tatarinova from the University of Southern California, works similarly to a satellite navigation system as it helps you to find your way home, but not the one you currently live in – but rather your actual ancestor's home from 1,000 years ago. Previously, scientists have only been able to locate where your DNA was formed to within 700kms, which in Europe could be two countries away; however this pioneering technique has been 98 per cent successful in locating worldwide populations to their right geographic regions, and down to their village and island of origin. "In his third book, children's author L.
OCULLAR instrument sees ocean color day and night A team led at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., has developed an instrument capable of observing ocean color during normal sunlight conditions and under moonlight—a first-ever capability that will allow scientists to monitor the health and chemistry of the planet's oceans literally around the clock. The prototype Ocean Color Underwater Low Light Advanced Radiometer (OCULLAR) has shown in field testing that it can measure ocean color under low-light conditions across multiple wavelength bands, from the ultraviolet to the near-infrared. In contrast, current remote-sensing instruments can obtain measurements—based on electromagnetic energy emitted by the sun, transmitted through the atmosphere, reflected off Earth's surface, or upwelled from water masses—only during daylight hours, said Principal Investigator Stan Hooker. First-of-a-Kind Capability "Ocean color is what we see and is a big part of understanding the ocean's diversity," Hooker explained.
Harnessing magnetic vortices for making nanoscale antennas (Phys.org) —Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory are seeking ways to synchronize the magnetic spins in nanoscale devices to build tiny yet more powerful signal-generating or receiving antennas and other electronics. Their latest work, published in Nature Communications, shows that stacked nanoscale magnetic vortices separated by an extremely thin layer of copper can be driven to operate in unison, potentially producing a powerful signal that could be put to work in a new generation of cell phones, computers, and other applications. The aim of this "spintronic" technology revolution is to harness the power of an electron's "spin," the property responsible for magnetism, rather than its negative charge. "Almost all of today's electronic technology, from the light bulb to the smartphone, involves the movement of charge," said Brookhaven physicist Javier Pulecio, lead author on the new study.
DARPA developing implant to monitor brain in real time The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has launched a US$70 million project to develop an implant to monitor neuronal activity in a bid to improve the mental health of soldiers and veterans. There is a high incidence of mental illness among soldiers compared with the general population — in fact, one in nine medical discharges is because of mental illness. This is not surprising — if you ask people to do and see horrific things, it's going to mess with their heads in pretty significant ways. DARPA is seeking to understand more about how the brain works in the hope of developing effective therapies for troops and veterans. SUBNETS is inspired by Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS), a surgical treatment that involves implanting a brain pacemaker in the patient's skull to interfere with brain activity to help with symptoms of diseases like epilepsy and Parkinson's. Via www.darpa.mil
DARPA developing implant to monitor brain in real time Ramones - Teenage Lobotomy lobotomy lobotomy lobotomy lobotomy ddt did a job on me now i am a real sickie guess i'll have to break the news that i've got no mind to lose all the girls ... duration: 2:02 published: 18 Sep 2009 updated: 14 Aug 2013 views: 323615 author: AllRamonesMusic Electronic Harassment: Voices in My Mind Hundreds of people in the valley say they are hearing voices in their heads, and those voices are being transmitted by microwave or other methods. duration: 5:29 published: 13 Nov 2012 updated: 29 May 2013 views: 1926 author: KMIR6 CIA - Cathy O'Brien - Alien Based Mind Control - MKUltra - Child Abuse - US Government duration: 112:07 published: 05 Feb 2014 updated: 05 Feb 2014 views: 9 Timothytrespas: Leision, Morgellons, won't heal.Targeted Individual exposed to chemtrails Timothytrespas:targeted individual: Morgellons lesion does not heal! duration: 0:11 published: 10 Sep 2012 updated: 14 Sep 2012 views: 137 author: timothytrespas May 30, 2013. Transhumanism gone wild.
A Chip In The Head: Brain Implants Will Be Connecting People To The Internet By The Year 2020 Would you like to surf the Internet, make a phone call or send a text message using only your brain? Would you like to “download” the content of a 500 page book into your memory in less than a second? Would you like to have extremely advanced nanobots constantly crawling around in your body monitoring it for disease? Would you like to be able to instantly access the collective knowledge base of humanity wherever you are? All of that may sound like science fiction, but these are technologies that some of the most powerful high tech firms in the world actually believe are achievable by the year 2020. However, with all of the potential “benefits” that such technology could bring, there is also the potential for great tyranny. For now, most of the scientists that are working on brain implant technology do not seem to be too worried about those kinds of concerns. Right now, there are approximately 100,000 people around the world that have implants in their brains. Google has a plan.