Fossil microbes discovered in Australia could be Earth's oldest known life form | Science The fossilised remains of microbes that lived beside the sea in the earliest chapter of life on Earth have been discovered in a slab of rock in Western Australia. Researchers found the tiny fossils in rock formations that date to 3.4bn years ago, making them strong candidates to be the oldest microbes found. Some clung to grains of sand that had gathered on one of the first known stretches of beach. The findings paint a vivid picture of life arising when the first land masses began to emerge in fragmentary fashion from the oceans. "To us it would have seemed like a hellish place to live," said Prof Martin Brasier at Oxford University, who co-authored a report on the fossils in the journal Nature Geoscience. Brasier worked with a team led by Dr David Wacey at the University of Western Australia, who found the fossils in the region's Strelley Pool formation, one of the oldest outcrops of sedimentary rock on Earth.
i360medical in strategic deal with top US research institutes - Irish Innovation News Siliconrepublic.com Ireland’s i360medical, formerly the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland - Center for Innovation in Surgical Technology (RCSI-CIST), is about to sign a memo of understanding (MOU) with three premier US universities and one major US innovation hub. The announcement came as part of this week’s Enterprise Ireland trade mission to the southern United States led by Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton, TD. The new partner institutions include Duke University, the University of Miami, the University of North Carolina and Synecor. “Collectively, these three universities and Synecor innovation hub house today’s scientific thought leaders and their research labs have produced some of the world’s most enduring surgical technologies,” said Derek Young, head of i360medical. “It’s exciting to join forces with them as we jointly identify and develop a life-cycle plan for the breakthrough technologies of tomorrow.” A step-change for export performance
Scientists have new help finding their way around brain's nooks and crannies Like explorers mapping a new planet, scientists probing the brain need every type of landmark they can get. Each mountain, river or forest helps scientists find their way through the intricacies of the human brain. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have developed a new technique that provides rapid access to brain landmarks formerly only available at autopsy. The technique makes it possible for scientists to map myelination, or the degree to which branches of brain cells are covered by a white sheath known as myelin in order to speed up long-distance signaling. "The brain is among the most complex structures known, with approximately 90 billion neurons transmitting information across 150 trillion connections," says David Van Essen, PhD, Edison Professor and head of the Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology at Washington University. Areas with less myelin include brain regions linked to speech, reasoning and use of tools.
Faroe Islands to sequence the genome of entire population The Faroe Islands -- a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark -- wants to become the first nation to offer full human genome sequencing to each of its 50,000 citizens. The project -- called FarGen -- was announced at the Personal Genomes conference last week. A 100-person pilot will be completed first in order to get a better understanding of the technical, ethical, social and legal challenges of the project. The pilot will only use adults, who will not receive their results because, according to programme director Bogi Eliasen, "we don't feel ready for that". There is a high prevalence of genetic disease -- such as metabolic disorder CTD -- in the Faroe Islands, due to the small, homogenous population, and as such there is a good understanding of genetic tests within the population. CTD is treatable, but can cause heart failure in children. Individuals would also have the right to access their own sequence data and have it interpreted privately should they so wish.
Cork biopharma start-up secures more than 5m in EC funding - Start Ups - Start-Ups BrePco Biopharma has secured €5.66m in funding for research into the treatment of critically ill premature babies suffering from hypotension – a condition often associated with tragic outcomes. Set up two years ago by former Elan executives at the Rubicon Centre at Cork Institute of Technology, BrePco Biopharma is now based at the Fota Business Park. It has collaborated with a consortium of university research centres led by Cork University Maternity Hospital to get the funding from European Commission’s Healthcare FP7 Programme. The collaboration brings together experts from 13 centres across Ireland, Europe and Canada, and will develop a standard of care and uniquely tailored products for treating low blood pressure in premature newborns. “This is a significant milestone for our company, as well as for the researchers in Cork University Maternity Hospital, with whom we have been working for the last two years,” said co-founder and chairman of BrePco Biopharma, Paul Breen.
Evolution machine: Genetic engineering on fast forward - life - 27 June 2011 Read full article Continue reading page |1|2|3|4 Automated genetic tinkering is just the start – this machine could be used to rewrite the language of life and create new species of humans IT IS a strange combination of clumsiness and beauty. Sitting on a cheap-looking worktop is a motley ensemble of flasks, trays and tubes squeezed onto a home-made frame. Arrays of empty pipette tips wait expectantly. Say hello to the evolution machine. These days everything from your food and clothes to the medicines you take may well come from genetically modified plants or bacteria. Grand ambitions Yet changing even a handful of genes takes huge amounts of time and money. The task is so difficult and time-consuming because biological systems are so complex. Many biologists think the answer is to try to eliminate the guesswork. The basic idea is hardly original; various forms of directed evolution are already used to design things as diverse as proteins and boats. New Scientist Not just a website!
News Item - Communications Office Nov 03, 2011 Trinity College Dublin has appointed the first Academic Director of the Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, Professor Luke O’Neill. Professor of Biochemistry at the School of Biochemistry and Immunology, Luke O’Neill is a leading immunologist who has made a significant contribution to international research. As Director of the Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, Professor O’Neill will oversee Trinity’s multi-disciplinary biomedical and bioscience research effort. Speaking about his new position Professor O’Neill said: “I am delighted to take on this important role for Trinity College Dublin. The Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute on Pearse Street is a state-of-the-art multi-disciplinary research facility. About Professor Luke O’Neill: Professor Luke O’Neill has emerged as a world leader through his pioneering work in the fields of immunology and inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.