Kansas State University biologist seeks to understand brain development

Biologists have long studied zebrafish as a developmental model for understanding the biology of chordates, e.g., animals with a notochord, hollow dorsal nerve cord, pharyngeal slits, endostyle, and post-anal tail. Chordates include mammals (us!), fish, amphibians, reptiles and birds. Dr. Thomas Mueller, research assistant professor in the Division of Biology, co-authored with Dr. Mario Wullimann, Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, Germany, the "Atlas of Early Zebrafish Brain Development: A Tool for Molecular Neurogenetics – 2nd ed.” published by Elsevier.

I helped write a textbook!

The textbook is designed specifically for Kansas State's Biology 198 Principles of Biology course. The course is taught using the studio approach and based on active learning. Typical enrollment approaches 1,500 students a year. The textbook is divided into 7 learning modules and unusually begins with the big picture of ecology and then steps back to cell biology, biochemistry, genetics, and energetics before ending with whole-organism plant and animal modules.

Aquatilis Expedition

Aquatilis Expedition is a 3-year underwater journey utilizing the best in modern technology and digital imaging. Using a custom-made remotely-operated underwater robot with a built-in 4K camera, scientists are exploring the oceans. Focusing on zooplankton, they are refocusing many technologies used to explore Mars back to exploring our own unknown frontier, the oceans’ depths.

University of Akron researchers trace bat killer’s path

Bats provide critical ecological services to humans. They are critical in food plant pollinators and in controlling bugs that threaten agriculture and forestry. A single bat can eat thousands of insects in a single night. Their pest-control value to the US economy is estimated in the billions of dollars. Unfortunately, they are dying in massive numbers. White Nose Syndrome (WNS) has killed about 7 million North American bats with no end in site. This trend will probably worsen, since the recent UA discovery indicates that the deadly WNS fungus can survive in caves with or without the presence of bats. The regional extinction of North American bats is possible. 

Ancient European Hunter-Gatherer was a Blue-Eyed Boy

Analysis of the entire genome of a 7,000 year old hunter-gatherer has revealed interesting facts about the evolution of human genes. DNA extracted from the teeth of remains found in a cave in Spain were completely sequenced. This marks the first pre-agricultural genome to be sequenced and analyzed. While previous sequence data have shown changes in genes associated with early agriculture, such as adaptations to lactose, grain, livestock diseases, the new data raises interesting questions about when some of these genes evolved.

NRS News: Forest Service Scientists Identify Key Fungal Species that Help Explain Mysteries of White Nose Syndrome

US Forest Service researchers have identified what may be a key to unraveling some of the mysteries of White Nose Syndrome. Studying the closest non-disease causing relatives of the WNS fungus have allowed scientists to move forward with genetic work to examining the molecular mechanisms this fungus uses to kill bats. These fungi, many of them still without formal Latin names, live in bat hibernation sites and even directly on bats, but they do not cause the devastating disease that kills millions of bats in the eastern US. Researchers hope to use these fungi to understand why one fungus can be deadly to bats while its close relatives are benign.

DNA found outside genes plays largely unknown, potentially vital roles: Thousands of previously unknown RNA molecules identified

A new study highlights the potential importance of the vast majority of human DNA that lies outside of genes within the cell. The researchers found that 85% of these stretches of DNA make lincRNAs (large intergenic non-coding RNAs), molecules that increasingly is being found to play important roles within cells. They also determined that lincRNA is more likely than other non-gene DNA regions to be associated with inherited disease risks.

Novel approach to find RNAs involved in long-term memory storage

Scientists have developed a novel strategy for isolating and characterizing a substantial number of RNAs transported from the cell-body of neuron (nerve cell) to the synapse, the small gap separating neurons that enables cell to cell communication. Relatively little is known about the identity of these RNA molecules transported as part of the molecular process underpinning learning and memory. Scientists from The Scripps Research Institute, Columbia University, and the University of Florida have developed a novel strategy for isolating and characterizing a substantial number of these RNAs.

Brain size didn't drive primate evolution, research suggests

When great apes diverged from old-world monkeys about 20 million years ago, there was a rise in white matter in the prefrontal cortex, which contributes to social cognition, moral judgments, introspection, and goal-directed planning. Regions tied to motor planning also increased and could have helped them orchestrate the complex movements needed to manipulate tools.

Paralyzing algae is killing manatees at record pace in Florida

Florida wildlife officials report that 149 of the gentle giants have been killed by red tide this year in just two and a half months, making it almost certain that the state will pass the record of 151, set in 1996.

Check out every single kind of microbe in your body online — all 5 million of them

The initial phase of the Human Microbiome Project has come to an end — and with it, the mapping of the full community of microbes that inhabit all the various nooks and crannies of the healthy human body. The results of the exhaustive study will be published as a collection in PLoS, making their findings available to everyone.

Baby Genomes!!

Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have for the first time sequenced the genome of an unborn baby using only a blood sample from the mother.

Reports of rare superbug jump in US, CDC says

A sharp jump in the number of rare but potentially deadly types of a superbug resistant to nearly all last-resort antibiotics has prompted government health officials to renew warnings for U.S. hospitals, nursing homes and other health care settings.

The move comes just as researchers are reporting that people who carry dangerous CRE -- Carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae -- can take more than a year before they test negative for the bacteria, making it more difficult to control and raising the risk of wider spread.

Newly discovered molecule could deliver drugs to treat diseases

Kansas State University researchers have designed molecules that may be capable of delivering drugs inside the body. For the first time, researchers have created membrane-bound vesicles formed entirely of polypeptides. The vesicles could serve as a new drug delivery system to safely treat cancers and neurodegenerative diseases.

Bone grown from human embryonic stem cells

Researchers at the New York Stem Cell Foundation Laboratory have grown bone grafts from human embryonic stem cells for use in research and potential therapeutic application. This is the first example of deriving bone cell progenitors from human embryonic stem cells in large quantities for repair of centimeter-sized defects.

First gene therapy successful against aging-associated decline: Mouse lifespan extended up to 24% with a single treatment

Inducing cells to express telomerase, the enzyme which extends the telomeres (ends of linear chromosomes) also extends the lifespan of mice. This study shows that life extension is actually a doable thing and could improve the health span of us!

Many studies have shown that you can increase lifespan of many species, including mammals, by acting on specific genes, but that usually involves altering genes in embryos. Not something to be done with humans.

The genes behind human intelligence also made us vulnerable to autism

While the genetic cause(s) of autism are still mostly unknown, the most common single-gene cause is Fragile X Syndrome. Fragile X Syndrome accounts for 5% of autism cases and involves errors on the X chromosome that disrupt normal brain development.

Fragile X Syndrome prevents the production of FMRP, an important brain protein needed to activate the NOS1 gene. The NOS1 gene product is found throughout the developing human brain, especially in guiding the maturation of the speech, language, and decision-making centers.

Wisc-Online: A Typical Animal Cell

'A Typical Animal Cell' is an online interactive tool to familiarize yourself with the internal contents of an animal cell. The layout for an animal cell is also the baseline for a plant and fungal cell, plus some other structures.

Animal Cell Flashcards

Are you ready to study? Of course you are and here is a great online resource for studying many topics, including biology. Quizlet has study tools from spelling, flashcards, and practice tests to studying games. I can't believe I didn't find this sooner! :-) There's a bunch of apps from Quizlet, too.

Wisc-Online: A Typical Animal Cell

A Typical Animal Cell is an online interactive tool to familiarize yourself with the internal contents of an animal cell. The layout for an animal cell is also the baseline for a plant and fungal cell, plus some other structures.