Genomic analysis in snakes shows link between neutral, functional genetic diversity

Eastern massasauga rattlesnake.
Photo Credit: Scott Martin

In the world of threatened and endangered species conservation, the genomic revolution has raised some complicated questions: How can scientists justify assessing species genetic diversity without consulting entire genomes now that they can be sequenced? But then again, how can scientists justify the time and expense of genome sequencing when age-old measures of neutral genetic diversity are much cheaper and easier to obtain?

A new study suggests making a transition from “old school” genetics to “new school” genomics for species conservation purposes probably isn’t necessary in all cases.

Researchers found the functional genetic diversity they detected by analyzing gene variations in fully sequenced genomes of 90 Eastern massasauga rattlesnakes correlated nicely with the neutral genetic diversity seen across broad sections of those same genomes containing no protein-coding genes – similar to the type of genetic material historically used to assess genetic diversity. 

“If we’re worried about the genetic health of populations, neutral diversity can give us a pretty good answer, as has long been argued. We have directly tested that for this species,” said H. Lisle Gibbs, professor of evolution, ecology and organismal biology at The Ohio State University and senior author of the study. 

Single cell genomics reveal key cell factor for dangerous identity loss in tumor cells

Maxim Frolov, professor of biochemistry and molecular genetics.
Photo: Jenny Fontaine/University of Illinois Chicago

When proliferating cells reach their mature form as part of the eye, kidney or blood, they typically differentiate and stop dividing. But in some cases, genetic errors cause these cells to turn back the clock and dedifferentiate — losing their final identity and regaining the ability to proliferate. This phenomenon can result in tumors, and pathologists often use the extent of dedifferentiation to assess the aggressiveness of a cancer. 

In a new paper published by Developmental Cell, UIC researchers used single-cell genomics to identify a key factor in this process. By carefully examining how two tumor suppressor pathways interact in the eye of the fruit fly, a team led by Maxim Frolov pinpointed the cellular elements responsible for dedifferentiation. 

Single-cell genomics is a laboratory method that allows researchers to measure the DNA and RNA from just one cell, instead of collectively across many cells in a sample. In 2018, Frolov’s group was the first at UIC to publish a study that used single-cell genomics to systematically identify cell types in a heterogeneous tissue based on gene expression.  

With a Proton Pump to More Growth

phytoplankton
Public Domain

An international research team with participation from Würzburg has discovered how algae compensate for nutrient deficiencies. Their discovery could help counteract the negative effects of climate change.

One of the building blocks of ocean life can adapt to cope with the effects of climate change, according to new research led by the University of East Anglia (UEA). The discovery holds promises for biotechnology developments that could counter the negative effects of changing environmental conditions, such as ocean warming and even the reduction in the productivity of crops.

Corresponding authors of the study, now published in the journal Nature Microbiology, are Thomas Mock, Professor of Marine Microbiology in the School of Environmental Sciences at UEA, and his former PhD student Dr. Jan Strauss. At Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (JMU), Professor Georg Nagel and Dr. Shiqiang Gao from the Department of Neurophysiology at the Institute of Physiology were involved.

Lockheed Martin's Next Generation Interceptor Program Advances Through Major Design Milestone

Lockheed Martin NGI Artist rendering of NGI.
Illustration Credit: Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin's Next Generation Interceptor (NGI) program executed its digital All Up Round (AUR) Preliminary Design Review (PDR), in partnership with the Missile Defense Agency (MDA), on September 29. The company remains on-plan to deliver NGI on an accelerated schedule for the warfighter.

NGI is part of the MDA's Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) system and will provide a new, advanced interceptor to protect the homeland against long range ballistic missile threats from rogue nations. During this review, the MDA assessed the NGI program's readiness and maturity to continue into the detailed design phase, confirming that Lockheed Martin's solution continues to meet requirements for the mission.

"I am proud of our team's commitment to innovating with urgency to achieve expectations for this phase of the program," said Sarah Hiza, vice president and general manager of Strategic and Missile Defense at Lockheed Martin. "With this additional confidence in our NGI design through a week-long digital review with our MDA customer, we are on track to deliver the right solution to meet the needs of the nation."

Mimicking a Bird’s Sticky Spit to Create Cellulose Gels

Photo Credit: TheOtherKev

Using a small bird’s nest-making process as a model, researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a nontoxic process for making cellulose gels. The freeze-thaw process is simple, cost-effective, and can create cellulose gels that are useful in a number of applications, including tunable gels for timed drug delivery. The process also works with bamboo and potentially other lignin-containing plant fibers.

Cellulose is a wonderful material for making hydrogels – which are used in applications ranging from contact lenses to wound care and drug delivery. But creating hydrogels from cellulose is tricky, and often the processes used to create the hydrogels are themselves toxic.

“Normally, you have to first dissolve the cellulose and then induce it to crosslink or form the structure of interest, which often requires the use of difficult to handle, unstable, or toxic solvents,” says Lucian Lucia, professor of forest biomaterials and chemistry at NC State and co-corresponding author of the work.

Enter the Swift family of birds – small birds who use their saliva to hold twigs in place when building their nests.

New Biomarker Predicts Whether Neurons Will Regenerate

Neurons, shown here in red and yellow, are some of the slowest cells to regenerate after injury. In this section of a mouse brain, yellow neurons are regenerating while red neurons are non-regenerating.
Image Credit: Courtesy of University of California San Diego

Findings could help scientists develop regenerative therapies for spinal cord injuries and other neurological conditions

Neurons, the main cells that make up our brain and spinal cord, are among the slowest cells to regenerate after an injury, and many neurons fail to regenerate entirely. While scientists have made progress in understanding neuronal regeneration, it remains unknown why some neurons regenerate and others do not. 

Using single-cell RNA sequencing, a method that determines which genes are activated in individual cells, researchers from University of California San Diego School of Medicine have identified a new biomarker that can be used to predict whether or not neurons will regenerate after an injury. Testing their discovery in mice, they found that the biomarker was consistently reliable in neurons across the nervous system and at different developmental stages. The study was published October 16, 2023 in the journal Neuron.

MIT design would harness 40 percent of the sun’s heat to produce clean hydrogen fuel

MIT engineers have developed a design for a system that efficiently harnesses the sun’s heat to split water and generate hydrogen.
Credit: Courtesy of the researchers
(CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 DEED)

MIT engineers aim to produce totally green, carbon-free hydrogen fuel with a new, train-like system of reactors that is driven solely by the sun.

In a study appearing today in Solar Energy Journal, the engineers lay out the conceptual design for a system that can efficiently produce “solar thermochemical hydrogen.” The system harnesses the sun’s heat to directly split water and generate hydrogen — a clean fuel that can power long-distance trucks, ships, and planes, while in the process emitting no greenhouse gas emissions.

Today, hydrogen is largely produced through processes that involve natural gas and other fossil fuels, making the otherwise green fuel more of a “grey” energy source when considered from the start of its production to its end use. In contrast, solar thermochemical hydrogen, or STCH, offers a totally emissions-free alternative, as it relies entirely on renewable solar energy to drive hydrogen production. But so far, existing STCH designs have limited efficiency: Only about 7 percent of incoming sunlight is used to make hydrogen. The results so far have been low-yield and high-cost.

Special probes improve ultrasound imaging in obese patients

Edited image from the publication: scan of the liver of an obese patient. The image quality of the standard ultrasound probe (left) is significantly poorer than that of the high-performance probes (center and left).
Image Credit: Heintz et.al. 2023, Scientific Reports

Ultrasound is used to diagnose many diseases in the abdominal cavity. A new study conducted at the University of Leipzig Medical Center and supported by the Helmholtz Institute for Metabolism, Obesity and Vascular Research (HI-MAG) shows that obesity affects the quality of ultrasound scans of the liver and kidneys. It also shows that the use of high-performance ultrasound probes can improve the anatomical depiction in these patients. The findings have been published in the journal Scientific Reports.

Ultrasound of the abdominal organs is a central diagnostic tool and is recommended as the first-line approach for many medical conditions. Compared with other imaging modalities such as computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), ultrasound is readily available, avoids unnecessary radiation exposure and can be used in almost every case. However, the accuracy of this method is usually limited in obese individuals because the imaging quality of anatomical structures is impaired. To date, the degree of obesity at which ultrasound diagnostics are no longer sufficiently precise has not been sufficiently researched.

Study indicates majority of endangered greater glider habitat in QLD unprotected

Greater Glider (Petauroides volans) in a Eucalypt taken by Sam Horton in South East Queensland for the Wildlife Queensland and the Glider Network
Photo Credit: Samrhorton
(CC BY-SA 4.0 DEED)

Researchers at Griffith University have discovered that the majority of critical habitat and movement pathways for southern greater gliders in Queensland lie outside of protected areas.

Dr Patrick Norman and Professor Brendan Mackey used cutting-edge technology to map mature forests to identify potential habitat and corridors that were essential for the survival of the endangered species. It is only these 200+-year-old forests in which tree hollows large enough to support the cat-sized gliders occurred.

Worryingly, the researchers discovered that most of the important remaining glider habitat in the state occurred within privately owned, lease owned land and state forest, leaving it vulnerable to logging, clearing and other threats.

The emotional function of dreams is not the same everywhere

The study by the UNIGE and the University of Toronto shows that there is a strong link between our socio-cultural life and the function of dreams.
Photo Credit: Maeghan Smulders

Why do we dream? A product of our brain’s neurophysiology, dreaming is a complex experience that can take on many emotional tones and simulate reality to varying degrees. As a result, there is still no clear answer to this question. A study led by the universities of Geneva (UNIGE) and Toronto, and the Geneva University Hospitals (HUG), compared the dreams of two forager communities, in Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo, with those of individuals living in Europe and North America. It showed that the first two groups produced more threatening, but also more cathartic and socially-oriented dreams than the Western groups. These results, to be read in Scientific Reports, show how strong the links are between the socio-cultural environment and the function of dreams.

Dreaming is a hallucinatory experience common to all human beings. It occurs most often during the paradoxical phase of sleep, known as the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) phase. However, it can occur at any sleep stage. What are the physiological, emotional or cultural functions of dreams? Does it regulate our emotions? Does it prepare us to deal with a specific situation? Recent theories suggest that during a "functional" dream, the individual simulates more threatening and/or social situations, which would have an evolutionary advantage in promoting adapted behavior to real-life situations.