Frozen Baby Mammoth Unearthed
As the permafrost of north-west Siberia thaws due to global warming it is unveiling the frozen carcasses (fossils) of the now extinct woolly mammoth. In 2007, a perfectly preserved baby woolly mammoth was discovered, the local man who found her named her Lyuba after his wife!
Here are numerous articles, videos and interactives about Baby Lyuba.
“Jurassic Park” in the Making?
Is it possible that one day you will be able to go to your local zoo and witness with your own two eyes a living, breathing woolly mammoth. Extinct now for more than 10,000 years, scientists in Japan have been hard at work trying to attain a sperm sample with viable DNA from one of these beasts. They hope they will be able to impregnate today’s modern-day cousin of the woolly mammoth, the elephant, to create a hybrid of the animal.
However there are a few problems that have presented themselves.
Looking back at the time period during which the woolly mammoth lived, the last ice age, that environment and climate no longer exists. Scientists would essentially be creating an organism that other than in an artificial environment (a zoo) has no chance at survival. Is this ethically right?
The other problem that scientists are running into is the condition of the DNA samples they are finding. Over the past 10,000 years these frozen samples have degraded into little pieces, scientists are yet to find a sample that is intact enough to actually work with. Even with the technology we have, without a viable DNA sample the scientists cannot proceed.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/04/0408_050408_woollymammoth.html
A Whale of an Explosion!
Often times a build up of gas can result in a sudden smelly release (flatulence), but people in Taiwan were not expecting this smelly, fleshy release of gases from a whale’s internal decomposition!
In this video scientists investigate exactly what lead to this massive build up of gases and why the whale exploded at the exact point in the abdomen that it did.
Longevity Gene Discovered
Using unconventional methods scientists began searching for a reason people did not develop Alzheimer’s disease and Cardiovascular disease (diseases that are commonly associated with aging), instead of looking at factors that could lead to the development of these diseases. They found it in the form of a gene called cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) gene. Scientists have nicknamed the gene the “longevity gene”. In case studies conducted around the world (Germany and France in particular) it was discovered that this gene was present, sometimes twice, in centenarians (people living over 100 years of age).
What exactly did they discover about this gene and its relationship to leading a healthy longer life? Read on to find out!
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/01/100112165234.htm
The Fountain of Youth
As some of you seemed very interested in the material discussed in the video we watched in class this week, I have uploaded it to the blog for further viewing. I have also included the research site that I mentioned which is based out of Oregon State University.
In addition to commenting on the actual video clip, using the research site you may want to discuss what use of Resveratrol you feel will have the most impact if successful and why. I highly recommend reading the research, as there are some extremely interesting and mind-boggling things that scientists feel this “miracle drug” may be able to do for us in the future.
“Drink To Your Health”- Resveratrol youtube video
Test Tube Babies Suffer in the Aftermath
Many of you may have heard the term “test-tube baby” used before but been unsure what exactly was meant by it. Over two decades ago scientists and doctors conceived a way to help couples experiencing difficulties with becoming pregnant. They called it assisted reproductive technology (ART), the most common type being in vitro fertilization (IVF). ART refers to many different treatments that aid in the fertilization of a woman’s egg by a sperm cell ranging from fertility drugs to IVF (more commonly known as a “test-tube baby”). IVF occurs in a laboratory setting when a woman’s egg is placed in a Petri dish with male sperm cells, once one sperm cell fertilizes the egg, doctors wait about five days to ensure fertilization and proper development and then implant the embryo into the uterus.
Procedures such as the one described above were once thought to be the answer to couples’ fertility problems. Doctors ensured patients that children who were conceived in this manner would not suffer from any immediate or long-term side effects. At the time research supported their claims.
Recently new research has surfaced that indicates the contrary. Temple geneticist Carmen Sapienza was reported to have said at a recent conference:
“Children conceived through ART are more prone to low birth weights, birth defects and genetic abnormalities, contrary to previous studies showing little or no differences between lab-made babies and those conceived the old-fashioned way.”
What are some of the potential causes for these defects that scientists are looking into?
Dyer, Nicole. “For Test-Tube Babies, Synthetic Environment Could Cause Lasting Genetic Damage | Popular Science.” Popular Science | New Technology, Science News, The Future Now. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2010. <http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2010-02/test-tube-babies-synthetic-environment-could-cause-lasting-genetic-damage>.
Blasting Brains with Ultrasound
In the United States, the leading causes of death are heart disease and cancer. Following close behind, in third place, with 137,119 deaths reported in 2006, are strokes (cerebrovascular diseases)[1]. Cerbro refers to the brain, vascular refers the blood vessels and arteries. A stroke is caused when either a blood clot or a fatty deposit (usually the result of Atherosclerosis) blocks the flow of blood in the vessels and arteries leading to the brain therefore, depriving the brain of oxygen.
The immediate treatments for such a blockage are currently either drugs which attempt to either thin the blood or minimize the plaque build up or an invasive surgery to remove the actual clot. As one can imagine, when dealing with the brain, more often than not these surgeries prove too risky and can not be performed. However, doctors have recently discovered a new way to blast these clots to smithereens without even breaking the skin. They suggest that by using an ultrasound and sending ultrasound waves through your brain, one can hone in on the clot and basically rattle it to pieces in less than a minute.
Doctors are currently in clinical trials testing this procedure on animals and human cadavers. They hope it will be approved by 2011.
[1] “FASTSTATS – Leading Causes of Death.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. N.p., 31 Dec. 2009. Web. 18 Feb. 2010. nchs/FASTATS/lcod.htm>.
Little Miss Piggy May Save Your Life
Someday you may be proud to be called a “Pig”: This could mean that you have received an organ transplant compliments of Miss Piggy. Recently, researchers in Australia have discovered the ability of using pig lungs to properly and safely oxygenate human blood. This is a fantastic discovery, as swine (pig) organs are virtually the same size as human organs, giving us a source for organs outside our own species.
This is great; the right size organs readily available to us, and no human life would be lost in the process! So why aren’t we already doing it, why is this so difficult? You might recall in our discussion on cancer and different types of treatments that in order for a leukemia patient to receive a bone marrow transplant, they have to find a donor that matches their blood and antibody type. If it is hard for your body to accept cells from another human being you can imagine how it would be next to impossible for your body to accept cells or organs from a PIG!
This is no longer the case due to genetic engineering! Scientists have been able to remove the gene that restricts inter-species (human to swine) compatibility, therefore allowing pig organs to function properly when they come in contact with human blood.
Reseachers are saying they hope to make these new donors available in the next five years.
http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2010-02/genetically-engineered-pig-lung-oxygenates-human-blood
Decoding Our Past
Scientists have decoded 80% of a genome of a man who lived 4,000 years ago off the western coast of Greenland. What they have discovered reveals that this ancient man had descended from ancestors who traveled from Siberia across the northern edges of North America until they reached Greenland. They were also able to use his genetic profile to assemble a brief description of what he would have looked like including but not limited to – thick dark hair, brown eyes, dry ear wax . In addition to these traits they hypothesize had he lived a longer life, he most likely would have gone bald.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/11/science/11genome.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
One Woman’s Immortal Contribution to Science
In every science lab around the world, it is probable that you will find a cell that originated from the cervix of one Henrietta Lacks.
In 1951,Henrietta Lacks had a biopsy performed on cells found in her cervix, she was soon diagnosed with cervical cancer. Unfortunately, she died a mere eight months later.However, her cancerous cells live on for eternity in a Petri dish. As you know, cancer is caused by uncontrolled growth. After Henrietta’s biopsy, her cancerous cells were sent to John Hopkins Hospital for further research. These cells have continued to grow and divide since 1951 and have provided scientists with the means to study cancer and so much more. For more on what Henrietta’s cancerous cells have done for science, read on.
Also feel free to do a little research on Henrietta’s cells and their history at http://helacells.com/
Beyond the Walls in Biology 