All posts by medical

Physiology

Cannabis Production Minor to Launch at Western Illinois University in Fall 2020 – Herald Pubs

MACOMB, IL According to Forbes, the cannabis industry is among the fastest-growing job markets in America. According to Leaflys 2019 Cannabis Jobs Count, cannabis directly employs more than 211,000 full-time workers in the U.S. And now Western Illinois University students interested in careers in what Leafly calls Americas hidden job boom will have the opportunity through a new Cannabis Production minor set to debut at WIU in Fall 2020.Westerns Faculty Senate approved the new minor at its meeting Feb. 4. Offered through WIUs School of Agriculture, the majority of courses for the 18-19 credit hour minor will be offered through the school, with additional coursework offered through the Department of Biological Sciences.A new course within the program, Cannabis Biology and Production, as well as the minor itself, will assist with developing employees for the new Illinois industry in cannabis production, said School of Agriculture Director Andy Baker.Were excited to be a part of this flourishing industry and providing in-demand, and new, academic opportunities for our students, said WIU Interim President Martin Abraham. Because of our many years of work in alternative crops, and the outstanding expertise of our faculty at Western, we are in a unique position to be at the forefront of cannabis studies.Shelby Henning, horticulture professor in the School of Agriculture, will lead the biology/production course, which includes cannabis anatomy, physiology, breeding, propagation methods, management techniques, post-harvest processing, commercial production, crop rotations and product applications.The U.S. Farm Bill of 2014 legalized industrial hemp for research by state agriculture departments and universities. School of Agriculture Professor Win Phippen, who leads our alternative crops program, has been conducting research on hemp for several years, and most recently, added a cannabis component to his research, noted Baker. This new course and minor are perfect complements to our comprehensive agriculture degree program.Other courses available in the minor, which already exist through the School of Agriculture and Department of Biological Sciences include crop sciences, introduction to horticulture, introduction to plant biology, genetics in biology and agriculture, pest management, plant structure, plant physiology, greenhouse and nursery management, plant breeding, crop improvement and hydroponic plant production.For more information, contact the School of Agriculture at (309) 298-1080 or AJ-Baker@wiu.edu.

Continue reading here:
Cannabis Production Minor to Launch at Western Illinois University in Fall 2020 - Herald Pubs

Physiology

Orcutt: The other ‘lungs of the planet’ – Roanoke Times

Orcutt is Professor Emeritus of Plant Physiology from Virginia Tech. He lives in Montgomery County

Alexander von Humboldt, an environmentalist credited with the early prediction of climate change, wrote President Thomas Jefferson in 1804: The wants and restless activity of large communities of men gradually dispoil the face of the Earth. This was after his exploration, in 1799 of the Aragua Valley in Venezuela, where rainforests were being removed and replaced with indigo by local farmers. He noted it was having detrimental effects on the local natural ecosystems and climate. According to Andrea Wulf, Alexander von Humboldts biographer, It was one of the first Western observations of human-caused climate change.

Although the rainforests are considered the Lungs of the Planet, and rightfully so, little public attention is given to an equally important group of plants called phytoplankton.

Phytoplankton are microscopic, single-celled/colonial photosynthetic plants that live suspended in the water of all aquatic ecosystems. They are important because through photosynthesis they remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air producing food and oxygen (O2) for plant and animal life in aquatic habitats as well as on land. Phytoplankton represent the bottom of the food chain and are ultimately a food source for all animals in oceans, lakes and rivers including the fin and shellfish we eat.

Estimates indicate that phytoplankton produce 50-85% of the earths O2.

In other words, roughly three out of four breaths you take, the O2 in each breath, is produced by phytoplankton.

Phytoplankton are important in reducing global warming by removing CO2 from the air during photosynthesis. One group of phytoplankton, called diatoms, has been estimated to remove 23 petragrams of CO2 from the air per year (1 petragram = 1.1 x 109 tons). Compare this with the rainforests at 18 petragrams, savannahs at 17, and cultivated plants at 8.

The role of diatoms and other phytoplankton in the survival of our planet is essential, but populations appear to be in decline. Since 1950, phytoplankton, in the major oceans, declined 40% and satellite imagery confirms that diatoms declined 1% per year between 1998-2012.

So, what may be causing phytoplankton to be declining?

Oceans readily absorb CO2 from the air and are an important repository for atmospheric CO2 but more CO2 in the air/oceans causes an increased acidity in the oceans due to the formation of carbonic acid which is likely having a negative effect on the growth of phytoplankton, coral and shellfish.

With continued warming of the oceans the solubility of CO2 and O2 declines and the ability of the oceans to remove/retain these gases from the atmosphere may also have negative consequences for the growth of phytoplankton and other life in the oceans.

Phytoplankton not only require CO2, light and O2 for growth but also require other nutrients. Such nutrients are obtained by oceanic mixing due to wind, currents and seasonal turnover of nutrients from lower depths of the ocean to the upper layers where light is available for photosynthesis. Seasonal turnover of water normally results in more dense cold water near the surface moving to the bottom of the ocean and less dense warmer water at the bottom migrating to the top bringing nutrients and organic matter that accumulated on the bottom. With global warming, the top layers of the oceans are warmer now with apparently less turn over occurring and less nutrients being brought to the surface where light is available for photosynthesis and growth of phytoplankton.

This all suggests that increased global warming, from rising CO2 levels, is causing elevated ocean temperatures, increased acidity, reduced nutrient levels and consequently, declining phytoplankton populations.

In addition, toxic materials from plastics, oil spills, pesticides, fertilizers and industrial, human and animal waste all contribute to pollution of streams, rivers, and lakes that ultimately flow into the oceans creating additional problems for the growth of animal and plant life.

Overcoming the problem of climate change will require a desire and willingness from individuals, industry and governments of the world to save our living planet. It will take a herculean effort not unlike the unselfish sacrifices made, for the greater good, by our parents and grandparents during World War II. Not to do so is a catastrophic failure of humankind and morally wrong. A statement made by Greta Thunberg, a 16-year-old Swedish girl in September 2019 at the UN, resonates so clearly now: All you can talk about is money and fairytales of economic growth.

Read more:
Orcutt: The other 'lungs of the planet' - Roanoke Times

Physiology

A rare disease among children is discovered in a 66-million-year-old dinosaur tumor – WLS

A rare disease that still affects humans today has been found in the fossilized remains of a duck-billed dinosaur that roamed the Earth at least 66 million years ago.

Researchers at Tel Aviv University noticed unusual cavities in two tail segments of the hadrosaur, which were unearthed at the Dinosaur Provincial Park in southern Alberta, Canada.

They compared the vertebrae with the skeletons of two humans who were known to have a benign tumor called LCH (Langerhans cell histiocytosis), a rare and sometimes painful disease that affects children, mainly boys.

Diagnosing diseases in skeletal remains and fossils is complicated as in some cases different diseases leave similar marks on bones. LCH, however, has a distinctive appearance that fit to the lesions found in the hadrosaur, said Dr. Hila May, head of the Biohistory and Evolutionary Medicine Laboratory, at TAUs Sackler Faculty of Medicine.

The researchers used advanced, high-resolution CT scans to analyze the dinosaur tail fossils.

New technologies,such as the micro CT scanning, enabled us to examine the structure of the lesion and reconstruct the overgrowth as well as the blood vessels that fed it, May told CNN.

The micro and macro analyses confirmed that it was, in fact, LCH. This is the first time this disease has been identified in a dinosaur, May said.

In humans, LCH is sometimes described as a rare form of cancer but May said that there are different opinions among experts as to whether it is definitively a cancer or not because in some cases its passes spontaneously.

Most of the LCH-related tumors, which can be very painful, suddenly appear in the bones of children aged 2-10 years. Thankfully, these tumors disappear without intervention in many cases, she said.

Hadrosaurs would have stood about 10 meters high and weighed several tons. They roamed in large herds 66 to 80 million years ago, the study, which published this week in the journal Scientific Reports said.

Like us, dinosaurs got sick but evidence of disease and infection in the fossil record a field known as paleopathology has been scant.

However, there is evidence that tyrannosaurids, like the T-Rex, suffered from gout and that iguanodons may have had osteoarthritis. Cancer has proved more difficult for paleopathologists to diagnose but there is evidence that dinosaurs would have suffered from the disease, the study said.

Studying disease in fossils, independent of the species, is a complicated task. And it is even more complicated when dealing with those of animals that are extinct as we do not have a living reference, May explained.

The authors said the finding could help further evolutionary medicine a new field of research that investigates the development and behavior of diseases over time.

Given that many of the diseases we suffer from come from animals, such as coronovirus, HIV and tuberculosis, May said understanding how they manifest themselves in different species and survive evolution can help find new and effective ways to treat them.

When we know that a disease is independent of species or time, it means the mechanism that encourages its development is not specific to human behavior and environment, rather [its] a basic problem in an organisms physiology, May said.

Click here to read full story

See original here:
A rare disease among children is discovered in a 66-million-year-old dinosaur tumor - WLS

Physiology

Going with the flow: searching for the optimum current speeds in RAS – The Fish Site

One of the early findings is that the increased growth caused by higher water speeds occurs in muscles, rather than the other organs. However, the researchers also argue that it's crucial to keep an eye on any impairments in fish welfare that might be caused by strong currents.

The aim of the new project was to find the optimum water speeds, or currents, for smolt in recirculation systems.

The researchers divided 80g post-smolt salmon which have recently adapted to marine life into groups that would swim for three months in water flowing at four different speeds.

They wanted to test to see what happens to salmon physiology at different water speeds and whether or not there are any upper speed limits. Water speed is measured as body length per second.

The speeds that were tested were 0.5 body length/sec (low), 1 (medium), 1.8 (high) and 2.5 (very high).

2.5 body lengths per second is the highest speed that has been tested on salmon smolt to date. In commercial recirculation systems less than one body length per second is normal.

We tested this very high water speed because we were interested in the physiological response of the fish, says fish health researcher Gerrit Timmerhaus at Nofima.

He believes that it is not realistic to introduce water speeds that are much higher than the present day standard in existing recirculation systems because this requires special equipment and powerful pumps suitable for achieving such high speeds. He also doubts if it would pay off, even if it did result in increased growth.

One of the findings in the trial was that weak currents resulted in a low condition factor ie a long, narrow body shape while strong currents resulted in relatively broad fish, which denotes good condition.

Even through producers want a high percentage of muscle and rapid growth, the researchers do not know how this actual type of salmon would manage during the growth phase in the sea, and whether or not a poor condition factor would be compensated for in the salmon by muscle growth at a later stage. One finding in a previous trial conducted at Nofima showed that strong currents result in increased resistance to diseases in the sea.

The Health and Welfare of Atlantic Salmon course

It is vital that fish farm operatives who are responsible for farmed fish are trained in their health andwelfare. This will help to ensure that fish are free from disease and suffering whilst at the same timepromote good productivity and comply with legislation.

Salmon swimming in strong currents swim in shoals and the researchers think that this is a sign that they are optimising their use of energy. The skin damage recorded included scale loss and hemorrhagic patches, and not damage that was directly harmful to health in itself.

Based on this research and previous research conducted at Nofima, I believe that it is optimal for fish to swim at speeds somewhere between 1 and 1.8 body lengths per second. Anything below 1 means that their growth potential is not utilised and they do not build up resistance to disease, and at speeds above 1.8 we risk making compromises with the health of the barrier tissue of the fish, says Timmerhaus.

This research, which represents a step towards acquiring more knowledge about salmon yields and welfare in closed-containment systems, was conducted at the Norwegian Centre for Research-based Innovation, CtrlAQUA SFI, in Sunndalsra.

Follow this link:
Going with the flow: searching for the optimum current speeds in RAS - The Fish Site

Physiology

CoralChange: a project to study and protect threatened coral by global change – Mirage News

CoralChange will promote the knowledge on the future of coral populations using demographical models applied to different global change scenarios. Photo: Cristina Linares (UB-IRBio)

Coral reefs build one of the most diverse, fascinating and productive ecosystems in the planet. However, these biological structures are also highly sensitive to the adverse effects of the current climate crisis. Phenomena such as progressive bleaching and massive mortality of coral affect the marine ecosystems of the planet and endanger the future of these communities.

In this context, the UB is leading CoralChange, a project that will assess for the first time- the role of the larval reproduction and ecology in the dynamics and viability on the long term of the threatened coral populations worldwide. To do so, CoralChange counts on the funding from the European Union, and in particular from the Horizon 2020 Marie Skodowska-Curie action fellowship.

The project, managed by the Bosch i Gimpera Foundation (FBG), is coordinated by the lecturer Cristina Linares, from the Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences of the Faculty of Biology and the Biodiversity Research Institute (IRBio) of the University of Barcelona.

Another participant in the study is the expert Nria Viladrich, from the mentioned Department and IRBio, who will analyse, from 2020 to 2022, the global change-induced transgenerational effects in hexacorallia and octocorals in the Caribean, in collaboration with the team of Jacqueline Padilla-Gamio, assistant professor at the University of Washington (United States).

Protecting corals from the effects of global change

With an innovative perspective, CoralChange will promote the knowledge on the future of coral populations using demographical models applied to different global change scenarios. In this line, researcher Nria Viladrich will work on a series of demographic prediction models with experimental data and field work that will include parameters on the physiological condition, trophic plasticity, reproductive success and larval viability of corals.

The project will also consider other aspects about these organisms, such as the additional energy cost of the coral ability to adjust their physiology that is, acclimation, and keep the biological activity under environmental change conditions.

The CoralChange approach will enable the identification of potential energy costs of adaptive mechanisms regarding the ocean acidification and warming that can damage the early life stages the most vulnerable ones- of corals. This energy cost could cause effects on the viability of the future descendants of the coral populations which are now threatened.

The results of the project will be crucial to develop effective management and conservation strategies to protect coral reefs under different factors of environmental stress, as well as to identify the coral populations and species with more chances to survive under the future conditions in the marine environment.

Read the rest here:
CoralChange: a project to study and protect threatened coral by global change - Mirage News

Physiology

How the Hell Did This Live Frog Get Inside a Green Pepper? An Investigation – VICE

What pops into your head when you hear the prompt: what is the greatest mystery?

Maybe the Dyatlov Pass incident? The Flannan Isles lighthouse? How I continue to be employed?

Those are all damn good mysteries, my friends, but they would not be the greatest. The greatest mystery of all time is how a goddamn frog was found alive in a whole pepper.

The new GOAT mystery comes to us from Saguenay, Quebec, courtesy of Nicole Gagnon and Grard Blackburn. Over the weekend, Gagnon was preparing a meal that included the lovely tastes of bell pepper. When she sliced open the green pepper that she had recently bought from her local grocery store and looked inside, nothing made sense anymore.

Grard! she exclaimed in French. Theres a frog in the pepper!

Here is a very well-made graphic to illustrate the mystery. Photos via Pixabay

Sure enough, there was a little green tree frog in the pepper, just kinda chilling.

The couple put the lil guy in a terrarium and reported it to Quebecs Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPAQ). Speaking to the CBC, Gagnon acknowledged her role in bringing this mystery to the masses.

Its like the Caramilk secret. How the frog ended up in the pepper, I have no idea, Gagnon told CBC.

MAPAQ would eventually kill the frog to run tests on it, because if there is anything bureaucracies hate its fun mysteries.

Gagnons son Jonathan Blackburn confirmed that the pepper was whole when his mother cut into it. He said the pepper cost $1.99 and was believed to have come into Canada from Honduras. As for the mystery, it stumped him as well.

Blackburn told VICE he didnt know how the frog got inside, but posited, Maybe an insect carried an egg inside. Thats my only idea. The pepper was whole.

You can watch a very charming CBC video of Nicole and Grard speaking about what happened (in French).

Inspired by Blackburns theory, Ive racked my brain for how a frog could end up inside a pepper. Alive. Heres the best I could come up with.

Well, for starters, we can go the immaculate conception route. That this pepper was empty and then, poof, some sort of greater power impregnated this pepper with a frog to, uh, teach us some sort of lesson. We must then assume that this frog is in some way connected to our lord and saviour. Remember that the Judeo-Christian god used frogs to prove their existenceIm talking about the second plague, yall. However, this would mean that an almighty decided to finally, once and for all, prove his existence in Saguenay, Quebec, and I refuse to accept that.

If you watched the video above and saw Nicole and Grard, Im sure you would join me in refusing to believe that this couple are A) lying and B) lying about finding a freakin frog in a fully formed bell pepper.

If anything they just didnt notice it. That brings us to our next explanation.

This is brought to us by our good friends over at Motherboardthe smart folks of VICE. It makes sense but it is not fun at all, so boooooooooooooooooo.

Ok enough of that nerd shit, lets get magical. Now, what kind of people would have the expertise to transport a live frog into a fully formed bell pepper? Thats right, magicians! Those dudes are always making stuff appear inside other stuff.

To learn more I got in touch with Edwin Broomfield and Daniel Kranstz, two illusionists who do animal-based illusions in their show Unleashed. The duo told me that they could totally make a frog disappear and then reappear in a pepper, and, in fact, they have a similar trick they do already with a lemon and a dollar bill. Krantz briefly outlined how the trick was done (it involves a fake thumb!) and it does seem possiblebut because Im not an asshole Im not going to ruin their trick for you. Kranstz said some adjustments would have to be made but with some sleight of frog they could totally pull it off.

All that in mind, though, while we may have a method here we do not have a motive. Unless the couple somehow angered an illusionist who has remarkably convoluted revenge plots, I dont believe this is the answer.

The frog got in there when the pepper was forming and it, uhh, just existed in there as the pepper closed around it, and it survived in the womb on the sweet green meat and moisture that would collect in there. Im no bell pepper expert but I did watch a pretty darn good time-lapse bell pepper growing several times. In the video, I noticed that at the beginning of the growth of the pepper, there seems to exist a small hole in the bottom that doesnt fully close for a bit. This hole certainly seems large enough for an enterprising young frog to climb into.

A hole the frog may have been able to crawl throughor not, I dont know. This is above my pay grade. Photo via YouTube screenshot

So, it turns out Im pretty dang dumb when it comes to pepper physiology.

Professor Barry Micallef, a plant physiologist at the University of Guelph, thinks the pepper may have cracked early on in its life and a frog or a tadpole grew up inside. If it was a young enough pepper a crack could have healed over after, he said.

Micallef said that for his theory to work the pepper must have been grown in a field, not in a greenhouse, and that early early on in its growth cycle it was hit with heavy rain.

It may have cracked with the rain, said Micallef. Peppers are prone to cracking and splitting because theyre thin-walled and hollow inside unlike most fruit. So what I think happened is either a frog or tadpole got into the pepper and then it developed inside.

Micallef said that peppers typically take 20 to 25 days to fully mature and, because theyre hollow, could have stored water inside after the rain.

The length of time for a tadpole to metamorphosize can vary significantly, from weeks to years, depending on the species of frog. All that said, maybe if the tadpole were at the end of its developmental cycle all the conditions for a frog to develop inside a pepper could have been present.

It might have just been like a little cocoon in there, a good enough environment that this little tadpole might have developed, said Micallef. If it wanted food after it could have always eaten the pepper.

According to Encyclopedia Britannica, while frogs are typically carnivores that shy away from vegetation, tadpoles exist on a vegetarian diet. Furthermore, the pepper is from Honduras, which means it likely grew in a field. So two points for Micallef here!

Honestly, Micallef might have blown this case wide open.

It turns out Im just as bad at frog physiology as I am pepper physiology.

The day after speaking to Micallef I awoke to find an email that shattered the comfortable reality I had created surrounding the frog and pepper question. Patrick Moldowan, the Director at Large at the Canadian Herpetological Society, first told me that the amphibian in question, based on the white lip stripe, horizontal pupil, and body proportions, looks like a green tree frog that is strangely coloured possibly due to a stress response.

Then he pulled the rug out from under me.

It almost certainly did not come to be a sizeable adult frog by developing as a tadpole, Moldowan wrote. For example, the egg development time, process of metamorphosis, and post-maturity growth (to reach adult size) are well beyond the time it takes a green pepper to grow.

At the end of the email, Moldowan seemed to throw his hat in with the nerds over at Motherboard. Booooooooo!

As to how it got into the pepper, thats a complete mystery, he said. Maybe it crawled in through a rupture in the pepper skin/wall?

Me trying to solve this. Screenshot from 'It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'

If my theorizing has taught me anything its that we shouldnt trust my theories when it comes to science, but go with me here.

So maybe the pepper was at the furthest stage of its growth where it could still fuse back and fell to the ground during a large rainfall near a stream or a body of water that was flooding. It had a small crack or hole that was open when it was on the ground and a frog snuck in to take refuge from the torrents. But during the frogs time in there, the pepper shifted, making the hole not big enough for the frog to get out and, over time, the hole sealed up completely. The pepper was picked, transported to Canada, sold, and cut into by Nicole Gagnonwith the frog (which would eventually be murdered by the government) inside.

I reached out to the Canadian Herpetological Society and, guess what? It may actually be possible.

I would think its not outside the realm of possibility for a frog to survive a few weeks inside a pepper, considering its probably pretty humid in there, so it wouldn't dry out, said Dr. Amanda Bennett, the secretary of the Canadian Herpetological Society. It would be quite cool given refrigeration, so its metabolism would be slowed down by the low temperature. Ectotherms (cold-blooded animals) in general can survive longer without feeding than endotherms (warm-blooded animals).

Hell yeah, score one for Mack.

At the end of the day though...

Despite all my pseudo-intellectual flailings and help from actual scientists, perhaps well never know. Isnt that the best answer? All great mysteries should never be fully solved. Let us leave the frog and the pepper question for generations to come. Let the smartest among Gen Z and Gen Alpha debate this quandary.

Let us forever wonder how the frog got inside the bell pepper.

Follow Mack Lamoureux on Twitter.

Read the original post:
How the Hell Did This Live Frog Get Inside a Green Pepper? An Investigation - VICE

Biochemistry

20 stellar scientists and scholars win 2020 Sloan Research fellowships – University of California

Twenty early-career faculty from across the University of California have been named 2020 Sloan Research fellows, an honor that is often a hallmark of future greatness.

UCs fellows are among a class of 126 from 60 colleges and universities across the United States and Canada announced Feb. 12 by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Winners receive a two-year, $75,000 fellowship, which can be spent to advance their research.

UC campuses dominated the list of winners, accounting for 15 percent of all Sloan Fellows. UC Berkeley had nine winners, UC San Diego had six, UCLA had four and UC Davis had one.

To receive a Sloan Research fellowship is to be told by your fellow scientists that you stand out among your peers, said Adam F. Falk, president of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. A Sloan Research fellow is someone whose drive, creativity and insight makes them a researcher to watch.

The Sloan Research fellowships are open to scholars in eight scientific and technical fields: chemistry, computer science, economics, mathematics, computational and evolutionary molecular biology, neuroscience, ocean sciences and physics.

Candidates are nominated by peers from their respective institutions. Winners are then selected by independent panels of scholars based on the candidates research accomplishments, creativity and potential to become leaders in their fields.

Sloan fellows have often gone on to make history. 50 Sloan fellows have won Nobel Prizes; 17 have won the Fields Medal in mathematics; and 69 have received the National Medal of Science.

Here are the University of Californias 2020 Sloan fellows:

Stephen Brohawn, UC Berkeley and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

An assistant professor of molecular and cell biology, Brohawn studies lifes electrical system, which is responsible for sensation, thought, learning, memory and many other forms of communication within the body, from a molecular and biophysical perspective.

Roger Casals, UC Davis

An assistant professor in theDepartment of Mathematics in the College of Letters and Science, Casals research centers on how light behaves. His specialty, contact topology, is the study of geometric structures that can describe shapes appearing in rays of light, such as reflections off a rippling pond or the liquid crystals in a television screen.

Tarek M. Elgindi, UC San Diego

An assistant professor ofmathematics, Elgindis research focuses on the mathematical analysis ofmodels for incompressible fluids.

Benjamin Faber, UC Berkeley

An associate professor of economics, Faber works at the intersection of international trade and development economics, focusing on how globalization shapes economic livelihoods in developing countries.

Alex Frano, UC San Diego

An assistant professor ofphysics, Franos research is focused on investigating strongly correlated electron systems using various X-ray scattering techniques.

Sanjam Garg,UC Berkeley

An assistant professor of electrical engineering and computer sciences, Garg is a computer theorist who conducts research in cryptography and security.

Cecile Gaubert, UC Berkeley

An assistant professor of economics, Gauberts research interests include international trade and economic geography.

Heather Gray,UC Berkeley and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

An assistant professor of physics, Gray is an experimental particle physicist working on the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider outside Geneva, Switzerland. Her primary interest is the Higgs boson, the most recently discovered elementary particle.

Cressida Madigan, UC San Diego

An assistant professor ofmolecular biology, Madigan conducts research at the crossroads of microbiology, neurobiology and infectious disease. She focuses on the surprising number of microbial infections that can change functions of the nervous system. For example, bacteria that cause leprosy prevent pain sensation in the skin; bacterial meningitis causes neuronal injury; and congenital infections can slow neurodevelopment.

Sung-Jin Oh,UC Berkeley

An assistant professor of mathematics, Oh studies geometric partial differential equations, especially those which originate from physics. He combines ideas from a diverse range of fields, including harmonic analysis, differential geometry and physics.

Aditya Parameswaran,UC Berkeley

Parameswaran has a joint appointment in the School of Information and electrical engineering and computer science (EECS). He develops systems for interactive, or human-in-the-loop, data analytics by synthesizing techniques from database systems, data mining and human-computer interaction. His tools help end-users and teams make sense of large and complex datasets.

Ricardo Perez-Truglia, UCLA

Perez-Truglia is an assistant professor of economics in the global economics and management group at UCLA Anderson. He studies how social image and social comparisons shape economic behavior. What do others think of you? Are you rich? Smart? Hard-working? The desire to shape these opinions is a powerful driver of human behavior.

Erik Petigura, UCLA

Petigura, an assistant professor of physics and astronomy, studies exoplanets using ground-based and space-based telescopes. My passion for exoplanets is motivated by a deceptively simple, yet fundamental question: Why are we here? said Petigura. Our species has wrestled with this question since antiquity, and it resonates strongly with me.

Nadia Polikarpova, UC San Diego

An assistant professor ofcomputer science and engineering, Polikarpova builds practical tools and techniques that make it easier for programmers to create secure and reliable software.

Jose Rodriguez, UCLA

An assistant professor of chemistry and biochemistry, Rodriguez develops and applies new scientific methods in bio-imaging to reveal undiscovered structures that influence chemistry, biology and medicine. His laboratory is working to explore the structures adopted by prions a form of infectious protein that causes neurodegenerative disorders.

Amina Schartup, UC San Diego

An assistant professor ofmarine chemistryat Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Schartup specializes in tracing the chemical and biological cycles of metals, especially mercury, in the environment.

Daniel Stolper,UC Berkeley and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

An assistant professor of earth and planetary science, Stolper focuses on generating and interpreting climate records of ancient Earth, primarily by studying the modern carbon cycle and reconstructing past atmospheric and marine oxygen concentrations.

Guy Van den Broeck, UCLA

Van den Broeck isanassistant professor of computer science whose research interests include machine learning, artificial intelligence, knowledge representation and reasoning, and applications of probabilistic reasoning and learning.He directsthe UCLAStatistical and Relational Artificial Intelligence (StarAI) laboratory.

Wei Xiong, UC San Diego

An assistant professor ofchemistry and biochemistry, Xiong investigates charge dynamics and molecular conformations at interfaces, and molecular dynamics and ultrafast photonics of molecular systems under strong coupling conditions.

Michael Zaletel, UC Berkeley and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

An assistant professor of physics, Zaletel focuses on theoretical condensed matter physics and its intersection with quantum information and computational approaches. He aims to understand the behavior of electrons in quantum materials where entanglement and the strong interactions between electrons conspire to form new phases of matter.

Read more:
20 stellar scientists and scholars win 2020 Sloan Research fellowships - University of California

Biochemistry

The Frost Institute supports microbiome research at winter symposium – University of Miami

The recent 2020 Miami Winter Symposium featured scientists and researchers examining the current trends and medical opportunities in microbiome research.

Capable of improving peoples health and transforming care, microbiome research is an emerging field that was front and center during the recent 2020 Miami Winter Symposium.

Each year for the past 50 years, the Miami Winter Symposium highlights a trending research theme; experts and scientists come together to learn about new scientific methods and approaches related to the theme. This years focus was microbiome research, which featured world-renowned researchers at the forefront of the field.

During the event held Jan. 2629 at the Hyatt Regency Miami, interactive displays provided an opportunity for researchers to advance the field and contribute to groundbreaking studies in molecular mechanisms that link microbiome research and improvements in human health. The University of Miami Frost Institute of Chemistry and Molecular Science was a co-sponsor at the symposium.

In collaboration with the symposium, the Frost Institute presented a pre-conference panel session entitled Microbiome and Molecular Sciences: The Next Breakthroughs, which included a distinguished panel of top scientific journal editors, as well as industrial and academic scientists who discussed the current and future of microbiome research and its impact on health, the environment, and society.

The Frost Institute stimulates interdisciplinary research in the fields of chemistry and molecular science, and it is a bridge to new paths of collaboration in scientific discovery and dual research within this growing field of microbiome exploration that studies our world on a molecular level, said Leonidas Bachas, dean of the University of Miami College of Arts and Sciences and interim director of the Frost Institutes of Science and Engineering. It was exciting to see how these fields were represented by some of todays greatest minds in science, collaborating on ways to improve human health.

The panel discussion was moderated by Dr. Joan Guinovart, a scientist and professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of Barcelona, and founder and director of the Institute for Research in Biomedicine. Featured panelists included Manoj Dadlani, CEO of CosmosID; Dr. Lakshmi Goyal, editor of Cell Host & Microbe; Dr. Andrew Marshall, chief editor of Nature Biotechnology; and Dr. Michal Toborek, professor and vice-chair for research at the University of Miami Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Before a large audience of attendees from more than 30 countries, the panelists examined the current trends and research opportunities in microbiome research, which offers unending possibilities in a field able to pave the way for big breakthroughs.

Researchers continue to deepen their understanding of theimportance of environmental and community factors that drive microbiome composition. They emphasized that as we recognize the underlaying molecular mechanisms that determine microbe-host interactions,we can improve our understanding of the potential microbiome research provides in advancing health and treatment options.

The pre-session panel discussion at the Miami Winter Symposium was also hosted by the University of Miamis Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Dr. John T. Macdonald Biomedical Nanotechnology Institute. Established in 2017, the Frost Institute of Chemistry and Molecular Science provides programs that advance collaboration and innovation and lead cutting edge research across the sciences.

Original post:
The Frost Institute supports microbiome research at winter symposium - University of Miami

Biochemistry

Mammals Can Delay The Development of Their Embryos, According to Recent Research – Dual Dove

Recent research sheds light on something quite peculiar, exploring a reproductive mystery that is present in more than 130 species of mammals. A team of researchers conducted by Abdiasis Hussein, an associate director of UW Medicines Institute for Stem Cell, also a UW professor of biochemistry, realized the intriguing findings on mammals.

The results not only bring more details for the understanding of postponed embryo implantation. It also indicates how some quickly splitting cells, such as those present in tumors, turn to be inactive.

To find out what leads to a biochemical hold-and-release on embryonic production, the team provoked diapause in a female mouse by decreasing the estrogen rates. Then, they realized a comparison of the diapause embryos to pre-implantation and post-implantation ones. They also provoked diapause in mouse embryonic stem cells by weakening the cells, and analyze those to actively developing mouse embryonic stem cells.

Researchers had also performed comprehensive investigations of how metabolic and signaling pathways manage both the inactive and active phases of mouse embryos and mouse embryonic stem cells in lab vessels.

Metabolism involves the life-supporting chemical actions cells take out to turn substances into energy, develop materials, and discharge waste. By examining those reactions final actions, dubbed metabolites, the researchers could start to realize the full picture of that occurs to cause diapause and how cells are delivered from its grips.

Bears, seals, weasel-like animals, or armadillos, experience seasonal diapause, as a regular part of their reproductive periods. Many classes of bears, for example, breed in the early stages of spring and sometimes even in early summer. The female then uncontrollable hunts for food, and only when it reaches sufficient weight and body fat, one or more of her embryos implant a few months later after she moves to her cave. Any baby bears would be born in late winter.

Ethelene is the main editor on DualDove, she likes to write on the latest science news.

Read the original here:
Mammals Can Delay The Development of Their Embryos, According to Recent Research - Dual Dove

Biochemistry

Growing Demand for Eco-friendly Products to Bolster the Growth of the Synthetic Fiber Market 2017 2026 – TechNews.mobi

The Synthetic Fiber market research encompasses an exhaustive analysis of the market outlook, framework, and socio-economic impacts. The report covers the accurate investigation of the market size, share, product footprint, revenue, and progress rate. Driven by primary and secondary researches, the Synthetic Fiber market study offers reliable and authentic projections regarding the technical jargon.

All the players running in the global Synthetic Fiber market are elaborated thoroughly in the Synthetic Fiber market report on the basis of proprietary technologies, distribution channels, industrial penetration, manufacturing processes, and revenue. In addition, the report examines R&D developments, legal policies, and strategies defining the competitiveness of the Synthetic Fiber market players.

Request Sample Report @ https://www.transparencymarketresearch.co/sample/sample.php?flag=B&rep_id=2075

Segmentation

The report segments the global blood cell analyzer market based on product type, application, end user, modality, and region. The study provides offers share and size of these segments and presents a detailed revenue comparison across various regions over 20172022. Furthermore, year-over-year (YoY) growth during the historical period helps in making reliable projections.

On the basis of product type, the report bifurcates the market into semi-automated biochemistry analyzers and fully automated biochemistry analyzers. Of these, the fully automated biochemistry analyzers segment holds the dominant share and is projected to lead throughout the forecast period.

To offers a granular analysis of various applications, the study segments the market into clinical diagnostics market, drug development, and others. On the basis of end user, the study segments the market into hospitals, diagnostic centers, pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology companies, contract research organizations, and academic research institutes.

On the basis of modality, the study segments the market into bench-top and floor-standing.

The various regional markets profiled in the report are Latin America, North America, the Middle East and Africa Europe, Japan, and Asia Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ). Of these, North America is projected to lead, vis--vis revenue, throughout the forecast period.

Companies profiled in the report are:

The report offers an extensive profiling of various players and assesses competitive intensity in the market by analyzing primary strategies adopted by them to gain a better foothold. Prominent players profiled in the study are CellaVision AB, Sysmex Corporation, Abbott Laboratories, Danaher Corporation, Siemens Healthcare, Horiba Ltd, Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc., F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG, Sigma Aldrich, and Boule Diagnostics AB.

Request For Discount On This Report @ https://www.transparencymarketresearch.co/sample/sample.php?flag=D&rep_id=2075

Objectives of the Synthetic Fiber Market Study:

The Synthetic Fiber market research focuses on the market structure and various factors (positive and negative) affecting the growth of the market. The study encloses a precise evaluation of the Synthetic Fiber market, including growth rate, current scenario, and volume inflation prospects, on the basis of DROT and Porters Five Forces analyses. In addition, the Synthetic Fiber market study provides reliable and authentic projections regarding the technical jargon.

RequestTOC For ThisReport @ https://www.transparencymarketresearch.co/sample/sample.php?flag=T&rep_id=2075

After reading the Synthetic Fiber market report, readers can:

Why choose Transparency Market Research?

We carry immense pride in saying that Transparency Market Research is one the leading market research firms in India. Our team is decorated with experienced analysts to offer you a comprehensive analysis of various ongoing trends across different industries. As we are recognized globally, we deliver client-centric reports driven by digital technologies. Our dedicated professionals are available round-the-clock to provide clients with innovative market solutions.

Tags: China Synthetic Fiber Market TrendEurope Synthetic Fiber Market GrowthUK Synthetic Fiber MarketUS Synthetic Fiber Market CAGR

Read this article:
Growing Demand for Eco-friendly Products to Bolster the Growth of the Synthetic Fiber Market 2017 2026 - TechNews.mobi