He believes that how bacteria which might carry resistant genes are transmitted to humans must be considered
#Plant molecular biologist are getting to the root of the matterworking to identify key genes in the root development of poplar trees three Michigan Technological University scientists have come up with a new model for how genes interact
They also identified a network of genes that cause poplar roots to grow well in low-nitrogen soil making them ideal candidates for biofuel tree plantations on marginal lands.
There are tens of thousands of genes in the poplar genome. The challenge--and it was a big one--was how to determine which genes are doing
what how they affect each other and how they work together to regulate root growth under low nitrogen conditions.
He took on the task of untangling the interactions of more than 61000 genes by searching for a high hierarchical regulator the boss gene.
The scientists did a series of experiments over time under the same experimental conditions to identify the genes involved in the changes they observed.
They found 9. 198 genes that produced significantly different amounts or kinds of proteins at six different times.
By performing genetic network analyses they narrowed the field to a handful of key genes that appeared to control the majority of the 9198 others.
Further analysis closed in on a gene called Ptanac1. When we tweak this gene the entire network responds
and the roots grow 58 percent more than controls'says Busov. What Wei wound up with is a new model of how genes function together.
Imagine a manufacturer he says. At the bottom of the hierarchy you find the laborers They answer to a foreman who reports to a manager and so on until you get to the president.
It is also the first study to get an accurate picture of how specific genes are switched on in the human mammary gland during lactation.
They then created the first publicly accessible library of genes expressed in the mammary gland based on RNA-sequencing technology.
This approach revealed a highly sensitive portrait of the genes being expressed in human milk-making cells.
They discovered an orchestrated switching on and off of various genes as the mammary gland transitions from secreting small amounts of immunity-boosting colostrum in the first days after giving birth to the copious production of milk in mature lactation.
In particular the PTPRF gene which is known to suppress intracellular signals that are triggered usually by insulin binding to its receptor on the cell surface may serve as a biomarker linking insulin resistance with insufficient milk supply.
It is also the first study to get an accurate picture of how specific genes are switched on in the human mammary gland during lactation.
They then created the first publicly accessible library of genes expressed in the mammary gland based on RNA-sequencing technology.
This approach revealed a highly sensitive portrait of the genes being expressed in human milk-making cells.
They discovered an orchestrated switching on and off of various genes as the mammary gland transitions from secreting small amounts of immunity-boosting colostrum in the first days after giving birth to the copious production of milk in mature lactation.
In particular the PTPRF gene which is known to suppress intracellular signals that are triggered usually by insulin binding to its receptor on the cell surface may serve as a biomarker linking insulin resistance with insufficient milk supply.
#Insecticide causes changes in honeybee genes, research findsnew research by academics at The University of Nottingham has shown that exposure to a neonicotinoid insecticide causes changes to the genes of the honeybee.
The study published in the online journal PLOS ONE supports the recent decision taken by the European commission to temporarily ban three neonicotinoids amid concerns that they could be linked to bee deaths.
and insecticides but this is the first comprehensive study to look at changes in the activity of honeybee genes linked to one of the recently banned neonicotinoids imidacloprid.
and showed that a very low exposure of just two parts per billion has an impact on the activity of some of the honeybee genes.
and increase the activity of genes involved in breaking down toxins most likely to cope with the insecticide.
Genes involved in regulating energy to run cells were affected also. Such changes are known to reduce the lifespan of the most widely studied insect the common fruit fly
This is a very significant piece of research which clearly shows clear changes in honeybee gene activity as a result of exposure to a pesticide
Resistance gene found against Ug99 wheat stem rust pathogenthe world's food supply got a little more plentiful thanks to a scientific breakthrough.
Eduard Akhunov associate professor of plant pathology at Kansas State university and his colleague Jorge Dubcovsky from the University of California-Davis led a research project that identified a gene that gives wheat plants resistance to one of the most deadly races of the wheat
The team's study Identification of Wheat Gene Sr35 that Confers Resistance to Ug99 Stem Rust Race Group appears in the journal Science.
It identifies the stem rust resistance gene named Sr35 and appears alongside a study from an Australian group that identifies another effective resistance gene called Sr33.
This gene Sr35 functions as a key component of plants'immune system Akhunov said. It recognizes the invading pathogen
and triggers a response in the plant to fight the disease. Wheat stem rust is caused by a fungal pathogen.
or three genes that were so efficient against stem rust for decades that this disease wasn't the biggest concern Akhunov said.
As a first line of defense wheat breeders and researchers began looking for resistance genes among those that had already been discovered in the existing germplasm repositories he said.
The Sr35 gene was one of those genes that was discovered in einkorn wheat grown in Turkey Akhunov said.
Until now however we did not know what kind of gene confers resistance to Ug99 in this wheat accession.
To identify the resistance gene Sr35 the team turned to einkorn wheat that is known to be resistant to the Ug99 fungal strain.
Researchers spent nearly four years trying to identify the location of the Sr35 gene in the wheat genome which contains nearly two times more genetic information than the human genome Once the researchers narrowed the list of candidate genes they used two complementary approaches to find the Sr35 gene.
It was a matter of knocking out each candidate gene until we found the one that made a plant susceptible Akhunov said.
Next researchers isolated the candidate gene and used biotechnical approaches to develop transgenic plants that carried the Sr35 gene
and showed resistance to the Ug99 race of stem rust. Now that the resistance gene has been found Akhunov
and colleagues are looking at what proteins are transferred by the fungus into the wheat plants
and recognized by the protein encoded by the Sr35 gene. This will help researchers to better understand the molecular mechanisms behind infection
which genes are active or being transcribed between the domestic tomato and its wild cousins. The results give insight into the genetic changes involved in domestication
The new study shows that a large block of genes from one species of wild tomato is present in domestic tomato
Among other findings genes associated with fruit color showed rapid evolution among domesticated red-fruited tomatoes
And S. pennellii which lives in desert habitats had accelerated evolution in genes related to drought tolerance heat and salinity.
New technology is giving biologists the unprecedented ability to look at all the genes in an organism not just a select handful.
but also the MESSENGER RNA being transcribed from different genes. RNA transcription is the process that transforms information in genes into action.
If the DNA sequence is the list of parts for making a tomato plant the MESSENGER RNA transcripts are the step-by-step instructions.
Gene expression profiling combined with an understanding of the plants'biology allows researchers to understand how genes interact to create complex phenotypes said Neelima Sinha professor of plant biology at UC Davis
Genomics has tracked fast previous gene-by-gene analyses that took us years to complete she said.
but differences in the expression of the genes encoding these enzymes did not fully explain the rotation-resistant beetles'advantage.
which the genes for all three transcription factors were disabled. Then he took the pollen from each to pollinate normal flowers.
which pollen tube-expressed genes were being regulated by the MYB transcription factors. In pollen tubes that had grown through pistils they found 11 that were grossly underexpressed in the mutated pollen tubes compared to normal ones.
what those genes do. They encode a variety of tasks but one in particular got Leydon's attention
In other words expressing that gene could be pushing the pollen tube's self-destruct mechanism. This is not just a dialogue
Future work Johnson said will include tracking down the relevant genes more fully and determining whether thionin is indeed the pollen tube buster that the genes
and their MYB-related expression seem to indicate. The work may also have implications beyond basic science Johnson said.
and share the same number of chromosomes but fertilization often fails at the pollen tube burst
Thousands of plant genes activated by ethylene gasit's common wisdom that one rotten apple in a barrel spoils all the other apples
--but now the genes underlying these phenomena of nature have been revealed. In the online journal elife a large international group of scientists led by investigators at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have traced the thousands of genes in a plant that are activated once ethylene a gas that acts as a plant
growth hormone is released. This study the first such comprehensive genomic analysis of ethylene's biological trigger may lead to powerful practical applications the researchers say.
Teasing out the specific genes that perform each of these discrete functions from the many genes found to be activated by ethylene might allow scientists to produce plant strains that slow down growth
Now that we know the genes that ethylene ultimately activates we will be able to identify the key genes
Now we can see that by altering the expression of one protein ethylene produces cascading waves of gene activation that profoundly alters the biology of the plant.
What genes are turned on? And what are those genes doing? Using a technique known as Chip-Seq the researchers exposed Arabidopsis to ethylene and identified all the regions of the plant genome that bound to EIN3
which required using next-generation sequencing. They then used genome-wide mrna sequencing to identify those targeted genes
whose expression actually changes due to interaction with EIN3. Not all genes targeted by EIN3 have changes in their gene expression Ecker says.
They found that thousands of genes in the plant responded to EIN3. Then the investigators discovered two interesting things.
First when EIN3 is activated by ethylene it goes back to control the genes in the pathway that were used to activate the EIN3 transcription factor in the first place.
That tells us that a plant making a critical master regulator like EIN3 wants to keep that production pathway under very tight control Ecker says.
Madslien found a high prevalence of bacteria of the genus Bartonella spp. both in the moose's blood and in the keds themselves.
if resistance genes are initially rare in pest populations; inheritance of resistance is recessive--meaning insects survive on Bt plants
only if have two copies of a resistance gene one from each parent --and abundant refuges are present.
In isolated pockets of trees the gene pool is diminished also meaning the seeds produced may be less viable over time.
while human ancestors ate more grasses and other apes stuck with trees and shrubs two extinct Kenyan baboons represent the only primate genus that ate primarily grasses and perhaps sedges throughout its history.
and comparisons with other varieties to highlight a gene involved in pod colour variation. Zooming further in on the gene sequence they then identified a single DNA letter change that affected levels of the gene's expression and so the colour of the pod.
Cacao plant breeders trying to produce a delicious high-yield strain through cross breeding have met with limited success. So the genetic marker could in theory be used to screen young seedlings
#Gene that helps honey bees find flowers (and get back home) discoveredhoney bees don't start out knowing how to find flowers
and orient themselves in relation to the sun. In a new study researchers report that a regulatory gene known to be involved in learning
Activity of this gene called Egr quickly increases in a region of the brain known as the mushroom bodies
This gene is the insect equivalent of a transcription factor found in mammals. Transcription factors regulate the activity of other genes.
The researchers found that the increased Egr activity did not occur as a result of exercise the physical demands of learning to fly
This discovery gives us an important lead in figuring out how honey bees are able to navigate so well with such a tiny brain said Gene Robinson a professor of entomology
and neuroscience and director of the Institute for Genomic Biology at the University of Illinois. And finding that it's Egr with all that this gene is known to do in vertebrates provides another demonstration that some of the molecular mechanisms underlying behavioral plasticity
but only in target species. Malaria is spread by mosquitoes in the Anopheles genus notably Anopheles gambiae native to Africa.
The genus primarily includes fungi that occur in the soil and are associated with the decomposition of plant matter.
As far as scientists know this fungus one of two new species of the genus from Lascaux is harmless.
Eugenia is a large worldwide genus of woody evergreen trees and shrubs of the myrtle family that is particularly diverse in South america New caledonia and Madagascar.
Largest ever to be mappedswedish scientists have mapped the gene sequence of Norway spruce (the Christmas tree)--a species with huge economic and ecological importance
The scientists have identified about 29000 functional genes marginally more than humans have but the question arises:
An international research team headed up by evolutionary biologists at the University of Zurich has identified now two genes responsible for the flowering of a tropical deciduous tree species Shorea beccariana.
After drought periods the two genes Sbft and Sbsvp undergo dramatic transcriptional changes directly before flowering.
The researchers can also confirm the flowering functions of these two genes using transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana plants. 85-meter canopy crane necessary for sample collectionthe Phd student Masaki Kobayashi his supervisor Professor
In this way Kobayashi and Shimizu identified 98 genes that are associated with the flowering of the plant-including the genes Sbft and Sbsvp
The genes that have been identified now indicate when mass flowering is about to happen. Successively monitoring of gene activity can help predict
when mass flowering will take place explains Kobayashi. This will make it possible to coordinate the collection of seeds
We are currently investigating the use of these new materials for biomedical applications such as drug/gene delivery cross linkable hydrogel materials and skin adhesives.
Interestingly it is the only member of the genus Pantholops. Tibetan antelope is sized a medium antelope with the unique adaptations to against the harsh high-altitude climate.
and gene-family expansion in genes associated with energy metabolism and oxygen transmission indicating that gene categories involved in energy metabolism appear to have an important role for Tibetan antelope via efficiently providing energy in conditions of low partial pressure of oxygen (PO2).
Further research revealed that both the Tibetan antelope and the highland American pika have signals of positive selection for genes involved in DNA repair and the production of ATPASE.
Considering the exposure to high levels of ultraviolet radiation positive selective genes related to DNA repair may be vital to protect the Tibetan antelope from it.
Qingle Cai Project manager from BGI said The completed genome sequence of the Tibetan antelope provides a more complete blueprint for researchers to study the genetic mechanisms of highland adaptation.
and analyzed more than 1000 genes--approximately 20 percent of the entire yeast genome--from each of 23 yeast species. He quickly realized that the histories of the 1000-plus genes were all slightly different from each other as well as different from the genealogy constructed from a simultaneous analysis of all the
genes. I was surprised quite by this result Salichos pointed out. By adapting an algorithm from information theory the researchers found that they could use these distinct gene genealogies to quantify the conflict
and focus on those parts of the tree that are problematic. In broad terms Rokas and Salichos found that genetic data is less reliable during periods of rapid radiation
Solanum is the largest genus of the family and with 1500 species is one of the largest genera of flowering plants.
Work by participants of the'PBI Solanum'project will result in a modern monographic treatment of the entire genus available on-line.
and analyzed more than 1000 genes--approximately 20 percent of the entire yeast genome--from each of 23 yeast species. He quickly realized that the histories of the 1000-plus genes were all slightly different from each other as well as different from the genealogy constructed from a simultaneous analysis of all the
genes. I was surprised quite by this result Salichos pointed out. By adapting an algorithm from information theory the researchers found that they could use these distinct gene genealogies to quantify the conflict
and focus on those parts of the tree that are problematic. In broad terms Rokas and Salichos found that genetic data is less reliable during periods of rapid radiation
Solanum is the largest genus of the family and with 1500 species is one of the largest genera of flowering plants.
Work by participants of the'PBI Solanum'project will result in a modern monographic treatment of the entire genus available on-line.
The new technology platform can harness the plant's own genes to improve characteristics of sunflower develop genetic traits
Genetic analysis of these isolates revealed high homology across all eight gene segments. The analysis of these novel H7n9 influenza virus isolates showed that that the six internal genes were derived from avian H9n2 viruses
but the ancestor of their hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) genes is unknown. HA receptor-binding specificity is a major molecular determinant for the host range of influenza viruses.
Within the HA protein of novel H7n9 viruses there was a leucine residue at position 226
which is characteristic of the HA gene in human influenza viruses. This finding implies that H7n9 viruses have acquired partially human receptor-binding specificity.
The researchers who sequenced it say that 97 percent of the genome consists of genes--bits of DNA that code for proteins--and small pieces of DNA that control those genes.
which for genes feeds into the machinery that makes proteins. But Herrera-Estrella Albert and their colleagues argue that organisms may not bulk up on genetic junk for reasons of benefit.
U. gibba has about 28500 genes comparable to relatives like grape and tomato which have much larger genomes of about 490 and 780 million base pairs respectively.
but at the same time maintaining a functional set of genes similar to those of other plant species says Herrera-Estrella.
Some of the duplicated genes retain their original structure and function and so produce more of a given gene product--a protein for example he said.
Some gradually adapt new forms to take on new functions. If those changes are beneficial the genes persist;
if they're harmful they disappear from the genome. Many agricultural crops benefit from genome duplications including banana papaya strawberry sugarcane watermelon
A large proportion of the duplicated genes (about 40 percent) have been retained they report. A neat thing about the duplication is that we can look at the genes that were retained
and see if they are in specific pathways Vanburen said. The researchers found evidence that duplicated genes related to wax formation
which allows the plant to repel water and remain clean) and survival in a mineral-starved watery habitat were retained for example.
By looking at changes in the duplicated genes the researchers found that lotus has a slow mutation rate relative to other plants Ming said.
and birds focusing on the gene that codes for the viral hemagglutinin (HA) protein. After comparing HA genetic sequences in five key locations that control the viruses'interactions with infected hosts the researchers calculated an antigenic index for each strain.
One of the amazing things about the influenza virus is its ability to grab genes from different pools he says.
There could be viral genes that mix among pigs or between birds and pigs. Sasisekharan and colleagues are now doing a similar genetic study of H5 influenza strains.
and his team identified several immune gene signatures that reflect the abundance and anti-tumor properties of different types of tumor-infiltrating immune cells.
In these cases high expression levels of the immune genes predicted for recurrence-free survival
To do this they turned to two different mouse models each specially engineered to produce distinct but related proteins that turn muscle-specific genes on and off.
The first model dubbed the marathon mouse has a muscle-gene regulator called PPARÎ/Î'.These mice can run much further than normal mice.
The second model known as the couch potato mouse produces a different muscle-gene regulator called PPARÎ.
and working with scientists to mine the cassava gene bank at CIAT in Colombia--the biggest repository of cassava cultivars in the world.
The limited gene flow among populations and its vegetative reproduction method resulted in less genetic mixing over long periods of time.
#Mechanism for how grapes reduce heart failure associated with hypertension identifieda new study appearing in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry demonstrates that grapes are able to reduce heart failure associated with chronic high blood pressure (hypertension) by increasing the activity of several genes responsible for
influencing gene activities and metabolic pathways that improve the levels of glutathione the most abundant cellular antioxidant in the heart.
grape intake turned on antioxidant defense pathways increasing the activity of related genes that boost production of glutathione.
#Substances in honey increase honey bee detox gene expressionresearch in the wake of Colony Collapse Disorder a mysterious malady afflicting (primarily commercial) honey bees suggests that pests pathogens
Some components of the nectar and pollen grains bees collect to manufacture food to support the hive increase the expression of detoxification genes that help keep honey bees healthy.
However honey bees have relatively few genes dedicated to this detoxification process compared to other insect species she said.
Determining which of the 46 P450 genes in the honey bee genome are used to metabolize constituents of their natural diet and
Research had shown previously that eating honey turns on detoxification genes that metabolize the chemicals in honey
They identified p-coumaric acid as the strongest inducer of the detoxification genes. We found that the perfect signal p-coumaric acid is in everything that bees eat--it's the monomer that goes into the macromolecule called sporopollenin
Her team showed that p-coumaric acid turns on not only P450 genes but representatives of every other type of detoxification gene in the genome.
This signal can also turn on honey bee immunity genes that code for antimicrobial proteins. According to Berenbaum three other honey constituents were effective inducers of these detoxification enzymes.
Propolis turns on immunity genes--it's not just an antimicrobial caulk or glue. It may be medicinal
In a paper to be published in May the joint team will announce a record-breaking simulation speed of 504 billion events per second on LLNL's Sequoia Blue Gene/Q supercomputer dwarfing the previous record set in 2009
The researchers tuned parameters on the CCNI's two-rack Blue Gene/Q system and optimized the experiment to scale up
and whether any of the genetic resources found in crop wild relatives are conserved already in gene banks.
if they've been safeguarded in gene banks or in protected areas such as national parks; and then identify the priority places for collecting seed from species that haven't yet been secured.
Wheat genome shows resistance genes easy to accessit's hard to go anywhere without a map--especially into the deep and complex world of genetics.
A physical map of a genome shows the physical locations of genes and other DNA sequences of interest.
and isolate genes that are responsible for different traits such as disease resistance and days to maturity.
The wheat chromosome DNA is cloned in bacteria millions of bits of DNA which are sorted by robots
Wheat varieties grown in the Great plains are protected from the leaf rust disease by genes extracted from goatgrass
and from Hessian fly in the eastern U s. The physical map developed by the research team provides a roadmap for the mapping of genes that make wheat resistant to diseases heat
and drought and result in quality bread Gill said adding Most resistance genes seem to lie at the ends of chromosomes
PPARS regulate genes involved in fat and glucose metabolism and when modified can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
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