Not everything we wish to know in biology can be measured directly either because doing so is too costly or simply impossible.
In some cases scientists can look to biological signposts called biomarkers to infer information. Medical practitioners for example can use the presence of certain molecules in blood
The proteins known as antibodies are examples of biomarkers indicating possible infection. Chris Remien a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis uses math to better understand how biological markers relate to the diets of animals
and how they metabolize nutrients and toxins. The food and water animals consume leave chemical signatures (biomarkers) in their tissues;
however metabolism sometimes alters these signatures. Remien develops mathematical models to understand how metabolism can change the biomarkers.
Remien's models also help doctors estimate the extent of liver damage following overdose of acetaminophen (the active ingredient in some pain medicines) which is crucial for determining patient survival.
National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesishometown: Ishpeming Mich. Field of study: Mathematical biology What inspired you to choose this field of study?
I have enjoyed always problem solving which is what initially drew me to mathematics. Over time I became more drawn to problems rooted in the real world in data.
Biology asks perhaps the biggest and most exciting questions of the real world those related to life.
It is an exciting time to be a quantitative person asking biological questions. What is the best piece of advice you ever received?
even though most people have the same genes for bitter taste receptors. Now scientists may have found the missing link it's
not only people's genetic makeup that determines people's reaction to broccoli's bitter taste
but also how these genes are instructed to make taste receptors according to a new study published today (Sept. 11) in theâ American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
The most-studied gene for bitter taste receptor TASR38 comes in two types. People who have only one type
However even within this group of moderate tasters who have the same genes there is greatly varied sensitivity to bitterness.
The 7 (Other) Flavors Humans May Taste In the study 18 people with the same bitter taste genes rated the bitterness level of several beverages including broccoli juice and carrot juice.
The amount of MESSENGER RNA that taste cells choose to make may be the missing link in explaining why some people with'moderate taster'genes still are extremely sensitive to bitterness in foods
and drinks said study researcher Danielle Reed a geneticist at Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia.
Previous studies have shown that diet could affect the expression of genes involved in nutrient digestion and metabolism.
It might be that people with low expression of bitter receptor genes who find vegetables to taste less bitter are more likely to include them in their diet than people with high expression of these genes the researchers said.
Conversely it is possible that eating bitter vegetables may change gene expression over time the researchers said.
or animals that have been created with gene-splicing techniques or genetic engineering. According to the Worldwatch Institute corn accounts for 31 percent of all genetically modified crops.
So there's a good chance that corn you're buying at the grocery store has been modified genetically in some way.
The findings published today (Feb 5) in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B are based on the genetic analysis of nearly 1900 samples from around the Mediterranean sea.
and analyzed genetic material from the trees'chloroplasts the green plant structures where photosynthesis takes place.
The researchers then reconstructed a genetic tree to show how the plant dispersed. The team found that the thin small and bitter wild fruit first gave way to oil-rich larger olives on the border between Turkey and Syria.
But to get a true sense of how the olive tree emerged the researchers shouldn't just look at CHLOROPLAST DNA said Andrã Bervillã a geneticist at The french National Institute for Agricultural Research who was involved not in the study.
In 2011 Modern Meadow took up the challenge setting out to make ecological and economical leather and meat from bioprinters.
Modern Meadow s CEO Andras Forgacs is a pioneer in the bioprinting field cofounding the tissue printing company Organovo (NYSE:
They work with communities on a wide range of issues including synthetic biology and bionic implants.
The phenomenon was discovered first in 1959 in mice by biologist Hilda Bruce and is known as the Bruce effect.
The moms aren't just being helicopter parents they stand to pass on their genes if their efforts result in grandkids researchers say. 8. Frog taxi service The strawberry poison arrow frog pulls out all the stops
and accumulate it in its biomass. Then harvest. Getting the gold into plants is the easy part.
Alone his research team a group of physicists does not have a lot of biology experience. They are however talking with other departments to learn what the requirements would be for the listening device.
These biologists have good experience to do this so we hope that our study will bring some new information about the sounds that could be heard in trees Marmottant said.
Tales from a Conservation Biologist Elephants really really hate camera flashes. When conservation biologist Firoz Ahmed installs camera traps in Kaziranga National park in northeastern India's Assam state he
and his colleagues must return every day to check on the reinforced metal boxes. Often the cameras have been torn down and trampled.
and staff biologist for Aaranyak a nonprofit organization dedicated to wildlife conservation. He also studies turtles and other reptiles.
One of his primary work sites is Kaziranga National park. The area's rich biodiversity has earned it recognition as a UNESCO World Heritage Site
The ABC recently reported that 400 people in the Philippines trampled vitamin-enriched oegolden rice trial crops because of fears to human health and biodiversity.
Lycopene is a potent scavenger of gene-damaging free radicals. But don't expect to get it from a supplement.
A recentâ studyâ found that lycopeneâ has a substantial protective effect against prostate cancer by interfering with the genes that would allow the prostate cancer cells to grow
The lack of regeneration could be due to a number of issues but deer overpopulation is a factor he added.
and communication between cells and aiding cell metabolism and gene expression. Researchers have shown that omega-3 fatty acids a type of polyunsaturated fat found primarily in seafood can improve your chances of living longer
and constricts blood vessels said Artemis Simopoulos president of the Center for Genetics Nutrition and Health and the author of The Omega Diet (Harper collins 1999).
Your genetics and environment play large roles in responsiveness to omega-3s. And while studies are very promising for a wide range of illnesses the optimal amount of omega-3
Now the team is working to map primary forest native habitat that is crucial for biodiversity
These findings complement biologist E. O. Wilson s writings on biophilia the attraction to life and lifelike processes.
I recently worked with three scientists who are studying the effects of warmer springs on snow cover biological systems
Immunology in January of last year. Such research has found that climate change is linked to longer
That's happening because of increased irrigation technology crop genetics and management strategies. But in some areas of the country's plains the properties of the groundwater and soil largely dictate the irrigation techniques Scanlon said.
The question said Patricia Ryberg a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute is coped how plants with photosynthesizing constantly for part of the year and then not at all when the winter sun set.
The new study published today (March 13) in The Journal of Experimental Biology shows that the baleen of bowhead whales
Everyone assumed baleen works like a sieve study author Alexander Werth a biologist at Hampden-Sydney College Va. told Livescience.
 Baleen biomechanics Werth wanted to compare the biomechanics of the bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus) with that of the humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae.
After six months the tea alone caused an improvement in muscle strength and bone-building biomarkers.
Jerry Karnas the Center for Biological Diversity's population campaign director in Miami is all too familiar with these political pitfalls particularly in addressing the impact of population growth on climate change.
and in the last 60 years half of the island's remaining forests have been cleared according to a 2007 study in the journal Biology Letters.
 The plight of Madagascar's lemurs is just one example of how a rising population of humans is contributing to the sixth-largest mass extinction in the history of the planet most biologists say.
What 11 Billion People Means for the Planet Every knowledgeable scientist is worried sick said Paul Ehrlich a researcher and president of the Center for Conservation Biology at Stanford university.
Scientists are concerned particularly about habitat loss in a few key places with the highest levels of biodiversity such as the Tropical Andes the rainforests of Central america the Atlantic coastal forests of Brazil Southeast asia and many Pacific
and replacing them with big swathes of palm tree monocultures threatening the future existence of orangutans said Lee Hannah a senior fellow in climate change biology at Conservation International a global group devoted to saving endangered
and to make biofuels like biodiesel a fuel with growing demand as a source of cleaner energy.
From 1976 to 2003 for example booming demand for rubber led rubber farmers to clear 20 percent of the rainforest of Xidai Prefecture a lush region home to high levels of biodiversity in south-central
China according to a 2007 study in the journal Biodiversity and Conservation. But in China especially and throughout Southeast asia demand has skyrocketed also for the animals themselves or at least parts of their bodies.
People need to take steps to create an economic value for the lands where biodiversity is concentrated Moss said.
We don't really value biodiversity directly now except when we exploit it. Ecotourism is one way to do this.
which would reduce the need for the clearing of biodiversity-rich forests far afield from bustling metropolises Weissburg said.
I hope that increased public knowledge of declining nature will raise society's priority to conserve biodiversity.
and biofuels) and prices experts say. Humans also have to pay close attention to their use of the Earth's resources
either through genetic engineering or traditional crop-breeding techniques may also help protect against crop losses in the future due to extreme weather conditions said Tim Thomas an economist at the Washington D c.-based International Food Policy
What 11 Billion People Means for the Planet Water is the new oil said Bill Davies a plant biologist at the Sustainable agriculture Center at Lancaster University in England.
Anthrax and bioterrorism Anthrax can be created easily in a lab and is incredibly durable: Spores of anthrax bacteria can lie dormant for years before entering a living host where they reactivate
These characteristics make anthrax an extremely dangerous bioterrorism weapon. Anthrax has been used in bioterrorism and warfare since World war i when Scandinavia deployed anthrax against the Imperial Russian Army.
It was used also by The british army during WORLD WAR II to weaken German livestock. More recently anthrax has been used in bioterrorism attacks in both Japan
and the United states. In 1993 a religious cult in Japan deployed anthrax against civilians in Tokyo
but trees are usually the first on the scene during spring allergy season says Jay M. Portnoy M d. president of the American College of Allergy Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) and chief section of allergy
asthma & immunology at Children's Mercy Hospitals & Clinics in Kansas city Mo. Rain can provide some initial relief by reducing tree pollen counts
Molasses is used also in the production of ethyl alcohol and as an additive in livestock feed.
because the large part of a human's genetic makeup was established thousands of years ago in pre-agricultural societies.
because it may allow food growers to create tastier varieties of foods such as tomatoes by selecting the genes responsible for sweetness-inducing volatiles
and eliminating genes that suppress sweetness. Bartoshuk's future research will focus on how to add together the nearly 40 volatiles the University of Florida researchers have discovered in tomatoes
However the study's author tree scientist Les Werner says additives such as sugar aspirin or even vodka don't help.
The two new species Bergbambos tessellata and Oldeania alpine each belong to two new genera (plural of genus the taxonomic classification above species) as well.
But about 7500 years ago in Central europe a genetic mutation popped up causing some people to produce lactase well into adulthood according to a 2009 study in the journal PLOS Computational Biology.
and didn't have mutated the gene died of lactose-induced diarrhea while the adults who produced lactase and were
therefore able to digest lactose hrived passing on their genes to their offspring. Follow Joseph Castro on Twitter.
The First Space Tourists Of course not all space-based animal experiments have fundamental scientific value said Nathaniel Szewczyk a biologist at the University of Nottingham who has studied 24 generations of nematodes in space.
Shared genes Animal experiments can also reveal how changes across the life span may translate to other species from earthworms all the way up to humans Szewczyk said.
 For instance nematodes and humans show similar changes in the expression of genes that regulate blood sugar Szewczyk said.
and tree regeneration to the nesting success of birds in the spring and that points to the complexities through
Ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday 41 leading scientists sent a letter to the U s. Environmental protection agency (EPA) calling on the agency to protect U s. forests from the growing sucking sound created by biomass power plants.
or other plant materials known as biomass to generate electricity. The biomass industry argues that because trees grow back biomass offers a carbon neutral form of energy.
But not all biomass is created equal. Trees are not the same as perennial grasses or harvest residues that can either regrow quickly would otherwise be burned in the field
or are needed not for other purposes. And the latest science reveals that burning whole trees for energy results in more carbon emissions than burning coal for decades.
That's because trees are less energy-dense than coal and harvesting them for fuel means foregoing the carbon they would have absorbed from the atmosphere if left standing.
The agency issued to biomass-burning plants a three-year exemption from permitting requirements under the Clean Air Act (basically a requirement that each new and modified industrial source gets a construction permit before starting to build showing that it will use the best available control
and could result in regulations that distort the marketplace towards greater use of unsustainable sources of biomass with significant risks to our climate forests
and ensuring that a rigorous accounting for biomass carbon emissions will be critical to the effort's integrity.
As the scientists conclude the only way to encourage bioenergy facilities to source low-carbon biomass resources efficiently burn
and follows through on the standard it set for itself in issuing rules for the bioenergy industry.
and some new places where they hadn't been said previously wildlife biologist Thomas Hughes of the National Wild Turkey Federation an organization that has reintroduced the animals into the wild.
In some places the growth of wild turkey populations has been so dramatic it has caused minor problems said Kelsey Sullivan a wildlife biologist with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife in Bangor.
By the 1950s biologists had developed a special type of cannon-propelled net that allowed scientists to catch groups of wild turkeys more effectively to translocate them to new areas he added.
Famed Rutgers criminologist Ronald Clarke called on biologists and criminologists to work together to fight poaching
and regularity of global water supplies gobble up carbon dioxide house vital biodiversity hotspots and provide shelter for half a billion people.
and can weigh more than 10 pounds 4. 6 kilograms lead author Jonathan Slaght a wildlife biologist at the Wildlife Conservation Society told Livescience.
and immunology specialist with the Rutgers Center for Environmental Prediction in New jersey a state which suffered widespread destruction from Sandy.
and Clinical Immunology called climate change potentially the largest global threat to human health ever encountered''predicting more injury disease and death from natural disasters heat waves infections and widespread malnutrition as well as more allergic
This is not just a matter of having a runny nose''said Jeffrey Demain director of the Allergy Asthma and Immunology Center of Alaska.
and biological diversity the park spans nearly 1200 square miles on the western slope of the Sierra nevada range in central eastern California.
and wildlife said de la Rosa director of the La Selva Biological Station for the Organization for Tropical Field Studies in San pedro Costa rica.
or lachryphagous behavior may not be as rare as biologists had assumed. It remains uncertain what other kinds of nutrients might be in crocodilian tears in addition to the sodium in salt.
Environmentally induced genetic changes can be passed on from parent to child a process known as epigenetics.
Mendl and his colleagues reported their findings today (July 1) in the journal Biology Letters. Follow Stephanie Pappas on Twitter and Google+.
Ingredient labels may reveal the organism's genus and species but will not include a microbe count.
Labels on supplements should specify the genus species and strain in that order. For example a label might say Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG.
and herbicides and human sources from wastewater treatment plant effluent and other sewage discharges study author Vicki Blazer a fish biologist with the USGS said in a statement.
U s. Geological Survey (USGS) biologist Jarred Barr discovered the duckling among a brood of downy avocet chicks on July 2.
and see how they're reacting said Alex Hartman a USGS wildlife biologist at the Western Ecological Research center in Dixon California who helps oversee the shorebird-monitoring project.
The biologists occasionally find eggs from other species such as terns in avocet nests Hartman said.
But this is the first time the USGS biologists have discovered a duck-avocet adoption. Hartman thinks it's likely the duckling was separated from its family after it hatched
in the United states. This could mark a new era of collaboration among users of the river's water one that benefits the environment said Karl Flessa a conservation biologist at the University of Arizona in Tucson
so would help control their appetite said study author Timothy Barraclough a professor of evolutionary biology at Imperial College London.
which brings a variety of benefits study author Glenn Gibson a professor of food microbiology at the University of Reading in the United kingdom told Live Science in an email.
The study provides a glimpse into how these new world monkeys learn from each other in the wild said the study's lead researcher Tina Gunhold a cognitive biologist at the University of Vienna.
The study was published online today (Sept. 2) in the journal Biology Letters. Follow Laura Geggel on Twitter@Laurageggel and Google+.
Pantherinae Genus & species: Panthera leosubspecies: Panthera leo leo (African lion) Panthera leo persica (Asiatic lion) The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) only recognizes these two subspecies
Biomaterials company Ecovative Design figured out a way to create protective packaging insulation and ceiling tiles that are made without using petroleum
#Pesticides Linked to Parkinson's Risk in People with Specific Gene Several studies have linked pesticides with the development of Parkinson's disease
and now a new study has found a specific gene that may explain why some people are particularly susceptible to developing Parkinson's after exposure to certain pesticides.
Researchers had previously found a gene that was involved in dopamine processing and in animal experiments they determined
which pesticides inhibited this gene's pathway. In the new study they found that one variant of the gene called ALDH2 may be even more susceptible to inhibition from pesticides.
They then tested for this gene variant in Californians with Parkinson's disease whose exposure to various pesticides could be measured by comparing where they had lived with charts of pesticide use in the state.
The findings show that for people with certain genes exposure to pesticides may increase the risk of developing Parkinson's disease two to six times the researchers said.
We should be much more careful in our industrial agriculture with the agents we're putting out in the environment said study author Dr. Beate Ritz a professor of epidemiology at University of California Los angeles and co-director of the school's Center
for Gene-Environment Studies in Parkinson's disease. All of this is environmental exposure not occupational exposure. It can be quite harmful.
to find out which genes might be involved in the nerve death that results in Parkinson's and to see
if there was a variant of that gene that could be found in people exposed to pesticides who developed Parkinson's. 10 Things You Didn't Know About the Brain There were four pesticides the researchers found that appear to trigger an effect on enzymes called neuronal aldehyde dehydrogenases (ALDHS)
and the risk was increased further among people with a variant of the ALDH2 gene. Though researchers were able to identify four pesticides that might be responsible for this effect they were not able to identify a specific pesticide as the culprit.
if they have the gene variant. Can we predict who might develop Parkinson's? Would they want to take meds?
Genome May Lead to Even Spicier Peppers Editor's Note: This article was updated at 3: 20 p m. ET:
Scientists have sequenced the genome of the pepper plant revealing the genes responsible for pepper's spiciness.
The new genome detailed today (March 3) in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences could pave the way for even more mouth-numbingly hot peppers.
and help breeders accelerate the research of new breeds by molecular biology techniques said study co-author Cheng Qin a researcher at Sichuan Agricultural University in China.
Genome sequenced To learn more about the pepper Qin and his colleagues sequenced the genome of a pepper cultivated at their institution known as Zunla-1 along with its wild counterpart.
The team found that the pepper diverged from tomatoes and potatoes about 36 million years ago.
In addition about 81 percent of the plant's genome was made up of transposons or so-called jumping genes that can move to other places within the genome.
These genes were inserted about 300000 years ago. In addition the team scanned the genomes of 18 cultivated peppers to compare differences between wild and cultivated varieties.
The team found several genes associated with how long the seeds stay dormant resistance to pests and longer shelf life.
The team also identified the genetic component behind spiciness. It turns out that a key gene can be duplicated a different number of times to provide more or less capsaicin.
Bland varieties by contrast have a deletion of the heat-producing gene the researchers found.
The findings suggest two new ways to breed even spicier peppers either by identifying peppers with the right spice genes and crossbreeding them or by genetically engineering the peppers to express more copies of the heat-producing genes Qin said.
Editor's Note: This article was corrected to note that new research was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Follow Tia Ghose on Twitter and Google+.+Follow Live Science@livescience Facebook & Google+.+Original article on Live Science S
The study was published today (June 3) in the journal Biology Letters. Follow Tia Ghose on Twitter and Google+.
The main difference between the two species is that the wild Bactrian has three more chromosome pairs than the domestic Bactrian.
Protecting these wild places will help secure habitat for vulnerable wildlife safeguard their genetic integrity enhance connectivity
No genetic data exists to help place Dendrogramma in the tree of life. The deep-sea mushrooms were preserved in chemicals that destroyed their DNA
Just said he hopes more tiny Jell-o-like creatureswill someday surface in another deep-sea expedition so modern genetic studies can reveal their evolutionary branch.
and Immunology said in a statement. Nevertheless it's something allergists need to be aware of
The study is published in the September issue of the journal Annals of Allergy Asthma and Immunology.
Bioenergy is currently the fastest growing source of renewable energy. Cultivating energy crops on arable land can decrease dependency on depleting fossil resources
But some biofuel crops have bad environmental effects: they use too much water displace people and create more emissions than they save.
Enthusiasts have been promoting the use of industrial hemp for producing bioenergy for a long time now. With its potentially high biomass yield and its suitability to fit into existing crop rotations hemp could
not only complement but exceed other available energy crops. Hemp Cannabis sativa originates from western Asia and India and from there spread around the globe.
Biogas production from hemp could compete with production from maize especially in cold climate regions such as Northern europe and Canada.
and biodiesel can be produced from the oil pressed from hemp seeds. Biodiesel production from hemp seed oil has been shown to overall have a much lower environmental impact than fossil diesel.
Indeed the environmental benefits of hemp have been praised highly since hemp cultivation requires very limited amounts of pesticide.
Due to the high self-tolerance of hemp cultivation over two to three years in the same field does not lead to significant biomass yield losses.
Recycling plant nutrients to the field such as in biogas residue can contribute to lower greenhouse gas emissions from crop production.
Sustainable bioenergy production is not easy and a diversity of crops will be needed. Industrial hemp is not the ultimate energy crop.
Still if cultivated on good soil with decent fertilisation hemp can certainly be an environmentally sound crop for bioenergy production and for other industrial uses as well.
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