Life Sciences and Chemistry

Leeds scientists are to investigate the birthplace of life – sea water billions of years old – with new high-tech laser equipment, the first of its kind in the UK.

The ancient sea water is found trapped in tiny pockets – called fluid inclusions – within crystals such as emerald and quartz. The oldest known examples are found in the rock 3.8 billion years old – the oldest land on the planet. Although liquid water is believed to have existed on earth over 4 billion years ago, obtaining samples

Scientists report for the first time that “baby” teeth, the temporary teeth that children begin losing around their sixth birthday, contain a rich supply of stem cells in their dental pulp. The researchers say this unexpected discovery could have important implications because the stem cells remain alive inside the tooth for a short time after it falls out of a child’s mouth, suggesting the cells could be readily harvested for research.

According to the scientists, who published their

Rutgers Associate Professor Suzie Chen has discovered a gene responsible for melanoma, the most aggressive form of malignant skin cancer. A paper describing the research by Chen and her colleagues at the National Human Genome Research Institute will be published online by Nature Genetics on April 21, and will appear subsequently in a print issue of the journal.

Melanoma may appear in places that never see sun, spread to other parts of the body and become lethal. This type of cancer is not g

New high-speed imaging techniques are allowing scientists to show how a single cell mobilizes its resources to activate its immune response, a news research study shows.

Howard R. Petty, Ph.D., professor and biophysicist at the University of Michigan Health System’s Kellogg Eye Center, has dazzled his colleagues with movies of fluorescent-lit calcium waves that pulse through the cell, issuing an intracellular call-to-arms to attack the pathogens within.

He explains that these

A group of researchers led by the University of Colorado at Boulder have solved the crystal structure of a molecule switch that can trigger heart disease and cancer, paving the way for future drug designs to mitigate these diseases.

The key component of the switch is a protein called MEF2 that binds to the DNA and is involved in muscle cell, T cell and nerve cell development. In cases involving human hearts, it can lower gene activity that causes enlarged hearts, known as hypertrophic cardi

Study sheds light on potential bioterror agent, Coxiella burnetii

Scientists at The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR) and their collaborators have deciphered and analyzed the complete genome sequence of Coxiella burnetii, a potential bioterror agent that causes Q Fever.

C. burnetii, which was first isolated as the cause of Q Fever in Australia in 1937, is typically found in farm animals but also infects humans, including an epidemic that sickened many soldiers in Europe