Scientists have proposed to treat obesity by using DNA editing
US scientists have identified the workings of the FTO gene, which predisposes individuals to obesity.
The results of this study have been published in The New England Journals of Medicine. The authors have established that a variation of the FTO gene provokes overabundant activity of the IRX3 and IRX5 genes, which respond by forming adipocytes. Adipocytes may be white or brown, which store up energy as fat or burn it for heating, respectively. Increased activity of these genes promotes the formation of white adipocytes, and leads to anexcess of white fatty tissues.
The scientists edited the FTO gene by using the CRISPR-Cas9 technique. The scientists then found that activity of the IRX3 and IRX5 genes had been decreased, and fatty tissues in the modified organism consisted generally of the brown adipocytes.
In the review of this study it is noted that the scientists still need to investigate whether or not this method is suitable to treat genetic predisposition to obesity.
The FTO gene is one of the genes which they associate with obesity. Until recently it was believed that variations of this gene provoked an increase in the level of appetite hormone (ghrelin), causing a feeling of constant hunger.
he New England Journal of Medicine: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1502214
Daniel Carleton Gajdusek is an American pediatrician and virologist. In 1950, whilst in New Guinea, he discovered the infectious nature of the Kuru disease that was spreading among the residents of the Fore tribe. In 1976 he received a Nobel prize for his study. He was single at 53 years old, but he could adopt 28 children from different pacific islands and he brought all of them to the Nobel ceremony.
An international group of paleobotanists came to the conclusion that the underwater plants Montsechia vidalii are one of the oldest angiosperms (flowering) plants which grew between 125-300 years ago. These plants are probably the "contemporary" of the Archaefructus sinensis which is the candidate for the title of "first flower on Earth".
Unique night rodents from genus paca (Cuniculus) live in East Andes. They live in holes that are located close to the water. They are good swimmers and even may dive under water and hold their breath for 15 minutes. Their zygomatic arches are transformed into strong resonators with which they emit loud sounds with high frequencies up to one kilohertz, approximately. They give birth to only one child that has fur and can see.
A group of scientists from Korea University and Berlin Technical University made a prototype of an exoskeleton that can be controlled by only the wearer's thoughts. A person who is wearing the exoskeleton may perform basic movements using their exo-legs: move forward, back, left and right, and also sit down and stand up. The system consists of the "brain-tech" interface, a cross-piece with five light-emitting diodes (LEDs), and EEG technology. The LEDs flash with different programmed frequencies, for instance, a 9 Hz frequency for moving forward. When the operator concentrates their attention onto one of LEDs, specific biological potentials appear in their brain. The EEG detects of them and sends signals to the "brain-tech" interface, which moves theexoskeleton.
The Rainbow snake is a non venomous serpent, it has amazing extraordinary coloration, more precisely properties of squama. Its squama with extremely strong metallic shine have iridescent colors in sunlight, especially when it move. In the shadow where there isn't any direct sunlight rays the snake have red or brown shades with large and light spots surrounded by dark rings along their back. These "brilliant" snakes live generally in tropical forests in South Africa, where they hunt on birds and mammals.
Tribrachidium are one of the very amazing representatives of ediacaran fauna, they had lived approximately 560-550 million years ago. They had triradial symmetry as convex structures that radially diverge from the center to the edges under equal angle. It is believed that tribrachidium had bottom and passive lifestyles; also they might been fixed animals. Presumably they belonged to either cnidaria or echinodermata.
The deepwater squid #Histioteuthis captures the imagination. One of its eyes is bigger than the other and it has an outstretched form and light yellow color, due to a pigment that absorb blue-wave spectrum. This eye always looks up. It helps the squid to keep an eye open for anything dangerous. The other eye is a normal size and it is used to search bioluminescence signals of possible prey in depth water. The squid's body is covered by multiple points because of which it have the nickname "Strawberry Squid".
"Stop launching balloons!" - warn environmentalists. When balloons fall back, then they may represent danger to all living things. The ribbons and the strands may get into the throat of an animal, and then they suffocate and die. Also, it may tangle their feet or their wings so they cannot fly away in time from a predator. In addition, these things may go further down the food chain. There are many friendly alternatives to celebrate some event: plant a plant or a tree, light candles, or blow bubbles.
Хватит запускать в небо шарики, предупреждают экологи! Когда они, сдувшись, возвращаются на Землю, то могут представлять угрозу всему живому. Ленточки и ниточки попадут в горло птиц, и они задохнутся. Или запутаются ногами и крыльями и не улетят вовремя от хищника. Проглоченные обрывки латекса закупорят пищевой канал, и животное умрет от истощения. К тому же они могут проходить дальше по пищевой цепи и попадать в хищников. Есть множество дружественных природе альтернатив, чтобы отметить какое-либо событие: посадить цветы или деревья, жечь свечи, пускать мыльные пузыри.
An international science group found that mice with mutation in the PDE48 gene, encoding enzyme phosphodiesterase 4B, show significantly increasing cognitive ability; first of all memory, and increasing ability to seeking behavior. Also these mice have a lot of bravery; they do not fear open or lighted places.
Международная группа учёных-генетиков обнаружила, что мыши с мутацией гена #PDE4B (кодирующего фермент фосфодиэстеразу 4В) показывают значительное увеличение когнитивных способностей (в первую очередь памяти) и усиливает склонность к поисковому поведению. Также у таких мышей повышается смелость: они перестают бояться открытых и ярко освещённых мест.
A new study showed that the "Wisdom of Crowds" method may be effective to define conservation status. The first species that was studied with that technique were tree snails "Papustyla pulcherrima" that are endemic in Manus island (New Guinea). The scientists interviewed residents about whether they see these frequently in the forest and what they think about current population of them. According to the results these tree snails status was nearly "danger of extinction" in 2015. This approach is not universal, but it helps us to obtain information about species which are practically not supported by WWF studies.
Новое исследование показало, что метод «коллективного разума» (Wisdom of Crowds) может быть эффективным для определения охранного статуса редких и малозаметных животных. Первым видом, данные о котором получили таким способом, стала древесная улитка Papustyla pulcherrima, эндемик острова Манус (Новая Гвинея). Учёные опросили местных жителей, часто ли они встречают в лесу эту улитку и что они думают о её настоящей численности. По итогам опроса Papustyla pulcherrima получила в 2015 году статус вида, близкого к уязвимому положению. Данный метод не универсален, но помогает получать информацию о видах, на изучение которых фонды дикой природы практически не выделяют денег.
