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University of Illinois Researcher Dr. Keith Jarosinski Studies Chicken Cancer Virus Similar to Human Herpesviruses

University of Illinois Researcher Dr. Keith Jarosinski Studies Chicken Cancer Virus Similar to Human Herpesviruses

Dr. Keith Jarosinski, an associate professor and director of graduate studies in the Department of Pathobiology at the University of Illinois, is conducting research focused on Marek’s disease, a cancer in chickens caused by a herpesvirus. This chicken herpesvirus shares similarities with human Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) and Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), both of which cause cancers in humans. Dr. Jarosinski's primary goal is to develop strategies to prevent the spread of the Marek's disease virus in chickens, as current vaccines only reduce the disease's severity but do not stop its transmission. His work utilizes chickens as a natural host model to study how herpesviruses spread within a population, which is crucial because herpesviruses typically infect only one type of host, making natural animal models rare for human herpesviruses.

Dinosaur Bone May Contain 115-Million-Year-Old Blood Traces, Challenging Preservation Understanding

Dinosaur Bone May Contain 115-Million-Year-Old Blood Traces, Challenging Preservation Understanding

Researchers have discovered what may be 115-million-year-old traces of blood within the fossilized bone of Aratasaurus museunacionali, a carnivorous dinosaur from Brazil. The discovery, detailed in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), involves tiny oval shapes resembling red blood cells found within the limb bones of the approximately 3-meter-long, two-legged dinosaur. Chemical analysis at these sites revealed traces of heme, an iron-containing substance crucial for oxygen transport in blood. This association between the observed shapes and the chemical composition strengthens the hypothesis that these are ancient red blood cells. The team also analyzed surrounding rocks, finding different chemical signatures, which reduces the likelihood of contamination. This finding challenges previous understandings of how organic materials, such as blood, could be preserved over such vast geological timescales.

Stony Brook University Career Center Hosts 'Career Closet' to Provide Professional Attire to Students

Stony Brook University Career Center Hosts 'Career Closet' to Provide Professional Attire to Students

Stony Brook University Career Center Hosts 'Career Closet' to Provide Professional Attire to Students

New Calcium Sensors Advance Neuronal Imaging for Neuroscience Research

New Calcium Sensors Advance Neuronal Imaging for Neuroscience Research

Neuroscience research is being revolutionized by advancements in genetically encoded calcium indicators (GECIs), which allow real-time visualization of neuronal activity. The GCaMP family, including GCaMP6, jGCaMP7, and jGCaMP8, has seen successive improvements in sensitivity, fluorescence response, and temporal resolution. These sensors, delivered via adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors, enable minimally invasive monitoring of calcium dynamics in various neuronal structures. The jGCaMP8 family, introduced in 2023, represents a significant leap in sensitivity and speed, with variants like jGCaMP8s for high sensitivity, jGCaMP8m for balanced performance, and jGCaMP8f for rapid kinetics. Additionally, red-shifted indicators such as jRGECO1a and the newer PinkyCaMP are expanding capabilities for multicolor imaging and optogenetic experiments. Specialized sensors like SomaFRCaMPi aim to reduce neuropil contamination for clearer individual neuron signals, while GCaMP-X is designed to minimize interference with...

NIA Director Dr. Richard J. Hodes Announces Retirement After Decades of Leadership in Aging Research

NIA Director Dr. Richard J. Hodes Announces Retirement After Decades of Leadership in Aging Research

Dr. Richard J. Hodes, Director of the National Institute on Aging (NIA), is set to retire on December 7, 2026, after leading the institute since 1993. During his tenure, the NIA's annual budget grew significantly from $400 million to $4.6 billion. Dr. Hodes has been a pivotal figure in advancing aging science, contributing to public health gains and fostering research for longer, healthier lives. His leadership has driven critical progress in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (AD/ADRD) research, including advancements in genetics, prevention, diagnostics, and care, as well as the FDA approval of the first disease-modifying therapies for AD. He also co-chaired the Molecular Transducers of Physical Activity Consortium (MoTrPAC) and shepherded the SenNet program, focusing on the molecular benefits of exercise and cellular aging, respectively. Dr. Hodes, a graduate of Yale University and Harvard Medical School, is a retired Rear Admiral of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and maintains...

Seasonal Changes in Lettuce Microbes May Influence Human Gut Diversity

Seasonal Changes in Lettuce Microbes May Influence Human Gut Diversity

Seasonal Changes in Lettuce Microbes May Influence Human Gut Diversity

University of Liverpool Explores Programmable Protein Nanocages for mRNA Vaccine Delivery

University of Liverpool Explores Programmable Protein Nanocages for mRNA Vaccine Delivery

The University of Liverpool is undertaking a PhD research program focused on developing programmable protein nanocages for mRNA vaccine delivery. This innovative approach aims to adapt structures found in bacteria to create protective carriers for fragile mRNA. The research, conducted at the interface of biology, bioengineering, and medicine, seeks to design molecular carriers that can efficiently deliver mRNA into cells while minimizing unwanted inflammation. Researchers will investigate how to assemble these protein shells outside living cells, recruit mRNA into them, and ensure they open at the appropriate time within the cell to release their genetic contents. The project will also compare the efficacy of these protein shells with existing lipid nanoparticle (LPN) delivery systems, assessing protein production, cell health, and immune responses using laboratory-grown human immune cells. This work is part of the MRC NW-DMS DLA programme and is being conducted in the laboratories of Professors Luning Liu...

Billionaires Jeff Bezos and Sam Altman Invest Heavily in Anti-Aging Research

Billionaires Jeff Bezos and Sam Altman Invest Heavily in Anti-Aging Research

Billionaires Jeff Bezos and Sam Altman are significantly investing in anti-aging research, particularly in the work of Dr. David Sinclair, a Professor of Genetics at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Sinclair, recognized as one of TIME's 100 Most Influential People, is at the forefront of research that aims to reverse cellular aging and extend healthy human lifespans. His work includes groundbreaking studies such as curing blindness in monkeys by reversing the age of cells. The interest from prominent tech billionaires underscores a growing belief in the potential of science to fundamentally alter the aging process. This investment is part of a broader trend where wealthy individuals are directing substantial capital towards health-focused projects, driven by the prospect of transcending biological limits through scientific advancements. The research explores various aspects of longevity, from genetics and lifestyle factors to the potential for new medical interventions that could significantly extend human heal...

Wyss Institute Researchers Develop DNA Nanoswitch Platform for Faster Drug Discovery

Wyss Institute Researchers Develop DNA Nanoswitch Platform for Faster Drug Discovery

Researchers at the Wyss Institute at Harvard University, Boston Children's Hospital, and Harvard Medical School (HMS) have developed a new drug discovery platform called FIND (Functional Interaction-based Nanoswitch Discovery). This platform utilizes DNA nanoswitches to identify drug candidates that modulate binding interactions between two proteins, offering a significant advantage over conventional screening methods that primarily focus on binding to a single target protein. The FIND platform builds on earlier DNA nanoswitch technology developed by senior author Wesley Wong, Ph.D., and his team. It works by attaching a candidate drug molecule to each nanoswitch, which can switch between linear and looped shapes depending on protein-protein interactions. This allows for ultrahigh-throughput screening of large compound libraries, as demonstrated in a study published in Science, where FIND was used to discover small molecules and nanobodies that promote specific protein-protein interactions relevant to vari...

Waseda University Researchers Engineer Ancestral Enzyme to Generate ATP with Fewer Amino Acids

Waseda University Researchers Engineer Ancestral Enzyme to Generate ATP with Fewer Amino Acids

Researchers from Waseda University, led by Professor Satoshi Akanuma and Sota Yagi, in collaboration with Subrata Dasgupta and Shunsuke Tagami at the RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, have successfully rebuilt ancestral versions of nucleoside diphosphate kinase (NDK). This enzyme is crucial for regulating nucleotide phosphorylation. The team's objective was to understand how functional complexity could emerge from a more limited set of amino acids, resembling the chemical constraints of early life. They created variants of NDK with progressively restricted amino acid sets. One notable variant, Arc1-12KR, maintained the NDK's three-dimensional structure despite lacking the specific histidine residue typically used for phosphate group transfer. Instead of becoming inactive, this modified enzyme switched its mechanism, converting two molecules of adenosine diphosphate (ADP) into one molecule of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and one molecule of adenosine monophosphate (AMP). The findings, reported ...

Texas Biomed and Regeneron Partner on Novel Ebola Therapy Development Strategy

Texas Biomed and Regeneron Partner on Novel Ebola Therapy Development Strategy

Texas Biomedical Research Institute (Texas Biomed) has partnered with Regeneron to evaluate an investigational antibody therapy, maftivimab, against the Bundibugyo ebolavirus (BDBV). This collaboration utilizes a first-of-its-kind study design to assess the treatment's efficacy in nonhuman primates before human clinical trials. The BDBV outbreak in Africa has already claimed nearly 5,000 lives. Maftivimab, a potent neutralizing component of Regeneron’s FDA-approved antibody cocktail for Zaire ebolavirus, has shown neutralization capabilities against BDBV in laboratory analyses. The research was conducted in Texas Biomed’s Biosafety Level 4 (BSL-4) facility, the nation’s only privately owned maximum containment laboratory. A unique aspect of the study involved real-time viral load quantification in infected animals within 24 hours, allowing for precise stratification of animals into treatment and control groups based on comparable viral loads, a first for a BSL-4 lab. This approach led to 100% survival in t...

Smithsonian Institution Research Reveals Hidden Genetic Transformation in North American Mallards

Smithsonian Institution Research Reveals Hidden Genetic Transformation in North American Mallards

Scientists from the Smithsonian Institution and the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) have uncovered a significant genetic transformation in North American mallard populations. Their research, published in 'Current Biology,' utilized DNA extracted from nearly 700 historical mallard specimens collected between 1818 and 2018 from the National Museum of Natural History and 25 other North American natural history museums. The study found that genetic ancestry from captive-bred game-farm mallards began appearing in wild populations during the 1910s and 1920s, coinciding with historical records of duck releases for hunting. This domesticated ancestry did not spread uniformly across the continent. In the Atlantic Flyway, game-farm ancestry sharply increased from the 1940s, now accounting for approximately 20 percent of the average mallard's genetic makeup in that region. Conversely, populations in the Central and Pacific Flyways have largely maintained their wild genetic profiles. This research highlights how...