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Tag Archives: gene

Honey’s hidden helper

By Stephen Ornes / May 9, 2013

A new study identified compounds in honey that help bees fight off germs. Credit: Jack Dykinga, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Bugwood.org

Scientists identify a substance in honey that helps bee bodies fight poisons

Posted in Animals | Tagged bee, colony collapse disorder, Dennis vanEngelsdorp, detox genes, entomology, gene, getinvolved, honey, honeybee, nectar, p-coumaric acid, pollen, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of Maryland in College Park

Microscopic caffeine fiends

By Sid Perkins / April 15, 2013

Scientists tweaked the genes of a bacterium so that it requires caffeine to live and reproduce. Now, they can use this microbe to measure concentrations of caffeine in beverages such as soda, coffee and energy drinks. When the microbes are added to a water-weakened version of one of those drinks, the bacteria grow and the liquid turns cloudy — but only if the drink contained caffeine. In caffeine-free Coke (top left), no cloudiness appears. Credit: Barrick Lab/University of Texas at Austin

Researchers create a bacterium that can’t live or reproduce without a stimulant found in soft drinks, chocolate, coffee and tea

Posted in Microbes, Fungi & Algae | Tagged biochemist, bioengineer, caffeine, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), E. coli (Escherichia coli), gene, Genetic engineering, getinvolved, Jeffrey Barrick, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT); guanine, topstories, University of Texas at Austin; Christopher Voigt

Baby brain, adult disease

By Stephen Ornes / January 24, 2013

Newborns with a certain version of a gene are more likely to have a smaller medial temporal lobe (blue spots). This brain region is also smaller in adults with Alzheimer’s disease. People with the gene version are three times more likely to develop the disorder, which affects memory.

Scientists find signs of Alzheimer’s disease in the brains of infants

Posted in Brain & Behavior | Tagged Alzheimer’s disease, ApoE, brain, cells, gene, genetic variant, getinvolved, medial temporal lobe, memory, molecular genetics, nervous system, neurology, neuroscience, newborns, psychiatry, Rebecca Knickmeyer, topstories, University of North Carolina

The rest of your DNA

By Stephen Ornes / September 25, 2012

An international team of scientists has determined that a good chunk of our DNA may act as switches that turn genes “on” and “off.” Credit: National Human Genome Research Institute

Surprise: Scientists find most of human DNA molecule carries out important functions

Posted in Body & Health | Tagged cells, DNA, ENCODE, Eric Green, gene, genetic material, genetics, genome, getinvolved, human genome, National Human Genome Research Institute, proteins, topstories