PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Going batty for jumping DNA as a cause of species diversity

This week in Molecular Biology and Evolution

2014-04-02
(Press-News.org) The vesper bats are the largest and best-known common family of bats, with more than 400 species spread across the globe, ranking second among mammals in species diversity.

Authors Ray et al., wanted to get at the root cause of this diversity by taking advantage of two vesper bat species whose genomes have recently been sequenced. They speculated that one cause of this diversity might be jumping elements in the genome, called DNA transposons, which are more active and recent in the evolutionary history of this family than any other mammal. Why and how this DNA transposon activity has increased in these bats is unknown.

In their study, published in the advanced online edition of Molecular Biology and Evolution, they examined the patterns of DNA transposons activity in the two vesper bat species genomes. They found that the timing of bat species expansion coincides with DNA transposon activity around 30 million years ago. DNA transposons, in turn, gave rise to the introduction of small RNAs, called microRNAs, or miRNAs, which can have a major effect on gene expression, and thus, evolutionary novelties. Says Ray, "Our results suggest that transposable elements have the potential to shift evolution into overdrive by rapidly introducing large numbers of small RNAs. Those small RNAs don't change the proteins that genes code for but instead impact how and when the genes are expressed, thereby allowing for rapid changes in the way organisms interact with their environment."

They further speculate that DNA transposons acted as a major evolutionary force in bat species diversity which coincided with a rapid and large shift in the Earth's climate from warm tropical conditions to a more temperate climate, called the Eocene-Oligocene transition, which occurred 33-34 million years ago.

INFORMATION:


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Likely culprit in spread of colon cancer identified

Likely culprit in spread of colon cancer identified
2014-04-02
New research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville has implicated a poorly understood protein called PLAC8 in the spread of colon cancer. While elevated PLAC8 levels were known to be associated with colon cancer, the researchers now have shown that the protein plays an active role in shifting normal cells lining the colon into a state that encourages metastasis. The work appears April 1 in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. "We knew levels of this protein are elevated in colon cancer," said ...

Gene therapy improves limb function following spinal cord injury

2014-04-02
Delivering a single injection of a scar-busting gene therapy to the spinal cord of rats following injury promotes the survival of nerve cells and improves hind limb function within weeks, according to a study published April 2 in The Journal of Neuroscience. The findings suggest that, with more confirming research in animals and humans, gene therapy may hold the potential to one day treat people with spinal cord injuries. The spinal cord is the main channel through which information passes between the brain and the rest of the body. Most spinal cord injuries are caused ...

Mode of action of new multiple sclerosis drug discovered

Mode of action of new multiple sclerosis drug discovered
2014-04-02
This news release is available in German. Just a few short weeks ago, dimethyl fumarate was approved in Europe as a basic therapy for multiple sclerosis. Although its efficacy has been established in clinical studies, its underlying mode of action was still unknown, but scientists from Bad Nauheim's Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research and the University of Lübeck have now managed to decode it. They hope that this knowledge will help them develop more effective therapeutic agents. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the central ...

Well-rested flies

Well-rested flies
2014-04-02
This news release is available in German. Elderly flies do not sleep well – they frequently wake up during the night and wander around restlessly. The same is true of humans. For researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing in Cologne, the sleeplessness experienced by the fruit fly Drosophila is therefore a model case for human sleeping behaviour. The scientists have now discovered molecules in the flies' cells that affect how the animals sleep in old age: if insulin/IGF signalling is active, the quality of the animals' sleep is reduced and they wake ...

Penn Medicine points to new ways to prevent relapse in cocaine-addicted patients

2014-04-02
(PHILADELPHIA) – Relapse is the most painful and expensive feature of drug addiction—even after addicted individuals have been drug-free for months or years, the likelihood of sliding back into the habit remains high. The National Institute on Drug Abuse estimates that 40 to 60 percent of addicted individuals will relapse, and in some studies the rates are as high as 80 percent at six months after treatment. Though some relapse triggers can be consciously avoided, such as people, places and things related to drug use, other subconscious triggers related to the brain's reward ...

The mammography dilemma

2014-04-01
A comprehensive review of 50 year's worth of international studies assessing the benefits and harms of mammography screening suggests that the benefits of the screening are often overestimated, while harms are underestimated. And, since the relative benefits and harms of screening are related to a complex array of clinical factors and personal preferences, physicians and patients need more guidance on how best to individualize their approach to breast cancer screening. The results of the review by researchers at Harvard Medical School's Department of Health Care Policy ...

Overuse of blood transfusions increases infection risk

2014-04-01
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Blood transfusions are one of the most common procedures patients receive in the hospital but the more red blood cells they receive, the greater their risk of infection, says a new study led by the University of Michigan Heath System and VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System. Researchers analyzed 21 randomized controlled trials for the study that appears in today's Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Elderly patients undergoing hip or knee surgeries were most susceptible, with a 30 percent lower risk of infection when fewer transfusions ...

Medication does not help prevent ED following radiation therapy for prostate cancer

2014-04-01
Among men undergoing radiation therapy for prostate cancer, daily use of the erectile dysfunction drug tadalafil, compared with placebo, did not prevent loss of erectile function, according to a study in the April 2 issue of JAMA. Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a common condition resulting from many causes, including prostate cancer treatment. An estimated 40 percent of men report ED after radiation therapy, and half of all men use erectile aids following this therapy. Tadalafil is used to treat erectile dysfunction after prostate cancer treatment, but its role as a preventive ...

Outcomes of administering blood transfusions to patients with lower levels of hemoglobin

2014-04-01
Restricting red blood cell (RBC) transfusions among hospitalized patients to those with hemoglobin (the iron-containing protein in RBCs) measures below a certain level is associated with a lower risk of health care-associated infections, according to a study in the April 2 issue of JAMA. Efforts to prevent health care-associated infection are among the priorities for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The estimated annual direct medical costs of health care-associated infections to U.S. hospitals ranges from $28 billion to $45 billion, with about 1 in ...

The potential conflict of interest for leaders of AMCs serving on pharmaceutical boards

2014-04-01
About 40 percent of pharmaceutical company boards of directors examined had at least one member who held a leadership position at an academic medical center, with annual compensation for these positions averaging approximately $300,000, according to a study in the April 2 issue of JAMA. "Financial relationships between the pharmaceutical industry and physicians have come under increased scrutiny. Less attention has been paid to relationships between industry and the leadership of academic medical centers (AMCs), who wield considerable influence over research, clinical, ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Firms that read more perform better

Tightly tied waist cord of saree underskirt may pose cancer risk, warn doctors

10% of children in high-burden tuberculosis settings may develop the disease by age 10

Health experts push for the elimination of a ‘remarkably harmful toxin’

University of Tennessee, Lockheed Martin expand Master Research Agreement

Testing thousands of RNA enzymes helps find first ‘twister ribozyme’ in mammals

Groundbreaking study provides new evidence of when Earth was slushy

International survey of more than 1600 biomedical researchers on the perceived causes of irreproducibility of research results

Integrating data from different experimental approaches into one model is challenging – this study presents a community-based, full-scale in silico model of the rat hippocampal CA1 region that integra

SwRI awarded grant to characterize Las Moras Springs watershed

Water overuse in MATOPIBA could mean failure to meet up to 40% of local demand for crop irrigation

An extra year of education does not protect against brain aging

Researchers from Uppsala and Magdeburg obtain an ERC Synergy Grant to advance cancer immunotherapy

Deaf male mosquitoes don’t mate

Recognizing traumatic brain injury as a chronic condition fosters better care over the survivor’s lifetime

SwRI’s Dr. James Walker receives Distinguished Scientist Award from Hypervelocity Impact Society

A mother’s health problems pose a risk to her children

Ensuring a bright future for diamond electronics and sensors

The American Pediatric Society selects Dr. Maria Trent as the Recipient of the 2025 David G. Nichols Health Equity Award

The first 3D view of the formation and evolution of globular clusters

Towards a hydrogen-powered future: highly sensitive hydrogen detection system

Scanning synaptic receptors: A game-changer for understanding psychiatric disorders

High-quality nanomechanical resonators with built-in piezoelectricity

ERC Synergy Grants for 57 teams tackling major scientific challenges

Nordic research team receives €13 million to explore medieval book culture 

The origin of writing in Mesopotamia is tied to designs engraved on ancient cylinder seals

Explaining science through dance

Pioneering neuroendocrinologist's century of discovery launches major scientific tribute series

Gendered bilingualism in post-colonial Korea

Structural safety monitoring of buildings with color variations

[Press-News.org] Going batty for jumping DNA as a cause of species diversity
This week in Molecular Biology and Evolution