Gizmorama
December 14, 2009
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Good Morning,
Take a look at the last article for details on an outstanding
breakthrough for Swedish scientists as they discover that
fruit flies can make suitable models for learning more about
human addiction.
Until Next Time,
Erin
Questions? Comments? Email me at: mailto:gizmo@gophercentral.com
Email your comments=
P.S. You can discuss this issue or any other topic in the new
Gizmorama forum. Check it out here...
http://gizmorama.gophercentral.com
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'Jekyll and Hyde' bacteria bleaches coral
CHARLESTON, S.C. - U.S. scientists say they have discovered
what causes some harmless marine bacteria to transform into
killers that cause coral bleaching. Dan Bearden and col-
leagues at the Hollings Marine Laboratory in South Carolina
said bleaching already has destroyed up to 30 percent of the
world's coral reefs, and scientists are searching for ways
to slow or stop the damage. They said one culprit is an
ocean-dwelling bacterium, Vibrio coralliilyticus, that de-
stroys corals' energy supply and kills the shell-clad marine
animals. At lower temperatures, the bacteria are harmless to
coral. But at temperatures above 75 degrees Fahrenheit the
bacteria become virulent and can kill coral. The researchers
said their new study identified three chemicals -- betaine,
glutamate and succinate -- that V. coralliilyticus produces
in warmer water and are involved in the transformation.
Bearden and his colleagues say their findings open the door
to understanding the biology involved in the complex inter-
actions between corals and bacteria and unraveling the mys-
tery of coral bleaching. The research is reported in the
journal Environmental Science & Technology.
Study: Fruit flies turn obese as do humans
SALT LAKE CITY - University of Utah geneticists say they've
discovered fruit flies use the same molecular systems as do
humans to maintain good cholesterol and fat levels. Re-
searchers led in two studies by Professor Carl Thummel say
the finding means fruit flies can help science learn more
about genetic and biological processes through which people
regulate cholesterol and fat metabolism. The scientists
said they identified a nuclear receptor, DHR96, which helps
fruit flies regulate the balance, or homeostasis, of choles-
terol and another fat molecule called triacylglycerol. Nuc-
lear receptors are proteins that sense the presence of chem-
ical compounds within cells. DHR96 corresponds closely to a
human nuclear receptor called LXR that also regulates chol-
esterol levels. In one study, the scientists showed DHR96
helps regulate cholesterol in fruit flies by allowing DNA
to be read, which switches genes on and off to help maintain
proper levels of cholesterol. "When they lacked the DHR96
receptor, the flies were unable to maintain cholesterol hom-
eostasis," Thummel said. "This is similar to what happens
in humans who have high cholesterol levels." The scientists
found DHR96 also plays an integral role in regulating diet-
ary fat metabolism. The cholesterol study appears in the
journal Genes & Development, while the metabolism research
is reported in the journal Cell Metabolism.
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Earth sensitivity to CO2 is studied
BRISTOL, England - British scientists say the Earth might be
up to 50 percent more sensitive to atmospheric carbon dioxide
than has been estimated. University of Bristol researchers,
led by Dan Lunt, said their study shows components of the
Earth's climate system that vary over long timescales -- such
as land-ice and vegetation -- have an important effect on
temperature sensitivity, but such factors are often neglected
in current climate models. The researchers said they compared
results from a global climate model to temperature recon-
structions of the Earth's environment 3 million years ago
when global temperatures and carbon dioxide concentrations
were relatively high. "We found that, given the concentrat-
ions of carbon dioxide prevailing 3 million years ago, the
model originally predicted a significantly smaller temper-
ature increase than that indicated by the reconstructions,"
Lunt said. "This led us to review what was missing from the
model." The study showed the increased temperatures indicated
by the reconstructions can be explained if factors such as
land-ice and vegetation are included in the model. That, the
scientists said, is primarily because changes in vegetation
and ice lead to more sunlight being absorbed, which in turn
increases warming. Alan Haywood, a study co-author from the
University of Leeds, said the findings show studying past
climates can provide important insights into how the Earth
might change in the future. The research appears in the
journal Nature Geoscience.
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Fruit flies might help addiction research
GOTHENBURG, Sweden - Swedish scientists say they've shown
fruit flies, already used in human disease research, might
be helpful in studying the effects of drug abuse on the
brain. Andrew Ewing and colleagues at Sweden's University
of Gothenburg say laboratory mice, rats and monkeys have
been mainstays in research with the goal of finding effec-
tive medicines for treating addiction. Although those mam-
mals have helped establish the behavioral effects of cocaine
on the body, the scientists said they provide relatively
complicated models to study the effects of cocaine and other
illicit drugs on the brain and nerves. In the new study,
the scientists gave such drugs as cocaine, amphetamine,
methamphetamine and methylphenidate to fruit flies and then
studied the flies' brain chemistry with a microelectrode
1/20 the diameter of a human hair. The results, said the
researchers, demonstrate fruit flies are a valid model for
studying drug addiction in humans. The study appeared in
the Oct. 26 online edition of the journal Chemical Neuro-
science.
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