By analyzing proteins extracted from dinosaur bones, researchers have concluded with high certainty that birds are the modern-day living descendants of dinosaurs.

The work, published in Science, supports a wealth of previous work examining the similarities of dinosaur and bird skeletons. Interestingly, several fossils from meat-eating dinosaurs were unearthed in the mid to late 1990’s that contained evidence of feather-like plumage.  Though the “feather theory” was not universally accepted at the time, the current findings from Tyrannosaurus rex bones definitely support the bird-dinosaur linkage.

Original Article

Charles Darwin is widely recognized as the father of evolutionary theory.  In recognition of his 200th birthday and the 150th anniversary of his seminal book, “The Origin of Species,” the New York Botanical Garden has launched a stunning exhibition of his life and scientific work.

The exhibit features a full-scale replica of Darwin’s house and garden.  His simple “at-home” experiments with plants provided him with key insights that contributed to his overall theory of evolution.

The New York Times article linked below includes a very informative slideshow, showcasing the exhibit.  For those of you living in New York or planning to visit, “Darwin’s Garden: An Evolutionary Adventure,” runs through June 15.

Original Article

After more than a decade of legislative wrangling, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) is well on its way to enactment.  The Senate passed the bill yesterday by a vote of 95-0, and the House of Representatives is expected to vote on the bill soon.  The President has already stated he will sign it.

Passage of this bill is viewed as critical to realizing the promise of genetic medicine.  The spectre of losing one’s job or health insurance because of a genetic test result has led to many at-risk individuals choosing not to take potentially lifesaving tests.

GINA is also important for the future of genetics research.  A 2007 poll from the Genetics and Public Policy Center at Johns Hopkins revealed widespread concern among potential participants in genetic research studies that insurers or employers might be able to gain access to their genetic information.  A copy of the poll can be found here.

Original Article

The laboratory of Dr. John Kessler, professor and chair of neurology at Northwestern, has published a promising new approach for treating spinal cord injury. The technique utilizes a nanotechnology-inspired gel, developed by collaborator Dr. Sam Stupp, professor of materials science and director of Northwestern’sInstitute for BioNanotechnology in Medicine.  

The gel, injected as a liquid into the injury site, self-assembles into a scaffolding that reduces scarring at the injury site, facilitating re-growth of damaged neurons. Initial experiments in rodents showed promising results, as detailed recently in the Journal of Neuroscience.

If you are interested in learning more about the research that led to this finding, it is profiled in Terra Incognita: Mapping Stem Cell Research, a feature-length documentary film about Dr. Kessler’s laboratory (view film trailer).

Original Article

In this NPR podcast by Science Friday’s Ira Flatow, researchers describe several new ideas in the quest to efficiently produce fuel from foodstuffs.

One one example, Mariam Sticklen (Michigan State University) describes a technique to use a gene from a microbe that lives in a cow’s stomach to convert fiber into fermentable sugar.  Her approach is to insert the gene into a corn plant, only producing the enzyme in the leaves and corn stalk – not in the pollen, root, or ear of corn itself.  This way, humans and animals can eat the corn, while the stalk and leaves (containing the enzyme) are ready to be used for energy production.

Original Article

Researchers have used a new approach to identify genes that lead to elevated risk for schizophrenia, which affects approximately 1% of the population.

The new method, known as a genome-wide association (GWA) study, compares the genomes of people with a particular disease to those without the disease. By identifying key differences between the two, one can generate hot leads as to which genes might be involved.  The trick is identifying which genes are truly related, and which are not – a difficult task, to be sure.

This approach has become important for identifying the many genes thought to contribute small increases in risk for diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and schizophrenia. Previously, these genes were difficult to track and identify using classic, family-based genetic discovery techniques.

At Northwestern, researchers in the NUgene project were recently funded by the National Institutes of Health to use the GWA approach to look for genes involved in diabetes and asthma.

There are practical concerns, though, with how this type of research finding might be used by doctors and their patients.  Should genetic tests be ordered for conditions where the risk factors are small, or where treatment options may not exist?  For many diseases, more informative risk factors are evident just by looking at one’s health record and family history. For example, risk factors for diabetes, including weight, lifestyle, and family history (the simplest genetic test), are straightforward to interpret and quite informative.

So while this news is exciting to researchers because it represents a start for unraveling the genetic contributions to schizophrenia, this is not likely to be information that will directly benefit a patient quite yet.

Original Article