Supplementation with vitamin D could help to protect against viral infections during the winter, according to new research.

The study published in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology reports that intake of vitamin D supplements during autumn and winter months could help to protect against viral infections, especially in older people.

Led by Dr Victor Manuel Martinez-Taboada from the Unversidad de Cantabria, Spain, the research team explained that levels of vitamin D otherwise known as the sunshine vitamin decrease during autumn and winter when days are shorter and sunlight is relatively weak. They suggest this could explain why people are more prone to viral infection during these times, arguing that supplementation, especially in older populations, could strengthen people's innate immunity against viral infections.

"There are numerous studies showing the benefits of maintaining adequate Vitamin D levels. As more and more research into Vitamin D is conducted, we are learning that it is extremely important for human health, said Martinez-Taboada.

"Our study is no different, and vitamin D supplements should be considered one of many tools that might help when conventional therapies are not enough," he added.

Commenting on the research, Dr John Wherry, deputy editor of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology noted:"There have been numerous studies showing several environmental factors during winter months may allow viruses to spread easier ... This study shows that sunlight, or more precisely the lack of vitamin D, could have a role in the seasonally higher rates of infection.

Wherry added that further and more extensive studies must be conducted before any association can conclusively be shown. However he conceded that because vitamin D supplements are inexpensive and generally safe: this is a really exciting discovery."

Sunshine vitamin

Vitamin D refers to two biologically inactive precursors - D3, also known as cholecalciferol, and D2, also known as ergocalciferol. Both D3 and D2 precursors are transformed in the liver and kidneys into 25- hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), the non-active 'storage' form, and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25(OH)2D).

While our bodies do manufacture vitamin D on exposure to sunshine, the levels in some northern countries are so weak during the winter months that our body makes no vitamin D at all, meaning that dietary supplements and fortified foods are seen by many as the best way to boost intakes of vitamin D.

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Sunshine vitamin may offer protection from winter viruses, suggest researchers

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Silicon Biosystems, Inc., a provider of specialized molecular and cellular biology technology, has opened laboratory facilities in San Diego on the La Jolla Torrey Pines mesa, amidst San Diegos pharmaceutical and nonprofit biology research centers.

Having laboratory and office space in San Diego, one of the top global biotechnology hubs, gives us the ability to showcase the unique benefits of our DEPArray system and offer specialized services to our customers in the U.S., said Bob Proulx, president and general manager of Silicon Biosystems U.S. operations. Being on the ground in the U.S. supports our marketing and sales strategy and will allow us to better serve our rapidly expanding pharmaceutical and clinical research customer base.

The combined offices and laboratories will serve as a demonstration and training facility for Silicon Biosystems customers and will allow the company to leverage the unique capabilities of the DEPArray system in the recovery of single pure cells by offering rare cell sample processing as a fee-for-service. Clients interested in collecting specific cell populations, such as CTCs, for clinical studies or biomarker discovery will be able to send samples to Silicon Biosystems lab and get single pure cells or cellular content returned for downstream analyses, such as sequencing or expression profiling.

The new facility is located at 3210 Merryfield Row, San Diego, CA 92121.

About Silicon Biosystems

Silicon Biosystems, S.p.A., based in Bologna, Italy is a medical device manufacturer leading the field in the detection and recovery of single cells for cancer research and prenatal testing. The company manufactures and sells the DEPArray platform, which is a lab-on-a-chip technology to isolate and manipulate cells in suspension with a microelectronic array. The approach, patented by Silicon Biosystems, offers the unique ability to control individual cells and micro-particles inside a disposable cartridge. The DEPArray platform makes it possible to find, sort, select and separate individual cells for further analysis or culturing. For more information on Silicon Biosystems visit http://www.siliconbiosystems.com.

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Silicon Biosystems Opens San Diego Laboratory to Support Expansion in US Market

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CUC biology students explore the Amazon

Public release date: 31-May-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Cody Mooneyhan cmooneyhan@faseb.org 301-634-7104 Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology

Bethesda, MDScientists from the Universities of Illinois and California have found that the inflammatory protein interleukin-6 (IL-6) plays a pivotal role in the duration of acute pancreatitis in animal models with this condition. Their report, in the June 2012 issue of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology, describes experiments in lean and obese mice that identify the presence of high IL-6 as one of the reasons why the disease is more devastating in obese people.

"The study helps to understand why acute pancreatitis is more prolonged in obese subjects," said Giamila Fantuzzi, Ph.D., the senior researcher of this work, from the Department of Kinesiology and Nutrition at the University of Illinois at Chicago. "Our data indicate that IL-6 participates in prolonging inflammation in obese mice with acute pancreatitis, but also show that this inflammatory mediator is not the most important factor in determining the severity of the acute response."

To make this discovery, researchers used lean and obese mice that do and do not produce IL-6. They induced acute pancreatitis in all mice and studied them at different times of the disease. Both groups of the lean mice developed mild disease and then promptly recovered. Both sets of obese mice developed more severe disease at its onset. For the obese mice that did not produce IL-6, the course of the disease was much shorter than in the obese mice that did produce IL-6. It is also important to note that obesity leads to elevated levels of IL-6 and other inflammatory proteins.

"There is an increasing awareness that obesity and inflammation are connected," said John Wherry, Ph.D., Deputy Editor of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology. "Not only does this new report demonstrate an important set of interactions between obesity, pancreatitis, and inflammation, but it also identifies the inflammatory pathway, IL-6, which could represent an important new therapeutic target in these settings."

###

The Journal of Leukocyte Biology publishes peer-reviewed manuscripts on original investigations focusing on the cellular and molecular biology of leukocytes and on the origins, the developmental biology, biochemistry and functions of granulocytes, lymphocytes, mononuclear phagocytes and other cells involved in host defense and inflammation. The Journal of Leukocyte Biology is published by the Society for Leukocyte Biology.

Details: Maria Pini, Davina H. Rhodes, Karla J. Castellanos, Andrew R. Hall, Robert J. Cabay, Rohini Chennuri, Eileen F. Grady, and Giamila Fantuzzi. Role of IL-6 in the resolution of pancreatitis in obese mice. J. Leukoc Biol. June 2012 91:957-966; doi:10.1189/jlb.1211627 ; http://www.jleukbio.org/content/91/6/957.abstract

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Scientists identify possible drug target for acute pancreatitis

Public release date: 30-May-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Jordi Morato comunicacio@idibell.cat IDIBELL-Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute

A study led by Manel Esteller, director of the Epigenetics and Cancer Biology Program at the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), professor of genetics at the University of Barcelona and ICREA researcher, has completed the first epigenome in Europe. The finding is published in the latest issue of the international scientific journal Epigenetics.

The genome of all cells in the human body is the same for all of them, regardless their aspect and functions. Therefore, genome cannot fully explain the activity of tissues and organs and their disorders in complex diseases like cancer. It takes a further explanation. Part of this explanation is provided by epigenetics, a field of biology that studies the heredity activity of DNA that does not involve changes in its sequence. That is, if genetics is the alphabet, epigenetics is the spelling that guides the activity of our cells.

Methylation

Epigenetics refers to chemical changes in our genetic material and proteins that regulate it. The best-known epigenetic mark is the methylation, the addition of a methyl chemical group (-CH3) in our DNA. The epigenome consists of all the epigenetic marks of a living being.

The authors of the study have completed the epigenomes for all brands of methylation of DNA from white blood cells of two girls: a healthy one and a patient suffering from a rare genetic disease called Immunodeficiency, Centromere instability and Facial anomalies syndrome (ICF). This disease is caused by a mutation in a gene that causes the addition of a methyl chemical group in its DNA.

The analysis performed by the researchers reveals that the patient has an epigenomic defect that causes fragility of chromosomes, which thus can easily be broken. In addition, the study shows that the patient has a wrong epigenetic control of many genes related to the response against infection, which causes a severe immune deficiency.

The study coordinator, Manel Esteller, emphasizes that due to this study, "we now know what happens in this type of rare diseases and we can start thinking about strategies for new treatments based on this knowledge."

Dr. Esteller is an international leader in the field of epigenetics. His work has been crucial to show that all human tumours have in common a specific chemical alteration: the hypermethylation of tumour suppressor genes. Since 2008 is the director of the Epigenetics and Cancer Biology Program at IDIBELL.

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Researchers complete the first epigenome in Europe

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Ember Therapeutics, Inc., a company harnessing breakthroughs in brown fat biology and insulin sensitization to revolutionize the treatment of metabolic disease, today announced the appointment of Jasbir Seehra, Ph.D., to chief scientific officer; also, Jeff Saunders, Ph.D., joins Ember as vice president, small molecule drug discovery. Drs. Seehra and Saunders will advance the companys work in translating its world-class biology into a proprietary pipeline of groundbreaking therapies for metabolic diseases, including Type 2 diabetes and obesity.

Both Jas and Jeff have extensive, proven track records leading drug discovery efforts and translating promising science into clinical programs, said Lou Tartaglia, Ph.D., president and interim chief executive officer of Ember Therapeutics and partner at Third Rock Ventures, LLC. Jas has already played a key role at Ember as part of our world-class team of scientific advisors, and his expertise will be instrumental as we work toward meeting the critical need for novel therapeutic approaches in the metabolic disease space. Im looking forward to working closely with Jas and Jeff as we accelerate and advance our brown fat biology and selective insulin sensitization programs toward the clinic.

Dr. Seehra has served as an advisor on Embers scientific advisory board since the companys launch last year. With greater than 25 years of experience developing innovative small molecule and biologic drugs, Dr. Seehra served as chief scientific officer of Acceleron Pharma, Inc., which he co-founded in 2003. He has also served as vice president of biological chemistry at Wyeth and led the small molecule lead discovery effort at Genetics Institute, Inc., where he successfully built the institutes small molecule drug discovery capabilities, including medicinal chemistry, high throughput screening and structural biology. Dr. Seehra has authored numerous publications and is an inventor on 33 patents. Dr. Seehra received his B.S. and Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Southampton in England. He completed his postdoctoral work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

With its innovative and proprietary programs, key intellectual property and unparalleled team of scientific co-founders, Ember has rapidly positioned itself at the forefront of the emerging area of brown fat biology, said Dr. Seehra. I am enthusiastic about the impact Ember can have on the lives of patients affected by metabolic disease and committed to working with the team to realize the potential of Embers unique therapeutic programs.

Dr. Saunders has extensive experience leading small molecule discovery and development for emerging biotechnology companies. Prior to joining Ember Therapeutics, Dr. Saunders served as the vice president of chemistry at Agios Pharmaceuticals. Previously, he worked as a consultant at Elixir Pharmaceuticals, where he managed all chemistry and related intellectual property. Prior to that, Dr. Saunders held the position of principal investigator at Vertex Pharmaceuticals, where he worked for 14 years as chemistry head and project head for multiple programs. Previously, he was a research scientist at the Squibb Institute for Medical Research. Dr. Saunders received his B.A. in chemistry from Hope College in Michigan and his Ph.D. in synthetic organic chemistry at the University of South Carolina. He held a National Institutes of Health postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania.

About Ember Therapeutics, Inc.

Ember Therapeutics is a product-focused company harnessing breakthroughs in brown fat biology and insulin sensitization to revolutionize the treatment of metabolic disease. Todays rising epidemic of obesity and Type 2 diabetes coupled with the lack of innovation in the industrys metabolic disorder treatment pipeline underscores the need for novel, peripherally-acting treatments with improved safety profiles. Embers unique approach leverages recent research breakthroughs in brown fat biology to develop a pipeline of proprietary biologics and small molecules designed to amplify the bodys innate ability to efficiently burn fuels like glucose. Embers expertise is also driving the development of the next generation of highly selective insulin sensitizers that have robust anti-diabetic effects, but lack the serious side effects of currently approved insulin sensitizers. Ember is a private company launched in 2011 by renowned scientific founders, an experienced leadership team and Third Rock Ventures. For more information, please visit http://www.embertx.com.

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Ember Therapeutics Expands Scientific Leadership to Advance Metabolic Pipeline

SANTA BARBARA Imagine being able to mathematically describe the process by which an embryo develops into an animal, assigning numbers to its every function and dysfunction. Such capability holds enormous implications for medicine, pointing to the potential for determining when and where things go developmentally awry and paving the way to possible solutions.

This sort of breakthrough is one of the long-term goals of theoretical physicists and experimental biologists at UC Santa Barbara, where the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics (KITP) is uniting researchers from the disparate disciplines in joint study. Two new grants, together totaling $2 million, are giving those interdisciplinary efforts a big boost.

The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation has awarded KITP $1.6 million for its ongoing interdisciplinary biology initiatives, including workshops, postdoctoral fellowships, and plans for a new summer program the Santa Barbara Advanced School for Quantitative Biology (SBASQB) aimed squarely at the interface of physics and biology. A $400,000 grant from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund will go exclusively toward the latter endeavor.

"We are profoundly grateful for the extraordinary gift from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, whose steadfast support of scientific research and the pursuit of knowledge in emerging fields is of vital importance. Their grant to KITP will be a tremendous boon to the institute's work at the interface of physics and biology," said Chancellor Henry T. Yang. "The remarkable generosity of the Burroughs Wellcome Fund provides another lasting benefit by helping to launch the Santa Barbara Advanced School for Quantitative Biology, an innovative, interdisciplinary new course with the potential for groundbreaking scientific discoveries."

Set to welcome its first class in 2013, SBASQB aspires to advance both physics and biology by unifying their practitioners in intensive summer study. Side-by-side in lectures and in the lab, researchers will explore subjects such as morphogenesis, embryology, microbial biology, and evolution. The new program is the brainchild of physics professor and permanent KITP member Boris Shraiman, and Joel Rothman, chair of UC Santa Barbara's Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology.

"We thank the Moore Foundation for their generosity and their vision in supporting a broader range of activities at the KITP, and we are delighted that, with our proposed course, we were able to rise to the challenge set by the Burroughs Wellcome Fund," Shraiman said.

"It really has been a dream to set up a course like SBASQB," Shraiman added. "It is a merger of two cultures drawing on the lab course tradition in biology and the workshop tradition in theoretical physics and it is going to be a rather unique combination of the two."

Describing SBASQB as the culmination of their shared vision to bring together theorists and experimentalists in an active lab setting, Shraiman and Rothman said the venture was largely inspired by the storied research program at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Mass., which boasts more than 50 Nobel laureates among its past participants.

What sets such courses apart, said Rothman who likes to think of SBASQB as a sort of "Woods Hole West" is the way they turn scientific convention on its head. The elite, intensive program will, on occasion, see graduate students and postdoctoral students serving as instructors to faculty; theorists engaging in lab work; experimentalists participating in theory-focused lectures; and instructors and students collaborating on experiments. Differentiating SBASQB from Woods Hole: The former will be built on the foundation of the KITP, grounded in the physical science community.

"There is a lot of exciting stuff going on at the interface of traditional, hard physical sciences and biology that I think will engender what really will be a new discipline," said Rothman, who served as Woods Hole summer faculty for 18 years, spending five years as course director. "A new generation of scientists who've had strong training in both realms will ultimately be creating the new departments of quantitative biology."

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Grants further exploration of interface of physics, biology

RESEARCHERS in the North East have been awarded a multi-million pound grant to develop new technology which could lead to breakthroughs for healthcare and the environment.

Experts at Newcastle University are playing a leading role in the new project, which has just secured almost 5m from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).

The academics are looking to develop new technology in the emerging field of synthetic biology, with support from research teams at Imperial and Kings Colleges London, plus Cambridge and Edinburgh Universities.

Professor Anil Wipat, from the universitys school of computing science, is leading Newcastles side of the project.

He said: This work builds on ongoing cutting-edge work in the application of computing principles and technology to the design of novel, commercially valuable biological systems.

This is an unrivalled opportunity to develop the infrastructure necessary to produce new and useful innovations for medicine, agriculture and the environment.

The application of synthetic biology will both replace existing inefficient production processes and speed up the development of new processes and products for a wide range of industrial sectors, including chemical, biofuels and healthcare industries.

Newcastle University will play a major role in the project, leading the computational design and the development of industrially relevant bacterial strains. Announcing the grant, Science and Technology Minister David Willetts said: Synthetic biology could provide solutions to many of humanitys most pressing issues and at the same time presents significant growth opportunities.

This investment will lay the groundwork for the commercialisation of research, ensuring academics and industry can realise the full potential of this exciting area of science.

Another goal of the project is to create a UK infrastructure for synthetic biology that will be widely available to universities throughout the UK and beyond.

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Newcastle University experts get £5m synthetic biology grant

29.05.2012 - (idw) Johannes Gutenberg-Universitt Mainz

Ketting will introduce C. elegans and the zebrafish as model systems at IMB to study mechanisms controlling development and disease The Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB) appoints Professor Ren Ketting as its second Scientific Director. Ketting is a leading molecular biologist who will be focusing on the biology of non-coding RNAs. He will introduce C. elegans and the zebrafish as model systems at IMB to study mechanisms controlling development and disease.

For decades, RNAs have only been seen as intermediates in the production of proteins. However, the discovery of new classes of RNA which control the activity of genes has dramatically changed our view of these molecules. Professor Ren Ketting is one of the pioneers of this exciting, emerging area. His research focuses on so-called non-coding RNA (ncRNA), which he, with others, has shown to play a key role in embryonic development. Furthermore, errors in the control of gene activity by ncRNAs contribute to major diseases, such as cancer and heart failure.

Specifically, Ketting investigates three central aspects of ncRNA biology: (i) how certain ncRNAs are able to silence the expression of specific genes, (ii) how ncRNAs regulate the activity of genes by triggering changes to chromatin, i.e., the way the DNA is packaged, and (iii) how they act to stop transposons, short pieces of DNA that can jump within the genome, from moving. The movement of transposons has a major impact on the stability of our genetic material. Understanding how ncRNAs prevent such movement therefore provides important insights into how our genomes are maintained in a healthy state.

IMB's Founding Director, Professor Christof Niehrs, is enthusiastic about Ren Ketting joining IMB: "Ren's research perfectly complements the work already carried out at IMB. His recruitment significantly bolsters the IMB's expertise and international visibility in the field of RNA biology and will lead to many exciting collaborations." In addition to becoming a Director at IMB, Ketting has also been appointed as Professor within the Faculty of Biology at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU). "We are very glad to have succeeded in recruiting Professor Ren Ketting. His appointment brings an internationally renowned scientist to Mainz and further strengthens biological research at Mainz University," states Professor Georg Krausch, President of JGU.

"Professor Ketting's appointment marks another important step in establishing IMB as an international beacon of research in the life sciences. We are very happy that IMB could attract a scientist of such caliber from abroad and are confident that the search for a further scientific director will be equally successful", says Otto Boehringer, chairman of the Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation. To mark the 125th anniversary of the company Boehringer Ingelheim in 2010, the foundation pledged itself to donate 100 million for the scientific running of IMB.

The Institute for Molecular Biology gGmbH (IMB) The Institute of Molecular Biology gGmbH (IMB) is a new center of excellence in the life sciences. It was established in March 2011. Research at IMB concentrates on three cutting-edge areas: epigenetics, developmental biology, and DNA repair. The institute is a prime example of a successful collaboration between public authorities and a private foundation. The Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation has dedicated 100 million for a period of 10 years to cover the operating costs for research at IMB, while the state of Rhineland-Palatinate provided approximately 50 million for the construction of a state-of-the-art building

The Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation The Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation is an independent, non-profit organization committed to the promotion of the medical, biological, chemical, and pharmaceutical sciences. It was established in 1977 by Hubertus Liebrecht, a member of the shareholder family of the company Boehringer Ingelheim. jQuery(document).ready(function($) { $("fb_share").attr("share_url") = encodeURIComponent(window.location); });

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Leading RNA biologist René Ketting joins the Institute of Molecular Biology as Scientific Director

By Allison Ross-Ferrelli

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Palm Beach County high school students fared slightly better than the state average on end-of-course examinations in geometry and biology, according to results released Thursday .

End-of-course exams are being phased in as replacements for FCATs in several high school classes, as the state gradually moves away from the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test for math and language arts by 2015.

Last year, an Algebra I test was the first end-of-course exam to be given. Next year, the state will debut a U.S. History end-of-course test.

Because this is the first year for the geometry and biology tests, the state has not yet set achievement and passing levels for it. Those are expected to be set this fall.

Instead, the scores were reported by the percentage of students who scored in the highest, middle and lowest thirds.

For geometry, 36 percent of Palm Beach County students scored in the highest third, 30 percent in the middle and 34 percent in the lowest.

By comparison, 34 percent, 31 percent and 35 percent of students statewide scored in those brackets, respectively.

For biology, 37 percent of county students were in the top third, compared with 35 percent statewide. In the middle third were 29 percent of county students, down slightly from 31 percent statewide. And both Palm Beach County and the state reported 34 percent of students in the bottom third.

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Palm Beach County students top state average in biology, geometry end-of-course exams

After three years of development, a plan was released Thursday for a biology research complex equipped with research vessels, high-tech laboratories and a wave tank along San Pedro's waterfront.

The proposed 28-acre oceanfront campus, dubbed City Dock One Marine Research Center, would serve as the new home for the Southern California Marine Institute, a consortium of 11 college and university campuses.

If ultimately approved by the Los Angeles City Council and the Board of Harbor Commissioners, the facility would share space with government researchers, marine-related businesses and environmental groups, according to a draft environmental impact report released by port officials.

"City Dock One has the ability to be transformational to San Pedro and the Harbor Area because it brings another type of job cluster to our port and region," said Geraldine Knatz, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles, who has led the planning for the research facility and first brought her idea before the harbor commission in August 2009.

Earlier this month, the harbor commission agreed to establish a nonprofit group to raise funds to build the new lab, which is estimated to cost $416 million over two phases.

Plans call for equipping the new SCMI facility with classrooms, offices, laboratories, water storage tanks, a 150-seat auditorium with theater-style seating, and an 18,500-square-foot floating dock with a dozen slips to accommodate small

The old Westway Terminal Corp. property at Berths 70-71 would be converted into a 50,000-square-foot lab for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and berths for research vessels up to 250 feet long.

One of the facility's main attractions will be a steel-reinforced concrete wave tank that would study the rise and fall of sea levels, sea shifts and the effects of tsunamis on the Pacific Ocean.

The spacious marine campus would be an upgrade from the SCMI's current 11,000-square-foot facility on Terminal Island, said Dan Pondella, the institute's board president and an associate professor of biology at Occidental College.

"This is a completely unique project and our work on this is unlike any other marine lab we know of in the world," Pondella said. "It's a complete win-win for the surrounding communities, the harbor and the schools involved because it will be a job creator and an excellent teaching tool for students in our area."

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Proposed biology research complex unveiled for San Pedro waterfront

Public release date: 24-May-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Natasha Pinol npinol@aaas.org 202-326-7088 American Association for the Advancement of Science

An undergraduate course that allows students to build mathematical models of biological phenomenaand to experience a convergence of disciplines with potential in areas ranging from cancer treatment to reforestationis the winner of the Science Prize for Inquiry-Based Instruction (IBI).

Hillel Chiel, professor of biology, neurosciences, and biomedical engineering at Case Western Reserve University, is the creator of the course. As he explains, biology students who know how to build models of biological phenomena and engineering students who can explore biological phenomena for engineering insights are better prepared to do research in their fields.

"People who have training in both are going to have an advantage," says Chiel.

Science's IBI Prize was developed to showcase outstanding materials, usable in a wide range of schools and settings, for teaching science courses at the college level. The materials must be designed to encourage students' natural curiosity about how the world works, rather than to deliver facts and principles about what scientists have already discovered. Organized as one free-standing "module," the materials should offer real understanding of the nature of science, as well as providing an experience in generating and evaluating scientific evidence. Each month, Science publishes an essay by a recipient of the award, which explains the winning project. The essay about the Dynamics of Biological Systems course, by Chiel, Jeffrey Gill, Jeffrey McManus, and Kendrick Shaw, will be published on May 25.

"We want to recognize innovators in science education, as well as the institutions that support them," says Bruce Alberts, editor-in-chief of Science. "At the same time, this competition will promote those inquiry-based laboratory modules with the most potential to benefit science students and teachers. The publication of an essay in Science on each winning module will encourage more college teachers to use these outstanding resources, thereby promoting science literacy."

A review of Chiel's background shows the protean tendency that would evolve into the interdisciplinary approach evidenced by much of his workincluding his novel designs for biologically inspired robotsand by the course module Dynamics of Biological Systems. As a child growing up on Long Island, Chiel planned to be a scientist and was fascinated by how things worked, but he was so fond of reading novels that once he was almost locked in his school library overnight.

At age 14, Chiel was given an opportunity to study calculus with physicist Alan Natapoff, which he says was "a very positive experience." When it was time for Chiel to go to college, however, he chose Yale over MIT, becoming an English major, enchanted at the thought of spending his time reading in the stacks of Yale's Sterling Memorial Library.

During the summer between Chiel's junior and senior years, he worked in the neurochemistry lab of Richard Wurtman, doing research that resulted in the publication of Chiel's first scientific paper. Chiel graduated from Yale and then went on to do a Ph.D. with Wurtman at MIT.

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Science magazine prize awarded to course that brings biology and math worlds closer

Public release date: 24-May-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Hilda Kalap hilda.kalap@epsrc.ac.uk Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council

The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) will help the UK's world-leading researchers in synthetic biology to establish platform technology in the emerging field with a new grant of almost 5 million. Platform technology is the crucial next step necessary for applications to be produced and commercialised.

Announcing the grant later today in a major speech at the University of East Anglia, Minister for Universities and Science David Willetts will say: "Synthetic biology could provide solutions to many of humanity's most pressing issues and at the same time presents significant growth opportunities. This investment will lay the groundwork for the commercialisation of research, ensuring academics and industry can realise the full potential of this exciting area of science."

The Flowers Consortium of five universities, Imperial College London, Cambridge, Edinburgh, Newcastle and King's College London, carries out research into synthetic biology in the UK. The Consortium builds on earlier EPSRC investments such as the 4.5 million for the Centre for Synthetic Biology and Innovation (CsynBI) at Imperial which is co-directed by Professor Richard Kitney and Professor Paul Freemont.

Synthetic biology aims to design and engineer novel biologically based parts, devices and systems, and redesign existing natural biological systems for useful purposes. It is seen as affecting a wide range of industrial sectors including chemicals, materials, biosensors, biofuels and healthcare.

The platform technology will be based on an information system SynBIS which uses a web-based environment. SynBIS is currently in Beta trials and is expected to be available by the end of June. SynBIS will host BioCAD and modelling tools for the field. This opens up the possibility of undertaking high level software design of bioparts and devices which can be assembled using laboratory robots and other automatic methods.

The grant will also be used to establish a professional registry of biological parts and devices using a robotic data-collection pipeline for characterisation. The richer data that can be obtained will lead to improved mathematical modelling and in turn more predictable and reliable design and construction of the parts.

Professor Kitney said: "The new grant will build on the work of CsynBI and the other universities in the Flowers Consortium to create important new resources for the academic and industrial community in synthetic biology."

Professor Freemont said: "The establishment of the Flowers Consortium now provides a critical mass of researchers who are developing innovative open access technology platforms to accelerate the growth of synthetic biology research in the UK."

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Funding will establish platform technology for emerging synthetic biology field

Public release date: 24-May-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Nan Broadbent nbroadbe@sfsu.edu 415-338-7108 San Francisco State University

SAN FRANCISCO, May 24, 2012 -- The San Francisco State University Department of Biology has received a $1.5 million education grant from Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) to support the faculty as they refine their teaching skills and explore new resources and new ways to assess their students' learning.

The 2012 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Undergraduate Science Education Award will support a new program called Biology Faculty Explorations in Scientific Teaching (FEST). The program will begin in September 2012 and continue for four years. SF State is one of only three applicants for the grant to receive the maximum award amount of $1.5 million.

Biology FEST has the potential to transform the learning experiences of nearly 5000 students -- almost 20 percent of the SF State student body -- who enroll in biology courses, said Kimberly Tanner, professor of biology and the grant's principal investigator. She is the director at the University's Science Education Partnership and Assessment Laboratory (SEPAL).

National experts have urged a complete overhaul of undergraduate science education, Tanner noted, but few programs address the key role that university teachers will have to play in this transformation. "Scientists are trained to be fabulous researchers, and then the vast majority of them are drop-kicked into a college or university classroom and told to teach, with no training in how to teach effectively the science they know," she said.

The Biology FEST program will help the biology faculty refine their teaching in the same way they approach their lab and field work: using scientific, evidence-based methods, Tanner said. They will "put their scientific skills to work in their classrooms," she noted, discovering the best ways to teach, collaborate and measure their students' progress.

The grant will fund scientific teaching workshops and a summer institute for biology faculty, faculty team collaborations that bring together four faculty members to observe and collaborate on teaching challenges, mini-grants for curriculum changes, new classroom equipment and partnerships with graduate students to develop assessments.

Tanner noted that 88 percent of the faculty has shown interest in the program -- and that fewer than 28 percent of them reported having any teacher training beyond a graduate school teaching assistantship. "The quality of our research is extraordinarily high, and the quality of intentions is also very high, but most university scientists are not trained in effective approaches to teaching," she said.

"We have a very talented, very willing faculty, and they're ready to be innovative," she continued. "They just need access to new ways of thinking and to intellectual and material resources to support change."

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SF State biology department receives $1.5 million to support science teaching

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/wdl5r8/encyclopedia_of_ra) has announced the addition of John Wiley and Sons Ltd's new book "Encyclopedia of Radicals in Chemistry, Biology and Materials" to their offering.

Over the last two decades the application of free radicals in organic synthesis, materials science and life science has steadily increased, this Encyclopedia presents methodologies and mechanisms involving free radicals of chemical and biological research, including applications in materials science and medicine.

The aim of this Encyclopedia is to offer for the first time a description of free radicals within an interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary context, connecting structural characteristics and chemical properties to their applications in different areas of chemistry and related disciplines.

It covers not only basic concepts and chemical synthesis, but also touches on various aspects concerning the role of free radicals in materials and life sciences. The reader will find a balanced contribution of topics related to free radicals covering for example, their role in proteomics, genomics and lipidomics as well as their enormous potential in synthesis and technology.

Covers topical areas such as:

- Alzheimer's disease and antioxidants in food within medicine and life sciences

- Synthesis and catalysis, combustion and atmospheric chemistry within chemistry

- Ageing and signalling in biological processes

Of interest to anybody working in the field of free radicals in the broadest sense. It will address scientists who want to enter the interdisciplinary field of free radicals. In particular, it is aimed primarily at chemists and life science researchers who want to gain a wider and deeper understanding of free radicals which will allow them to apply free radicals in their own scientific field.

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Research and Markets: 2012 Encyclopedia of Radicals in Chemistry, Biology and Materials Highlights the Growing ...

Readmore: Local, News, Davon Morris, Derek Uries, Caprock High School, Kristen Barrett and Biology Teacher, US Fish and Wildlife Service, David Pipkin, Adrian Escobar and Natural Resource Specialist, Cross Bar Ranch, Natural Sciences and Learning Outside, Amarillo Students take Classroom Outside

Every student is different when it comes to the best way to learn a lesson.

For instance, some like total silence when they studyand some like to study listening to loud music.

But many students have a better time learning through hands-on experiences.

Tuesday, students fromAmarillo's high schools spent the afternoon on a 12,000-acre stretch of land learning about the natural sciences.

DavonMorris andDerekUries,both freshman fromCaprockHighSchool,talked about how much they enjoyed combining learning with the outdoors.

"We're learning about nature and a lot of animalsI'd really never heard of," saidUries. "It's just an awesome experience coming out here."

It is the first year they have tried the outdoor classroom at Cross Bar Ranch.

KristenBarrett, the biology teacher who started the program, says being outside is the best way to really understand the natural sciences.

"We just got done learning about evolution and a lot of them had seen bugs that were different colors and they said oh wow they're different than the ones in town," said Barrett."So they're really making a connection and enjoying being out of the classroom."

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Amarillo biology students take the classroom outside

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/qw3xhx/chemistry_and_biol) has announced the addition of John Wiley and Sons Ltd's new book "Chemistry and Biology of Artificial Nucleic Acids" to their offering.

This is the first book to provide a comprehensive overview of the field of artificial nucleic acids. Covering a tremendous amount of literature on the chemistry, biology, and structure of artificial nucleic acids, it will constitute an invaluable source of information for the specialist and for young researchers interested in starting a career in this fascinating field of research alike.

This book combines the contributions of many of the major players in this research field, and covers the synthesis of sugar-, base- and backbone-modified nucleic acids, their structural characteristics studied by X-ray crystallography, and NMR in solution as well as their chemical and biological properties.

Key Topics Covered:

- Nucleic Acids with a Six-membered Carbohydrate Mimic in the backbone

- Oligonucleotide N3 P5 Phosphoramidates and Thio-Phoshoramidates as Potential Therapeutic Agents

- From Anionic to Cationic a-Anomeric Oligodeoxynucleotides

- The Resurgence of Acyclic Nucleic Acids

- Exotic DNAs Made of Nonnatural Bases and Natural Phosphodiester Bonds

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Research and Markets: Chemistry and Biology of Artificial Nucleic Acids

Gerard Gerry Benedict didnt just teach biology and conservation at Midlakes High School. He lived and breathed it, and he passed that passion on to students and colleagues.

Mr. Benedict composted at home. He put in solar panels. If he saw a plastic bottle by the side of the road, he picked it up. He ran and walked regularly to school, even though he lived in Newark, about eight miles away for his fitness as well as the Earths.

Every year, Mr. Benedict and students would plant trees in the field across from the schools. He and his students also regularly collected water samples to track the health of nearby Flint Creek.

Mr. Benedict, 65, died doing what he loved. He was volunteering for the Finger Lakes Trails Conference in the Catskill Mountains, helping to clear trails when a branch hit him last weekend.

He just loved nature and the outdoors, remembered Midlakes Principal Jamie Farr.

He was the type of guy who lived what he taught and loved what he taught, said Farr. Thats what made him so effective. Because he loved it so much, the students loved it. He had the admiration of his students and the respect of his colleagues.

Mr. Benedict taught biology for 35 years at Midlakes, and coached the cross-country team for more than 20 years.

He retired two years ago, although last year came back to school as a long-term substitute for Christina Ross, a teacher he mentored and recipient of a unique gift.

If he found a beaver skull along his route to school, hed bring it to class cleaned up, of course for the learning experience, she said. His gift of a beaver skin is still in her classroom.

It was roadkill that Gerry put together for me, Ross said. I loved it.

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Midlakes biology teacher loved and lived to teach nature

Public release date: 17-May-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Clea Desjardins clea.desjardins@concordia.ca 514-848-2424 x5068 Concordia University

Montreal, May 18, 2012 What do synthetic fuels, new treatments for malaria and genetic engineering have in common? In a word, biology. To examine the wide-reaching implications of this evolving discipline, Concordia University's Centre for Structural and Functional Genomics presents Building Biology: A Symposium on Synthetic Biology.

Held at Concordia's Loyola Campus on May 21, the symposium brings together the world's top researchers on the subject, including academics from Harvard, MIT, Berkeley and Johns Hopkins. Because this event is closely tied into the work of Concordia's cutting-edge genomics laboratory, the President and CEO of Genome Canada, Pierre Meulien, will give the welcoming address.

What: Building Biology: A Symposium for Synthetic Biology When: Monday, May 21, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Where: Concordia University, Loyola Campus, 7141 Sherbrooke Street West, SP S-110

The purpose of this symposium is to foster interaction between established synthetic biologists in Canada and North America. The event represents a cornerstone in the creation of a synthetic biology research hub for Canada while putting Concordia on the map as the prime location for research in synthetic biology.

Speakers include: Pierre Meulien (Genome Canada), Jay Keasling (University of California Berkeley), Jack Newman (Amyris Inc.), Peter Facchini (University of Calgary), Ron Weiss (MIT), Pamela Silver (Harvard University), Radhakrishnan Mahadevan (University of Toronto), Matthew Scott (University of Waterloo), Mads Kaern (University of Ottawa), Joel Bader (John Hopkins University) and Nathan Hillson (Joint BioEnergy Institute).

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This symposium is generously sponsored by Concordia University, Genome Quebec, CSFG, PhytoMetaSyn, CRIBIQ, DNA 2.0 and IDT.

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Concordia welcomes world's best synthetic biology researchers

Timothy Higham is an assistant professor of biology at UC Riverside. He is seen here holding a lizard that has self-amputated its tail. Credit: National Geographic.

Timothy Higham, an assistant professor of biology at the University of California, Riverside, will be featured in the program Animal Superpowers: Extreme Survivors on the National Geographic Wild Channel, 8 p.m., ET and PT, Sunday, June 3.

Broadcast internationally, the series Animal Superpowers is hosted by the actor Sir Patrick Stewart. On the Extreme Survivors episode, Higham will discuss what happens when a lizard drops its tail an escape plan unique in nature that lizards use when they are attacked. Using high-speed cameras, Higham reveals precisely how the tail fools predators, allowing the lizard to escape and survive. The research may, in the future, help humans with spinal cord injuries.

Lizards are incredible in their ability to self-amputate their tail when they encounter a predator, Higham said. The tail, containing a portion of the spinal cord, is voluntarily detached by muscular contractions that break the tail at a weak point within a single vertebra. The tail contains many of these weak points, so the lizard can break off variable amounts of the tail.

Higham explained that the tail, once dropped by the lizard, continues to move around vigorously, doing flips and swinging back and forth. This movement distracts the predator while the lizard is able to run away and avoid being eaten.

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Lizards use an escape plan unique in nature when they are attacked. Credit: National Geographic.

Highams lab focuses on biomechanics, functional morphology, and comparative physiology of vertebrate locomotion and feeding. He received his doctoral degree in molecular, cellular and integrative physiology from UC Davis in 2006. Following a postdoctoral appointment at Harvard, he spent three years as an assistant professor of biological sciences at Clemson University. He joined UC Riverside last year.

Viewers are encouraged to check their local listings for Animal Superpowers: Extreme Survivors on the National Geographic Wild Channel.

More information: http://animals.nat hedule/wild/

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Slow-motion film reveals what happens when lizards drop their tails