Genetic Engeneering
You will be learning about the fundamentals of genetic engineering, where we can insert a foreign piece of DNA into a plasmid and grow it in a culture of bacteria.

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Genetic Engeneering - Video

ST. PAUL A produced with genetic engineering label could one day make its appearance in Minnesota stores.

Rep. Karen Clark, D-Minneapolis, sponsors a bill to regulate disclosure of genetically engineered food and seed. The House commerce committee held an informational hearing on the bill Thursday. There is no Senate companion and the House committee took no vote.

This is a bill about the basic right of consumers to know whats in their food whether or not their food contains genetically modified compounds, Clark said.

According to the bill, genetically modified foods for sale would be required to have a label conspicuously placed on the packaging or shelf (for unpackaged foods) that says produced with genetic engineering.

Genetically modified seed would have such labeling on the seed container, receipt or other form of product identification.

The bill also consists of enforcement provisions and a section describing some research into the negative effects of genetically engineered food such as herbicide resistance in weeds and an increase in the use of insecticides.

Perry Aasness, executive director of the Minnesota Agri-Growth Council, said that science has shown that genetically engineered foods are essentially identical to conventional varieties and pose no greater risk than non-GMO food products.

He said that he is not opposed to labeling requirements, but believes the federal government, through the Food and Drug Administration, should develop voluntary labeling standards.

Jamie Pfuhl, president of the Minnesota Grocers Association, agreed with allowing the federal government to enact labeling legislation. A state-by-state approach would create a patchwork of regulations, she said, a challenge for stores that receive products from other states and countries.

Foods exempted from the labeling requirements under the bill would include:

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Minn. lawmakers consider GMO label

CRISPR Cas9: A novel approach to genetic engineering
Provides the basic mechanism behind the CRISPR Cas9 complex, while describing application and need.

By: Walter Wang

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CRISPR Cas9: A novel approach to genetic engineering - Video

CRISPR Webinar by Drs. Barrangon, Zhang and Church
Webinar sponsored by OriGene and held by GEN, Genetic Engineering Biotechnology News This webinar on the genome editing system CRISPR/Cas9 is given by three scientists who have been pioneering...

By: OriGene Technologies Inc.

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CRISPR Webinar by Drs. Barrangon, Zhang and Church - Video

Today, April 25, 2014 is National Arbor Day and a reminder of the importance that individuals and groups need to plant and care for trees. This means ensuring that arboriculturists and foresters have access to the most up to date agricultural technologies. The American Chestnut blight is recent example of how genetic engineering has served as one of these vital technologies.

A recent piece published in Scientific American told of the blight of the American Chestnut nearly wiped out by a fungal disease and efforts to genetically engineer the trees to resist the fungus and reintroduce healthy trees back into America forests. Ferri Jabrs A New Generation of American Chestnut Trees May Redefine Americas Forests examines the history of the American Chestnut going from its role of providing food and shelter for animals and people to nearly becoming obsolete.

Before the early 1900s, one in every four hardwood trees in North Americas eastern forests was an American chestnut, providing copious food and shelter for animals and people alike.

A New York City nurseryman named S. B. Parsons imported Japanese chestnut trees in 1876, which he raised and sold to customers who wanted something a little exotic in their gardens. Other nurseries in New Jersey and California soon did the same.

One or perhaps allof these shipments concealed the pathogenic fungusCryphonectria parasitica, which chokes chestnut trees to death by wedging itself into their trunks and obstructing conduits for water and nutrients. Asian chestnut trees had long evolved resistance toC. parasitica, but their American relativeswhich had never encountered the pathogen beforewere extremely susceptible to the fungal disease known as chestnut blight.

In 1904 the fungus was first discovered in New York State and soon spread to New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. Within 50 years,C. parasitica killednearly four billion chestnut trees.

Since the 1980s several generations of researchers at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (S.U.N.Y.ESF) have toiled to restore the American chestnut to its native habitat. Genetic engineering has offered a successful route to restoration.

By taking genes from wheat, Asian chestnuts, grapes, peppers and other plants and inserting them into American chestnut trees, William Powell of S.U.N.Y.ESF and scores of collaborators have created hundreds of transgenic trees that are almost 100 percent genetically identical wild American chestnut yet immune to C. parasitica.

The scientists hope to get federal approval to begin planting these trees in the forest within the next five years (See The American Chestnuts Genetic Rebirth in the March 2014 issue of Scientific American).

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Remember the American Chestnut Tree on Arbor Day

16 hours ago

Contrary to common scientific belief, many genes are switched "on" by default. These findings are from a study by Prof. Dr. Frank Holstege of University Medical Center (UMC) Utrecht that has been published in the April 24 edition of Cell.

Genetic differences between individuals affect the origin and treatment of diseases, a fact that has prompted more and more wide-scale genetic research. However, it seems that we sometimes lack very basic genetic knowledge.

Holstege's research shows that contrary to common opinion, many genes are by default actually switched "on". Given that DNA is wrapped in proteins, most scientists assumed that it could not be read by the cell. Transcription can only begin when so-called transcription factors bind to the DNA. Holstege and his colleagues show that nearly half of the transcription factors actually prevent the DNA from being read. It would seem that in most circumstances these genes should first be actively switched "off".

1,600 genes analyzed

Holstege and his colleagues used yeast as the model organism for their research. Yeast may seem far removed from humans, but its genes are controlled in exactly the same way as in human cells. Holstege et al. analyzed the role played by 1,600 genes, a quarter of all known yeast genes. They studied the effect that mutations in all those genes have on the gene expression of all other genes. This is the largest systematic study of the effect of mutation on gene expression to date.

Holstege has previously demonstrated that it is actually not necessarily useful to look at the effect of changes in just one gene. All genes are active in networks that are often organized in such a way that they can replace defective genes (Cell, December 10, 2010). The new study is the first step to mapping out the entire genetic control network.

"Comparative genetic research into patients and healthy subjects is very important," says Holstege. "It provides information on the cellular pathways associated with diseases. Our research shows, however, that it's hard to understand cells if you don't take the simultaneous activity of all genes into account."

Explore further: Research brings significant improvement in genetic analysis of tumours

Every tumour is unique and requires specific treatment. A thorough and complete analysis of the genetic activity in the tumour cells is necessary to determine the appropriate treatment. Researchers at TU ...

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Many genes are switched on by default

BALTIMORE, MD. Scientists have built a custom chromosome -- a package of genetic material assembled entirely from synthetic DNA. This engineered chromosome belongs to yeast, but experts say it can help them understand how genes work in humans as well. And it could help make these tiny living factories better at producing everything from medicines to biofuels. Students were key to the project In a lab at Johns Hopkins University, students stitched together machine-made strands of DNA, the chemical that carries the genetic blueprints of life. Their goal: to assemble all 6,000 genes in the genome of yeast. "So, in every single well there should have hopefully been something, said Macintosh Cornwell, a student at Johns Hopkins. Cornwell, a junior, is looking for signs his last stitching reaction worked. So, overall, we had pretty moderate success across the board, he said. Johns Hopkins geneticist Jef Boeke leads the class. He said yeast does familiar jobs, like turning grapes into wine, but they also do more than that. We have yeast that are used not just to make alcohol and bread, but also all kinds of chemicals, medicines, vaccines and fuels. And I think were going to see more and more of this in the future, said Boeke. And with genetic engineering, Boeke said, scientists could help yeast do those jobs better. Plus, these one-celled creatures share about a third of their genes with us. Studying their genes can teach us a lot about ourselves. Like us, yeast cells keep their genetic material in bundles of DNA known as chromosomes. Think of each chromosome as a book of genetic instructions, Boeke said. The book would be made up of chapters, the chapters would be made up of paragraphs and words and, ultimately letters, explained Boeke. And each gene is a word made up of letters of DNA, the chemical chain that forms the iconic twisted ladder shape. Boekes class has strung together all the words in one genetic book so far -- one chromosome out of yeasts 16. They engineered the new chromosome to let researchers shuffle genes around like a deck of cards. Some will have winning decks at making biofuels and some at making some other useful product, he said. Researchers say they are careful to consider the ethical implications of re-writing the code of life, but Boeke adds that his students are learning the basic tools of modern biology and getting excited about the possibilities. We could teach them how to do something at once very practical but at the same time amazing and unique, said Boeke. Cornwell said its helped him prepare for a career in science. The range of skills you learn and the amount of experience you get in such a small time period, its invaluable, really, said Cornwell. He and his class are on the cutting edge of this new world of biology.

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Scientists Build a Custom Chromosome

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

24-Apr-2014

Contact: Tamlyn Oliver toliver@clinicalomics.com 914-740-2199 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News

New Rochelle, NY, April 24, 2014GEN Publishing recently introduced Clinical OMICs a semi-monthly digital publication focusing on the application of OMICs technologies in clinical settings. These advanced techniques, such as next-gen sequencing, are beginning to transform medical care just as they revolutionized basic life science research over the past decade-and-a-half.

"GEN's editors and reporters have written about the research use of pharmacogenomics, genomics, metabolomics, transcriptomics, etc. etc. for years," said John Sterling, editor-in-chief of Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN). "The rapid advance of OMICs technologies has reached the point where we are convinced that the time is now for a new publication that shows how these diagnostic methodologies are dramatically impacting clinical practice."

Clinical OMICs is directed at clinical lab directors and managers, oncologists, infectious disease specialists, and cardiologists. Intended to serve as a resource for the development and standardization of best OMICs practices, Clinical OMICs provides critical information and insights on the trend toward personalized medicine.

The premier issue contains articles on translating OMICs into cancer biology and medicine, how payers are grappling with reimbursement issues, a profile of Lawrence Brody, who is overseeing NHGRI's new division of genomics and society, the move of next-gen sequencing systems into the clinic, and a case study of a genomics test for coronary artery disease. Late-breaking clinical OMICs news, OMICs-related clinical APPS, and new products are also featured.

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About Clinical OMICs

Clinical OMICs is brought to you by GEN Publishing, the parent company of Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News.

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GEN Publishing introduces 'Clinical OMICs' digital publication

19 hours ago Side view of a pregnant tsetse fly. Credit: Geoffrey M. Attardo

Mining the genome of the disease-transmitting tsetse fly, researchers have revealed the genetic adaptions that allow it to have such unique biology and transmit disease to both humans and animals.

The tsetse fly spreads the parasitic diseases human African trypanosomiasis, known as sleeping sickness, and Nagana that infect humans and animals respectively.

Throughout sub-Saharan Africa, 70 million people are currently at risk of deadly infection. Human African trypanosomiasis is on the World Health Organization's (WHO) list of neglected tropical diseases and since 2013 has become a target for eradication. Understanding the tsetse fly and interfering with its ability to transmit the disease is an essential arm of the campaign.

This disease-spreading fly has developed unique and unusual biological methods to source and infect its prey. Its advanced sensory system allows different tsetse fly species to track down potential hosts either through smell or by sight. This study lays out a list of parts responsible for the key processes and opens new doors to design prevention strategies to reduce the number of deaths and illness associated with human African trypanosomiasis and other diseases spread by the tsetse fly.

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"Tsetse flies carry a potentially deadly disease and impose an enormous economic burden on countries that can least afford it by forcing farmers to rear less productive but more trypanosome-resistant cattle." says Dr Matthew Berriman, co-senior author from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute. "Our study will accelerate research aimed at exploiting the unusual biology of the tsetse fly. The more we understand, the better able we are to identify weaknesses, and use them to control the tsetse fly in regions where human African trypanosomiasis is endemic."

The team, composed of 146 scientists from 78 research institutes across 18 countries, analysed the genome of the tsetse fly and its 12,000 genes that control protein activity. The project, which has taken 10 years to complete, will provide the tsetse research community with a free-to-access resource that will accelerate the development of improved tsetse-control strategies in this neglected area of research.

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The tsetse fly is related to the fruit fly a favoured subject of biologists for more than 100 years but its genome is twice as large. Within the genome are genes responsible for its unusual biology. The reproductive biology of the tsetse fly is particularly unconventional: unlike most insects that lay eggs, it gives birth to live young that have developed to a large size by feeding on specialised glands in the mother.

Excerpt from:

Genetic code of the deadly tsetse fly unraveled

Deciphering Nature #39;s Alphabet - 3. Developing Genetic Tools
This film describes the conversion of these new DNA handling technologies into a viable business model that puts biology on the same plane as physics -- at least in terms of products it can...

By: GenomeTV

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Deciphering Nature's Alphabet - 3. Developing Genetic Tools - Video

Deciphering Nature #39;s Alphabet - 4. Imagining the Genome
This film describes the launch of the Human Genome Project, how the idea emerged from the growing genetic engineering capacity, the technologies, politics and finances of genomics. Key inte

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Deciphering Nature's Alphabet - 4. Imagining the Genome - Video

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

24-Apr-2014

Contact: Tamlyn Oliver toliver@clinicalomics.com 914-740-2199 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News

New Rochelle, NY, April 24, 2014GEN Publishing recently introduced Clinical OMICs a semi-monthly digital publication focusing on the application of OMICs technologies in clinical settings. These advanced techniques, such as next-gen sequencing, are beginning to transform medical care just as they revolutionized basic life science research over the past decade-and-a-half.

"GEN's editors and reporters have written about the research use of pharmacogenomics, genomics, metabolomics, transcriptomics, etc. etc. for years," said John Sterling, editor-in-chief of Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN). "The rapid advance of OMICs technologies has reached the point where we are convinced that the time is now for a new publication that shows how these diagnostic methodologies are dramatically impacting clinical practice."

Clinical OMICs is directed at clinical lab directors and managers, oncologists, infectious disease specialists, and cardiologists. Intended to serve as a resource for the development and standardization of best OMICs practices, Clinical OMICs provides critical information and insights on the trend toward personalized medicine.

The premier issue contains articles on translating OMICs into cancer biology and medicine, how payers are grappling with reimbursement issues, a profile of Lawrence Brody, who is overseeing NHGRI's new division of genomics and society, the move of next-gen sequencing systems into the clinic, and a case study of a genomics test for coronary artery disease. Late-breaking clinical OMICs news, OMICs-related clinical APPS, and new products are also featured.

###

About Clinical OMICs

Clinical OMICs is brought to you by GEN Publishing, the parent company of Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News.

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GEN Publishing introduces 'Clinical OMICs' digital publication

11 hours ago False-color scanning electron micrograph of Prochlorococcus. Credit: Anne Thompson

The smallest, most abundant marine microbe, Prochlorococcus, is a photosynthetic bacteria species essential to the marine ecosystem. An estimated billion billion billion of the single-cell creatures live in the oceans, forming the base of the marine food chain and occupying a range of ecological niches based on temperature, light and chemical preferences, and interactions with other species. But the full extent and characteristics of diversity within this single species remains a puzzle.

To probe this question, scientists in MIT's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) recently performed a cell-by-cell genomic analysis on a wild population of Prochlorococcus living in a milliliterless than a quarter teaspoonof ocean water, and found hundreds of distinct genetic subpopulations.

Each subpopulation in those few drops of water is characterized by a set of core gene alleles linked to a few flexible genesa combination the MIT scientists call the "genomic backbone"that endows the subpopulation with a finely tuned suitability for a particular ecological niche. Diversity also exists within the backbone subpopulations; most individual cells in the samples they studied carried at least one set of flexible genes not found in any other cell in its subpopulation.

Sallie Chisholm, the Lee and Geraldine Martin Professor of Environmental Studies in CEE and in MIT's Department of Biology; former CEE postdoc Nadav Kashtan; and co-authors published a paper on this work in the April 25 issue of Science.

The researchers estimate that the subpopulations diverged at least a few million years ago. The backbone is an older, more slowly evolving component of the genome, while the flexible genes reside in areas of the genome where gene exchange is relatively frequent, facilitating more rapid evolution.

The study also revealed that the relative abundance of the backbone subpopulations changes with the seasons at the study site, near Bermuda, adding strength to the argument that each subpopulation is finely tuned for optimal growth under different conditions.

"The sheer enormity of diversity that must be in the octillion Prochlorococcus cells living in the seas is daunting to consider," Chisholm says. "It creates a robust and stable population in the face of environmental instability."

Ocean turbulence also plays a role in the evolution and diversity of Prochlorococcus: A fluid mechanics model predicts that in typical ocean flow, just-divided daughter cells drift rapidly, placing them centimeters apart from one another in minutes, tens of meters apart in an hour, and kilometers apart in a week's time.

"The interesting question is, 'Why does such a diverse set of subpopulations exist?'" Kashtan says. "The huge population size of Prochlorococcus suggests that this remarkable diversity and the way it is organized is not random, but is a masterpiece product of natural selection."

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Ocean microbes display remarkable genetic diversity

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

24-Apr-2014

Contact: Vicki Cohn vcohn@liebertpub.com 914-740-2100 x2156 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News

New Rochelle, NY, April 24, 2014D-ribose is a commercially important sugar used as a sweetener, a nutritional supplement, and as a starting compound for synthesizing riboflavin and several antiviral drugs. Genetic engineering of Escherichia coli to increase the bacteria's ability to produce D-ribose is a critical step toward achieving more efficient industrial-scale production of this valuable chemical, as described in an article in Industrial Biotechnology, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available on the Industrial Biotechnology website.

In "Engineering Escherichia coli for D-Ribose Production from Glucose-Xylose Mixtures." Pratish Gawand and Radhakrishnan Mahadevan, University of Toronto, Canada, describe the metabolic engineering strategy they used to increase the yield of D-ribose from the genetically modified E. coli, which were able to produce D-ribose from mixtures of glucose and xylose. The authors propose future research directions for additional metabolic engineering and bioprocess optimization.

"The research article by Gawand and Mahadevan represents one of many ways that molecular biology is being deployed to expand Industrial Biotechnology development," says Co-Editor-in-Chief Larry Walker, PhD, Professor, Biological & Environmental Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY.

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About the Journal

Industrial Biotechnology, led by Co-Editors-in-Chief Larry Walker, PhD, and Glenn Nedwin, PhD, MoT, CEO and President, Taxon Biosciences, Tiburon, CA, is an authoritative journal focused on biobased industrial and environmental products and processes, published bimonthly in print and online. The Journal reports on the science, business, and policy developments of the emerging global bioeconomy, including biobased production of energy and fuels, chemicals, materials, and consumer goods. The articles published include critically reviewed original research in all related sciences (biology, biochemistry, chemical and process engineering, agriculture), in addition to expert commentary on current policy, funding, markets, business, legal issues, and science trends. Industrial Biotechnology offers the premier forum bridging basic research and R&D with later-stage commercialization for sustainable biobased industrial and environmental applications.

About the Publisher

Excerpt from:
Engineered E. coli produces high levels of D-ribose as described in Industrial Biotechnology journal

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

23-Apr-2014

Contact: Vicki Cohn vcohn@liebertpub.com 914-740-2100 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News

New Rochelle, NY, April 23, 2014Men whose testosterone falls below normal levels are more likely to have erectile dysfunction and to be overweight and have heart disease and type 2 diabetes. A new simple screening questionnaire designed to identify testosterone-deficient men for further testing and possible treatment is described in an article in Journal of Men's Health, a peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the Journal of Men's Health website at http://www.liebertpub.com/jmh.

The article "Male Androgen Deficiency Syndrome (MADS) Screening Questionnaire: A Simplified Instrument to Identify Testosterone-Deficient Men" presents a variety of patient factors that are predictive of risk for testosterone deficiency and MADS. These include overweight status, race, exercise frequency, erectile dysfunction, and type 2 diabetes, according to study authors Nelson Stone, MD, The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (New York), Martin Miner, MD, Warren Alpert School of Medicine at Brown University (Providence, RI), Wendy Poage, MHA, Prostate Conditions Education Council (Centennial, CO), and Aditi Patel and E. David Crawford, MD, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center (Aurora, CO).

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About the Journal

Journal of Men's Health is the premier peer-reviewed journal published quarterly in print and online that covers all aspects of men's health across the lifespan. The Journal publishes cutting-edge advances in a wide range of diseases and conditions, including diagnostic procedures, therapeutic management strategies, and innovative clinical research in gender-based biology to ensure optimal patient care. The Journal addresses disparities in health and life expectancy between men and women; increased risk factors such as smoking, alcohol abuse, and obesity; higher prevalence of diseases such as heart disease and cancer; and health care in underserved and minority populations. Journal of Men's Health meets the critical imperative for improving the health of men around the globe and ensuring better patient outcomes. Tables of content and a sample issue can be viewed on the Journal of Men's Health website at http://www.liebertpub.com/jmh.

About the Societies

Journal of Men's Health is the official journal of the International Society of Men's Health (ISMH), American Society for Men's Health, Men's Health Society of India, and Foundation for Men's Health. The ISMH is an international, multidisciplinary, worldwide organization, dedicated to the rapidly growing field of gender-specific men's health.

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Screening instrument to identify testosterone deficiency

A CT scan showing a cochlear implant in the left ear of a guinea pig. Image: UNSW Australia Biological Resources Imaging Laboratory, NationalImaging Facility of Australia, and UNSW TranslationalNeuroscience Facility

Scientists have devised a strategy they hope will one day make bionic ears even sharper. The idea is to make neurons inside the ear sprout new branches and become more sensitive to signals from a cochlear implant.

The cochlear implant is arguably the most successful bionic device ever invented. More than 200,000 people with severe hearing loss have received one, allowing them to understand speech and hear things like barking dogs and fire alarms. But theres plenty of room for improvement.

Pitch perception is not so good, and that impacts music appreciation and hearing in a complex environment like a noisy room, said Gary Housley, a physiologist and neuroscientist at the University of New South Wales in Australia, and the senior author of a new study out today in Science Translational Medicine.

To appreciate what Housleys team did, you have to picture whats going on inside the inner ear. The bony, spiral cochlea is where sound waves get translated into the electrical language of neurons. Its essentially a coiled tube. The implant is thin like a wire, and it has an array of electrodes along its length. Surgeons thread it into the tube of the cochlea.A microphone worn on the ear converts sound into electrical signals and transmits them to the implant, thereby stimulating the auditory nerve directly and bypassing whatever part of the persons own hearing apparatus has broken down.

A cross section of the spiral tube of the cochlea shows the auditory nerve reaching up through the center. Image: Grays Anatomy, via WikiCommons

But a lot of information gets lost in the communication between the implant and the nerve.

Housley thinks one important reason is that in people with severe hearing loss, auditory nerve fibers degenerate and shrink into the bony core of the cochlea, farther away from the implant.

To try to overcome this communication breakdown, Housleys team borrowed some tricks from genetic engineering. We refer to it as closing the neural gap, he said.

Work by other scientists had suggested that growth factorschemicals that encourage neurons to grow new branchescouldimprove the performance of implants in lab animals. These studies used viruses to deliver genes encoding the growth factors, but Housleys team tried another strategy they think could be more precise.

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Genetic Tricks Could Make Bionic Ears Hear Better

Above: The genomes of these twin infant macaques were modified with multiple mutations.

The ability to create primates with intentional mutations could provide powerful new ways to study complex and genetically baffling brain disorders.

The use of a genome-tool to create two monkeys with specific genetic mutations.

The ability to modify targeted genes in primates is a valuable tool in the study of human diseases.

By Christina Larson

Until recently, Kunming, capital of Chinas southwestern Yunnan province, was known mostly for its palm trees, its blue skies, its laid-back vibe, and a steady stream of foreign backpackers bound for nearby mountains and scenic gorges. But Kunmings reputation as a provincial backwater is rapidly changing. On a plot of land on the outskirts of the citywilderness 10 years ago, and today home to a genomic research facilityscientists have performed a provocative experiment. They have created a pair of macaque monkeys with precise genetic mutations.

Last November, the female monkey twins, Mingming and Lingling, were born here on the sprawling research campus of Kunming Biomedical International and its affiliated Yunnan Key Laboratory of Primate Biomedical Research. The macaques had been conceived via in vitro fertilization. Then scientists used a new method of DNA engineering known as CRISPR to modify the fertilized eggs by editing three different genes, and they were implanted into a surrogate macaque mother. The twins healthy birth marked the first time that CRISPR has been used to make targeted genetic modifications in primatespotentially heralding a new era of biomedicine in which complex diseases can be modeled and studied in monkeys.

CRISPR, which was developed by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, Harvard, MIT, and elsewhere over the last several years, is already transforming how scientists think about genetic engineering, because it allows them to make changes to the genome precisely and relatively easily (see Genome Surgery, March/April). The goal of the experiment at Kunming is to confirm that the technology can create primates with multiple mutations, explains Weizhi Ji, one of the architects of the experiment.

Ji began his career at the government-affiliated Kunming Institute of Zoology in 1982, focusing on primate reproduction. China was a very poor country back then, he recalls. We did not have enough funding for research. We just did very simple work, such as studying how to improve primate nutrition. Chinas science ambitions have since changed dramatically. The campus in Kunming boasts extensive housing for monkeys: 75 covered homes, sheltering more than 4,000 primatesmany of them energetically swinging on hanging ladders and scampering up and down wire mesh walls. Sixty trained animal keepers in blue scrubs tend to them full time.

The lab where the experiment was performed includes microinjection systems, which are microscopes pointed at a petri dish and two precision needles, controlled by levers and dials. These are used both for injecting sperm into eggs and for the gene editing, which uses guide RNAs that direct a DNA-cutting enzyme to genes. When I visited, a young lab technician was intently focused on twisting dials to line up sperm with an egg. Injecting each sperm takes only a few seconds. About nine hours later, when an embryo is still in the one-cell stage, a technician will use the same machine to inject it with the CRISPR molecular components; again, the procedure takes just a few seconds.

Excerpt from:
Genome Editing

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

22-Apr-2014

Contact: Vicki Cohn vcohn@liebertpub.com 914-740-2100 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News

New Rochelle, NY, April 22, 2014Hemoglobin A1c is the standard measurement for assessing glycemic control over time in people with diabetes. Blood levels of A1c are typically measured every few months in a laboratory, but now researchers have developed a data-based model that accurately estimates A1c using self-monitored blood glucose (SMBG) readings, as described in Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics (DTT), a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the DTT website at http://www.liebertpub.com/dtt.

In "Accuracy and Robustness of Dynamical Tracking of Average Glycemia (A1c) to Provide Real-Time Estimation of Hemoglobin A1c Using Routine Self-Monitored Blood Glucose Data," authors Boris Kovatchev, PhD, Frank Flacke, PhD, Jochen Sieber, MD, and Marc Breton, PhD present the computer algorithm they developed based on a training data set drawn from 379 subjects and then evaluated for accuracy on an independent test data set. The authors propose that estimation of real-time A1c could increase individuals' motivation to improve diabetes control.

"Patients are used to an A1c result from their doctor visits, and this study highlights simple estimated A1c values from SMBG data," says Satish Garg, MD, Editor-in-Chief of Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics and Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics at the University of Colorado Denver. "This may become an important tool for improved patient self-management."

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About the Journal

Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics (DTT) is a monthly peer-reviewed journal that covers new technology and new products for the treatment, monitoring, diagnosis, and prevention of diabetes and its complications. Led by Editor-in-Chief Satish Garg, MD, Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics at the University of Colorado Denver, the Journal covers topics that include noninvasive glucose monitoring, implantable continuous glucose sensors, novel routes of insulin administration, genetic engineering, the artificial pancreas, measures of long-term control, computer applications for case management, telemedicine, the Internet, and new medications. Tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics (DTT) website at http://www.liebertpub.com/dtt. DTT is the official journal of the Advanced Technologies & Treatments for Diabetes (ATTD) Conference.

About ATTD

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Routine blood glucose measurements can accurately estimate hemoglobin A1c in diabetes

SAN DIEGO Karl Deisseroth is having a very early breakfast before the day gets going at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience. Thirty thousand people who study the brain are here at the Convention Center, a small citys worth of badge-wearing, networking, lecture-attending scientists.

For Deisseroth, though, this crowd is a bit like the gang at Cheers everybody knows his name. He is a Stanford psychiatrist and a neuroscientist, and one of the people most responsible for the development of optogenetics, a technique that allows researchers to turn brain cells on and off with a combination of genetic manipulation and pulses of light.

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Originally posted here:

On-off switch for neurons allows scientists a deeper look into the brain

By Laurel Maloy, contributing author, Food Online

Vermont House Bill H. 0112, legislature relating to the labeling of food produced with genetic engineering, is close to becoming law

Consumers across the nation, as well as 50 bill sponsors, are awaiting final passage of House Bill H. 0112. The bill passed the Vermont House last year, but has been waiting for the Vermont Senate to make changes. The bill is now on its way back to the House and, if approved, will head to the governors desk. Governor Peter Shumlin has indicated that he will most likely sign it. If all goes according to plan, the new law will take effect on Jul 1, 2016.

Vermont House Bill H. 0112:

Ronnie Cummins, National Director of the Organic Consumers Association said, Todays victory has been 20 years in the making! He elaborated by reminding everyone that since the early 1990s, when GMOs were first introduced, U.S. consumers have fought for GMO labeling.

Unlike neighbors Maine and Connecticuts bills, Vermonts has no contingency clause. Vermonts bill will not be contingent upon its neighbors passing similar legislation. However, this victory may be short lived. U.S. Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS) introduced a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives last week. If passed, the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act would not only prohibit mandatory GMO labeling, but would also forbid states from drafting their own statutes.

In recent years, several states have attempted to pass GMO labeling legislation but failed due to the interference of large, well-funded industry groups. In California and Washington State, the Coalition for Safe and Affordable Food reportedly spent some $60 million fighting GMO labeling initiatives. Its membership roster reads like the Whos Who of U.S. and global food processing. Its members include such industry power hitters as: Biotechnology Industry Organization, the American Soybean Association, the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, and the National Grain & Feed Association. All of its 35 listed members have an economic interest in defeating GMO labeling initiatives and have the money and influence to keep it from happening.

The question consumers must be asking themselves is, why? If GMOs are truly safe, why are these groups so determined to defeat legislation that simply identifies those products containing GMOs? Recently, some large-scale retailers have demonstrated their support for the consumer, and are encouraging others to follow suit. It seems that even the industry big-wigs cannot come to a consensus on the safety of genetically-modified food products.

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Vermont Will Be The First State To Require Mandatory GMO Labeling