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Category Archives: Transhuman News

Mutation explains why some men live to 100 – ISRAEL21c

Posted: July 25, 2017 at 11:46 am

Just as smaller animals of a given species generally live longer than their larger cousins, one might expect that taller humans are genetically programmed to sacrifice longevity for height.

But its not that simple.

A major multinational study of 841 men and women from across four populations found lower levels of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) in men living to age 100 and yet most of them were taller than men in the younger control group.

The apparent explanation for this head-scratcher is that some long-lived men and only men have a genetic mutation that makes their growth hormone receptors more sensitive to the effects of the hormone. The cells absorb less growth hormone, yet protein expression is increased by several times.

This mutation seems to be responsible for their ability to live about 10 years longer than the control group of 70-year-old men without the mutation, even though they have a lower amount of growth hormone and are about 3 centimeters (1.18 inches) taller.

The lead author of the study is Prof. Gil Atzmon of Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York and head of the Laboratory of Genetics and Epigenetics of Aging and Longevity at the University of Haifa. Since 2001, Atzmon has been studying the human genome and its impact on aging and longevity.

Longevity genes

The researchers working with Atzmon looked at four elderly populations: 567 Ashkenazi Jews in the Longevity Genes Project at Einstein, 152 from a study of Amish centenarians, and the rest from an American cardiovascular health study and a French longevity study.

In 2008, the Longevity Genes Project found a genetic mutation in the IGF-1 receptor of some women, though its not the same as the one affecting mens lifespan.

We knew in the past that genetic pathways associated with growth hormone were also associated with longevity and now we have found a specific mutation whose presence or absence is directly related to it, said Atzmon.

This study makes it an established fact that there is a relationship between the function of the growth hormone and longevity. Our current goal is to fully understand the mechanism of the mutation we found to express it, so that we can allow longevity while maintaining quality of life, he added.

The 16 researchers involved the study, published June 16 in Science Advances, are associated with institutions in Israel and France as well as the US states of New York, Maryland, California, Vermont, Massachusetts and Washington.

Clue to longer life

While more research is needed to understand why the receptor mutation affects longevity and why it happens only in men, the study suggests that making a slight change in this specific piece of DNA could possibly make people live longer.

Although the presence of the mutation almost certainly ensured longevity, Atzmon stressed that many other factors affect longevity and that many men without the mutation also live to 100 and older.

Atzmon is one of the principal researchers in the Longevity Genes Project at Einstein along with Israeli endocrinology specialist Dr. Nir Barzilai.

Their groundbreaking 10-year study of healthy Ashkenazi Jews between the ages of 95 and 112 and their children attempted to understand why humans dont all age at the same rate, and why only one in 10,000 individuals lives to 100.

The centenarians were found to have genetic protective factors (longevity genes) that overcame factors such as diet and lifestyle.

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Mutation explains why some men live to 100 - ISRAEL21c

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Jeff Broin receives George Washington Carver Award – Wallace’s Farmer

Posted: at 11:46 am

Jeff Broin, CEO of POET, the worlds leading producer of biofuels, received the George Washington Carver Award at a July 24 ceremony at the BIO World Congress in Montreal. The Carver Award recognizes significant contributions by individuals in the field of industrial biotechnology and its application in biological engineering, environmental science, biorefining and biobased products.

I am very humbled by this award. George Washington Carver was an historic leader in finding new potential in agricultural products to meet the worlds needs, Broin said. Thats what we strive to do each day at POET, whether its producing biofuel from starch and cellulose or finding new or better ways to produce co-products such as distillers grain, corn oil, fiber, liquefied CO2 and more. I believe agriculture is the key to solving many of our worlds challenges.

Related: POET DSM Opens First Commercial Cellulosic Ethanol Plant in the U.S.

Creating new markets for ag products

Carver was a true visionary," Broin said. "At POET, we follow that vision, developing additional products and bioprocesses to replace petroleum-based products. We believe the agricultural potential of the world is virtually untapped. The world is beginning to learn that we need to return to the sun, the soil and the seed.

Jeff Broin is one of the great innovators and entrepreneurs in the industrial biotechnology sector, said Brent Erickson, executive vice president of BIOs Industrial & Environmental Section. He ranks among the most influential leaders in agriculture as well. Biofuels have created new markets for agricultural products and rejuvenated rural America. Jeff Broin has positioned POET at the forefront of developing cellulosic ethanol and improving the economics of biofuel production.

As POET CEO, Broin grew the company from a 1-million-gallon-per-year facility in 1987 into the world's largest biofuels producer, with 1.8 billion gallons of annual fuel production and 10 billion pounds of high-protein animal feed, among other products.

Success in developing new technology

Broin says POET has always placed a high priority on research, from the laboratories at its headquarters in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to its pilot plant/research facility in Scotland, South Dakota, to its commercial-scale demonstration cellulosic biofuel plant in Emmetsburg, Iowa, as part of POET-DSM Advanced Biofuels. This focus has led to industry-leading technology such as BPX (POETs proprietary no-cook production process), total water recovery technology, unique corn oil and distillers grains products, cellulosic biofuel development and more.

The George Washington Carver Award is also sponsored by the Iowa Biotechnology Association. Joe Hrdlicka, executive director of the Iowa Biotechnology Association, said, Jeff Broin has created an environment at POET where new ideas thrive throughout the value chain of new economic opportunities for American agricultural producers and rural communities. His business model truly reflects the ideas and passion spawned by George Washington Carver a century ago.

Past Carver Award Recipients:

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Jeff Broin receives George Washington Carver Award - Wallace's Farmer

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The Internet of Living Things – Scientific American (blog)

Posted: at 11:46 am

10 A.M.It is hot and sultry in the slums of the Campina Barreto neighborhood on the north side of Recife, in Brazil, and a public health worker named Glaucia has just taken a blood sample from a young, pregnant patient. Glaucia feeds it into a portable sequencer the size of a USB stick, plugs the sequencer into her computer and waits for the results. The device identifies genetic markers of the Zika virus, but flags the fact that this is a mutated strain that could be resistant to existing vaccines. She reports the information to her colleague, Franco, at the nearest hospital and to public health authorities. They need to know that this could signal the start of an outbreak.

This scenario is imaginary, but researchers around the world now use pocket-size genomic sequencers to rapidly detect resistant pathogenic strains in hospitals, explore microbial diversity in Antarctic ice valleys, and diagnose infectious agents in food supply and aboard spaceships (the device works in microgravity). In 2015, for example, Johanna Rhodes from Imperial College London relied on portable sequencers to identify the genetic makeup of Candida auris, a multidrug-resistant fungal pathogen that had caused an outbreak in a London hospital. The same year, a research team from Birmingham University flew to Guinea and used the same technology to detect strains of Ebola in human blood. In a few months, they had sequenced 142 Ebola genomes on the spot, producing results less than 24 hours after receiving an Ebola-positive sample.

But what if sequencer-equipped researchers were able to transmit what theyre learning directly to others? Imagine students in universities becoming the first sequencing line of defense by detecting bacteria resistant to antibiotics and educating their neighbors about them. Imagine the same neighbors equipped with portable sequencers to identify microorganisms in soils capable of fighting resistant pathogens. These new bio-citizens would be socially responsible actors who use biology as the main language to understand themselves and the world around them, playing an increasing role in protecting global health and ecosystems.

This is the utopian version of what visionaries call the second genomic revolution, where sequencing our genomes and those of other species becomes a pervasive data market in which DNA is the primary currency. Yet we must remain lucid about who will primarily contribute and who will reap the rewards of streaming our DNA to the cloud. The way forward is to make sure that this trove of data does not benefit only those who already reign over our digital infrastructures but build counter powers, global commons where citizens can learn to turn their own data into innovations.

The new lab-in-your-hand technology is the product of Oxford Nanopore Technologies, a British company, whose ambition is to democratize genomic sequencing. Its sequencer, called MinION is as small as a USB-stick and easy to use for any apprentice scientist who knows how to prepare samples of blood, bodily fluids or water to be fed into the device. Such preparation is easily done by amateur biologists in DIY bio labs. Researchers and clinicians across the world have now adopted these portable sequencers, some to detect foodborne outbreaks in hospital, others to analyze the DNA of new species in the jungle. As early skepticism fades away, industry giants (Illumina and Roche) and newcomers (Genapsys) alike are showing interest in following Oxford Nanopores head start in portable sequencing.

If the ambition is to promote more distributed use of genomic sequencing, users also need a ready-made platform for interpreting genetic data. Oxford Nanopore has designed an intelligent cloud lab, Metrichor, to be used for genomics data storage in conjunction with smartphone apps that interpret the meaning of DNA sequences.

The convergence of automation technologies, intelligent algorithms and cloud computing is progressively making genomics available to less skilled actors. While this does not necessarily ensure democratization, it does enable us to imagine it. And so, what if it actually happens?

The world around us would be equipped with increasingly sophisticated bio-sensing capacity: the ability to identify the genetic composition of our bodily fluids, species surrounding us and microorganisms on our skins and in our backyards. Portable genomic sequencers in our pockets and cell phones would become part of our networks of sensorswhat we already call the Internet of things (IoT).

The attributes of a new bio-citizen then look like this: scientists, patients, congressmen, employeeseveryonewill be monitoring the DNA of their own bodies on shared cloud labs. Portable genomic sequencers, the size of a USB stick and connected to our smartphones, would also be integrated to our most strategic technical systems, including agro-food facilities, airports, battlefields and hospitals. These DNA-reading sensors would identify the nature, transmission paths and mutations of deadly viruses, engineered bacteria and even forgotten lethal pathogens that could one day be freed by the melting permafrost. In their home, individuals would have access to liquid biopsies blood tests that could track their most vital biomarkers and identify at an early stage the pieces of DNA shredded by a cancer tumor or a viral agent. If millions of citizens were streaming these data to the cloud, they would build the most powerful data set for preventive and precision medicine the world has ever known. The genetic identity of any living thing, then, acquires a new life on the Internet. We enter the age of the Internet of living things (IoLT).

The amount of genomics data to be stored, curated and protected in the digital bio-space will keep growing, requiring powerful and expensive computing platforms. It will create a complex architecture with new needs related to the governance of such an increasingly data-driven society.

Without access to the cloud, as provided by Google and Amazon, many biomedical projectsfrom J. Craig Venters Human Longevity to genome-wide analyses focused on autism and Alzheimerscould hardly have taken shape. Google and Amazon offer a deal too tempting to refuse: the most sophisticated cybersecurity strategies as well as analytical speed and power. These services seldom come free; universities, companiesin the future, hospitals, doctors and citizenswill likely keep paying for each genome to be stored, analyzed or transferred to a different repository.

Another hard truth is that most analyses of genomic data are comparative, meaning what can be learned about a new and potentially important genomic sequence is based on some existing point of reference. Yet, genomic sequences of interest risk being held by private databasesthink 23andMethat gain a competitive advantage by selling access to their genetic gold.

As a consequence of the growing number of players that may be involved in the process of generating, collecting and processing the data, determining the legal ownership of such data may prove increasingly complex. Like our personal information gathered by the IoT, our genetic secrets might end up trapped by 10,000-word-long consumer agreements.

The powerful and lucrative alliance between genetics and a data-driven society has already made tech giants in Silicon Valley and Seattle the new masters of our digital identities. If we consider the current privatization of consumers data and the erosion of digital privacy, it is not difficult to imagine, in the future, large corporations using their vast computing and machine-learning platforms to commodify continuous streams of genetic data about humans and ecosystems. Global conflicts over ownership would have to be balanced by open-source efforts to ensure that research, data and technological tools primarily serve the public good. The Global Alliance for Genomics and Health is an example, a thriving effort to share genomes across disciplinary and geographical boundaries.

For the Internet of living things to realize its promises, U.S. policymakers and regulators, in collaboration with technologists, should have an ambitious conversation about global data commons. How open and resilient should our big data architectures be, in particular those used for monitoring vital public health and environmental factors?

Experts will also need to consider the challenge and cost of ensuring accuracy when dealing with biological and microbial samples. One can imagine an IoLT node monitoring for Ebola virus and sending a positive signal, which, if not substantiated, could cause panic. The potential of monitoring for biological threats is enormous, but methods to validate data and address personal and collective liability issues are needed.

What is more troubling as we slowly enter the age of ubiquitous genomics sequencing is that we face an increasing socio-economic disparity between the technological elitesSilicon Valley or the new Shenzhen tech Eldoradoand the majority of citizens, the ones who provide data. While I have no hope that this gap will soon be closed, the next decade will first tell us if the new bio-citizen is just in our imagination.

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The Internet of Living Things - Scientific American (blog)

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Stanford announces new Center for Definitive and Curative Medicine – Stanford Medical Center Report

Posted: at 11:45 am

It is a privilege to lead the center and to leverage my previous experience to build Stanfords preeminence in stem cell and gene therapies, said Roncarolo, who is also chief of pediatric stem cell transplantation and regenerative medicine, co-director of the Bass Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Diseases and co-director of the Stanford Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. Stanford Medicines unique environment brings together scientific discovery, translational medicine and clinical treatment. We will accelerate Stanfords fundamental discoveries toward novel stem cell and gene therapies to transform the field and to bring cures to hundreds of diseases affecting millions of children worldwide.

The center consists of several innovative pieces designed to allow the rapid development of early scientific discoveries into the clinic that in the past have languished. This includes an interdisciplinary team of basic and clinical scientists to shepherd nascent therapies developed at Stanford. The team will be headed by associate directors Matthew Porteus, PhD, associate professor of pediatrics, and Anthony Oro, MD, the Eugene and Gloria Bauer Professor and professor of dermatology.

To help with clinical development, the center boasts a dedicated stem cell clinical trial office with Sandeep Soni, MD, clinical associate professor of pediatrics, as medical director. In addition, the center has dedicated clinical trial hospital beds in the Bass Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Diseases located on the top floor of the soon-to-open LucilePackardChildrensHospital. From work performed by scientists over the past decade, the center already has a backlog of nearly two dozen early stage therapies whose development the center will accelerate.

The center will provide novel therapies that can prevent irreversible damage in children, and allow them to live normal, healthy lives, said Mary Leonard, MD, professor and chair of pediatrics and physician-in-chief at Stanford Childrens Health. The stem cell and gene therapy efforts within the center are aligned with the strategic vision of the Department of Pediatrics and Stanfords precision health vision, where we go beyond simply providing treatment for children to instead cure them definitively for their entire lives.

One of the unique features of the center is its close association with the recently opened $35 million Stanford Laboratory for Cell and Gene Medicine, a 23,000-square-foot manufacturing facility located on California Avenue in Palo Alto. One of the first of its kind in the world, the laboratory has the ability to produce newly developed cell and gene therapy therapies according to the Good Manufacturing Practice standards as required for patient treatment.

Headed by executive director David DiGiusto, PhD, the lab can produce diverse cellular products for patient use, such as genetically corrected bone marrow cells for sickle cell anemia, genetically-engineered skin grafts for children with the genetic disease epidermolysis bullosa or genetically-engineered lymphocytes to fight rejection and leukemia.

We are fortunate that Stanford researchers have created such a strong portfolio of innovative candidate therapeutics to develop, said DiGusto. The capabilities of the laboratory will bridge the gap between research and clinical investigation so that the curative potential of these exciting cell and gene therapies can be realized.

For more information about the center, or for information about trials associated with the center, please see https://med.stanford.edu/ptrm/faculty.html, or contact Jennifer Howard at jmhoward@stanford.edu.

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Stanford announces new Center for Definitive and Curative Medicine - Stanford Medical Center Report

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Regenerative medicine startup Rodeo Therapeutics raises $5.9M for drugs to regenerate tissue – GeekWire

Posted: at 11:45 am

Dr. Sanford Markowitz, founder of Rodeo Therapeutics. (Case Western Reserve University Photo)

If you could write a medical wish-list of futuristic technologies, regenerating tissue would be pretty high up there. It could do things like treat a variety of inflammatory conditions and even help cancer patients regrow healthy cells.

A new Seattle-based biotech startup, Rodeo Therapeutics, is hoping its technology can make tissue regeneration a reality, and it has just raised a $5.9 million Series A round from Seattle-based biotech fund Accelerator Corporationto make it happen.

The general idea is simple: Rodeo is hoping to use small-molecule therapies a category most drugs fall into that stimulate the bodys natural regeneration process, like when a skinned knee heals.

Its first focus is to develop a treatmentfor inflammatory bowel disease and one that can help cancer patients cells grow quickly following stem cell transplants. But those goals are just the beginning.

The ability to stimulate the bodys natural processes for tissue regeneration and repair has broad therapeutic potential in disease settings such as ulcerative colitis and in hemopoietic recovery following bone marrow transplantation. Rodeo Therapeutics is focused on developing small-molecule therapies that stimulate these processes and enable new approaches to address serious medical conditions that today have a substantial unmet medical need, said Rodeo Therapeutics founder and cancer researcher Dr.Sanford Markowitz.

The company is currently working on drugs that inhibit an enzyme called 15-PGDH, which has been shown to speed up regenerative processes.

The startup was founded by Markowitz and Dr. Stanton Gerson, researchers at Case Western University, along with Dr.Joseph Ready, a researcher at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.

Its technology is based on their work. Markowitz is an expert in gastrointestinal cancers, where inflammation can cause serious problems; Dr. Gerson specializes in stem cell and genetic research along with gene therapies and cancer drug development; and Dr. Ready works in regenerative medicine and cancer, specifically synthetic and medicinal chemistry.

The startups corporate office is currently in Accelerator Corporations facilities in Seattle, with its founders in Dallas and Cleveland. Rodeos early operations will be overseen by Accelerator, and the funds CEO Thong Le is currently servingas Rodeos CEO.

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Regenerative medicine startup Rodeo Therapeutics raises $5.9M for drugs to regenerate tissue - GeekWire

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Stealth BioTherapeutics Initiates Phase 2/3 Study of Elamipretide in Patients With Barth Syndrome – Markets Insider

Posted: at 11:45 am

BOSTON, July 24, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --Stealth BioTherapeutics (Stealth), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing therapeutics to treat mitochondrial dysfunction, today announced the initiation of TAZPOWER, a Phase 2/3 study evaluating elamipretide in patients with Barth syndrome. Barth syndrome is a rare genetic mitochondrial disease, caused by mutations in the TAZ gene, and characterized by cardiac abnormalities, skeletal muscle weakness, recurrent infections and delayed growth.

"The severe problems experienced by patients with Barth syndrome are caused by misshapen and dysfunctional mitochondria, which reduce the energy production in the affected tissues. The resulting muscle weakness can lead to severe fatigue, heart failure and death," said Stealth Chief Medical Officer Doug Weaver. "In this study, we hope to show that elamipretide may have clinical benefit by improving function in these affected mitochondria."

TAZPOWER is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study that will evaluate the effects of daily elamipretide treatment in a minimum of 12 patients with genetically confirmed Barth syndrome. Patients will be randomized to one of two sequence groups: 12 weeks of single daily subcutaneous injections of elamipretide in Treatment Period 1, followed by 12 weeks of treatment with placebo in Treatment Period 2, with a four-week wash-out period between periods, or vice versa. The primary endpoint is change in distance walked during the six-minute walk test. Secondary endpoints include functional assessments, patient-reported outcomes and safety.

"Our understanding of Barth syndrome and how it manifests has evolved significantly, but current treatment efforts are still limited to the management of symptoms," said Hilary Vernon, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of Pediatrics at McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine at Johns Hopkins University and the primary investigator for the study. "The initiation of TAZPOWER represents an important milestone in the potential development of a disease-specific treatment option."

TAZPOWER builds upon Stealth BioTherapeutics's existing rare disease and cardiorenal programs, including three ongoing Phase 2 studies in adults with heart failure (IDDEA-HF, PROGRESS-HF, RESTORE-HF).

"This study underscores our commitment to develop elamipretide for the treatment of rare genetic mitochondrial diseases," said Stealth Chief Executive Officer Reenie McCarthy. "The cardiovascular and skeletal muscle symptoms affecting this population share a common thread with symptoms experienced in diseases commonly associated with aging, such as heart failure, in which mitochondrial dysfunction contributes to the clinical pathology."

For additional information on the TAZPOWER study or elamipretide, please refer to Stealth's website.

About Barth Syndrome Barth syndrome is a rare genetic condition characterized by muscle weakness, cardiac abnormalities, recurrent infections and delayed growth. Barth syndrome occurs almost exclusively in males and is estimated to affect one in 200,000 to 400,000 individuals worldwide at birth. There are currently no FDA-approved therapies for the disease.

About Stealth BioTherapeutics We are a privately held clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development of therapeutics for diseases involving mitochondrial dysfunction. We believe there is a strong rationale for our lead product candidate,elamipretide, in indications in these diseases based on encouraging preclinical and early clinical data. We are investigating elamipretide in three primary mitochondrial diseases primary mitochondrial myopathy (PMM), Barth syndrome and Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) as well as in heart failure, Fuchs' corneal dystrophy and dry age-related macular degeneration.We received Fast Track designation for elamipretide for the treatment of PMM from the FDA in December 2015. We are developing our second product candidate, SBT-20, for central nervous system disorders.Our mission is to be the leader in mitochondrial medicine. To learn more information about us and our pipeline, visitwww.stealthbt.com.

Contacts Media Relations dna Communications Kate Contreras, 617-520-7088 rel="nofollow">Media@StealthBT.com

Investor Relations Stern IR Beth DelGiacco, 212-362-1200 rel="nofollow">IR@StealthBT.com

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Stealth BioTherapeutics Initiates Phase 2/3 Study of Elamipretide in Patients With Barth Syndrome - Markets Insider

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Thousands of genes exchanged within microbial communities living on cheese – Phys.Org

Posted: at 11:45 am

July 25, 2017 Emmental cheese. Credit: Wikipedia

Researchers at the University of California San Diego have found that microbial species living on cheese have transferred thousands of genes between each other. They also identified regional hotspots where such exchanges take place, including several genomic "islands" that host exchanges across several species of bacteria.

Postdoctoral fellow Kevin Bonham and assistant professor Rachel Dutton of UC San Diego's Division of Biological Sciences, along with Benjamin Wolfe, a former postdoctoral fellow in the Dutton lab now at Tufts University, use the rinds of artisanal cheese varieties as simple model systems to study microbiomes, or communities of microorganisms. Microbiomes are known to play a key function in many areas, including human health, protecting us from some diseases and amplifying others.

Cheese rinds offer a novel way to study how genes in microbial communities are passed from one organism to another in a process known as "horizontal gene transfer." Details of the study were published July 25th in the journal eLife.

"We examined the genomes of over 150 bacteria from cheese, and found more than 4,000 genes that were shared between bacterial species, including several large genomic islands that were shared by many species," said Dutton, an assistant professor in the Molecular Biology Section and part of UC San Diego's Center for Microbiome Innovation, which leverages the university's strengths in clinical medicine, bioengineering, computer science, the biological and physical sciences, data sciences and other areas to coordinate and accelerate microbiome research. "Horizontal gene transfer has been studied for decades, but examining it in a more natural context is challenging because it requires studying an entire community of microbes, rather than studying them in isolation."

Dutton said a large percentage of transferred genes involved functions dealing with acquiring nutrients, especially iron, which is known to be in short supply on the surface of cheese. Competition for iron is an important theme for microbes in many environments, including during infections of humans by pathogenic microbes.

"Horizontal gene transfer could influence competition for iron and possibly enable 'cheating' within a mixed community," said Dutton.

Based on the new results, Dutton and her colleagues are now probing the intricate dynamics of horizontal gene transfer and how the process unfolds on cheese.

"Since horizontal gene transfer is prevalent in many microbial communities, including those important for human health, we're now trying to study how this process impacts microbial life and death in a community," said Dutton.

Explore further: Researchers study cheese to unlock secrets of how microbial communities form

More information: Kevin S Bonham et al, Extensive horizontal gene transfer in cheese-associated bacteria, eLife (2017). DOI: 10.7554/eLife.22144

Go ahead and call Rachel Dutton's research cheesy if you must. As far as she's concerned, it's anything but an insult. A Bauer Fellow at the Faculty of Arts and Sciences' Center for Systems Biology, Dutton and her lab study ...

While many microbiologists build entire research careers around studies of a single microorganism, Rachel Dutton has taken her career in the other directionexamining collections of microbes, but with an unusual twist. ...

Certain antibiotic resistance genes are easily transferred from one bacterial species to another, and can move between farm animals and the human gut. A team led by Chinese researchers has characterized this "mobile resistome," ...

Gene transfers are particularly common in the antibiotic-resistance genes of Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria.

People sure love their cheeses, but scientists have a lot to learn about the fungi responsible for a blue cheese like Roquefort or a soft Camembert. Now researchers reporting in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on September ...

(PhysOrg.com) -- In a new study, scientists at the University of Maryland and the Institut Pasteur show that bacteria evolve new abilities, such as antibiotic resistance, predominantly by acquiring genes from other bacteria.

Researchers from Monash University's Biomedicine Discovery Institute have helped solve the mystery of how emus became flightless, identifying a gene involved in the development and evolution of bird wings.

A team of scientists from the Kunming Institute of Botany in China and the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena has discovered that parasitic plants of the genus Cuscuta (dodder) not only deplete nutrients from ...

Our bodies are composed of trillions of cells, each with its own job. Cells in our stomach help digest our food, while cells in our eyes detect light, and our immune cells kill off bugs. To be able to perform these specific ...

Humpback whales learn songs in segments like the verses of a human song and can remix them, a new study involving University of Queensland research has found.

New research from Australia and Sweden has shown how a dragonfly's brain anticipates the movement of its prey, enabling it to hunt successfully. This knowledge could lead to innovations in fields such as robot vision.

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Challenging Violent SpeechUnless It’s About Israel – Commentary Magazine

Posted: at 11:44 am

Given their particular sensitivity to the triumphant mightiness of the pen, its profoundly disturbing to note where lines are drawn and exceptions made.

Linda Sarsour, the lefts darling of the day, posted a widely-shared picture of Palestinians praying in the streets of Jerusalem, an act protesting the placement of metal detectors outside the Al Aqsa Mosque. This is resilience. This is perseverance. This is faith. This is commitment. This is inspiration. This is Palestine, Sarsour wrote. Denied access to pray at Al Aqsa Mosque in their own homeland, Palestinians pray on the streets in an act of non-violent resistance. They are met with tear gas and rubber bullets.

Absent from her platitudinous prevarication was any mention of the inarguably violent act that led Israel to construct the metal detectors in the first place, the recent killing of two Israeli police officers at the Temple Mount. Also absent: any reference to the three Israelis who were brutally murdered in the settlement of Halamish on Friday night. It was a far cry from nonviolent resistance when 19-year-old Omar al-Abed entered a home, saw a family finishing a Shabbat dinner, and began indiscriminately stabbing his victims.

Sarsours rhetoric is dangerous precisely because she understands her audience and how to appeal to their emotions. She peppers her statements with a few felicitous bromides like non-violent resistance and hopes no one notices the inconsistency of her arguments. Others on the left are slightly more honest about their intentions.

Writing in Al Jazeera, Stanley Cohen called on Israel to accept that as an occupied people, Palestinians have a right to resistin every way possible. He begins by telling his readers: long ago, it was settled that resistance and even armed struggle against a colonial occupation force is not just recognized under international law but specifically endorsed. His entire article is predicated on a false premise in that it demands the characterization of Israel as a colonial occupation force a characterization that is categorically incoherent.

Cohen cites a 1982 UN Resolution which reaffirms the legitimacy of the struggle of peoples for independence, territorial integrity, national unity and liberation from colonial and foreign domination and foreign occupation by all available means, including armed struggle. He does not mention which countries voted for and against this resolution.

Among the countries that voted for it: Yemen, Sudan, Somalia, Pakistan, Rwanda, Qatar, Niger, Kuwait, Bahrain, Iran, Iraq.

Among the countries who voted against it: Canada, Denmark, France, Italy, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States.

On college campuses, the call for armed struggle has become the Cri de Coeur of leftist students who are otherwise hypersensitive to the impact that intangible words can have on corporeal beings. On Columbias campus, students who form the backbone of the BDS movement have successfully blurred the line between incitement and impassionedalbeit severely misguidedopinion. In 2016, the Columbia/ Barnard Socialists concluded one social media post by declaring: long live the intifada. As recently as Sundayafter the Halamish attack the Students for Justice in Palestine shared the Al Jazeera article calling for armed resistance. Where are the outraged professors, administrators, and students concerned for the safety of the student body? Where are the charges of bigotry and racism, the calls to silence this speech, to stop this violence?

Nowhere does the idea that speech can constitute violence find more support than on elite liberal arts colleges. But regardless of whether they have intellectual or moral merit on their own, calls for safe spaces, trigger warnings, and micro-aggression-free environments that come from groups or individuals who not only condone, but use their words to quite literally call for violence, must be ignored, and the hypocrisy highlighted.

From the safe confines of an ivy-covered campusor from the relative safety of this country, for that matterits easy to preach justice and retribution, to portray armed struggle as the necessary means that will find justification through a righteous end. But especially those who are sensitive to the power of language should understand: euphemistic terminology does nothing to mitigate the violent nature inherent in this rhetoric. There must be no confusion. The lefts glorification of armed struggle is nothing short of approval for those Palestinians who target and kill innocent men, women, and children. Those who proclaim to speak for social justice have been damningly silent.

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Biblical lessons in history – Temple Daily Telegram

Posted: at 11:44 am

I have read a few published letters and books criticizing Christian beliefs and practices. Most people know the greatest history book of all is the Bible. I used to use it to teach my military history classes as a command sergeant major in the U.S. Air Force. It records many other ancient historical events, such as the fall of many city, states and countries.

In elementary school in the 40s and 50s, our teachers used the Bible to teach us how to read and comprehend. Our wonderful country was primarily a Judeo/Christian nation. That has changed. We have, as a nation, drifted far from those fundamental beliefs this country was founded on. Christians and Jews are being called politically incorrect and being denied the right to pray in public. A former president even announced to the world that the United States of America is not a Christian nation! I have been made fun of because I said grace before a meal.

I would recommend to those who oppose Christian beliefs to refer to that history book call the Bible and find out what ever happened to all those countries that did not heed or replaced Biblical teachings and prophesies with their own. I see the Biblical prophesies coming back again in our country as we continue a downhill slide to disaster. Our leaders no longer represent those who elected them. When our judicial system supports and defend unnatural acts and the murder of the unborn, we are in dire straits as a nation.

I urge everyone who reads this to refute it by reading what has happened to those countries that have refused to live by those Biblical rules.

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Biblical lessons in history - Temple Daily Telegram

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For the Love of Welsh Rarebit – Foreign Policy (blog)

Posted: at 11:44 am

My British lunchmates on a recent Sunday in Edinburgh, Scotland, were exceedingly polite when my order arrived. Amid their tableau of salads and artfully filleted fish, my plate held Welsh rarebit, the venerable dish that assembles melted cheese, ale, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce atop a slice of bread. I sensed that my companions eyes were averted from my selection. Then, someone decided to be more direct and asked, Do you like British food?

I always answer this question with an emphatic Yes! While this sometimes incites gobsmacked silence, when I interviewed Anthony Bourdain a few years back, he sanctioned my unfashionable palate. To eat a nicely aged grouse with bread sauce followed by a nice Stilton theres nothing better than that, he said. Yet even his approval didnt banish a twinge of guilt that I associate with my adoration of stodgy Anglo fare. My ambivalence is shared with others whose nostalgia for a bygone cuisine, architecture, or literature was shaped by imperialism. I grew up in Singapore, which was established as aBritish trading foothold in 1819 and, except for its occupation by the Japanese empire from 1942 to 1945, remained a British colony until shortly before gaining independence in 1965.

My nostalgia isnt just outdated it can sometimes come across as politically incorrect. But Im not alone in cherishing certain cultural holdovers of colonialism. Today, some vestiges of British rule are among Singapores most lovingly preserved landmarks from lavish Victorian hotels to 19th-century government buildings that are now national treasures. And, though its true that Singaporeans prize their indigenous cuisine blending Indian, Chinese, and Malay flavors, many feel historic kinship with bangers and mash and scones with clotted cream, which were as much a part of my gastronomic education as fish-head curry and chili crab.

Many Singaporeans tend to think back with warmth on the countrys relatively benign subjugation. Landmarks throughout the city are named for Sir Stamford Raffles, who founded Singapore as a British colony. School history books essentially laud him, along with the good ol East India Co., for transforming the island nation from a speck of a trading post along the Malay Archipelago to a prosperous port city that is one of the most expensive stretches of real estate on Earth. In Singapore, some of the best secondary schools are named Raffles. The court system is based on British law, and the cricket club plays regularly on the Padang, an expansive green in the heart of downtown. On Saturdays, pubs fill up with the English Premier League faithful. Singlish, the local patois, brims with Britishisms. One of the most common terms to talk cock, which can refer to either shooting the breeze or bullshitting is derived from the British phrase cock and bull story.

Even at an intimate level, outmoded influences and relationships linger. In researching my recent novel, Sarong Party Girls, I investigated the term SPGs, said to have been coined when British colonial armed forces would invite local women, often clad in sarongs, to their parties. These days, it has taken on a derogatory meaning as a reference to Singaporean women who seek out expat white (often British) men, whom they view as being of a higher status than locals. Jane Austens world is, in some ways, alive and well in the nightclubs of Singapore.

In countries with bloodier colonial histories than Singapores, discourse about the structural legacies of imperialism has justifiably gained traction. An Indian MP has called for the dissolution of Indias Westminster parliamentary system, for example. And, in Western democracies, we are compelled to interrogate ever more closely what we eat, wear, and dance to. Pop stars Katy Perry and Gwen Stefani have been criticized for lifting from Japanese civilization the former for a geisha-inspired performance in 2013 and the latter for her Harajuku Girls phase in 2004. This year, nonwhite women on a California college campus faced a backlash when they demanded that white girls refrain from wearing the hoop earrings said to be part of a non-Anglo aesthetic. And on a nationalistic note, I still bristle whenever I spot Singapore noodles on any U.S. (or Scottish) menu. This spicy noodle dish is a pure invention of the West it simply does not exist in my homeland.

In light of such tensions, a longing for colonial relics can feel indefensible, or at least subversive. And in these hyperattuned times, we are forced to ask whether our yearning should be indulged and divulged in public.

But my nostalgia isnt some form of cultural appropriation, an attachment to products, TV shows, and cuisines that are both tainted and not my own. Aspects of British culture are, in fact, part of my personal and national history. And perhaps this feeling is more akin to the nostalgia in China for 1960s Albanian films or propaganda collectibles. This dates back to an alliance between the two countries that thrived during Chinas Cultural Revolution, resulting in transcultural exchanges through film.

At a dinner I attended in Lasswade, Scotland, an Indian-American offered to entertain with a song. This man, who grew up in India, delivered, by heart, a stirring rendition of Scotland the Brave. When the applause subsided, I asked, Where did you learn that? His answer: Madras. Where else? He then explained the influence the Scots had in his native Madras during colonial times and the cultural breadcrumbs that lingered.

When I asked an English friend what he thought of my nostalgia for British food, he shrugged. All nostalgia is for something bygone. And, on a recent Saturday, I tested his theory. I picked up some Scotch eggs Id been eyeing at I.J. Mellis, my favorite cheese monger in Edinburgh: a traditional version and two unconventional variations, one vegetarian and one featuring chorizo. I invited a Scottish and an English friend to taste them.

After one bite of the spicy vegetarian version, the Scot ran to the sink to wash out her mouth. Oh, thats vile, she said. Both friends agreed: The boring old traditional Scotch egg tasted the best. The reason? Its the way to make a Scotch egg its just the way to make it.

Perhaps sometimes we just want what we want, whether its steak and kidney pie or an old Scottish anthem. Everyone has an individual history for which they cannot be entirely answerable. And no one should expect otherwise.

This article originally appeared in the July/August 2017 issue of FP magazine.

Illustration by Matthew Hollister

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For the Love of Welsh Rarebit - Foreign Policy (blog)

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