A Crafty Disguise February 6, 2008
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Animals, Evolution, Insects, Tough Stuff.Tags: birds, fruit, nematode, parasite
3 comments
A very tricky parasite has recently been discovered. What makes it so sneaky? After infecting a certain species of ant known as Cephalotes atratus, the parasitic nematode triggers changes in the ant’s abdomen, which then becomes red and swells. This bulging, red appearance resembles a berry. Birds who feed on this type of fruit mistake the ant for a berry, swoop in and gulp! The bird swallows the ant, which allows the parasite to now infect the bird. Once birds are infected, the parasite can spread through the birds’ feces. In a bizarre circle of events, the ants round off the infectious cycle by gathering up the birds’ droppings so that they – along with their young – can feed off the feces. Smart parasite! It manages to sustain itself through the host ant so it can infect the unsuspecting birds – who think they’re about to eat a juicy, luscious berry!
Credit: Steve Yanoviak of the University of Arkansas. Check out the normal worker ant in the top picture and then compare it to the picture below it, which shows an ant infected with a parasitic nematode. That is one seriously red abdomen! It will be the doom of the ant when a bird mistakes it for a yummy, red berry.
Welcome To The Amazon
This peculiar cycle was observed in the tropical forests in the Amazon and Central America. Robert Dudley of the University of California – Berkeley described his surprise at finding such an intelligent series of events:
It’s just crazy that something as dumb as a nematode can manipulate its host’s exterior morphology and behavior in ways sufficient to convince a clever bird to facilitate transmission of the nematode.
The discovery itself was a chance one as Dudley, Yanoviak and Michael Caspari of the University of Oklahoma were observing a gliding species of ant. They noticed that some of the colony members had bright, red abdomens. Normally, birds don’t even eat ants – partly because of their yucky chemical taste. Yanoviak had some cool things to say about this fascinating discovery:
It’s phenomenal that these nematodes actually turn the ants bright red and that they look so much like the fruits in the forest canopy.
The full article describing the fruit mimicry will be published later this year in the journal American Naturalist. It might be worth a wee read to get the entire scoop on this amazing discovery. Also, research like this doesn’t go without funding – it was partially supported by the National Geographic Society, Amazon Conservation Association and the BBC Natural History Unit.
Evolution
I’m absolutely amazed at the findings. It’s incredible that something as seemingly simple as a nematode can manipulate the ants in such a successful way. It just goes to show that whether a creature is simple or complex, evolution can be one smart cookie!
del.icio.us 
digg 
reddit
Imagination Requires Memory January 9, 2008
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Human Body, Psychology and Behavior, Tough Stuff.Tags: episodic, imagination, memory
1 comment so far
As kids and teens, we imagine all sorts of stuff – what we want to be when we grow up or maybe even becoming famous. We hear about kids having vivid imaginations and big dreams for the future. Older adults, on the other hand, can struggle to remember past events and imagine new ones. We obviously know that adults have imaginations too but what makes it different and not always so intense?
A new study performed at Harvard University has shown that the ability of adults to create imaginary scenarios is linked to their ability to recall detailed memories. The full study results can be viewed in the Psychological Science journal.
Episodic Memory
If you didn’t already know, we have different types of memory. One type is called episodic memory. This kind of memory refers to personal memories of past experiences. It’s what lets you go backwards and forwards in the recollection of an event in time. Basically, episodic memories are connected to a specific time and place. If I asked what you had for dinner last night, you would be using episodic memory to answer. Think of episodic memory as being endless snapshots of different moments in your life.
Getting Back To Imagination
So, how does episodic memory relate to imagination? Simple. In order to create and imagine future events, a person needs to remember a previous event. Then, they need to take out bits and pieces from the specific details of the event before they can piece it all back together to form a new, imagined event. There’s even a name for this process – it’s called constructive episodic simulation.
Testing It Out
Psychologists from the university asked young and older participants to respond to various randomly chosen cue words with past and future scenarios. Researchers Donna Rose Addis, Alana Wong and Daniel Schacter then looked at the results, which showed that older adults had a significant reduction in their use of episodic memory to describe past memories and imagined future events. It’s interesting to think about memory being so important in the process of imagination. It just goes to show that all the stuff you do plays a special part in allowing you to imagine new and exciting things, which then creates even more episodic memories.
As for me, I don’t qualify as an older person just yet, I hope. So, I will use my episodic memory to the best of its ability as I imagine what it would be like to finish all of my work this week and take a very long vacation around Europe!
del.icio.us digg reddit
A Different Kind Of Vision January 1, 2008
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Human Body, Tough Stuff.Tags: blind, eyes, retinal ganglion cells, vision
add a comment
When most of us think of the term ‘blind,’ we imagine a total loss of sight. Not quite. At least, not in the traditional way we have viewed blindness. A new study led by Russell Foster at the University of Oxford and Steven Lockley of the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston has found that cells at the back of the eyes in blind people can still gauge light levels. These cells then use this information to set the body’s internal clock to daytime or nighttime. The full experiment results can be seen in the journal Current Biology.
Special Cells
A blind person doesn’t have the rods and cones necessary for normal vision. In a healthy, normal eye, rods and cones serve to catch and focus light, thereby creating the crisp images you are able to see each day. Special cells called retinal ganglion cells – located at the back of the eye – help the brain to differentiate between night and day. How do they accomplish this important task? Well, to start, they operate quite differently from rods and cones. Instead of focusing light as rods and cones do, retinal ganglion cells assess the total light available and then transmit this information to the brain. Approximately 3 percent of retinal ganglion cells react to light and release a chemical known as melanopsin. It’s a weird-sounding word but it’s an important pigment that senses light.
Getting Down To Business
So, how did Foster and Lockley test out their ideas about blindness and retinal ganglion cells? To investigate how these special cells influence the body’s ability to register daytime and nighttime, they performed tests on two blind individuals. First, they shone light for 6.5 hours into the eyes of a man who was blind. Then, after using blue light at nighttime, they managed to delay his body clock regulation by 1.2 hours. The result showed that the man’s retinal ganglion cells were able to register the light. But wait, there’s more! They found that the man’s levels of a sleep hormone called melatonin had fallen by 60 percent, which further shows that the man’s body clock was basically tricked into thinking it’s daytime. Foster and Lockley also examined a blind woman and then performed the same tests, which confirmed their findings.
Figuring It All Out
A really cool aspect of this research is that it helps to explain an interesting phenomenon that has puzzled researchers and health professionals. Blind people who have had their eyes removed for various reasons tend to experience really poor sleep quality and patterns. This contrasts with blind people who still have their eyes and don’t tend to suffer from the same sleeping problems.
You can consider yourself fortunate to have the vision that allows you to appreciate the beauty of sunrises and sunsets. At the same time, don’t forget that the light our sun brings plays an important role in regulating not only your own body’s internal clock, but the internal clock of a blind person as well.
del.icio.us digg reddit
Monthly Period Woes Might Have A Bonus November 19, 2007
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Human Body, Stem Cells, Tough Stuff.Tags: endometrium, menstruation, period
5 comments
Some of my readers may not yet be menstruating while others have experienced their monthly period for years now (boys, you’re obviously excluded!). For a minority of girls, it’s a dreaded, monthly process of cramps but for most women, it’s accepted as just a necessary occurrence that allows us to experience pregnancy. It’s also a normal and natural part of growing up. But wait, menstrual blood might just have another purpose now!
Ever wondered what your endometrium looks like under a microscope? Well, wonder no more and have a look at the picture above!
Stem Cells
My regular readers already know that stem cells are one of my favorite topics but let me tell you – I didn’t quite expect to learn what I did when I read one of the most recent studies on stem cells. It has been suggested that menstrual blood might be a viable source of stem cells. If you want to refresh your memory on stem cells, then check out my stem cells primers: What Are Stem Cells? and Where Do They Come From?
Credit: U.S. National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) Program.
Endometrial Stem Cells
Two different research groups have found endometrial stem cells in menstrual blood. If you’ve forgotten, the endometrium lines the uterus. Each month, it is shed during menstruation and then prepares for a fertilized egg by growing into a 5 mm thick lining over the course of approximately one week. The lining itself has literally billions of cells, which researchers have been keen to use as a potential source of stem cells. An investigative lady named Caroline Gargett of Monash University in Victoria, Australia originally identified endometrial stem cells in the uterine lining. Unfortunately, actually removing the cells is a tricky process and also very invasive! Finding endometrial stem cells in menstrual blood, however, makes this process a whole lot easier!
First Things First
So how do the researchers actually know that the cells they have found truly are stem cells? If you think back, you will remember from previous posts that I talked about the special properties of stem cells. The cells identified by the researchers have these special properties, which means they can proliferate and differentiate. Struggling to recall what those two words mean? It means they can make copies of themselves and they can also become specialized cells.
Two Studies Are Better Than One
Generally speaking, the more studies done on the same thing that show the same results, the better! There is so much human error that can happen in a scientific study, so it makes the results more believable when different research groups obtain the same, or similar findings.
Julie Allickson, a scientist at Cryo-Cell International in Florida, identified endometrial stem cells in menstrual blood but her work still has yet to be published, which means it hasn’t stood up to the peer review process. According to Allickson, the cells she identified showed the characteristic properties of stem cells.
In another study, Xiaolong Meng and his colleagues at the Bio-Communications Research Institute in Kansas analyzed cells taken from the menstrual blood of two women. What did they find? They found that the cells showed characteristics of stem cells, such as proliferating quickly as well as differentiating into more specialized cells such as muscle and nerve.
What Now?
Identifying sources of adult stem cells is really important because it gives us more options for using stem cells to treat disease. Another issue is the danger associated with removing stem cells from the body. If you think about your bone marrow or uterine lining itself and then imagine surgery to remove those tiny cells, it’s really invasive! There are all sorts of risks associated with surgery, such as infection and side effects from anesthesia. If scientists can harvest stem cells from something like menstrual blood, it means fewer risks and complications for the patient. Another dilemma is the controversy surrounding embryonic stem cells – many people are against the use of embryonic stem cells, which means that finding valuable sources of adult stem cells is an important alternative!
Your Body Can Save Lives
I think one of the fascinating things about finding new sources of adult stem cells is that your own body has the potential to save lives. Under the right conditions, your body’s stem cells can be coaxed to differentiate into specialized cells that could be used to treat a range of diseases. It’s also ironic, in a way, to think that each month menstruation occurs when your body doesn’t conceive a new life – yet your menstrual blood, rich in endometrial stem cells, has the potential to save lives. It’s one more thing that makes being a woman really cool!
del.icio.us digg reddit
Antibacterial Protection Right Under Your Feet November 8, 2007
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Diseases, Environment, Human Body, Tough Stuff.Tags: antibacterial, clay
add a comment
Clay – it’s that dirty looking, messy and just plain ol’ gunky stuff we find on the ground. But researchers have just recently found out that it also has some neat antibacterial properties too! A unique type of French clay has been found to terminate all sorts of bacteria, even antibiotic resistant ones that have become a very real and frightening challenge to combat. On top of that, the clay has been found to beat an icky pathogen – Mycobacterium ulcerans – that can cause skin ulcers in several parts of the world, leading to amputations.
Investigating Clay
This particular clay isn’t something new. In fact, it has been around for centuries where it was thought to have medicinal value, being used for skin cleansing and treating the bacteria that cause the icky ulcers I just mentioned. It was when geochemist Lynda Williams of Arizona State University learned of the clay’s power against Mycobacterium ulcerans that she gathered up a crew of curious researchers who were all eager to study the properties of the clay.
The researchers dubbed the clay CsAg02. What a complex name! I sometimes give a little sigh and wonder why they can’t give the clay a less technical name – like Super Germ Buster Magnifique (that last bit was my ode to the French nature of the clay!). They learned that it’s a strong alkaline and has a pH of 9.4 to 10. Its cool greenish color is from a chemical form of iron. Still, lots of other clays have these same properties, so it’s clearly some other aspect of the clay that’s responsible for its potent antibacterial properties. Hmmmmmm.
Aha!
To figure out just how the clay blasts away bacteria, Williams and her team treated the clay with potassium salt, which pulls out charged molecules. Without these charged molecules, the antibacterial power of the clay was blocked! So, this means that the bacteria are somehow affected by the charged molecules. Now, the next step for the research team will be to study what minerals keep these molecules active and rearing to fight against the bacteria.
Bacteria Beware
Researchers also wanted to check out what effect CsAg02 had on different microbes. How did they do that? Well, they took cultures of microbes and incubated them with CsAg02. You might have heard names of bacteria that are commonly implicated in cases of food poisoning – Salmonella typhimurium and Escherichia coli. We can give a big kudos to CsAg02 because it knocked them both out by stopping their growth! Researchers also incubated CsAg02 with strains of mycobacterium that can lead to skin infections. How well did it handle those? It stopped their growth as well!
So the clay kills bacteria – big deal, right? Actually, it is a really big deal! By figuring out just how the clay fights these powerful types of bacteria, we can learn new ways of killing some of the bacteria that plague humans. The clay could also provide antibacterial protection in air filters and sewage treatments. So, as sludgy and benign as clay may look, it still packs a powerful antimicrobial punch!
del.icio.us digg reddit
Sex, Birth Control And Religion Are A Complicated Mix November 3, 2007
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Drugs, Human Body, Psychology and Behavior, Science and Politics, Tough Stuff.Tags: church, morning-after pill, pope, pregnancy
7 comments
Last week, the Pope spoke during an international conference in the Vatican City, where he stated that pharmacists should have the right not to sell medications that they personally believe could block pregnancy or trigger an abortion. The response? Some politicians and pharmacists were outraged at the Pope’s comments. You might be wondering what medications the Pope was talking about? Well, one medication that would be affected is the morning-after pill.
Morning-After Pill
You’ve maybe heard about this pill already – either from the Internet, friends, your parents or sexual education classes at school. It can best be summarized as a pill that aims to stop you from becoming pregnant if contraception wasn’t used or if it failed. Actually, the term ‘morning-after’ isn’t totally accurate because the pill can be taken up to 72 hours after sex, although the sooner you take it, the better it works. There are also several myths around the morning-after pill – one of which is that it causes an abortion. If you are already pregnant, the pill won’t cause an abortion. It works prior to pregnancy occurring by preventing your ovaries from releasing an egg and it also works by changing the lining of the womb, which means a fertilized egg can’t be embedded.
When Religion Joins In
The Pope’s comments caused a lot of controversy, in part, because they were taken as an attempt to cut off access to important health services. Livia Turco – the Health Minister – explained how the Pope had the right to encourage young people to be sexually responsible, but that he couldn’t tell professionals such as pharmacists what they could or could not do. By law, a pharmacist must provide a medication that has been prescribed by a doctor.
The Church’s Stance
The Church, however, feels that birth control and abortion are morally wrong and that nothing should stop the occurrence of life, which begins at conception and ends when natural death occurs. What about working professionals who are Catholic? Pharmacists who are practicing Catholics sometimes have asked a colleague to provide the medication. Other times, they find they have to put aside their personal beliefs when they dispense the morning-after pill.
The main controversy with the Pope’s recent comments isn’t even so much that he has his opinion, but more so that he is making statements to health professionals about how to conduct themselves at work. Still, some politicians support the Pope’s right to speak his mind whereas others believe that the Pope is meddling in politics and healthcare – areas he shouldn’t be meddling in at all!
Elsewhere In The World
In places like the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States, the morning-after pill is available without a prescription. There are, however, parameters around the availability – such as a person being over 18 in the United States. On top of all that, there is still a lot of controversy around the morning-after pill in countries that allow it to be obtained over the counter. Even though it is currently available without a prescription, that doesn’t mean the law will never change to revert it back to prescription status. The Pope’s influence is significant in terms of the public perception towards contraception as well as how politicians view access to this important form of emergency contraception. This means that his influence isn’t limited just to the Vatican City, but it also spreads to other corners of the world and could, in part, shape laws around the morning-after pill’s availability in your country. What do you think? Is the Pope meddling and should he keep quiet, or do you think he has the right to share his message with the world?
del.icio.us digg reddit
Fat Cats Beware August 7, 2007
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Animals, Cats, Tough Stuff.4 comments
If you’ve got a cute, furry cat roaming around your flat or house, you might want to keep an eye on your beloved pet’s waistline. Not only is the incidence of diabetes rising in humans but it’s also rising in cats. To put it simply: a fat cat is at a higher risk for diabetes. Professor Danielle Gun-Moore of Edinburgh University led a recent study, which was published in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery. The study looked at 14,000 cats and found that 1 in 230 pet cats in the United Kingdom is diabetic.
Diabetes And Blood Sugar
If you’re not familiar with diabetes, here’s a quick primer on the condition. Diabetes is a condition where the body can’t keep blood sugar at a normal level. See, your blood sugar is part of a finely tuned system. It likes to stay within a very comfortable and narrow range. In a healthy person, the body works to successfully maintain that narrow range. Whenever you eat food, that food is converted into an energy form known as glucose. After a meal, your blood glucose level goes up and your body wants to bring it back down to its favorite level. To accomplish that, it releases the hormone insulin from beta cells in the pancreas. Then, the insulin helps to transport glucose out of the bloodstream and into your body’s cells. This brings your blood sugar back into its desirable narrow range! On the flip side, if your blood sugar is low – like when you’re exercising or in between meals – alpha cells in your pancreas secrete a different hormone called glucagon. It’s a smart hormone because it triggers your body’s cells to release the glucose back into the bloodstream, effectively raising your blood sugar and bringing it back to that narrow range it adores so much.
So, what happens in diabetes? Well, in type 1 diabetes, the pancreas isn’t producing insulin, so it can’t keep blood sugar in that nice, narrow range. In type 2 diabetes, some insulin is produced but its regulation is abnormal, so the body’s cells can’t use it properly. The end result? Blood sugar gets elevated and when it’s too high, a person experiences some icky symptoms such as fatigue, weight loss and sickness.
Fat Cats
You might be wondering what fat has to do with diabetes? Just like humans, cats who are overweight have a higher risk of insulin resistance. This risk occurs because fat interferes with the body’s ability to use insulin. It’s thought that an overweight cat is three times more likely to suffer from type 2 diabetes in comparison with one at a healthy weight.
Keep Your Cat Healthy
Just like humans, cats can overeat, so be sure to feed your cat normal portions of a healthy cat food. Housebound cats may get less exercise, so try to let your cat roam whenever possible. You might also have to lay down the law and say no to giving your cat regular treats. Give your wee friend a cuddle instead!
del.icio.us digg reddit
Oven Cleaner For Eyes June 25, 2007
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Diseases, Drugs, Human Body, Tough Stuff.2 comments
Before you totally cringe at the title, let me explain. Believe me, I cringed myself when I first heard about this new research. It sounded like something out of a very icky horror movie. The new treatment for glaucoma, however, really does use a substance that is also found in oven cleaners to remove grease. But first, let’s talk a little bit about what glaucoma is and then we’ll see how oven cleaners come into the picture.
Is Glaucoma A Name For One Of Those Diseases I’ll Never Get?
Actually, glaucoma affects a lot of people. Younger people can get it but it is more common in people over 50. That may seem like a long way off, but think about your parents or grandparents-they will be at a higher risk for glaucoma. Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that result in the loss of sight. The vision loss happens from damage to your eye’s optic nerve, which is responsible for transmitting images from your eye to the brain.
No Cure
According to the World Health Organization, glaucoma is the second leading cause of blindness in the world. Is that because people just don’t treat it? Partly, yep. A lot of people don’t know they have glaucoma, so they don’t get treatment. In fact, even if everyone gets treatment, it’s estimated that around 10% will still become blind. A scary thought. Also, treatment can help but there is no cure. So, it makes sense that scientists are researching ways to help people who have glaucoma. That’s where the oven cleaner bit comes in.
Nanoceria
The name is almost like something from outer space, but it’s a really neat concept. Sudipta Seal, a researcher from the University of Central Florida, was testing nanoceria, or cerium oxide nanoparticles if you want the full geeky name, to use as a catalyst (something that speeds up a chemical reaction) for removing the gunky debris on oven walls. He suddenly realized, however, that there might be a way to apply the concept medically. You may be wondering: Isn’t that really dangerous? Well, any medical concept potentially could be so they have to check for toxicity and this is done with laboratory animals. Oddly enough, the nanoceria didn’t irritate the animals’ eyes and that’s when the researchers realized that nanoceria might be an effective new way to transport drugs into a person’s eyes.
What Makes Nanoceria Better Though?
Well we have to compare them to the current treatments. The current eye treatments for glaucoma involve eye drops. These eye drops are meant to treat the abnormal fluid build-up that happens in the eye of a person who has glaucoma. To do so, they need to first get through the cornea. The cornea sits in front of the colored part of the eye and helps your eye to focus as light travels through. It’s sort of like a nice, clear window that houses important bits and pieces that provide you with healthy vision. The problem is that the chemicals in the eye drops have a hard time getting through the cornea.
The Power Of Nanoceria
The nanoceria can get through the cornea. Unlike the bigger, often abrasive polymers used in current eye drops, the tiny nanoparticles can safely get through the cornea. Remember that scientist I mentioned called Sudipta Seal? Well, along with his colleague Sanku Mallik, they both combined the nanoceria with a compound that blocks the hCAII enzyme. The hCAII enzyme produces fluid build-up, causing optic nerve damage and leading to glaucoma. This means that finding a way to successfully get the compound that blocks it past the cornea is really important for treating glaucoma. So, although the nanoceria themselves don’t treat glaucoma, they help by transporting the compound that can help.
Clear, Healthy Vision
It’s easy to take our vision for granted and assume that it will always be there. Still, even if you never suffer from glaucoma or at least not anytime soon, an older member of your family might. Try to imagine what it would be like if they couldn’t see. Now after you finish reading this, I want you to close your eyes for just a minute, and imagine what it would be like if you couldn’t see.
del.icio.us digg reddit
Levitating Light Bulb June 21, 2007
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Physics, Technology, Tough Stuff, Weird Gadgets.7 comments
The levitating light bulb is the intelligent creation of Jeff Lieberman. In fact, it’s a newer version of his earlier work. There are no tricks or anything like that in this picture. You are seeing the real, unedited result of his hard work, along with support from a team of quirky helpers. The light bulb mysteriously floats 2.5 inches from the nearest object and as you can see, it has a very minimalistic and futuristic design.
A Floating Light Bulb? That’s Impossible!
Think again! The light bulb is not the same as most light bulbs. Inside it, there are magnets and circuitry hidden away. On his website, Jeff talks about how two intriguing phenomena encouraged him to create this unique light bulb display: feedback stabilization of unstable systems and wireless power transmission. For a full description of Jeff’s work, you can check out this page.
Give Me The Simple Run-Down
It’s not an easy task and there’s a lot of fiddling and creativity to accomplish the work. According to Jeff, there are three important systems that must be examined and tweaked before you can levitate a light bulb.
The first is something called a matched resonant transformer. This wirelessly transmits power from a drive coil to a receive coil, at approximately 6 inches away. The second area to play with is a sensor system. This system gets rid of lots of the common problems that occur in magnetic levitation sensing. The third is a feedback control system, which lets Jeff smoothly levitate a magnet in a fixed position by using the sensor system designed earlier.
The end result is that the light bulb floats and remains stable, while power gets wirelessly transmitted from the base of the sculpture into the bulb. Light emitting diodes (LEDs) in the bulb harness the power of alternating currents (ACs) and convert them to light. Jeff likens the power transfer function to that of radio station tuning, which allows power transmission through the air.
Compare It To The Older Version
According to Jeff, the new version operates at a ‘higher wireless transfer efficiency.‘ What does he mean? Well it basically means that you get a brighter light bulb for less expended energy. It’s a better design that provides greater efficiency.
Credit: All photos by Jeff Lieberman. The one above is the
older version from 2005. It looks a little rusty compared
to the more efficient, modern version, but it still operates
under similar principles.
Pure Genius
I asked Jeff what inspired him to create the levitating light bulb and he thoughtfully replied:
I typically get inspired in a combination of ways. Dreams and their imagery are very inspiring for me. Often, I will awaken from something I saw in a dream and sketch it down. Also, any time I learn about new technologies and I’m excited by them, I make a mental-or sometimes even a physical-note about them. In this case, magnetic levitation and wireless power transmission were both phenomena I found amazing but I had never seen them go together. So, when I started to think about that, the levitating light bulb resulted.
Awesomeness
In a nutshell, the creation is an electromagnetically levitated light bulb that is wirelessly powered. How convenient is that? No wires and plus, it just plain looks cool! Maybe a little too cool though. Instead of doing homework, you might just want to sit and stare at the odd looking thing all day. If your parents complain, don’t blame it on the weird science blog. You can blame it on the innovative and cool dudes like Jeff who use scientific principles to challenge the standard light bulb and create something that makes us all exclaim ‘wow!’
del.icio.us digg reddit
Gone Today, Back Tomorrow June 4, 2007
Posted by Mrs Weird Scientist in Genetics, Human Body, Stem Cells, Tough Stuff.4 comments
Hair follicles, that is. Scientists used to think that once a person lost their hair follicles and went bald, the follicles could never be replaced again. Nope. According to a study by some very curious scientists at the University of Pennsylvania, there’s still hope for your balding dad.
Here’s What Happens
Your head contains thousands of hair follicles and each follicle can grow a single hair. The follicles themselves are actually kinda old because they are produced by an embryo, which is the earliest stage of human development. Scientists used to think that once an embryo had produced follicles, that was it. No more follicles could be made later. So once the follicles were damaged or lost, hairless forever!
This is where a gene comes in to save the day. Your genes are something you inherit from your parents. They are a unique set of instructions that determine the color of your eyes and lots of other traits you have. Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania found a gene called Wnt. This gene not only helps wounds heal, but it can also help make new hair follicles.
The Experiment
So you’re maybe wondering how this new gene can help those damaged hair follicles in your bald dad? Well, lets take a look at what scientists did in the experiment. They removed little bits of the outer skin layer, also called the epidermis, in mice. Remember how I said the Wnt gene helps heal wounds and produce new hair follicles? Well, after that small piece of skin was removed from each mouse, a wound was left.
Now, two really fascinating things happened.
The first thing was that when the wound started to heal, new follicles began to grow. Did the Wnt gene do it alone? No way- something else helped. The second thing is that scientists figured out stem cells were responsible for this growth. These are very special cells found all over your body that can multiply into many more cells. When the scientists removed a little piece of skin from each mouse- creating a wound- this was like a signal for the Wnt gene to get those stem cells to wake up and start working.
But Wait, There’s More
To make sure they really had something that worked, scientists tried to block the Wnt gene. What do you think happened? If you guessed that no new hair follicles were produced, you are right! Without the Wnt gene to activate them, the stem cells didn’t create new hair follicles. And since scientists like to meddle so much, they decided to try increasing the gene’s activity. What now? If you guessed that more hair follicles were produced, you are right again.
Run That By Me One More Time?
It’s like a series of alarm clocks. The wound wakes up the Wnt gene, which then wakes up the stem cells. Those stem cells can now get busy fixing the wound and creating hair follicles. Block the Wnt gene and the stem cells won’t do their thing. Boost the Wnt gene’s power and the stem cells work overtime.
Is Dad Gonna Grow A Full Head Of Hair?
Maybe one day, but not anytime soon. Scientists still need to figure out how to safely create a wound on a bald spot and then power up the Wnt gene. For now, you can tell dad not to throw out that hairpiece just yet. Remind him it could be worse- he could be losing his teeth.
Photo Credit: George Cotsarelis, University of Pennsylvania, School of Medicine. The blue lines in the picture show copies of cells originating from stem cells. The cells move toward the middle part of the wound to heal it quickly and produce hair follicles. It looks gross but once it has healed, there’s almost no scarring and better yet, there’s hair!
del.icio.us digg reddit
