Cell biology

From Cassandra Willyard at Nature: At the time, biologists were getting excited about the epigenome — the broad array of chemical marks that decorate DNA and its protein scaffold. These marks act like a chemical notation, telling the cell which genes to express and which to keep silent. As such, the epigenome helps to explain how cells with identical DNA can develop into the multitude of specialized types that make up different tissues. The marks help cells in the heart, for example, maintain their identity and not turn into neurons or fat cells. Misplaced epigenetic marks are often found in cancerous cells. Why didn’t it happen sooner?: The governing rule of molecular biology – the central dogma – holds that Read More ›

From Suzan Mazur at Huffington Post, a chat with molecular biologist Jeffrey Errington about L-form bacteria, which lack a strong cell wall: Jeffery Errington: I became interested in the problem because I was aware of L-forms from the scientific literature of the 1950s and 60s. Curiously, however, right around the end of the 1970s or so, publishing on L-forms just sort of petered out. I haven’t really been able to get to the bottom of exactly why that happened. … Suzan Mazur: How pervasive are L-forms in nature now and earlier in evolution? Jeffery Errington: There are a few bacteria that are naturally cell wall-deficient, like Mycoplasma, which is a pathogen, and Phytoplasma, which inhabits plants. They’re both cell-wall deficient, Read More ›

This week’s post at Design Disquisitions is the first in a series of articles entitled ‘Critic’s Corner’ where I focus on a critic of ID. The main purpose of these posts is to document their work relevant to ID and also to document the direct responses to the particular critic in question, by those sympathetic to ID. These posts will be a useful resource for anyone wanting to find responses to a particular ID critic. This first one is on the work of Kenneth Miller (no stranger to anyone involved in this debate of course). If there are any articles I have missed, do let me know and I shall add it to the page.

From David Klinghoffer at Evolution News & Views: The 2016 Nobel Prize for Chemistry recognized the intelligent design (what else would you call it?) of artificial molecular machines. These “nano” machines are impressive as technical achievements. Yet they are also exceedingly simple, “cute” but “useless,” as Nature reported that “some chemists” say. “We need to convince [researchers] that these molecules are really exciting,” as one scientist remarked. Writing at CNSNews, Discovery Institute biochemist Michael Behe makes the point that Darwin advocates don’t want to hear. If scientists need to be “convinced” that nano machines are “exciting” and useful, the same is surely not true when it comes to the molecular machines familiar to biologists. That’s the nanotechnolgy that make continuing Read More ›

From ScienceDaily: A groundbreaking study of the virosphere of the most populous animals — those without backbones such as insects, spiders and worms and that live around our houses — has uncovered 1445 viruses, revealing people have only scratched the surface of the world of viruses — but it is likely that only a few cause disease. … “This groundbreaking study re-writes the virology text book by showing that invertebrates carry an extraordinary number of viruses — far more than we ever thought,” Professor Holmes said. “We have discovered that most groups of viruses that infect vertebrates — including humans, such as those that cause well-known diseases like influenza — are in fact derived from those present in invertebrates,” said Read More ›

From ScienceDaily: Nature is full of parasites — organisms that flourish and proliferate at the expense of another species. Surprisingly, these same competing roles of parasite and host can be found in the microscopic molecular world of the cell. A new study by two Illinois researchers has demonstrated that dynamic elements within the human genome interact with each other in a way that strongly resembles the patterns seen in populations of predators and prey. … Goldenfeld and Xue embarked on this work because of their interest in transposons, small regions of DNA that can move themselves from one part of the genome to another during the lifetime of a cell — a capability that has earned them the name “jumping Read More ›

From Laurel Hamer at Science News: Textbook drawings of the cell’s largest organelle might need to be updated based on new images. Super-resolution shots of the endoplasmic reticulum reveal tightly packed tubes where previous pictures showed plain flat sheets, scientists report in the Oct. 28 Science. The finding helps explain how the endoplasmic reticulum, or ER, reshapes itself in response to changing conditions, says study coauthor Jennifer Lippincott-Schwartz, a cell biologist at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Janelia Research Campus in Ashburn, Va. More. And it all just happens, see, via natural selection acting on random mutations, like textbooks have been preaching for fifty years. Yuh. See also: Royal Society meeting on new trend in evolutionary biology is definitely going Read More ›

Does anyone remember this from our textbook cell biology? From Michael Le Page at New Scientist: Giants, self-sacrifice, biological warfare: this story has them all. A voracious marine predator plagued by a giant virus has a defence system we’ve never seen before – it fights back by making its very own virus. The individuals that make these bioweapons sacrifice themselves for the greater good, saving their fellow predators in the process. The single-celled predator, Cafeteria roenbergensis, is common in coastal waters around the world, where it snacks on bacteria More. Giant viruses have yet to be factored into a serious discussion of living things. Curiously, the Royal Society suppressed discussion of the role of viruses at its upcoming rethinking evolution Read More ›

From Veronique Greenwood at Quanta: In a monumental set of experiments, spread out over nearly two decades, biologists removed genes two at a time to uncover the secret workings of the cell. And what did they find?: In all, they found 550,000 pairs that, when removed, result in sickness or death. This network of genetic connections reveals a previously hidden scaffolding that underlies the operation of the cell. “The complete picture,” Boone said, “clearly shows a beautiful hierarchical structure.” Over here are the genes involved in taking out the cell’s garbage, and over there are the genes responsible for its metabolism. Zoom out from one cluster of genes, and you’ll find the ones involved in the larger process the cluster Read More ›

From David Klinghoffer at Evolution News & Views, in connection with the documentary Revolutionary, about biochemist and design theorist Michael Behe, recounts: As one paleontologist recounts here, after his own mind was opened to the cogency of design arguments, he met ID scientists and scholars and was surprised to find they bore little resemblance to what he expected based on media caricatures. The shy (as he describes himself), self-effacing, yet stubborn Dr. Behe may also come as a revelation to those who don’t know him but assume he must be a cartoon “creationist.” Revolutionary is unlike other ID films I’m familiar with in the way it offers personal stories. One of the most startling concerns University of Idaho microbiologist Scott Read More ›

From ecosystem scientist Sean Nee at The Conversation: [Contention 1:] We humans like to think of ourselves as on the top of the heap compared to all the other living things on our planet. Life has evolved over three billion years from simple one-celled creatures through to multicellular plants and animals coming in all shapes and sizes and abilities. In addition to growing ecological complexity, over the history of life we’ve also seen the evolution of intelligence, complex societies and technological invention, until we arrive today at people flying around the world at 35,000 feet discussing the in-flight movie. Yes. It’s almost like we are in charge of the planet, at least morally and intellectually. Researchers assumed that that meant Read More ›

Twenty years ago this Fall, biochemist Michael Behe helped spark a revolution with his landmark book Darwin’s Black Box: The Biochemical Challenge to Evolution. Featured in the New York Times, Behe’s book provoked a fierce debate that continues to this day, inspiring a new generation of scientists who are challenging Darwin’s theory and exploring evidence in nature of intelligent design. DISCO_Behe_Revolution_CoverIn celebration of the 20th anniversary of Behe’s book–and the 20th anniversary of the Center for Science and Culture–Discovery Institute is releasing the new 60-minute documentary Revolutionary. The film tells the dramatic story of how Behe came up with his revolutionary ideas, how opponents tried to silence his ideas in federal court, and how recent scientific discoveries have confirmed and Read More ›

In the recently settled soft dino tissue find case, part of the fired prof’s evidence was the following incident: The lawsuit contends that [creationism was] why Armitage’s employment at Cal State Northridge was terminated, with one professor allegedly storming into his office and shouting: “We are not going to tolerate your religion in this department!” More. It strikes me that Prof Stormer thinks that there is a hard and fast distinction to be made between “science” and “religion.” But the distinction falls apart when examined. Here is a hypothetical example: My religion, we’ll say, teaches that killing animals is wrong and therefore eating meat is wrong. It would be easy to come up with a wealth of science information on Read More ›

From Anna Azvolinsky at The Scientist: Multiple stressful events during childhood may have a greater impact on telomere length in adulthood compared to stressful events faced during adulthood. While the accumulation of stressful events throughout life increases the chance of having shorter telomeres later in life, adversities experienced during childhood appeared to have the greatest effect on these chromosome caps, according to a study published today (October 3) in PNAS. Each additional adverse event during childhood was associated with an 11 percent-increased odd of shorter telomeres—a marker of cellular aging—past age 50, the authors reported. The findings “offer new insights into what types of stressors may potentially be most harmful in impacting biological aging markers,” Judith Carroll, who studies the Read More ›

From Oregon State U: Researchers have discovered a mechanism of intercellular communication that helps explain how biological systems and actions – ranging from a beating heart to the ability to hit a home run – function properly most of the time, and in some scenarios quite remarkably. The findings are an important basic advance in how cell sensory systems function. They shed light on the poorly-understood interaction between cells – and they also suggest that some of the damage done by cancer cells can be seen as a “failure to communicate.” … With this accuracy of communication, cells in a heart chamber collectively decide to contract at the appropriate time, and blood gets pumped, dozens of times a minute, for Read More ›