Enthusiasts for genomics have corrupted scientific endeavour and undermined hopes of medical progress David Horrobin, The Guardian Triumphalism about molecular biology, genomics and the human genome project is an increasingly pervasive theme in biomedical science. Beginning soon after Watson and Crick deciphered the structure of DNA, it has become progressively more dominant, reaching a crescendo over the past five years. Popular science magazines and the general media have united in a chorus of praise concerning the supposedly dramatic effects this is going to have on human health. But genomics enthusiasts have corrupted scientific endeavour and destroyed real hope of progress. From the 1930s to the 1960s, biomedical science bore some resemblance to an integrated whole. There were researchers working at every level of biological organisation - from sub-cellular biochemistry, to whole cells, to organs, to animals, tohumans. This was a golden age. Anyone receiving the best medical care in 1965 was incomparably better off than anyone in 1930. But starting in the 1960s, molecular biologists and genomics specialists took over biomedical science. Everything was to be understood completely at the molecular genomic level. Everything was to be reduced to the genome. Journals and grant-giving bodies came to be dominated by reductionists who were scathing about the complexity of whole-organ, whole-animal and especially whole-human studies which were seen as too full of uncontrolled variability to be interpretable. Clinical and physiological studies lost out and progressively their research communities were destroyed. Now we have an almost wholly reductionist biomedical community which repeatedly makes exaggerated claims about how it is going to revolutionise medical treatment - and which repeatedly fails to achieve anything. © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2003

Keyword: Genes & Behavior
Link ID: 3500 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By GALEN STRAWSON In the last several years the philosopher Daniel C. Dennett has published two very large, interesting and influential books. The first, ''Consciousness Explained'' (1991), aimed to account for all the phenomena of consciousness within the general theoretical framework set by current physics. It failed, of course, and came to be affectionately known as ''Consciousness Ignored.'' But it was a very fertile and valuable piece of work. The second, ''Darwin's Dangerous Idea'' (1995), set out to make the case for the theory of evolution even more irresistible than it already is, and it was right on target: vivid, ingenious and illuminating, if sometimes huffy and overpolemical. Now Dennett is advancing on free will. In ''Freedom Evolves,'' he wants to show how evolution can get us ''all the way from senseless atoms to freely chosen actions.'' And he succeeds in his aim, given what he means by freedom. But he doesn't establish the kind of absolute free will and moral responsibility that most people want to believe in and do believe in. That can't be done, and he knows it. Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company

Keyword: Evolution
Link ID: 3499 - Posted: 03.02.2003

By Laura Diamond, Times-Union staff writer For the first time, the Lucas family all went out to dinner at a restaurant. Kim Lucas was nervous her 10-year-old son would grow impatient waiting for his food or be uncomfortable with the new sounds and smells. When this happens, J.D. tends to scream or run back and forth. Big sister Crystal was concerned about how other people would react. "I don't like it when people stare at my brother," said 11-year-old Crystal. "I don't care about it for me, but he is my little brother. I don't want people making fun of him because he is autistic." © The Florida Times-Union

Keyword: Autism
Link ID: 3498 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Put a 2-month-old in your lap and inevitably you’ll find yourself uttering a few coochie-coos or bah-bah-boos. It seems natural, since that’s about all the 2-month-old is going to be able to say to you. But recent research suggests once again that it’s easy to underestimate babies. Neurobiologist Stanislas Dehaene and his colleagues at the National Institute for Health and Medical Research in France, used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to record the brain activity of healthy 2- and 3-month-old infants. fMRI is a safe way to see which areas of the brain are active at certain times by detecting increased blood flow to those areas. “In this way we could see what areas of the brain are active at this very young age, and compare them with areas that are normally active in adults,” says Dehaene. © ScienCentral, 2000-2003.

Keyword: Language; Development of the Brain
Link ID: 3497 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Bomb-sniffing dogs at airports are living proof that the human species is olfactorily challenged. Even our fellow primates seem to have keener noses than we do. New genetic evidence shows why this is: Humans are losing so-called olfactory receptor genes at much higher rates than monkeys and apes. Like all mammals, the human genome has about 1000 genes for proteins that detect smells, or olfactory receptors. But more than half of those genes don't work. In other mammals, such as mice, that proportion is only 20%. To check whether this is a general primate problem, geneticist Yoav Gilad and colleagues at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, and the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, compared our olfactory receptor genes with those of our evolutionary brethren, the monkeys and apes. Copyright © 2003 by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Keyword: Chemical Senses (Smell & Taste)
Link ID: 3496 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Irvine, Calif. -- Medical advice rarely supports a high-fat diet, but a team of UC Irvine researchers has found that such a diet protects newborn brain cells from damage caused by prolonged seizures. New findings from a study on infant rats suggest that the high-fat diet of newborns, and the related increased production of a specific protein, protects their brain cells from damage that otherwise may accompany prolonged seizures. The finding may lead to new strategies to prevent brain injury in adults. Seizures affect one in every 25 infants and children and over one percent of all adults, where they may be associated with progressive loss of brain volume. Therefore, understanding how the immature brain prevents seizure-induced cell injury or death could point the way for researchers to develop new strategies aimed at preventing such damage in the mature brain.

Keyword: Epilepsy; Obesity
Link ID: 3495 - Posted: 03.01.2003

Researchers have identified a genetic factor that appears to influence anxiety in women. Combining DNA analysis, recordings of brain activity, and psychological tests, investigators at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) found that Caucasian and American Indian women with the same gene variant had similarly high scores on tests that measure anxiety. These women also had similar electroencephelograms (EEG) -- recordings of brain electrical activity as unique as an individual's fingerprints -- that showed characteristics of anxious temperament, further strengthening the association of this shared genetic factor with anxiety. The study appears in the current issue of the journal Psychiatric Genetics. "These results shed more light on the genetic origins of anxiety, which can sometimes be a warning sign for developing alcoholism," says NIAAA Director T.K. Li, M.D. "Such multidimensional studies that integrate neurogenetics, behavioral science, and the study of the brain are vital to increasing our fundamental knowledge of the genes related to complex psychiatric disorders."

Keyword: Drug Abuse; Genes & Behavior
Link ID: 3494 - Posted: 03.01.2003

By P. Douglas Filaroski, Times-Union staff writer Local researchers have patented a genetic bullet -- a type of man-made molecule that targets, then shoots down, proteins needed for disease. Mayo Clinic, led by a Jacksonville researcher, was the first to use a technology known as PNA to halt protein production in rats blamed for an array of diseases. The institute patented its use on animals but the technology is years from use on humans, Mayo neuropharmacologist Elliott Richelson said. "We were the first lab in the world to show these compounds worked in live animals," Richelson said. "The potential for these molecules is unlimited." © The Florida Times-Union

Keyword: Alzheimers; Huntingtons
Link ID: 3493 - Posted: 06.24.2010

John Travis A person's blood could someday provide replacement cells for that individual's damaged brain or liver, a provocative study suggests. Human blood contains so-called stem cells that can be transformed outside the body into a variety of cell types, according to the report. This unexpected, and accidental, discovery may add a new element to the politicized debate over whether stem cells that persist in adults can match the therapeutic potential of stem cells derived from human embryos. The possible new source of adult stem cells came to light when a coworker became ill and couldn't attend to petri dishes containing human blood cells called monocytes, says Eliezer Huberman of Argonne (Ill.) National Laboratory. In the body, these white blood cells migrate into tissues and mature into specialized immune cells, such as macrophages. Huberman's team has been studying the cellular signals behind this maturation. Left without nutrients, some of the unattended monocytes morphed into cells that didn't look like immune cells, Huberman's team noticed. Following up on this chance observation, the researchers identified a subgroup of monocytes that they could convert into various kinds of cells. Copyright ©2003 Science Service. All rights reserved.

Keyword: Stem Cells
Link ID: 3492 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Every night before I fall asleep I develop an unpleasant wriggly sort of sensation in my legs. Massaging my legs sometimes helps it go away, but otherwise I have to get up and walk around. It can go on for ages and is now regularly disturbing my sleep so that I feel tired all day. What's causing this and, what can I do about it? Mary Dr Trisha Macnair responds You are describing what is known as 'restless legs syndrome', a very common condition which affects up to 1 in 12 of the population. For most people, it is mild and improves with simple measures, although for a few, more intensive medical therapy is needed. There are 4 characteristic features in restless legs syndrome. These include: (C) BBC

Keyword: Sleep
Link ID: 3491 - Posted: 02.28.2003

The worst of human BSE infection may be over, according to scientists monitoring vCJD. The National CJD Surveillance Unit said the number of people dying from the human form of mad cow disease each year is falling. But in a study published in medical journal The Lancet, the team warned that it is too early to conclude that vCJD is in permanent decline. Later on Friday a report will be published into an incident in which 24 patients at Middlesbrough General Hospital were exposed to surgical instruments used on a patient later found to have vCJD. (C) BBC

Keyword: Prions
Link ID: 3490 - Posted: 02.28.2003

Elizabeth Fernandez, Chronicle Staff Writer A small monkey that escaped from a research lab at UC Davis two weeks ago is now believed to have died in the drain system, university officials said. "Her fate wasn't a pleasant one," said UC Davis spokeswoman Lisa Lapin on Wednesday. "It makes a lot of us sick, frankly. We want to take good care of our animals. A lot of the people at the primate center have been in tears." The 4-pound gray and tan rhesus monkey slipped from her cage during a cleaning at the California National Primate Research Center on Feb. 13. She had been spotted darting into a 4-inch drain. ©2003 San Francisco Chronicle

Keyword: Animal Rights
Link ID: 3489 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Betterhumans Staff It's produced by exploding stars, composes less than 1% of the atmosphere and could save you from brain damage. Researchers from Duke University Medical Center and Imperial College London have found evidence that the rare, inert gas xenon -- which is produced by supernovas and composes 0.00009% of the atmosphere -- can protect the brain from damage associated with heart-lung machines used during coronary artery bypass surgery. "Worldwide, there are more than one million heart operations and previous Duke studies have shown that up to five years after surgery, 40% of these patients suffer measurable cognitive decline," says Duke anesthesiologist Hilary Grocott, who led the research. "There is a great need for an effective neuroprotectant to be used in conjunction with bypass surgery." Copyright © 2002-2003 Betterhumans

Keyword: Stroke; Pain & Touch
Link ID: 3488 - Posted: 06.24.2010

A Rutgers-Newark researcher is using magnetic imaging to paint a revealing and groundbreaking picture of the brain’s activities as it reacts to real-world events. “By looking at these brain signals in real time, as things occur, we may be able to extract the underlying grammar that occurs as one area [of the brain] talks to another,” said Stephen Hanson, chair of the psychology department at Rutgers-Newark. “We are one of only a handful of groups of cognitive researchers probing into this area of brain dynamics by employing EEG and fMRI.” Scientists hope this research will likely lead to new approaches to cognitive malfunctions such as attention deficit disorder (ADD) and schizophrenia.

Keyword: ADHD; Schizophrenia
Link ID: 3487 - Posted: 06.24.2010

Exclusive from New Scientist Print Edition A spoonful of sugar may no longer be needed to help the medicine go down - it could be replaced by natural compounds that block the taste of bitter substances. The compounds could not only help drug companies make bitter-tasting medicines more palatable, they could also help food manufacturers reduce the vast amounts of sugar, salt and fat they add to most processed foods. Part of the reason these additives make food taste better is that they mask bitter tastes. Biotech firm Linguagen of New York received patent protection for the family of blockers it has discovered in January, and it says there is already interest from food and drug companies. "A major food ingredient company is testing them, and a major pharmaceutical company," says chief operating officer Shawn Marcell. © Copyright Reed Business Information Ltd.

Keyword: Chemical Senses (Smell & Taste)
Link ID: 3486 - Posted: 06.24.2010

By VIRGINIA POSTREL HERE's a game economists play: Player 1 has $10 and can give any dollar amount to Player 2. Player 2 can either accept or reject it. If Player 2 accepts, they both keep the money. If Player 2 rejects it, neither player gets anything. What should the players do? Arguably, Player 2 should accept whatever is offered, since some money is better than none. Player 1 should thus offer as little as possible: $1. That strategy is the standard game-theory equilibrium. But that's not necessarily what happens when real people play this "ultimatum game" in laboratory settings with real money on the line. Faced with low-ball offers, many Player 2's reject them. And many Player 1's make more generous offers, often nearly half the money. Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company

Keyword: Brain imaging
Link ID: 3485 - Posted: 02.27.2003

It is natural to suppose that conducting the same tests, with the same strain of mice and the same protocols on identical equipment but in different labs will ensure similar results. A University of Alberta researcher and his team have found that assumption not to be true--fuelling the nature vs. nurture debate and shedding some light on the importance of environmental factors in experiments. Dr. Douglas Wahlsten, from the Department of Psychology, is part of a research team that use mice who share the same genetic make-up to study the relationship among an animal's genetics, environment, and behaviour. In a recent study to determine which kinds of tests done in different laboratories--in Alberta and Oregon--give the same results--Wahlsten and the research team first taught the mice how to use a particular apparatus and then tested motor co-ordination under the influence of alcohol.

Keyword: Genes & Behavior
Link ID: 3484 - Posted: 02.27.2003

Receptors in the nose that detect scent may need a single metal ion to function. CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Of the five basic senses, the sense of smell is the least understood. Now, scientists at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have sniffed out potential clues to how olfactory receptors in the nose detect odors. Those clues may also explain why dietary zinc deficiencies lead to a loss of smell. Olfactory receptors are proteins that bridge through the cell membrane. Professor Kenneth S. Suslick and co-workers have found that the structure of the protein changes dramatically when a zinc or copper ion binds to it. They propose that the olfactory response to an odorant involves this change in structure that pushes and pulls part of the olfactory receptor protein into and out of the cell in a "shuttlecock" motion. This back-and-forth motion passes information through the cell membrane. The researchers will report their findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. A paper on the subject is to appear in the PNAS Online Early Edition the week of Feb. 24. The average human nose can detect nearly 10,000 distinct scents, a feat that requires about 1,000 olfactory genes, or roughly 3 percent of the human genome.

Keyword: Chemical Senses (Smell & Taste)
Link ID: 3483 - Posted: 02.27.2003

By Dr David Whitehouse, BBC News Online science editor Palaeontologists say a new fossil find from Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania could simplify our understanding of the origin of humans. The remains of the 1.8-million-year-old hominid are said to rank among the best specimens yet discovered of the earliest members of our genus, Homo. Writing in the journal Science, Rutgers University anthropology Professor Robert Blumenschine says the new fossil shows that at least some of the examples of two early groups of Homo should now be reunited into a single species. (C) BBC

Keyword: Evolution
Link ID: 3482 - Posted: 02.26.2003

Fragile X Syndrome is a type of mental retardation that seems to affect boys more than girls. “Patients with Fragile X Syndrome show a broad spectrum of cognitive impairment,” says William T. Greenough. “The effects are manifested in everything from language, to motor skills. They are retarded; they are typically well behind in school; and they are physically often very, very clumsy. There is also often a tendency towards autistic behavior.” Greenough is a professor of psychology, psychiatry, and cell and structural biology at the Beckman Institute and the University of Illinois. Since 1991, the scientific community has known that the malfunctioning of a gene called FMR1 blocks the production of the Fragile X protein, and that this is somehow related to Fragile X Syndrome. But according to Michael Tranfaglia, Medical Director of FRAXA (a non-profit, family-run, Fragile X research foundation) it is still unclear how the loss of this protein actually causes the specific symptoms of this syndrome. © ScienCentral, 2000-2003.

Keyword: Development of the Brain
Link ID: 3481 - Posted: 06.24.2010