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    Accretion-powered Pulsar reveals Unique Timing Glitch

    September 7, 2017, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Composite image of the X-ray pulsar SXP 1062 surrounded by the supernova remnant. The false-color image combines X-ray (blue) and optical data (oxygen: green, hydrogen: red). Credit: ESA / XMM-Newton / L. Oskinova, University of Potsdam, Germany / M. Guerrero, Instituto de Astrofisica de Andalucia, Spain (X-ray); Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory / R. Gruendl & Y. H. Chu, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA (optical)

    Composite image of the X-ray pulsar SXP 1062 surrounded by the supernova remnant. The false-color image combines X-ray (blue) and optical data (oxygen: green, hydrogen: red). Credit: ESA / XMM-Newton / L. Oskinova, University of Potsdam, Germany / M. Guerrero, Instituto de Astrofisica de Andalucia, Spain (X-ray); Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory / R. Gruendl & Y. H. Chu, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA (optical)

    The discovery of the largest timing irregularity yet observed in a pulsar is the first confirmation that pulsars in binary systems exhibit the strange phenomenon known as a ‘glitch’. Pulsars are one possible result of the final stages of evolution of massive stars...

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    Discovery of Boron on Mars adds to evidence for Habitability

    September 7, 2017, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    A selfie of the NASA Curiosity rover at the Murray Buttes in Gale Crater, Mars, a location where boron was found in light-toned calcium sulfate veins. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

    A selfie of the NASA Curiosity rover at the Murray Buttes in Gale Crater, Mars, a location where boron was found in light-toned calcium sulfate veins. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

    Boron compounds play role in stabilizing sugars needed to make RNA, a key to life. The discovery of boron on Mars gives scientists more clues about whether life could have ever existed on the planet, according to a paper published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. “Because borates may play an important role in making RNA – one of the building blocks of life – finding boron on Mars further opens the possibility that life could have once arisen on the planet,” said Patrick Gasda, a postdoctoral researcher at Los Alamos National Laboratory...

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    Improved Vaccine that Protects against 9 types of HPV is highly effective

    September 6, 2017, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Active protection via vaccination is mediated byneutralizing antibodies at the cervix HPV Cervical canal Neutralizing ant...

    Active protection via vaccination is mediated by neutralizing antibodies at the cervix HPV Cervical canal Neutralizing antibodies Blood vessel Epithelial tear Basement membrane Cervical epithelium Stanley M. Vaccine 2006; 24:S16–S22; Giannini S, et al. Vaccine 2006; 24:5937–5949; Nardelli-Haefliger D, et al. J Natl Cancer Inst 2003; 95:1128–1137; Poncelet S, et al. IPvC 2007; Abstract.

    Cervical cancer is the second most common cause of cancer-related death worldwide, with almost 300,000 deaths occurring each year. More than 80% of these deaths occur in developing nations. The advent of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines has significantly reduced the number of those who develop and die from cervical cancer...

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    Protein that Extends Life of Yeast Cells

    September 6, 2017, Categories  Health/Medical, Biology/Biotechnology

    Gcn4 strongly represses translation in the long-lived RPKO strains and stresses. Quantification of global translation by Click-iT HPG for a different single and double KO strains, b glucose-starved (CR) and rapamycin-treated (RAPA) yeast cells. GCN4 deletion restores translation to the level of the wild-type strain in RPKO strains and also leads to increased translation in stressed cells. The significance of the two-tailed t-test between any given deletion strain and the wild-type strain is depicted above the respective bar. Mean values of the relative translation change between the GCN4 deletion strain and the respective parental strain are shown in parentheses. Error bars represent s.d. across three different biological replicates except glucose starvation where n = 2. The p-value for the two-tailed t-test is indicated by ‘*’: *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001. c Model for Gcn4 effect on translation and aging. Green lines indicate the findings in this study, black continuous lines denote previously established links, and the dashed line indicates a connection that remains to be studied

    Gcn4 strongly represses translation in the long-lived RPKO strains and stresses. Quantification of global translation by Click-iT HPG for a different single and double KO strains, b glucose-starved (CR) and rapamycin-treated (RAPA) yeast cells. GCN4 deletion restores translation to the level of the wild-type strain in RPKO strains and also leads to increased translation in stressed cells. The significance of the two-tailed t-test between any given deletion strain and the wild-type strain is depicted above the respective bar. Mean values of the relative translation change between the GCN4 deletion strain and the respective parental strain are shown in parentheses. Error bars represent s.d. across three different biological replicates except glucose starvation where n = 2...

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