Genetic Archaeology News - June 2009 Archives
When the ancestors of present marine mammals returned to the oceans, their physiology had to adapt radically. Dr. Michael Berenbrink at Liverpool University has been studying how myoglobin, the molecule responsible for delivering oxygen to the muscles during locomotion, has been modified in seals and whales to help them cope with the needs of a life at sea. The results will be presented at the Society for Experimental Biology meeting on Monday, June 29.
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A new algorithm developed by Carnegie Mellon University computer scientists has revealed for the first time how genetic networks in the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, evolve during the insect's life cycle. The new algorithm, called Tesla, incorporates machine learning techniques that enable researchers to figure out how the rewiring of those networks takes place as the insect develops.
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Rearrangements of all sizes in genomes, genes and exons can result from a glitch in DNA copying that occurs when the process stalls at a critical point and then shifts to a different genetic template, duplicating and even triplicating genes or just shuffling or deleting part of the code within them, said researchers from Baylor College of Medicine in a recent report in the journal Nature Genetics.
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 | Chile peppers have long played an important role in the diets of Mesoamerican people. Capsicum annuum is one of five domesticated species of chiles and is one of the primary components of these diets. However, little is known regarding the original location of domestication of C. annuum and the genetic diversity in wild relatives. Dr. Kim et al. found a large amount of diversity in individuals from the Yucatan Peninsula, making this a center of diversity for chiles. ...> Full Article |
Detailed, accurate evolutionary trees that reveal the relatedness of living things can now be determined much faster and for thousands of species with a computing method developed by computer scientists and a biologist at the University of Texas at Austin.
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One of the mechanisms governing how our physical features and behavioral traits have evolved over centuries has been discovered by researchers at the University of Leeds, UK.
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 | It is a misinterpretation of the application of the bedrock of scientific naming with regard to the number of moose species that Kris Hundertmark, a University of Alaska Fairbanks wildlife geneticist at the Institute of Arctic Biology, seeks to correct. ...> Full Article |
 | The woolly mammoth died out several thousand years ago, but the genetic material they left behind is yielding new clues about the evolution of mammals. In a study published online in Genome Research, scientists have analyzed the mammoth genome looking for mobile DNA elements, revealing new insights into how some of these elements arose in mammals and shaped the genome of an animal headed for extinction. ...> Full Article |
 | Different genes cause loss of body parts in similar fish ...> Full Article |
New research indicates that natural selection may shape the human genome much more slowly than previously thought. Other factors -- the movements of humans within and among continents, the expansions and contractions of populations, and the vagaries of genetic chance -- have heavily influenced the distribution of genetic variations in populations around the world. The study is published June 5 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics.
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 | Boys who carry a particular variation of the gene Monoamine oxidase A (MAOA), sometimes called the "warrior gene," are more likely not only to join gangs but also to be among the most violent members and to use weapons, according to a new study from the Florida State University that is the first to confirm an MAOA link specifically to gangs and guns. ...> Full Article |
 | Scientists at the University of California-Davis, have discovered that a plant hormone called auxin is responsible for development of the egg cell in a plant's embryo sac. In unraveling this fundamental issue in plant biology, the work provides the first definitive report of a plant hormone acting as a morphogen and offers tantalizing new insights into the evolutionary pathway that flowering plants took 135 million years ago when they split off from gymnosperms. ...> Full Article |
Researchers at the University of Leeds have devised a more accurate method of dating ancient human migration -- even when no corroborating archaeological evidence exists.
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Genomic research lays groundwork for new approaches for treating, preventing skin diseases
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Fish can recognize a face based on UV pattern alone
'Anaconda' meets 'Jurassic Park': Study shows ancient snakes ate dinosaur babies
Scientists locate apparent hydrothermal vents off Antarctica
Mars Express heading for closest flyby of Phobos
Artificial bee silk a big step closer to reality
Predicting the fate of stem cells
Artificial foot recycles energy for easier walking
New fiber nanogenerators could lead to electric clothing
What drives our genes? Researchers map the first complete human epigenome
Juggling enhances connections in the brain
Tracking down the human 'odorprint'
Fill 'er up - with algae
Scientists discover quantum fingerprints of chaos
Researchers help identify cows that gain more while eating less
Scientific breakthrough in genetic studies of animal domestication
Scientists discover 600 million-year-old origins of vision
Unselfish molecules may have helped give birth to the genetic material of life
Exploring Echinacea's enigmatic origins
Lizard moms choose the right genes for the right gender offspring
Modern man found to be generally monogamous, moderately polygamous
Ancient DNA from rare fossil reveals that polar bears evolved recently and adapted quickly
Does promiscuity prevent extinction?
Stickleback genomes shining bright light on evolution
Researchers uncover DNA sequence of extinct ancient cattle
Small dogs originated in the Middle East