Academia Should Fulfill Social Contract by Supporting Bioscience Startups, Case Study Says

Universities not only provide the ideal petri dish for cultivating bioscience with commercial potential, but have a moral obligation to do so, given the opportunity to translate public funding into health and jobs, according to a new case study by UCSF researchers. In an analysis published Wednesday in Science Translational Medicine, researchers at the California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3) assessed the impact of the institute’s efforts over the past eight years in supporting entrepreneurs on the three UC campuses in which it operates: UCSF, UC Berkeley and UC Santa Cruz. The study found that, by lowering the hurdle even very slightly for scientists to become entrepreneurs, the scientists were able to gain extraordinary traction in translating academic research into public benefit, generating 60 new companies in the first six years and attracting 75 new bioscience...

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Whitehead scientists identify major flaw in standard approach to global gene expression analysis

The assumption in traditional genetic expression analysis that mRNA content is similar between cells (represented by orange and black dots) does not affect the final results when the cells in fact do have equivalent mRNA content, as in Figure A.  In Figure B, the cell represented by the orange dots has a significantly higher mRNA content, but when the data is normalized with the assumption that their contents are equal, the perceived response is skewed and inaccurately indicates that some of the genes are repressed (green bars).  Using a standardized control, as in Figure C, eliminates the assumptions about mRNA content and presents accurate results. Whitehead Institute researchers report that common assumptions employed in the generation and interpretation of data from global gene expression analyses can lead to seriously flawed conclusions about gene activity...

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A new glow for electron microscopy

In this electron microscope image of a mitochondrion, the matrix has been stained with APEX, making it appear dark. The lighter projections into the matrix represent the intermembrane space. Image: Tom Deerinck and Jeff Martell The glowing green molecule known as green fluorescent protein (GFP) has revolutionized molecular biology. When GFP is attached to a particular protein inside a cell, scientists can easily identify and locate it using fluorescence microscopy. However, GFP can’t be used with electron microscopy, which offers much higher resolution than fluorescence microscopy. Chemists from MIT have now designed a GFP equivalent for electron microscopy — a tag that allows scientists to label and visualize proteins with unprecedented clarity. “With things that may appear only a few pixels...

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National Agri - Food Biotechnology Institute

Opportunity for research trainees are available at NABI, Mohali for 6 months starting from January to June 2013. The area of research training would be related to plant molecular biology, plant biotechnology, bioinformatics, nutrition biotechnology, and food biotechnology. Apart from lab works, each trainee has to involve in research field works and plant growth chambers for growing and testing research materials. i) Eligibility : Pursuing M.Sc./M.Tech. ii) Duration of training : 6 months (January to June 2013) iii) Subject category for training :                                                      A. Plant molecular biology                                                     ...

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Inernship in National Institute of Plant Genome Research

Applications are invited from suitable candidates for six months "Training Fellowship" in Bioinformatics under the BTISNET program of DBT in the Distributed Information Sub Center (DISC) facility at NIPGR, New Delhi, under the supervision of Dr. Gitanjali Yadav, Scientist, NIPGR. Essential Qualification: Students currently pursuing the final year of Masters Degree (or equivalent) in Bioinformatics/Biotechnology with strong interest in Computational Biology and First class/division throughout academic career may apply. Desirable Qualification: Proficiency in Coding Algorithms and Bioinformatics Applications, evidenced by short trainings or computing courses. Application Deadline:October 27, 2012 Eligible candidates may apply by sending hard copy/E-mail of complete application together with the attested copies of qualifying certificates, in the given format along with a letter...

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Scientists Pinpoint Key Player in Parkinson's Disease Neuron Loss

By reprogramming skin cells from Parkinson's disease patients with a known genetic mutation, researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have identified damage to neural stem cells as a powerful player in the disease. The findings, reported online October 17th in Nature, may lead to new ways to diagnose and treat the disease. The scientists found that a common mutation to a gene that produce the enzyme LRRK2, which is responsible for both familial and sporadic cases of Parkinson's disease, deforms the membrane surrounding the nucleus of a neural stem cell. Damaging the nuclear architecture leads to destruction of these powerful cells, as well as their decreased ability to spawn functional neurons, such as the ones that respond to dopamine. The researchers checked their laboratory findings with brain samples from Parkinson's disease patients and found the same nuclear...

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No Antibodies, No Problem

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health have determined a new mechanism by which the mosquitoes’ immune system can respond with specificity to infections with various pathogens, including the parasite that causes malaria in humans, using one single gene. Unlike humans and other animals, insects do not make antibodies to target specific infections. According to the Johns Hopkins researchers, mosquitoes use a mechanism known as alternative splicing to arrange different combinations of binding domains, encoded by the same AgDscam gene, into protein repertoires that are specific for different invading pathogens. The researchers’ findings were published October 18 in the journal Cell Host & Microbe and could lead to new ways to prevent the spread of a variety of mosquito born illnesses. Mosquitoes and other insects use their primitive innate immune systems to successfully fight infections with a broad spectrum of viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites, despite the lack of antibodies that are part of the more sophisticated human immune system. The effectiveness of the human immune system is to a large degree based on the ability to produce an enormous variety of antibodies containing different immunoglobulin domains that can specifically tag and label a pathogen for destruction. This great variety of pathogen-binding antibodies is achieved by combining different immunoglobulin gene segments and further mutate them through mechanisms called somatic recombination and hypermutation. While mosquitoes also have genes encoding immunoglobulin domains, they lack these specific mechanisms to achieve pathogen recognition diversity. The...

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Caltech Modeling Feat Sheds Light on Protein Channel's Function

Chemists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have managed, for the first time, to simulate the biological function of a channel called the Sec translocon, which allows specific proteins to pass through membranes. The feat required bridging timescales from the realm of nanoseconds all the way up to full minutes, exceeding the scope of earlier simulation efforts by more than six orders of magnitude. The result is a detailed molecular understanding of how the translocon works. The ribosome (red-blue) in complex with the translocon channel (green) which is embedded in the cell membrane (yellow, white). Proteins that are inserted via the ribosome into the channel can either be laterally integrated into the cell membrane or secreted across the cell membrane (inset). Modeling behavior across very different timescales is a major challenge in modern simulation research....

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Eco-friendly Optics: Spider Silk’s Hidden Talents Brought to Light for Applications in Biosensors, Lasers, Microchips

Spiders use their silk to catch lunch. Now physicists are using it to catch light. New research shows that natural silk could be an eco-friendly alternative to more traditional ways of manipulating light, such as through glass or plastic fiber optic cables. Two teams independently exploring possible applications for the material’s photonic talents will present their latest breakthroughs at the Optical Society's (OSA) Annual Meeting, Frontiers in Optics (FiO) 2012, to be held next week in Rochester, N.Y. A close-up view of a silk fiber taken with scanning electron microscope. Image courtesy of Nolwenn Huby. Biomedical engineer Fiorenzo Omenetto of Tufts University in Boston will discuss his group’s work fabricating concoctions of proteins that make use of silk’s optical properties for implantable sensors and other biology-technology interfaces. Physicist Nolwenn Huby at the...

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University of Washington researchers focus on quorum sensing to better understand bacteria

The relatively new field in microbiology that focuses on quorum sensing has been making strides in understanding how bacteria communicate and cooperate. Quorum sensing describes the bacterial communication between cells that allows them to recognize and react to the size of their surrounding cell population. While a cell's output of extracellular products, or "public goods," is dependent on the size of its surrounding population, scientists have discovered that quorum sensing, a type of bacterial communication, controls when cells release these public goods into their environments. In a study appearing in the Oct. 12 issue of the journal Science, University of Washington researchers examine the pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which colonizes in the lungs of cystic fibrosis patients. While most cells "cooperate" with each other by producing and sharing public goods when...

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DAAD Research Internships in Science and Engineering (RISE)

Researchers engaged in the fields of Science and Engineering can receive assistance in their research projects from German interns having academic training in the fields of biology, chemistry, physics, earth science, engineering, or a closely related field Target GroupIn India: Research groups, professors, postdoctoral and PhD students employed by or affiliated with an accredited academic institution or a non-profit research institution in India. Duration6 weeks up to 3 months; between June and October 2013  Requirements and Conditions Researchers, research groups, professors, PhD and postdoctoral students to ensure scientific and academic supervision of the as-signed German intern. In addition, to provide support in local administrative matters, finding accommodation and if possible, suggesting recreational activities. Application ProcedureThe application submission process is...

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DAAD :Working Internships in Science and Engineering (WISE)

Golden opportunity for a 2-3 months internship at institutions of higher education and research institutes in Germany with German doctoral students, scientists or professors as part of on-going research projects Target group Students pursuing Bachelor degree/ Dual degree/ Integrated programmes in subjects like engineering, mathematics, natural sciences etc.from selected Indian Universities (list of institutions ) Duration  Duration of 2 up to 3 months, but not exceeding 90 days Scholarship Value A monthly financial assistance of Euro 650 * contributing to subsidies living expenses. A lump sum travel subsidy of Euro 550. Compulsory health insurance covered by DAAD.  Requirements and Conditions Indian students:                     pursuing full time Bachelor degree programme at one of the        ...

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Khorana Program for Scholars

University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW), the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Govt. of India and Indo-US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF) are partnering to support the prestigious Khorana Program for Scholars named in honor of Dr. Har Gobind Khorana, who won the Noble Prize in 1968 for his work at the interface of Chemistry and Biology while a member of the UW faculty. The Khorana Program will provide opportunities to Indian students to undertake research at University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW) and partner universities in Summer 2013 for a period of 10 weeks. The Khorana Program is envisaged to Provide encouragement to young scholars to undertake R&D Enable students to carry out research at a premier University in the United States Transform research into societal benefits Build a seamless scientific community between India and the United States B.Tech, M.Tech and M.Sc....

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