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英文写作之葵花宝典一部

niuhuifei — Mon, 10 May 2010 05:16:04 +0000

Asserting that one must first know the rules to break them

如果你已经理解了这句话，证明你已经练过此宝典。预读此宝典，不必自残。英文的写作，就是将26个字母进行符合规则的排列组合而已。获取宝典：英文写作葵花宝典

玉米基因组测序完成

niuhuifei — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 12:50:32 +0000

基因组时代一个个生物的基因组序列被测序完成。这次是玉米，大家很熟悉的食物，同时也是未来生物能源的重要原材料之一。作为人类社会的关键农作物之一，玉米长期以来都是人类生存的基本食物来源和主要的动物饲料原料。除此之外，从面包到软饮料，从鞋油到牙膏，众多生活必需品的加工都少不了玉米做原料。近年来，利用玉米制取乙醇燃料，更是成为新能源开发的一大趋势。乙醇需求连年激增，也迫切需要提高玉米种植面积和单位产量

玉米基因组测序完成有几个特点：1. 碱基数量多，20亿个左右的碱基对。相比之下，水稻基因组的规模要小得多，仅有大约4.3亿个碱基对; 2. 玉米基因组中85%的碱基序列是重复的，在玉米的27个自交系中出现了数百万个基因变异。3. 历时比较长。这项玉米全基因组测序项目始于2005年，美国国家科学基金会、农业部、能源部为这个项目提供了2950万美元的经费。4. 参加单位也不少。美国爱荷华州立大学（Iowa State University），冷泉港实验室，印度理工学院（Indian Institute of Technology）等。

这些都是专业的，让我们看看凡人看得懂的意义：这些成果会引导人们对植物遗传学以及栽培在环保上具有可持续性或对某些环境更为适合的作物的重大进展上提供新的见解。

更多见Science、PLOS Genetics等。

甲流感（AH1N1）最近变得异常凶猛起来

niuhuifei — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:00:13 +0000

美国医学会杂志JAMA最新一期报道称，相比大多数观念认为甲流感（AH1N1）较为温和的感染性，最近对California的甲流感患者调查显示，重症和致死可以出现在任何年龄阶段的人群（先前认为老人孩子可能较安全？），且约30%重症患者严重到需要专人护理。

当初世卫组织的预言和警告没有错，这个秋冬，甲流会来的更加的猛烈些。问题在于，当甲流凶猛的时候，我们该怎么办？

打甲流疫苗

真正的疫苗，至少还没有免费打到我这里来，原因可能在于我非老不少，同时也不属于关键公众服务群体。也许，当疫苗可以真正到我这里来时，甲流已经夹着尾巴逃跑了。当然，疫苗有效吗？毫无疑问，甲流疫苗的安全性是有保证的，有效性和不良反应却难以真正的定论，毕竟还在初期。

带口罩，勤洗手，多通风

这个，成了必修功。小孩子可能记得最清楚。但我还是有个疑问？当甲流病毒在空中快速传播时，我们是多通风还是避免在风口呢？瞎想而已。

暴走，跑圈，提升免疫力，以暴制暴

我以为，这个方法在甲流凶猛的日子可能最最有效。最近的新闻热点之一是暴走妈妈，很明显，脂肪肝可以在暴走面前乖乖的低头，何况区区甲流。向暴走妈妈致敬，向甲流挑战。

人类可能的新祖先：Ardipithecus ramidus

niuhuifei — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 16:47:00 +0000

国际著名自然科学期刊《科学》这期报道了关于人类起源可能的新祖先Ardipithecus ramidus的故事。这个新的原始人化石在埃塞俄比亚被发现，距今大约4.4百万年前，通过分析其生活的岩洞和周围的环境表明，Ardipithecus很可能居住生活在林地，而不是草原等其它地方。人们给她取了个昵称叫“Ardi”。相比著名的“Lucy”化石，Ardi要早大约一百万年。

定义人类进化支系（包括我们自己和我们的祖先－原始人）的关键特征之一是直立行走。Ardi通常在地上是直立行走，但也能用四肢爬树。因而，很可能便是人类从四肢形成的猿类到直立行走的原始人类进化过程中最为原始和关键的一个进化环境。达尔文在150年前发表物种起源时对人类的起源是这样描述的：Light will be thrown on the origin of man and his history。也许我们离知道我们怎么来的那一天不远了。

更多请看：科学杂志报道，The huffington post报道，图片来自The huffington post。

Prof Pat Heslop-Harrison and his research group in Leicester university

niuhuifei — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 09:34:38 +0000

Pat Heslop-Harrison and the Molecular Cytogenetics and Plant Cell Biology Group study the biology of the cell nucleus: its spatial and dynamic organisation or architecture, the function and interactions of its components, and the nature, evolution, expression, recombination and segregation of the DNA sequences within the nucleus at interphase, mitosis and meiosis.

They look at repetitive DNA and its evolution, with a particular focus on tandemly repeated satellite sequences and retrotransposons. Key methods include molecular cytogenetics, DNA sequence analysis and systems biology approaches. Taking a comparative genomics approach, they have interlinked projects with a range of different species: a particular focus is on plant crop species (banana, cereals including wheat, rye and barley, brassicas, and cowpea), while important projects include work with Dictyostelium, Drosophila, Scallops (Pecten), and bovids.

Heslop-Harrison now is a professor of Plant Cell Biology and Molecular Cytogenetics, Department of Biology, Faculty of Medicine and Biological Sciences, University of Leicester. Also, he is the Chief Editor of Annals of Botany.

Five reasons why scientific research is cool

niuhuifei — Fri, 29 May 2009 16:09:22 +0000

Daniel Gorelick concluded the five reasons why scientific research is cool, do you agree?

You’re encouraged to find flaws in people’s work and correct them
No dress code – I didn’t know how to tie a proper tie knot before I came to the State Department
Make your own schedule – no 8:30 to 17:15 with a 45 minute requirement for lunch. Many grad students work 12:00 to 20:00.
Constant intellectual stimulation
Cutting edge exploration – make a discovery and you are the first person to know something nobody else knows

Quantitative 3D Video Microscopy of HIV Transfer

niuhuifei — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 13:10:17 +0000

How scientific researches can help us understand the HIV? Nobody can give a complete answer. However, a recent research progress has greatly inspired us to continuously fighting HIV. Quantitative, HIV transfer across T cell virological synapses have been revealed by a high-speed three-dimensional video microscopy. Viral transfer events can now be observed directly.

Based on this study, future vaccine strategies may be focused against unique cell-surfact Env epitopes that block cell-associated infection, and future antiviral drugs may target factors required for synapse formation.

Chung-I Wu came here to address genomics of speciation

niuhuifei — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 11:26:00 +0000

Today, Chung-I Wu, a famous scientist on genetics and genomics, came here to address genomics of speciation.

He is now a director of Beijing institute of genomics and also a professor employed in the department of ecology and evolution, University of Chicago. His main research interest is the evolution and population genetics of speciation and species differentiation, especially at the molecular level.

Plenty of high-level papers, such as those published at Nature, Cell, and so on, have been produced by his lab. Detailed information, please go to his lab homepage.

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Post tags: Chung-I Wu, genomics, scientist, speciation

A disease-linked gene

niuhuifei — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 17:07:06 +0000

A glimpse into the evolutionary history of a gene linked to Crohn’s disease has revealed a bizarre example of just how dynamic genomes can be.

The gene, called Immunity-related GTPase M (IRGM), seems to have been destroyed in the ancestor of Old and New World monkeys millions of years ago, only to be brought back to life again in the common ancestor of humans and great apes when a retrovirus lurking in the genome inserted itself into the gene.

It is probably the first example of a resurrected gene. “It’s like lightning striking twice in the same spot,” says Evan Eichler, a human geneticist at the University of Washington in Seattle.

In most mammals, IRGM is a member of a large family of related genes thought to help eliminate pathogens, such as the bacterium responsible for tuberculosis, that invade host cells and then thrive within them. But in humans and some primates, the family has withered away to only two members, IRGM and IRGC. It is not known how humans survive the loss of so many IRGM genes; mice that lack family members are more vulnerable to infection1.

There is reason to suspect that IRGM may have an important function in humans, however. Researchers have found that some people carry a deletion in front of the IRGM gene that may alter expression of the gene and increase the risk of Crohn’s disease, a painful autoimmune disease of the digestive system.