Researchers decode the spatiotemporal transcriptome atlas of multiple regions of the developing human brain [2023-12-21]
As the most complex organ in humans , the brain is anatomically divided into different regions .These different brain regions have special input-output connections and play various important functions .During the development of the human brain , complex cell types are generated through inherent genetic programs .Considering the rapid expansion of human brain volume during development , this poses a huge challenge for exploring the development of the human brain , especially the study of regional specialization in space ....
|
|
Scientists discover hidden barriers and signs of damage in the aging spinal cord of primates [2023-11-03]
The spinal cord, a vital bridge connecting the brain and peripheral nerves, plays a pivotal role in governing motor functions and coordinating basic life activities of the body, which mainly through a rare and critical group of cells within the spinal cord called motor neurons. ...
|
|
Researchers identify a novel role of RNA m6A modification in maintaining tissue homeostasis during primate aging [2023-04-11]
As the most prevalent chemical modification on eukaryotic mRNAs , N6 - methyladenosine ( m6A ) is dynamically and reversibly regulated by corresponding methyltransferases ( writers ) , binding proteins ( readers ) and demethylases ( erasers ) .Why do we need such sophisticated regulation ? Imagine the cells in our body as a bustling city , with m6A acting as a versatile traffic controller , guiding the flow of information — RNA , for its splicing , transport , stability , translation ....
|
|
Scientists Discover Rare Superfast Muscles in Mouse Legs [2023-02-05]
You might think that only DC Comics superhero The Flash could run at a speed of 200 strides per second. But in the animal world， special muscles—called “superfast muscles”—can move as fast as Barry Allen. ...
|
|
The enemies within: endogenous retroviruses and programmed aging [2023-01-07]
The co-option between viruses and humans plays important roles during human evolution. Endogenous retroviruses (ERVs), belonging to long terminal repeat (LTR) retrotransposons, are a relic of ancient retroviral infection, fixed in the genome during evolution, comprising about 8% of the human genome. As a result of evolutionary pressure, most human ERVs (HERVs) accumulate mutations and deletions. Moreover, these enemies from ancient times are strictly repressed by host mechanisms such as epigenetic regulation. On the other......
|
|
Researchers Engineer A Novel Sustainable Karyotype In Mice [2022-08-26]
Evolutionary chromosomal changes may take a million years in nature, but researchers are now reporting a novel technique enabling programmable chromosome fusion that has successfully produced mice with genetic changes that occur on a million-year evolutionary scale in the laboratory. The result may provide critical insight into how rearrangements of chromosomes – the tidy packages of organized genes, provided in equal number from each parent, which align and trade or blend traits to produce offspring – influence evoluti......
|
|
Old Mice, Young Milieu: Understanding How Aged Stem Cells Are Revitalized for Systemic Rejuvenation [2022-05-30]
Aging is a process of systemic degeneration involving a variety of tissues and organs in the whole body and is characterized by gradual reduction of regenerative ability and functional decline. In trying to understand the aging process, and more importantly, in pursuit to reverse it, scientists have developed a technique called heterochronic parabiosis (HP), which surgically connects the circulatory systems of a young and old animal, thus providing a unique paradigm for evaluating how tissues and organs respond to the opp......
|
|
Increase in Chromatin Entropy Drives Cellular Aging, Say Researchers [2022-05-30]
At the center of every cell, highly organized chromatin encodes the program of life with just one set of genes. This is possible because different genes are activated at different stages of life while remaining silent otherwise. Some genes for previous stage of life are buried deep at the nuclear periphery, while some manage to escape from repression....
|
|
APOE destabilizes heterochromatin and drives senescence [2022-03-29]
Prof. Guang-hui Liu and his colleagues from the Institute of Zoology and the Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, have collaborated to reveal a novel role of APOE in destabilizing heterochromatin and driving senescence in human stem cells, which was published in Nature Aging on March 28th, 2022....
|
|
Researchers reveal a new role of circadian protein BMAL1 in antagonizing aging in primates [2022-03-16]
Circadian rhythms regulate sleep-wake cycles, metabolism, immune function, and reproduction in mammals. These processes are coordinated by the circadian clock, a biochemical oscillator that integrates physiological input signals with distinct oscillatory phases to regulate rhythms in organismal physiology, behavior, and metabolism. Accumulating evidence indicates that aging in mammals is intricately linked with alterations in circadian rhythms. However, whether and how the circadian machinery directly regulates stem cell ......
|
|
