Tag Archives: science

Sugar Craze – Is Artificial Bad?

Posted on November 20, 2017 by | 1 comment

Everyone likes a little sweet in their life, whether it’s that extra chocolate chip cookie, or adding a teaspoon of sugar to your morning coffee.

Figure 1. Coffee with a sugar cube being added to it. (Image source)

Because sugar can have many adverse effects on health, artificial sweeteners have been used instead to provide the same sweet taste. These include Sweet n Low, Splenda, and Equal just to name a few. However, even though these alternatives provide a low calorie substitution, there has been a lot of controversy to whether or not they are actually better for your health.

Figure 2. Artificial sweetener packets, including Splenda and Equal. (Image source)

Sugar can cause many different problems when eaten at a high level, including; type 2 diabetes, obesity, inflammation, heart disease and even cancer.

The first artificial sweetener, saccharin, was discovered in 1879 when a chemist discovered that his food tasted sweeter after work and went on to taste all the chemicals he was using in his lab. After that, more artificial sweeteners have been found and have been targeted towards diabetics, and those wanting to lose weight.

The FDA is the organization that approves foods and drugs with the responsibility of protecting the public health. There are currently eight approved artificial sweeteners in the United States. These eight approved sugars have all been deemed safe by the FDA as long as they are used in moderation.

So why do so many people rebel against the idea of ingesting anything artificially manufactured?

The media plays a big part in this. There were several false animal studies done on rats that linked artificial sweeteners to cancer. While the FDA states that these were poorly executed experiments and that they provided false conclusions, the public still has a hard time getting this information.

Figure 3. Two laboratory rats. (Image source)

In 1980, after a study falsely connected aspartame with brain cancer, there was a wide media outbreak that ended with FDA banning aspartame. However, once more research was done, the FDA quickly lifted their ban in 1981. The FDA continues to state that aspartame is safe to consume at acceptable levels. Yet, even with this research available, many people still believe that aspartame is to blame for many adverse symptoms.

Why?

Research is currently hard to understand at a public level, and the truth can be difficult to find as people can form an accidental bias when reporting.

To help the public truly understand these controversies, there has to be a way in the future to allow the public better access to these scientific discoveries. Making science more accessible will benefit society as a whole as more individuals will be able to form their own opinions.

For now though, it is safe to say that you can fill your sweet tooth craving with an artificial sweetener instead.

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Indestructible Water Bears

Posted on November 19, 2017 by | 1 comment

Water Bears. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

Tardigrades, also known as water bears, are microscopic animals that have intrigued scientists for many years. What about them is so captivating? The fact that they are nearly indestructible.

Water bears have been treated to extreme environments, and against all odds, their survival has been astounding. They can survive temperatures ranging from -328 – 300 degrees Fahrenheit, pressures of up to 6000 times our atmosphere, and even…10 days in space!

The question though, is how do they do it?

Theories have gone as far as to suggest that the reason water bears can survive these extremes, is that they came from other planets. Personally, this idea seems impossible, but could it hold a glimmer of truth?

Scientists conducted further research and found a reason for their survival. The reason is anhydrobiosis. Anhydrobiosis is a dormant state where an organism reduces their metabolic activity significantly and becomes almost completely dehydrated. As it turns out, water bears in extreme environments tend to curl up into a dehydrated ball called a tun. In this form, water bears can survive for decades or longer.

If most living organisms were to enter this state of desiccation, they would not be able to come back from it, but water bears can. According to Thomas Boothby, a Life Sciences Research Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of North Carolina:

“[T]ardigrades have evolved unique genes that allow them to survive drying out. In addition, the proteins that these genes encode can be used to protect other biological material—like bacteria, yeast, and certain enzymes—from desiccation.”

Water bears seem like very interesting creature to study, and it makes sense for scientists to be captivated by their incredible survival rates in extreme conditions. More intensive research on these water bears could lead to amazing discoveries in the future.

~ Sajni Shah

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Method of the Year: Cryo-electron Microscopy

Posted on November 14, 2017 by | Leave a comment
Cr to Nicolae Sfetcu

High Resolution of Detailed Structures (Credits to Nicolae Sfetcu)

About one month ago, Jacques Dubochet, Joachim Frank and Richard Henderson awarded the Nobel Price in Chemistry 2017 for developing the cryo-electron microscopy. The National Institutes of Health named cryo-electron microscopy ‘method of the year’. Cryo-electron microscopy can image frozen-hydrated specimens in native state without dyes at low temperatures through electron microscopy. Using this technology, scientists have produced three-dimensional images to target cancer drugs and demystify the Zika virus.

Cancer drug target visualized at atomic resolution (credits to NIH Image Gallery)

Actually, the development of cryo-electron microscopy has a long history. Previously, scientists used cumbersome dyes, stains or labels to visualize cell function, which would change the behaviour of the cell function and only provide a coarse two-dimensional image. This made scientists hard to understand molecular biology clearly since how the components in the cells looked like and what functions they performed remained unknown.

However, from 1975 to 1986, Joachim Frank stitched two-dimensional micrographs together to yield a sharp three-dimensional image. In 1990, Richard Henderson used this principle to visualize a protein in three-dimensional down to atoms with an electron microscope. In the early 1980s, Jacques Dubochet discovered that water would form a solid shell without freezing by rapidly cooling a specimen before putting it in an electron microscope, which could keep biological structures in original shape during scanning. They produced the desired atomic resolution in 2013. And researchers can now routinely produce three-dimensional structures of biomolecules.

Combining these theories, scientists could take biologically-accurate snapshots of the tiniest units of life. This technology helps scientists understand diseases better and develop better drugs. For instance, scientists found unique parts of the pathogen’s structure in the Zika virus and identified a potential target for a vaccine.

Improving resolution by cryo-EM (credits to NIH Image Gallery)

Engineers have developed better hardware to help improve cryo-electron microscopy by visualizing detailed structures instead of shapeless blobs. Scientists claim that the limited physical knowledge confines the resolution bt they will obtain better visualizations of biological structures in the coming year.

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MSG – Is it Really a Silent Killer?

Posted on October 30, 2017 by | 1 comment

By now everyone has heard of the controversial debate surrounding MSG – whether or not is it harmful to eat. Without all the information easy to find on the internet, it can be difficult to truly answer this question.

 

Figure 1. Monosodium glutamate (MSG) shown in chemical form. (Image Source)

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is the salt version of an amino acid. Amino acids are molecules in your body that bond together to create proteins. They are also known as the building blocks of life.

 

 

Why does MSG taste so good? It uses the fifth taste sense called umani. The amino acid section of MSG is detected by this taste bud, and tricks your mind into thinking the food tastes heartier and more savory. Because of this, MSG is used as a food additive in many restaurants, most commonly in Chinese food.

Figure 2. A Chinese restaurant, typically associated with the use of MSG. (Image Source)

MSG was thought to create short term symptoms when eaten such as heart palpitations, general weakness, and numbness around the face and neck. These symptoms were previously known as “Chinese Restaurant Syndrome”, because the symptoms generally arose after eating in Chinese restaurants, places known to use this additive. Restaurants were told to promote that they did not use MSG, and the public were encouraged by the media to avoid it.

 

However, most studies done have reported no correlation between the symptoms and the use of MSG. Experiments on both humans and monkeys showed that when given MSG or not, the two groups would still experience the same symptoms on average. The only case where some individuals would respond badly, was when they were fed three grams of MSG or more with no food (an average person would only consume 0.55 grams of added MSG in a day in real life). Because of the unlikeliness of this situation, it wasn’t seen to prove any of the negative correlations.

Figure 3. Caption of a Chinese Restaurant stating no MSG is added. (Image Source)

Even the FDA, while approving the need to label food if it contains MSG, state that it is “generally recognized as safe”.  There is no direct evidence yet for a link between MSG and the negative symptoms it has been associated with.

So, why then do so many people believe that it is bad? This is because the media controls a large portion of the general public’s knowledge. We need to find new ways to form a connection between the public and science, to give people unbiased knowledge of new research. With this connection and availability of information, the public would be able to understand both views of the controversy and form their own opinions.

Author: Thryn Irwin

 

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Zika Virus…a Cure for Brain Cancer?

Posted on October 30, 2017 by | 2 comments

 

A summary of ZIKV Photo from: Google Images

ZIKV is a virus that is spread by daytime-active Aedes mosquitoes. The infection mostly causes very mild symptoms similar to Dengue Fever. Babies in the womb can have slightly more adverse effects such as brain malformations and birth defects. Researchers studied how ZIKV was causing these problems for babies. One main concern that arose was that ZIKV was causing the death of stem cells which are in high abundance in babies.

Recently experts have been studying how to use ZIKV to treat brain cancer, specifically glioblastoma. Glioblastoma is a type of brain cancer that is very common in adults and can grow and spread quickly. Due to its rapid growth, glioblastoma is tricky to treat and the common treatments, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and surgery, are unable to fully remove it.

Taking the knowledge that ZIKV targets stem cells in babies, researchers investigated whether or not ZIKV would target cancer cells in adults as they have relatively few stem cells. An article published in The Journal of Experimental Science reports the findings of this experiment. In living mice and donated human brain tissue samples, ZIKV was seen to kill the cancer cells. This is a huge step forward in the research.

Human trials are still some way away but so far the results look promising. The next step before human trials is to try and modify the virus to make a tamer version with the same effect on the cancer cells. This ensures that patients will be safe from other symptoms when treated.

For a general summary of the research conducted, the following YouTube video is informative:

YouTube Preview Image

Although the research is still in its early stages, I feel that it could have a lot of potential once human trials begin. This could lead to a treatment for cancer that is more effective than what we have today.

~ Sajni Shah

References:

1) Zhe Zhu, Matthew J. Gorman, et al. “Zika virus has oncolytic activity against glioblastoma stem cells.”  Journal of Experimental Medicine Oct 2017, 214 (10) 2843-2857.

2) Roberts, Michelle. “Zika virus used to treat aggressive brain cancer.” BBC News, BBC, 5 Sept. 2017, www.bbc.com/news/health-41146628.

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If you feel stressed by school: drink coffee!

Posted on October 29, 2017 by | 4 comments

Source: Flickr

As a student, getting close to the end of the semester can be quite stressful. Assignment deadlines and exams are building up in all the courses so you get overwhelmed and feel extra tired all the time. Then, this stress evolves into anxiety and feeling so down that the motivation to get good grades is lost. You reach a point just want to get over with the semester alive. Does this sound familiar? I bet you’ve felt like this at least once in your life, I know I have! Well, an easy solution to help you feel better is drinking coffee. I know, we usually think of coffee only as a source to keep us awake. Even some of us might have grown up with the idea that drinking coffee is bad for your health, but turns out it is actually beneficial to our mental health.

Coffee has been shown to help decrease depression and stress by boosting your mood and sense of well being. Consuming coffee, inhibits the adenosine hormone in the brain, which is the one responsible for making you feel sleepy and down. This inhibition leads to a state of alertness and it is related to increased dopamine, which is a stimulant in the brain that is responsible for making you feel good. Moreover, that feeling of enhanced alertness is what helps to keep us awake and feel more energized. This also has been proven to increase memory, attention spam and cognitive functions. Drinking coffee can improve our mood and feel help us feel more energized, thus, it reduces stress which helps us be more productive to excel in our courses.

However, everything in excess is bad for your health. Taking excessive amounts of coffee can be detrimental to your well-being. Caffeine is considered a drug, meaning that we can create an addiction to it and if not taken in moderation. If this happens, a day without coffee can actually make us feel worse by producing withdrawal symptoms, which ultimately makes us feel more stressed. Essentially your body gets used to the benefits coffee gives you and stops moderating these hormones naturally since caffeine does it for our organism instead. To avoid this, parameters of the amount of caffeine that can be safely consumed daily have been stablished. For healthy adults the recommended amount is no more than 400g of caffeine per day, which is about 240 ml or three 8oz cups of coffee per day.

As we know, student life can be very stressful and so we need to take care of our mental health if we want to be productive, have good grades, and be happy. Drinking coffee can help make us feel better and also keep us energized and focused in school. But, as everything in life, moderation is key to get all the benefits and avoid the disadvantages.

Andrea Olaizola.

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Moving Toward to Evolution’s Frontier

Posted on October 2, 2017 by | Leave a comment

The current frontier in evolutionary genetics involves discovering how the evolution of new gene function is correlated with animal form diversification. A gene is a section of DNA in an organism that tells the organism what to produce to be able to look and act the way it does.

Understanding how species form throughout evolution can allow us to predict how our world will change in the future. A new technique has been developed that allows scientists to look specifically at genes, helping to broaden our knowledge.

Dna

Figure 1. A section of DNA which contains multiple forms of genes. The CRISPR/cas9 technology will make specific cuts in the DNA to remove individual genes. (Image Source)

The new CRISPR/cas9 method uses a nuclease, an enzyme that can cut DNA, and a synthetic guide RNA, a molecule that specifically binds to DNA. Precise cuts can be made in the genome that allow a particular gene to be deleted, effectively terminating that genes phenotypic expression (what can be observed).

This new technology was a scientific breakthrough that caught a lot of media attention when initially published. There is currently a moral dispute in the media due to the potential of modifying human babies with this technique. Being able to effectively communicate the new advances with this technology is necessary to get grant money to continue the research, and to show its importance to the public.

Recently, there have been several breakthroughs at Cornell University looking at the optix gene in butterflies, a master gene for wing pattern adaptation. The scientists discovered that the gene has different pigmentation and structural colouration functions, depending on the butterfly species.

Zhang et al. stated than until now the developmental function of the optix gene was unclear. By using the new CRISPR/cas9 method, they were able to observe species with this gene turned off. This gave the researchers a clear analysis on how the wings were directly affected by optix.

Figure 2. The Buckeye butterfly with the optix gene still intact. Without it , its wings will turn an iridescent blue. (Image Source)

Zhang et al. found that different species of butterflies had different reactions when the optix gene was turned off. The Junonia genus, including butterflies commonly known as Buckeyes, had their normal orange-brown wings turn iridescent blue when the optix gene was deleted.

Figure 3. The Gulf Fritillary butterfly with the optix gene intact. Without the optix gene, it will undergo melanization which turns its wings black and grey. (Image Source)

 

However, other species of butterflies, like the Gulf fritillary (A. vanillae), had melanin replace their normal pigments, which then produced black and grey colours.

 

 

 

Seeing how this master gene is conserved in butterflies allows scientists to make increasingly accurate predictions of past evolutionary change. They have stepped toward understanding how DNA specifies 3D structure by first looking at a manageable 2D gene form. In the future, Dr. Reed, one of the other scientists on the team, wishes to recreate butterfly wing pattern in different distinctive species.

This deep understanding of the optix gene will provide further knowledge into the evolution of butterfly wing colour adaptation. By understanding more about butterfly evolution, we can better understand evolution as a whole. Each step towards new knowledge provides a better basis for predicting future changes in genetics.

Author: Thryn Irwin

 

 

 

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A Glass of Wine a Day Keeps the Doctor Away?

Posted on September 30, 2017 by | 2 comments

Picture from Google Images

Since the 1990’s scientists have wondered whether red wine has any potential health benefits for the average consumer. Studies have shown that a polyphenol known as resveratrol in the wine does help to reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, in particular atherosclerosis.

How did scientists know in the first place that red wine could potentially help? It all has to do with the French Paradox. The French paradox looks at how the French have a lower risk of cardiovascular diseases despite consuming a diet that consists mainly of fats. What’s the main difference in these diets from others around the world? They drink a lot of wine.

Studies looking into red wine discovered a polyphenol known as resveratrol. Resveratrol comes from the grapes that make the wine. It was noticed due to its anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Scientists believed that this may have something to do with the health benefits of the wine.

Resveratrol was first tested on mice models by feeding them resveratrol supplements and in the end it showed a decrease in the risk of cardiovascular diseases, specifically atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis is when the arteries harden and narrow making it difficult for blood to flow through the body. The question scientists then wondered was how exactly did resveratrol help with this?

Some ways resveratrol helped is by increasing the amount of high density lipoprotein cholesterol, also known as the ‘good’ cholesterol in our body as well as decreasing platelet aggregation. This coupled with its antioxidant abilities made resveratrol a very helpful polyphenol in red wine.

Benefits of Red Wine (From :Saleem, T. S. M. & Basha, S. D. (2010). Red wine: A drink to your heart. J Cardiovasc Dis Res., 1(4), 171-176.)

The research was more recently extended to human trials and similar results were found as was with the mice. However, to this day doctors are hesitant to encourage patients to drink as the consequences from drinking alcohol are too high for the benefits of resveratrol. Non-alcoholic red wine is available with all the benefits of the polyphenol without the worry of the alcohol.

The idea that red wine can help with our health is interesting, however I believe that the risk of alcohol is too great. You can never be sure how much wine is too much and it varies from person to person. To be on the safe side I would recommend other forms of resveratrol supplements other than red wine to help with any cardiovascular problems. However, it is great to know that drinking red wine isn’t all that bad. Thus in conclusion, the polyphenol resveratrol does help to reduce our risk of cardiovascular diseases, so a glass of wine a day, does keep the doctor away!

~Sajni Shah

 

References:

Chiva-Blanch, G., Arranz, S., Lamuela-Raventos, R. M., & Estruch, R. (2013). Effects of Wine, Alcohol and Polyphenols on Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors: Evidences from Human Studies. Alcohol and Alcoholism, 48(3), 270-277.

Gilford, J. M., & Pezutto, J. M. (2011). Wine and Health: A Review. American Journal of Enology and Viticulture, 62(4), 471-486.

O’Keefe, J. H., Bhatti, S. K., Bajwa, A., Dinicolantonio, J. J., & Lavie, C. J. (2014). Alcohol and Cardiovascular Health: The Dose Makes the Poison…or the Remedy. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 89(3), 382-393.

Smoliga, J. M., Baur, J. A., & Hausenblas, H. A. (2011). Resveratrol and health – A comprehensive review of human clinical trials. Molecular Nutrition & Food Research Mol. Nutr. Food Res., 55(8), 1129-1141.

Saleem, T. S. M. & Basha, S. D. (2010). Red wine: A drink to your heart. J Cardiovasc Dis Res., 1(4), 171-176.

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Extragalactic Attack: Key to the Universe?

Posted on September 25, 2017 by | Leave a comment
Radiation from cosmic rays could severely damage the brains of astronauts.

Radiation from cosmic rays could cause severe brain damage, according to a study on Mars astronauts. Photo Credits: Diana Quach

Cosmic radiation has been linked to Alzheimer’s disease, premature aging, and dementia in astronauts because it damages neurons in the brain. This is extremely concerning for anyone who wants to understand life beyond earth; sending astronauts for long space missions could destroy their lives! For decades, scientists have attempted to combat the impact of intergalactic cosmic radiation on Mars. On September 22nd, a new discovery changed everything.

Scientists recently discovered extragalactic high-energy cosmic rays, which are radiative fragments of atoms that cascade into earth at the speed of light. Scientists previously hypothesized that cosmic rays exist outside our galaxy, but were unable to prove it until now. The Pierre Auger Observatory’s particle detectors revealed that these rare cosmic rays are a million times more powerful than the largest cosmic phenomena in our galaxy. These findings were published in the journal Science as a research article titled Observation of a large-scale anisotropy in the arrival directions of cosmic rays above 8x10e18 eV.

Evidence shows that cosmic rays with large energies originate beyond our galaxy, shown through a flux diagram.

This map of the sky shows the cosmic ray flux, with a cross marking the specific region where scientists observed a pattern of cosmic rays. Photo Credits: The Pierre Auger Collaboration.

The Pierre Auger Collaboration is certain that these high-energy cosmic rays originate outside our galaxy. Although cosmic rays are emitted by the Milky Way, the intergalactic particles cannot contain as much energy as the rays detected.

The blue lines represent magnetic field lines in a black hole that project an extragalactic jet, similar to our galaxy’s magnetic field. Photo Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Extragalactic cosmic rays could contribute to the radiation damage to astronauts since they are so high in energy. Previously, scientists have considered many intergalactic cosmic radiation because there was no proof that extragalactic rays existed. If the cosmic rays’ origin could be found, scientists could isolate particles inside the rays to study their properties.

Unfortunately, it is difficult to locate the source of cosmic rays because they are anisotropic. Their properties changed when they encountered our galaxy’s magnetic field, which made determining the cosmic rays’ extragalactic properties impossible.

In the movie The Martian, the stranded Mark Watney wears a fashionable suit. Photo credits: Aidan Monaghan

So what does all of this mean? If we could source and isolate extragalactic cosmic rays, we could study how radiation damage affects the brain. We could create astronaut suits from materials that would deflect cosmic radiation, so astronauts can spend time on Mars without compromising their health. The groundbreaking discovery of extragalactic cosmic rays takes us one step closer to understanding the universe.

Jessica Shi

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Discovering Life on Extra-Solar Planets

Posted on September 18, 2017 by | Leave a comment

Imagine if Earths’ oceans were to suddenly rise at exponential rates and all land masses be covered in water, as depicted in the 2009 movie 2012. Where would we go to live the rest of our lives? One option is finding other extra-solar planets that could support life.

Researches from various background at different institutions around the world purpose a mission called Darwin to essentially search for like on other extra-solar planets. As the mission has not been carried out yet, there are not results to report. However, they plan on characterizing terrestrial extrasolar planets in terms of plants similar to earths rocky terrain at mid-inferred wavelengths. Darwin is a five-year mission, purposed in 2009, however this paper does not state a start date. This research will help discover other plants that can possibly host human life which I believe will be helpful if a disaster is to occur on Earth.

Extra-solar planets. Image by ESA/Hubble

So far this is only a purposed mission therefore there have not been any findings or results.

The plan is to carry out Darwin in two phases. The first phase, lasting about two years, will be to search for plants capable of supporting humans through spectral characterization. The second phase, lasting about three years, will be acquiring spectral data of each detected planet. Analytical chemistry techniques will be used to search for gasses such as CO2, H2O, CH4 and O3 and determine if the quantities are similar to those on earth at this moment. If quantities are similar, then this will be a major breakthrough.

Chemical Analysis. Source: Wikimedia Commons 

Although there has already been demonstrations of the technology needed for Darwin, the main goal of the mission is to successfully discover a plant that can maintain human life. The researchers hope that Darwin will address the question of “humankind’s origin, and its place in the Universe”.

-Harjot Gill

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