Author Archives: martinlee

The ABC’s of Transport Proteins and Plants

How much do plants interest you?

For Dr. Mathias Schuetz, plants have been an interest of his ever since he can remember. This may have stemmed from the fact that he grew up in the countryside, surrounded by them!

– Above is a picture of Dr. M. Schuetz,
– via ellislab.

Dr. Schuetz took plant science as a minor and worked in a reforestation agency during his undergraduate years. One day, a faculty member from Simon Fraser University, who was a plant biologist, came to him and asked:

“Hey, why don’t you work in my lab?”

From this brief exchange of words, he is currently a plant molecular biologist at University of British Columbia.

In his recent research, due to the lack of previous research, he focuses on finding the genes of proteins that are involved in transporting lignin, a chemical compount that acts as a “glue” in plants. He used the model organism, Arabidopsis thaliana, for his research.

– Above is a picture of the model plant, Arabidopsis thaliana, used in this study.
– via Wikimedia

To study the biological process of lignification, Dr. Schuetz ordered Arabidopsis seeds that contain a change in the genes that he was going to study and grew them. Five genes in Arabidopsis were selected to be further studied because plants that had the change in the genes were falling over or could not transport water.

The following video clip showcases important biological processes in plants that the research investigated, such as ligninfication and auxin transport:

YouTube Preview Image

Even though three of the genes were actually auxin transport proteins, this study gave us insight into the physiology of plants, which can lead to a better understanding of cancer. Therefore, we need to put more effort into studying these transport proteins since this branch of proteins (ABC transport proteins) were first identified and characterized in tumor cells, which has resistance to chemotherapy drugs.

Check out our audio about how plants are important and how this study would also improve the pulp and biofuel industry:

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(Here is a file for the credits of the podcast:Podcast citation group)

DARPA Foam – A Foam That Can Save Lives!

“OH GOD! THERE SO MUCH BLOOD! HE’S GOING TO DIE!”

Internal bleeding. This type of injury is one of the most troublesome injuries due to a limited time frame a person has before they are treated.  However, thanks to advancement in medical science, the Defence Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) has launched its Wound Stasis System to develop the, “DARPA foam“.

The “DARPA foam” is a special injectable polymer foam that slows internal bleeding in the abdominal area of the body by having the foam mould around the internal organs to slow the bleeding long enough to have the patient seek professional medical treatment.

– The image above shows how the DARPA foam is inserted into the abdominal cavity, and how it moulds around nearby internal organs
– Images by Dennis Sinyakov, via technologyreview

Above, the video shows how the foam works. (Username: DARPAtv)

The foam works by first injecting it in the abdominal cavity in its two liquid phases. As the liquids mix, it will form two chemical reactions. The first reaction will make the foam expand thirty times its original volume and surround nearby internal organs while conforming to the surfaces of injured tissues. The second reaction will then harden the foam so that blood flow will be restricted, and will slow down blood loss. After the foam has been properly formed, the next step would be in removing it, which based on previous tests, is remarkably easy. Surgeons were able to remove the hard foam from their patients in less than a minute.

Soldiers and Medicine

– U.S. Soldiers preparing medical supplies.
– Image by Dennis Sinyakov, via technologyreview

This new life saving technology that can reduce blood loss by six-fold and increase the life expectancy of a patient to three hours post-injury, should be given full support from everyone within the medical field. Even though this technology was originally developed for military use, hopefully after more tests and more positive results, this technology can one day be found in every ambulances in the world.

– Martin Lee