Category Archives: Uncategorized

What does “1 in 3” mean to you?

Posted on April 3, 2013 by seanmac | Leave a comment

With over 9 million Canadians living with diabetes, “1 in 3” could mean a friend, a sibling or a parent…

Why take note?

The likelihood of developing diabetes is greater than being in a fatal motor vehicle accident (1 in 81), it’s greater than perishing in an earthquake (1 in 132,000), and, of course, it’s much greater than winning the lottery (1 in roughly 14 million).

Yet most of us have learned how to act when an earthquake hits, and many of us spend dollars a week hoping for that miracle jackpot.

Wouldn’t it be worthwhile to give some thought to a disease that has undoubtedly touched every Canadian?

Know the facts:

With the onset of the 21st century, diabetes has since become one of the most common and quickest growing diseases around the world. It’s estimated there are 285 million diabetics worldwide, many of whom can not properly afford the cost of treatments and supplies; with an additional 7 million cases every year, it’s predicted there will be 438 million diabetics by 2030.

Think local:

Today in Canada, nearly one third of the population has diabetes, or indicates prediabetes symptoms. With linked factors such as obesity on the rise, this number is expected to increase.

What’s the issue:

Our bodies obtain energy from the food we consume. This energy comes from foods like bread, pasta, dairy and fruit, in the form of sugars (specifically glucose).

“Sumptuous Eats’ Retrieved from Flickr CC; user: NutritionDoc

Inside the human body, a hormone called insulin regulates the level of this sugar, preventing it from being too concentrated in the blood.

However, with Type II Diabetes, a person’s body is resistant to insulin and cannot use this crucial hormone – sugar builds up.

So what happens if you have too much sugar in your blood? Since the blood travels all around your body, various health problems can arise: high blood sugar is linked to heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, blindness, and even nerve disease.

This short video provides more detail on the matter:

What’s it like to live with diabetes?

We interviewed a University of British Columbia student who lives with diabetes:

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Current Events:

A team of UBC researchers is actively pursuing an alternative to established diabetes treatments.

Instead of common synthetic medications, Dr. Stephen Withers has derived an alternative that stops the disease at the root; basically, this natural molecule will slow the rate of sugar entering the blood. By having this control mechanism, sugar levels should not spike.

Having a natural and readily available alternative has big implications for Type II sufferers: management of uncomfortable side-effects and potentially less spending.

Outlook:

The World Health Organization estimates that the number of deaths due to diabetes will double by 2030. Dr. Withers’ new medication offers treatment options to millions who lack the necessary funds for proper supplies and medication – this little plant has the potential to save millions of lives.

‘Crocosmia crocosmiiflora’; retrieved from Wikimedia CC

Published by Andrea, Jaejoon, Sogol & Sean

What is Diabetes?

Posted on March 17, 2013 by martinlee | 1 comment

“Honey…. If you eat too many sweets… you might get diabetes.”

I am quite confident that all of us have heard that phrase at least once in our lives, be it from our parents or friends.

But the question is… what is diabetes?

I mean, if I were walk up to you right now and ask you that question, would you be able to answer it with many details, or with just minimum knowledge of it?

Well lucky for you, this blog will teach you all you need to know about diabetes so that you would be able to answer that question with 100% confidence!

The pancreas, an internal organ, has many functions to perform so that the body can survive, and one of these functions is to produce a hormone known as “Insulin”. The purpose of insulin is to move sugars (also known as glucose) from the blood into designated cells, thus lowering the sugar levels in the blood and providing a source of energy for cells to use. However, if the sugars in the blood are not removed by insulin properly (be it from the pancreas not producing enough insulin, or the cells in the body do not react with insulin as they should), the high blood sugar level will become toxic, and cells won’t get the fuel they need to survive.

Here is a model of the human pancreas.
From Wikimedia, User Suleyman Habib

Under these elevated blood sugar levels, the symptoms of a condition known as diabetes (also known as Diabetes Mellitus) are formed.

The symptoms of diabetes are:

Fatigue
Unexplained weight loss
Excessive urination
Excessive eating
Slow wound healing
Infections
Blurry visions
Excessive itching

There are two types of diabetes. The first one is called “Type 1 Diabetes”, and in this type the pancreas does “not” produce any insulin at all, and because of this people who suffer from type 1 diabetes will have to take insulin injections (from devices such as insulin pumps) for the rest of their lives. They must also eat a special diet and take regular blood tests to insure proper sugar levels.

A picture of someone inserting insulin into their body via insulin pump.
From Wikimedia, User Mbbradford

The second type of diabetes is called “Type 2 diabetes”. This type of diabetes is caused from the pancreas not producing “enough” insulin for proper function. However, unlike type 1 diabetes, this one can be treated just by simply losing weight, follow a healthy diet, and doing plenty of exercise (these methods won’t cure diabetes, but just simply controls and lowers the symptoms of it).

So I hope from reading this you have learned a lot about diabetes, but just in case if you did not understand, here is a short cartoon to help refine your understanding.

The video above shows the basics of diabetes. (User: HealthNutsMedia)

-Martin Lee

1 Comment

Posted in Biological Sciences, Public Engagement, Uncategorized

Tagged Diabetes, Glucose, health, Insulin, Pancreas, Sugar

Bloody Sunscreen

Posted on March 11, 2013 by tkhan003 | 4 comments

As summer rapidly approaches, it brings with it the hot sun, dark tans, and skin burns. As undesirable as skin burns are, many people use things like sunscreen to combat this, while those who do not, become susceptible to things like skin damage. Now, Imagine a world in which there was no need for sunscreen. This is the world of the Hippopotamus, more commonly known as the Hippo.

Wikimedia commons via Micha L. Rieser

Hippos puzzled people for many years, as they appeared to sweat out blood. Studies have busted this myth, revealing that the Hippopotamus releases a sticky secretion from its skin, which is originally colourless. This colourless substance later changes its colour to red, giving rise to the idea of “bloody sweat”. This occurs due to two little pigments in its skin, which polyerize. One of them is orange (called: “norhipposudoric acid” ) and the other red ( called: “hipposudoric acid”). Both of these pigments absorb Ultraviolet (UV) Radiation, offering protection from the suns harmful rays, whereas the red pigment specifically, has anti-bacterial properties. This helps the hippo fight disease-causing agents like bacteria and viruses, as well has helping it recover from wounds. This is very important as hippos tend to fight a lot , leaving lots of wounds, scratches, and cuts.

Wikimedia Commons via William Warby

This amazing sweat not only protects the hippopotamus from the sun, but also helps keep its skin moist, which is crucial for this large animal. This is because it sticks onto the hippos skin – wet or dry, which is very convenient as the hippo spends a large portion of the day in the water.

Wikimedia via BS Thurner Hof

Great interest has been generated from this perspiration, as scientists and entrepreneurs a like, marvel at the idea of producing a similar product for humans, with the properties of sunscreen, sunblock,as well as being an antiseptic. No such product has yet been synthesized, but the future looks promising!

-Tabish Khan

4 Comments

Posted in Biological Sciences, Uncategorized

Tagged Hippo, Pigments, Sunscreen, Sweat, UV radiation

A Gene for Skinny Jeans!

Posted on March 11, 2013 by sydneyschnell | 3 comments

The person sitting beside you in your morning lecture is slurping down an extra-large iced cap, with whipping cream AND chocolate drizzle. Those french fries in the cafeteria at lunchtime are looking deliciously tempting, and when you get home from your long day your roommate has a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies sitting on the counter.

Chocolate Chip Cookies! Christie @ Love From the Oven via Flickr Creative Commons.

Oh the temptations, but with “beach season” soon approaching, it makes for a hard choice between those deliciously fattening foods and a trim waistline. What if I told you that soon, you may be able to indulge in all of your favorite foods, never hit the gym, and still turn heads in your swimsuit this summer?!

Miguel Angel via Flickr Creative Commons.

Genetics researchers at the University of Colorado’s School of Medicine, led by Professor James McManaman, have recently discovered a gene that appears to be directly related to obesity. This gene, called Perilipin 2 (Plin2), produces a protein that plays a key role in regulating fat storage and metabolism. When mice lacking this gene were fed an obesity-inducing diet, they were observed to be resistant to becoming obese!

In fact, not only did these mice stay lean, they appeared to be much healthier than the mice with a functional Plin2 gene. Compared to normal mice, their fat cells were 20% smaller, they showed an absence of fatty-liver disease, they had lower triglyceride levels, and they were more insulin-sensitive. When both normal mice and mice lacking the Plin2 gene were placed on an obesity-inducing diet, the Plin2-lacking mice showed surprising restraint when eating their food (normal mice will eat until all food is gone!), and were also more active.

Obese mouse and normal mouse. Bigplankton via Wikimedia Commons.

What does this mean for us?

Obesity is quickly becoming a dominant health concern throughout North America (see famous chef Jamie Oliver discussing the obesity trend here), indirectly causing a long list of medical complications such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, coronary heart disease, and stroke.

Obesity, an increasing trend in North America. Malingering via Flickr Creative Commons.

The interesting thing is, humans also have a Plin2 gene. If researchers can find a way to target the Plin2 gene, these findings may result in an effective treatment for obesity. This would lead to a slimmer, healthier nation, and reduce the financial strain that obesity-related complications place on our health care systems!

However, don’t book your reservation at the neighbourhood all-you-can-eat buffet just yet. Before any human applications can be made, we must better understand what other roles the Plin2 gene may play, and how removal of this gene will influence health and behavior on a long-term scale.

– Sydney Schnell

3 Comments

Posted in Biological Sciences, Issues in Science, Science Communication, Science in the News, Uncategorized

Tagged active, diet, fat, food, gene, genetics, health, health care, James McManaman, metabolism, mice, mutation, North America, obese, obesity, Plin2, weight

From Russia with love: what threat do meteorites pose?

Posted on March 4, 2013 by seanmac | 2 comments

On February 15th, 2013, a giant space rock exploded over the Russian skyline, in a region known as the Urals. The Chelyabinsk meteor – named after the main city in the area – proceeded to break-up into hundreds of smaller pieces and fragments, and sent a powerful shock-wave out over the landscape; anyone who has managed to glimpse the numerous videos that went viral can attest to the havoc it caused. Indeed, reports of over 1300 injured and roughly 10 million dollars of damage have been touted by many looking into the aftermath.

Meteorite and tail soaring over Earth’s surface. Source: Marat Akhmetvaleev / marateaman.livejournal.com

What is a meteorite and how common are they?

Basically, meteorites are pieces of larger space rocks, known as comets or asteroids. When they enter Earth’s atmosphere, they either burn up – and are known as meteors – or they pass through and strike the Earth – and we call them meteorites.

‘Sikhote-Alin’ by jttaylor14368. Retrieved from Flickr Creative Commons

Small strikes are expected to happen about 10 times a year, though meteors burn-up in our atmosphere on a daily basis; large strikes, such as this one, are much rarer, but take place every few years.

So what happened?

Analysis of the fragments has indicated that this rock was nearly 4.5 billion years old; before its fiery demise above Russia, the meteorite spent most of its life voyaging around the solar system and beyond, but scientists have surmised it has crossed Earth’s orbit multiple times before. Unfortunately for the couple million residents of the region, this time, luck was not on their side.

‘Meteor trace’ by alexeya. Retrieved from Flickr Creative Commons

Separate and apart from the falling pieces of rock, most destruction was created by the shock-wave, which shattered thousands of panes of glass, and left many walls weakened or collapsed. Amazingly, sensor readings by NASA measured the energy release to be equivalent to 500 kilotonnes of TNT – or approximately 3o times the power of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

An immediate threat?

‘asteroid’ by andrewsrj. Retrieved from Flickr Creative Commons

Only meteorite strikes on the truly immense scale (involving bodies of kilometers in size or more) are worrisome. Thankfully, experts have been tracking asteroids and comets for years, and have concluded that no such body will near Earth’s vicinity for at least 200 years…ain’t that a relief.

This amazing video below was taken from a Russian dashboard camera; it demonstrates just how incredible and surreal this event was:

Sean Mac.

2 Comments

Posted in Issues in Science, Public Engagement, Science in the News, Uncategorized

Tagged Astronomy, computing science, global issues, NASA, physics, science news

Uncovering the Secret Sexual Side to Our Favorite Fungus!

Posted on February 10, 2013 by sydneyschnell | 1 comment

With Valentine’s Day only a few days away, love is definitely in the air. As it turns out, even fungi are in the mood!

Valentine’s Day Cupcakes. Sugar Daze via Flickr Creative Commons.

A recent study has discovered that Penicillium chrysogenum (P. chrysogenum) have a sexual side. While you may not recognize the name P. chrysogenum, it is likely that at some point in your life you have depended on this fungus to help you feel better. P. chrysogenum is popularly known for its production of the antibiotic penicillin, which has been used for treating bacterial infections since it was discovered by Sir Alexander Fleming in 1928.

Penicillin works by preventing bacteria from building cell walls. Lacking this external support, the bacterial cell is very fragile and bursts, resulting in death of the cell (click here to watch this process). As we do not possess the same cell wall components as bacterial cells, penicillin is an effective treatment for human bacterial infections, as the antibiotic interferes with bacterial cells but not our own cells!

Penicillium Growing on Bread. Logan Sakai via Flickr Creative Commons.

Previously, it was thought that P. chrysogenum only underwent asexual reproduction. In this reproductive strategy, fungal cells duplicate their genetic material and divide, resulting in two identical clones called daughter cells.

However, researchers suspected that P. chrysogenum would be able to sexually reproduce if provided with the right conditions, as the genetic sequences required for mating could be found within the DNA of this species. Supporting this belief, a recent experiment by Bohm et. al has shown that when proper conditions are met, P. chrysogenum fungi will sexually mate to produce new genetic strains of offspring.

Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) Image of P. chrysogenum Fungus. Engineering at Cambridge via Flickr Creative Commons.

This discovery has been dubbed the “secret sex life” of P. chrysogenum. So, light the candles, turn on some romantic music, and spread out the rose petals?

Not quite; these fungi require a special “love potion”. After testing a variety of light and nutrient conditions, experimenters found that P. chrysogenum engaged in sexual mating when grown in darkness, in an oatmeal base supplemented with biotin (a vitamin).

Fungi Love Potion? Oatmeal! Nillerdk via Wikimedia Creative Commons.

Furthermore, researchers found that fungi engaging in sexual activity also produced more penicillin than asexual fungi. These findings are important on an industrial level, as sexual strains can be used to maximize penicillin output when synthesizing this antibiotic for medical usage. While high antibiotic-producing strains have been engineered before, they are genetically unstable and have short lifespans. However, knowing that sexual reproduction in P. chrysogenum occurs, engineered strains can be sexually mated with normal strains to produce offspring that are both genetically stable and produce large quantities of antibiotic.

While I can’t promise that oatmeal and biotin will help you get lucky this Valentine’s Day, it appears that you won’t need to worry about a penicillin shortage in the near future!

– Sydney Schnell

1 Comment

Posted in Biological Sciences, Science Communication, Science in the News, Uncategorized

Tagged Alexander Fleming, antibiotic, asexual, bacterial, Bohm, chrysogenum, fungi, genetic, infection, mate, penicillin, Penicillium, reproduction, sexual, Sydney Schnell, Valentine

“You are what you eat”— dietary nutrients determine sleep patterns

Posted on February 7, 2013 by meganlin2002 | 10 comments

Recent study led by Dr. Michael A. Grandner, instructor and member from the Center for Sleep and Circadian Neurobiology at the University of Pennsylvania, shows that certain dietary nutrients may be associated with a person’s sleep pattern; specifically, in terms of the duration of sleep.

Image taken from RelaxingMusic from Flickr

In fact, from the statistical analysis, the research team found that many of the differences were largely driven by several significant, key contributing nutrients:

Water
Lycopene (commonly found in tomatoes)
Carbohydrates
Vitamin C
Theobromine (commonly found in chocolate)
Dodecanoic acid / Lauric Acid (commonly found in coconuts and palm kernel oil)
Choline (commonly found in eggs and fatty meats)
Selenium (commonly found in nuts, meat and shellfish)
Calcium
Magnesium(commonly found in broccoli and nuts)

Based on their research findings, Grandner found that people who have very short sleep (less than 5 hours) tend to have lower intakes of water, lycopene, carbohydrates, those with short sleep (6 hours) have lower vitamin C, water, selenium and those with long sleep (more than 9 hours) have lower intakes of theobromine, dodecanoic acid, carbohydrates and choline.

With midterms still ongoing and those dreaded finals coming up, for those of us who fall under the short or very short sleep categories, perhaps by reading this blog post you might start reconsidering your daily diet and foods that you should add in or perhaps even take out.

Did you know that sleep deprivation is also known to be associated with obesity, metabolic dysregulation, cardiovascular diseases, psychiatric illnesses and performance deficits?

So, the next time when you’re having a bad morning from not sleeping enough, you should also reflect back to what and how have you been eating lately.

10 Comments

Posted in Issues in Science, Science in the News, Uncategorized

Tagged healthy diet, Healthy life style, Sleep deprivation, Sleep quality

More human than just another Artificial Intelligence

Posted on February 4, 2013 by jaejoon | 3 comments

Ask your (grand) parents: had they, 30 or 40 years ago, anticipated to live in an era where people carry cell phones, do face time, or shop via the Internet? Some may had imagined to witness today’s technology and some may had not. One of the most debated future technologies that many scientists feel skeptical believing we won’t ever achieve is human-like artificial intelligence. However, new software made last year may bring us closer to creating computers that operate like human brains.

So far there has been a number of artificial intelligences (AI) so smart that one of them has won the quiz show Jeopardy (IBM’s Watson) and another makes video games on its own (Angelina). Artificial Intelligences are programmed to think like people so that if one asks it and a real human a question, he cannot distinguish whether answer is from the real human or an AI. However, AIs do not at all work like human brains do; they are computers pre-programmed only to perform tasks with the data they store.

This time, a team of scientists of the University of Waterloo made an artificial brain that works more similar to ours. Its name is Spaun, acronym for Semantic Pointer Architecture Unified Network. Spaun is a supercomputer with 2.5 million simulated neurons (average human brain has 80 – 100 billion), an eye, and an arm. With its 2.5 million neurons, Spaun processes what it sees with its eye and performs tasks like a human brain would. Below is a video and a summary of some stuff Spaun can do:

it can recognize, write, count, and remember numbers as well as forgetting them. via Youtube user: CTNWaterloo

The abilities of Spaun may not seem as impressive as AI Watson or Angelina, and even stupid in comparison, taking 2.5 hours in real time per 1 second in the video. However, the importance of Spaun’s birth is that it works like a human brain. With this, scientists can run experiments unethical to perform on human subjects such as killing neurons and observing brain degradation. Now that we have an artificial model of human brain, I think we are a little closer to the future where computers will think and make decisions on its own like humans.

3 Comments

Posted in Issues in Science, Science Communication, Science in the News, Uncategorized

Tagged AI, Aritificial intelligence, Artificial brain, Spaun

An Arbitrary Anniversary of Science

Posted on January 28, 2013 by chloebocker | 2 comments

We always seem to be looking forward in science. The fact that everyone is excited about the next robot venture on mars or breakthrough in medicine is what drives research and innovation in the first place. However, I think it a pleasant idea to look back at some of the memorable moments in science that have shaped our world and brought us here to these exact circumstances. So, here is a little retrospective of science on January 28th, going back as long as four centuries ago.

And what’s so special about January 28th, you ask? Nothing! That’s what makes it fun to look back. So, enjoy!

1613:Galileo records observing a “star” which is actually (most likely) the first viewing of planet Neptune.
via Wikimedia Creative Commons

1807: Pall Mall, London, England, is the first street in any city to be lit by gaslight, courtesy of entrepreneur Frederick Albert Windsor.
1903: Birthdate of Kathleen Yardley Lonsdale, a crystallographer who proved the flatness of the benzene ring.
1922: Birthdate of Robert W. Holley, joint recipient of the 1968 Nobel Prize in Medicine for describing the structure of alanine tRNA.
1958: Buchanan, New York sees construction begin of the first private thorium-uranium atomic reactor to supply power.
1960: the U.S. Navy bounces the first wire photograph transmitted by radio waves off of the moon at a 400-MHz frequency.

1986:The tragic Challenger space shuttle explosion kills seven astronauts after a mere 73 seconds after liftoff.
Space Shuttle Challenger via Wikimedia Creative Commons

1999: Element 114, Flerovium, is reported by Russian scientists at Dubna (Joint Institute for Nuclear Research).

With these events and discoveries, we can celebrate January 28th as an arbitrary anniversary of science.

-Chloe Bocker

2 Comments

Posted in Uncategorized

Tagged Astronomy, discovery, history, medicine, scientists

DARPA Foam – A Foam That Can Save Lives!

Posted on January 26, 2013 by martinlee | Leave a comment

“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.

– 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

Category Archives: Uncategorized

What does “1 in 3” mean to you?

What is Diabetes?

Bloody Sunscreen

A Gene for Skinny Jeans!

From Russia with love: what threat do meteorites pose?

Uncovering the Secret Sexual Side to Our Favorite Fungus!

“You are what you eat”— dietary nutrients determine sleep patterns

More human than just another Artificial Intelligence

An Arbitrary Anniversary of Science

DARPA Foam – A Foam That Can Save Lives!

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