Month: October 2014

4 Timely Facts About Our Biological Clocks

0 comments
Illustration of circadian rhythm.
Genes and proteins run biological clocks that help keep daily rhythms in synch. Credit: Wikimedia Commons.

After you roll your clocks back by an hour this Sunday, you may feel tired. That’s because our bodies—more specifically, our circadian rhythms—need a little time to adjust. These daily cycles are run by a network of tiny, coordinated biological clocks.

NIGMS’ Mike Sesma tracks circadian rhythm research being conducted in labs across the country, and he shares a few timely details about our internal clocks:

1. They’re incredibly intricate.

Biological clocks are composed of genes and proteins that operate in a feedback loop. Clock genes contain instructions for making clock proteins, whose levels rise and fall in a regular cyclic pattern. This pattern in turn regulates the activity of the genes. Many of the results from circadian rhythm research this year have uncovered more parts of the molecular machinery that fine-tune the clock. Earlier in the month, we blogged about an RNA molecule that cues the internal clock.

2. Every organism has them—from algae to zebras.

Many of the clock genes and proteins are similar across species, allowing researchers to make important findings about human circadian processes by studying the clock components of organisms like fruit flies, bread mold and plants.

3. Whether we’re awake or asleep, our clocks keep ticking.

While they might get temporarily thrown off by changes in light or temperature, our clocks usually can reset themselves.

4. Nearly everything about how our body works is tied to biological clocks.

Our clocks influence alertness, hunger, metabolism, fertility, mood and other physiological conditions. For this reason, clock dysfunction is associated with various disorders, including insomnia, diabetes and depression. Even drug efficacy has been linked to our clocks: Studies have shown that some drugs might be more effective if given earlier in the day.

Learn more:
Circadian Rhythms Fact Sheet

Steering Cells Down the Right Path

1 comment
In these time-lapse videos (no longer available) of 60 images taken over an hour, cell receptors move around the cell surface in search of the missing signal that will tell the cell where to go (top video). Once the receptors locate the signal (bottom video), they stay put in the region of the cell membrane that is closest to the signal. Credit: David Sherwood, Duke University.

Even traveling cells need help with directions. In fact, it’s crucial. For processes such as wound healing and organ development to take place, cells must be able to efficiently move throughout organisms. Receptor proteins on a cell’s surface rely on navigational signals from molecules called netrins to point them in the right direction.

The receptors don’t just sit around waiting for a signal. Studying the simple worm C. elegans, David Sherwood Exit icon and his research team at Duke University discovered that in the absence of netrin, the receptors rapidly cluster and reassemble in different areas of the cell’s membrane. When the receptors finally detect a netrin signal, they stabilize and correctly orient the cell. The finding might point to new ways to interfere with cells’ built-in navigation systems to hamper cell migration in metastatic cancer or encourage the regrowth of damaged cells in neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s.

This research was funded in part by NIH under grants R01GM100083 and P40OD010440.

Learn more:
Duke University News Release Exit icon

The Sweet Side of Chemistry

0 comments
Glycans
Simple sugars connect in long, branched structures to create glycans. Credit: Stock image.

We’re in the middle of National Chemistry Week Exit icon, which this year focuses on “The Sweet Side of Chemistry—Candy.” Studying sugar chemistry is also relevant to our health.

The sugar in chocolate, taffy and other confections is a type of simple sugar called sucrose. In our bodies, sugars can exist in many forms, ranging from individual units like glucose to long, branched chains known as glycans containing thousands of individual sugar units linked together.

Glycans are involved in just about every aspect of how our cells work. They help make sure proteins are folded into the proper shape so they function correctly. They act as ZIP codes that direct newly made proteins to the right cellular locations. Some divert white blood cells to infection sites, and others serve as anchors for viruses to latch onto.

Because of the diverse and critical roles that glycans play in our bodies, chemists want to learn more about these molecules, with a long-term goal of harnessing them to treat or prevent disease. Read about some of their discoveries in the Why Sugars Might Surprise You article from Inside Life Science and the Life is Sweet article from Findings magazine. The You Are What You Eat chapter from ChemHealthWeb offers more details about the chemistry of sugar.

Cool Image: Of Surfaces and Stem Cells

2 comments
Stem cells transform into neurons.

Stem cells grown on a soft surface begin to transform into neurons. Credit: Kiessling Lab, University of Wisconsin-Madison.

If you think this image looks like the fluorescent outline of a brain, you’re on the right track. The green threads show neurons that have just formed from unspecialized cells called stem cells.

Researchers led by Laura Kiessling Exit icon of the University of Wisconsin-Madison directed the stem cells to become neurons by changing the quality of the surface on which they grew. In experiments testing different gels used to grow stem cells in the lab, the scientists found that the stiffness of those gels influenced cell fate decisions.

When grown on a soft gel with a brain tissue-like surface, the stem cells began to transform into neurons. This happened without the addition of any of the proteins normally used to coax stem cells to specialize into different types of cells.

A better understanding of how stem cell fate is influenced by the mechanical properties of a surface could help researchers who are trying to harness the blank slate cells for tissue regeneration or other therapeutic uses.

This work also was funded by NIH’s National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering; National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

Learn more:
University of Wisconsin-Madison News Release Exit icon

Nobel Prize for Powerful Microscopy Technology

0 comments
Fibroblasts
The cells shown here are fibroblasts, one of the most common cells in mammalian connective tissue. These particular cells were taken from a mouse. Scientists used them to test the power of a new microscopy technique that offers vivid views of the inside of a cell. The DNA within the nucleus (blue), mitochondria (green) and cellular skeleton (red) is clearly visible. Credit: Dylan Burnette and Jennifer Lippincott-Schwartz, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health.

William E. Moerner was at a conference in Brazil when he learned he’d be getting a Nobel Prize in chemistry. “I was incredibly excited and thrilled,” he said of his initial reaction.

An NIGMS grantee at Stanford University, Moerner received the honor for his role in achieving what was once thought impossible—developing super-resolution fluorescence microscopy, which is so powerful it allows researchers to see and track individual molecules in living organisms in real time.

Nobel recipients usually learn of the prize via a phone call from Stockholm, Sweden, in early October. For those in the United States, the call typically comes between 2:30 a.m. and 5:45 a.m.

Every year, the NIGMS communications office prepares for the Nobel Prize announcements in physiology or medicine and chemistry, the categories in which our grantees are most likely to be recognized. If the Institute played a significant role in funding the prize-winning research, we work quickly to provide information and context to reporters covering the story on tight deadlines. We issue a statement, identify an in-house expert on the research and arrange interviews with reporters. It’s all to help get the word out about the research and the taxpayers’ role in supporting it.

This year’s in-house expert, Cathy Lewis, shared her thoughts on the prize to Moerner in an NIGMS Feedback Loop post. You can also read this year’s statement and see a full list of NIGMS-supported Nobel laureates.

Outwitting Antibiotic Resistance

0 comments
Marine scene with fish and corals
The ocean is a rich source of microbes that could yield infection-fighting natural molecules. Credit: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Exit icon.

Antibiotics save countless lives and are among the most commonly prescribed drugs. But the bacteria and other microbes they’re designed to eradicate can evolve ways to evade the drugs. This antibiotic resistance, which is on the rise due to an array of factors, can make certain infections difficult—and sometimes impossible—to treat.

Read the Inside Life Science article to learn how scientists are working to combat antibiotic resistance, from efforts to discover potential new antibiotics to studies seeking more effective ways of using existing ones.

An RNA Molecule That Cues the Internal Clock

0 comments
Clock
Dysfunction in our internal clocks may lead to insufficient sleep, which has been linked to an increased risk for chronic diseases. Credit: Stock image.

Our internal clocks tell us when to sleep and when to eat. Because they are sensitive to changes in daytime and nighttime cues, they can get thrown off by activities like traveling across time zones or working the late shift. Dysfunction in our internal clocks may lead to insufficient sleep, which has been linked to an increased risk for chronic diseases like high blood pressure, diabetes, depression and cancer.

Researchers led by Yi Liu Exit icon of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center have uncovered a previously unknown mechanism by which internal clocks run and are tuned to light cues. Using the model organism Neurospora crassa (a.k.a., bread mold), the scientists identified a type of RNA molecule called long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) that helps wind the internal clock by regulating how genes are expressed. When it’s produced, the lncRNA identified by Liu and his colleagues blocks a gene that makes a specific clock protein.

This inhibition works the other way, too: The production of the clock protein blocks the production of the lncRNA. This rhythmic gene expression helps the body stay tuned to whether it’s day or night.

The researchers suggest that a similar mechanism likely exists in the internal clocks of other organisms, including mammals. They also think that lncRNA-protein pairs may contribute to the regulation of other biologic processes.

Learn more:
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center News Release Exit icon
Circadian Rhythms Fact Sheet

Mighty Mitochondria

0 comments
Mitochondria from the heart muscle cell of a rat.
Mitochondria (red) from the heart muscle cell of a rat. Nearly all our cells have these structures. Credit: Thomas Deerinck, National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research Exit icon.

Meet mitochondria: cellular compartments, or organelles, that are best known as the powerhouses that convert energy from the food we eat into energy that runs a range of biological processes.

As you can see in this close-up of mitochondria from a rat’s heart muscle cell, the organelles have an inner membrane that folds in many places (and that appears here as striations). This folding vastly increases the surface area for energy production. Nearly all our cells have mitochondria, but cells with higher energy demands have more. For instance, a skin cell has just a few hundred, while the cell pictured here has about 5,000.

Scientists are discovering there’s more to mitochondria than meets the eye, especially when it comes to understanding and treating disease.

Read more about mitochondria in this Inside Life Science article.