Aug 2012
The Biofueled Military
28/08/12 13:04 Filed in: GenomeWeb Daily Scan
With its Great Green Fleet demonstration, the US Navy has shown that it can run on alternative fuels, including diesel from algae and chicken fat, although the costs can be as high as $424 a gallon for biofuels. Rep. Mike Conaway (R-Tex.) questioned the value of this biofuels program supported by the Department of Defense. S. Pelech points out that as long as major populations continue to rely on fossil fuels to supply their energy needs, the potential risks of environmental damage as well as the costs to consumers will only increase at an accelerating pace. Alternative sources of energy will continue to be less competitive if there is a lack of political will and action to innovate and develop these options by military and civilian branches of governments world-wide. Biotechnology has a lot of offer towards these ends if societies chose to exploit it much more aggressively for such purposes. Read More...
A Happy Sequencing Ending
27/08/12 13:02 Filed in: GenomeWeb Daily Scan
Genome sequencing of the Beerys fraternal twins living near San Diego with neurological issues revealed that in addition to having dopa-responsive dystonia, the twins also had a serotonin deficiency. Based on the genetic data, the twins were effectively treated. S. Pelech notes that this is one of the rare examples of where whole genome-wide DNA sequencing is reported to have provided vital clues as to the underlying nature of a baffling illness that afflicted children. However, it is unclear that genome-wide DNA sequencing of these twins, their parents and grandparents was even necessary in this case if the treating clinicians had a better understanding of basic biochemistry. Read More...
Core Concept
24/08/12 13:00 Filed in: GenomeWeb Daily Scan
Richard Wintle from the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto described how core lab scientists allow for efficient and cost-effective research. S. Pelech concurs that the establishment of core facilities for undertaking specialized analyses that require expensive equipment, specialized reagents and high expertise can make a lot of financial sense, especially because this minimizes redundancies in resources for biomedical research. However, such core facilities are often under utilized, because there are still significant cost barriers to accessing their services for the vast majority of university and small biotech company scientists. Local research scientists could benefit from core facilities and adopt the new technologies to take their research to higher levels if the cost of accessing these core facilities was much cheaper for academic and industrial researchers from the same area from which the government funding was procured. Read More...
Strength in Numbers
08/08/12 12:57 Filed in: GenomeWeb Daily Scan
University of Chicago in Illinois' Tim Wootton and Cathy Pfister suggest that sheer numbers are more important than genetic diversity for preserving species threatened with extinction based on their 12 years of breeding studies of the sea palm Postelsia. Genetic diversity did not influence the odds of a population's survival, whereas the size of the population was more critical. S. Pelech points out that preservation of habitat that is rich in biological diversity seems to be the best solution to ensure survival of most species facing extinction today due to their interdependence. He notes that there are many examples, including humans and whales, where genetic diversity appears to be less critical for avoiding extinction than population size. When one looks closely at the various genes encoded in diverse animal species, the number of genes and their nucleotide sequences are remarkably similar. It seems that phenotypic differences arise primarily from where and when the proteins encoded from these genes are produced. Read More...