SU biologists' work with 'glow-in-the-dark' sperm sheds light on sexual selection

Females shut down male-male sperm competition in leafcutter ants

Leafcutter ant queens can live for twenty years, fertilizing millions of eggs with sperm stored after a single day of sexual activity.

Danish researchers who have studied ants at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama since 1992 discovered that in both ant and bee species in which queens have multiple mates, a male's seminal fluid favors the survival of its own sperm over the other males' sperm. However, once sperm has been stored, leafcutter ant queens neutralize male-male sperm competition with glandular secretions in their sperm-storage organ.

Be cool without dying: New technique reduces tobacco smoke damage to lungs in mice

Researchers in Australia have demonstrated that blocking a certain protein can reduce or prevent cigarette smoke-induced lung inflammation in mice. Inflammation underlies the disease process of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and many other smoking-related ailments.

The findings have been published online ahead of print publication in the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

Biology business: Manufacturing specific antibodies to fight off disease

What makes you unique? Not genes so much as surrounding sequences, says Stanford study

STANFORD, Calif. — The key to human individuality may lie not in our genes, but in the sequences that surround and control them, according to new research by scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine and Yale University. The interaction of those sequences with a class of key proteins, called transcription factors, can vary significantly between two people and are likely to affect our appearance, our development and even our predisposition to certain diseases, the study found.

Bacteria divide like clockwork

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — A team of researchers at MIT and the University of California at San Diego has shown how cell division in a type of bacteria known as cyanobacteria is controlled by the same kind of circadian rhythms that govern human sleep patterns.

Previous studies have shown that even though cyanobacteria do not "sleep" in the same way that humans do, they cycle through active and resting periods on a 24-hour schedule. Cyanobacteria depend on sunlight for photosynthesis, so they are most active during the day.

What makes us unique? Not only our genes

Residency match results not encouraging for adults needing primary care

PHILADELPHIA, March 18, 2010 -- The number of U.S. medical students choosing internal medicine residencies inched higher from 2009 but not enough to significantly impact the shortage of primary care physicians.

Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute physicians present findings at ACC scientific meeting

LOS ANGELES – Physician scientists from the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute presented new findings on the effectiveness of routine aspirin therapy for preventing heart disease, a drug therapy for atrial fibrillation and the role left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) may play in weight reduction for obese patients with chronic end-stage heart failure who are considered for heart transplantation. These presentations were made at the American College of Cardiology's Scientific Session in Atlanta. Brief highlights from these studies are included below.

Shift workers at more risk for irritable bowel syndrome, U-M study says

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Nurses participating in shift work, especially those working rotating shifts, face a significantly increased risk of developing Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and abdominal pain compared to those working a standard day-time schedule, according to research published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology.