Body

La Braña 1, name used to baptize a 7,000 years old individual from the Mesolithic Period, whose remains were recovered at La Braña-Arintero site in Valdelugueros (León, Spain) had blue eyes and dark skin. These details are the result of a study conducted by Carles Lalueza-Fox, researcher from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), in collaboration with the Centre for GeoGenetics (Denmark). La Braña 1 represents the first recovered genome of an European hunter-gatherer. The research is published in Nature.

Cleveland: Cleveland Clinic researchers have discovered the process by which high-density lipoprotein (HDL) – the so-called "good cholesterol" – becomes dysfunctional, loses its cardio-protective properties, and instead promotes inflammation and atherosclerosis, or the clogging and hardening of the arteries. Their research was published online today in the journal Nature Medicine.

A simple adjustment to a powerful gene-editing tool may be able to improve its specificity. In a report receiving advance online publication in Nature Biotechnology, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators describe how adjusting the length of the the guide RNA (gRNA) component of the synthetic enzymes called CRISPR-Cas RNA-guided nucleases (RGNs) can substantially reduce the occurrence of DNA mutations at sites other than the intended target, a limitation the team had previously described just last year.

Researchers from Melbourne's Walter and Eliza Hall Institute have discovered that breast stem cells and their 'daughters' have a much longer lifespan than previously thought, and are active in puberty and throughout life.

All people with diabetes should receive influenza vaccination, according to guidelines in most high-income countries, but there has been little evidence to back this policy. However, a new study in Diabetologia (the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes) suggests that working age adults with diabetes are at an increased risk of influenza compared with people without diabetes, affirming the need to target people with diabetes for influenza vaccination. The study is by the team led by Dr Jeffrey A.

Venturing into space might be a bold adventure, but it may not be good for your immune system. Now a study by researchers at the University of California, Davis and published Jan. 24 in the journal PLOS ONE shows how growing up on the Space Shuttle weakened a key arm of the immune system in Drosophila flies.

The circadian clock is a molecular network that generates daily rhythms, and is present in both plants and animals.

A University of Leicester research team led by Dr Eran Tauber has studied genetic variation in circadian clock genes in wild populations of the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster – and has discovered that their genes have developed different genetic variations that are functionally important.

In the beginning there were single cells. Today, many millions of years later, most plants, animals, fungi, and algae are composed of multiple cells that work collaboratively as a single being. Despite the various ways these organisms achieved multicellularity, their conglomeration of cells operate cooperatively to consume energy, survive, and reproduce. But how did multicellularity evolve? Did it evolve once or multiple times? How did cells make the transition from life as a solo cell to associating and cooperating with other cells such that they work as a single, cohesive unit?

Cold Spring Harbor, NY – Prostate cancer is the most common form of cancer in men. Affecting about 1 in 6 men, it is the second deadliest cancer. Research has been stymied by imperfect animal models of the disease, which are costly, take considerable time to develop, and fail to mimic the most lethal aspects of the illness. Now, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) scientists have developed a new method to rapidly create much better mouse models for metastatic prostate cancer.

A new study by a team of researchers led by Matthew Ravosa, professor of biological sciences and concurrent professor of aerospace and mechanical engineering and anthropology at the University of Notre Dame, offers surprising insights into dietary influences on the growing skull.

Ravosa notes that the robust jaws and large, thick-enameled molars of the first human ancestors from Africa, known as australopiths, have longbeen interpreted as adaptations for hard object feeding, especially in the genus Paranthropous robustus, and to a lesser extent, Australopithecus.

WASHINGTON--A recently published article, based on a workshop, Preventing the First Cesarean Delivery: Summary of a Joint Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Workshop, outlines a collaboration of specialists providing obstetrical care in helping to identify opportunities to reduce unnecessary first cesarean deliveries.

SACRAMENTO, Calif.—Strategic placement of trees and plants near busy roadways may enhance air quality and positively impact public health.

A landmark study across many cancer types reveals that the universe of cancer mutations is much bigger than previously thought. By analyzing the genomes of thousands of patients' tumors, a Broad Institute-led research team has discovered many new cancer genes — expanding the list of known genes tied to these cancers by 25 percent. Moreover, the study shows that many key cancer genes still remain to be discovered.

Scientists from The University of Manchester – part of the Manchester Cancer Research Centre - used a simple protein test that could prove more useful in predicting survival chances for patients with head-and-neck cancer compared to existing methods.

The team, funded by Cancer Research UK, believe the test could allow doctors to choose more appropriate and tailored treatments.

Scientists from The University of Manchester and Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust have identified the cause of a rare condition called Leri's pleonosteosis (LP).

Dr Sid Banka from the Manchester Centre for Genomic Medicine at The University of Manchester, led a team of researchers on the study which was published in Annals of Rheumatic Diseases journal Jan. 18, 2014.