A recent study suggests that human activity may have decreased the number of tropical cyclones in the western North Pacific. A separate study predicts that the total number of intense tropical cyclones will decrease globally in the decades to come, … Continue reading
Journal Club
Highlighting recent, timely papers selected by Academy member labs
Author Archives: Charles Choi
Journal Club: New chip allows for rapid, low-cost disease diagnosis from small DNA, RNA samples
A new point-of-care biochip enables rapid detection of nucleic acids in blood samples, paving the way for quick, cheap tests for HIV, MRSA, and numerous other diseases. Video Credit: Yeh et al. Sci. Adv. 2016;3:e1501645 Ideally, an urgent diagnosis occurs rapidly and at … Continue reading
Categories: Applied Biological Sciences | Biochemistry | Infectious disease | Journal Club | Medical Sciences
Tagged biochip, HIV, lab on a chip, MRSA, point-of-care
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Journal Club: Newfound avenue for disrupting peroxisome organelles could have big implications in the cell
Peroxisomes are packages of enzymes that help destroy toxins and digest fuels for cells. Disrupt the assembly of these organelles, and the results could be fatal for humans. Previously, all mutant proteins linked to such disorders were thought to be … Continue reading
Categories: Biochemistry | Cell Biology | Journal Club
Tagged apoptosis, cancer, eukaryotes, mitochondria, peroxisome
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Journal Club: Fruit flies use a protective reflex to kick mites off their wings
Predatory mites are only 200 to 300 micrometers long, but to 3 millimeter-long fruit flies, these tiny arachnids pose as much of a threat as a rat-sized blood-sucking tick would to a human. Now scientists find that fruit flies have … Continue reading
Categories: Journal Club | Neuroscience
Tagged flies, fruit flies, mechanosensing, Nanchung
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Journal Club: How your body feels influences your confidence levels
Despite living in a world filled with uncertainty, people are generally not constantly paralyzed by doubt, but instead feel confident about their choices. Previous research often assumed that this feeling of confidence was based solely on the availability of high-caliber … Continue reading
Categories: Journal Club | Psychological and Cognitive Sciences
Tagged confidence, decision-making
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Journal Club: Self-sacrificing male spiders assist in their own cannibalism to aid offspring
Spiders are infamous for their deadly females, which often devour males before, after, or even during sex. Now scientists find that male dark fishing spiders (Dolomedes tenebrosus) apparently sacrifice themselves to females after mating to aid their offspring, as reported … Continue reading
Categories: Ecology | Journal Club | Population Biology | Reproductive biology
Tagged behavioral ecology, sexual cannibalism, spiders
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Journal Club: How social structure might drive the evolution of cumulative culture
Humans accumulate knowledge over generations, building vast bodies of expertise—a quality that scientists have long suggested helps make humanity unique. In order to explore how such “cumulative culture” arose, anthropologists examined the way in which hunter-gatherers known as the BaYaka … Continue reading
Categories: Anthropology | Journal Club
Tagged BaYaka, cumulative culture, hunter gatherer, pygmies
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Journal Club: Rats can be trained to “taste” light, sound, touch, and smell
Imagine the sight, sound, smell, taste, and feeling of peeling and eating an orange. Scientists had long thought the brain handled such multisensory experiences via brain regions known as primary sensory cortices that are exclusively unimodal—that is, each devoted solely … Continue reading
Categories: Journal Club | Neuroscience
Tagged cross-modal senses, senses, sensory cortex, taste
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Journal Club: Zika virus causes eye problems, suggesting implications for diagnostics and transmission
A significant number of Zika patients experience problems with their eyes. Now scientists find that the Zika virus can infect every part of the eye in mice. Moreover, its RNA can be detected in teardrops, and samples from infected eyes … Continue reading
Categories: Immunology | Journal Club
Tagged cornea, iris, optic nerve, retina, tears, virus, Zika
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Journal Club: “Sandman” molecule controls when fruit flies wake up
Sleep cuts people off from the outside world, which entails considerable risks and costs that scientists reason must be counterbalanced by a vital but enigmatic benefit. Now scientists have discovered what makes a switch flip in the brains of fruit … Continue reading
Categories: Journal Club | Neuroscience
Tagged circadian, dopamine, fruit flies, homeostat, neurons, optogenetics, sleep
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