Molecular Genetics

…there would no longer be a need for humans. The last barrier to opening cat food tins would drop and humans would be reduced to warm spots.
Scientists have recently identified an enhancer that appears to affect the expression of a gene that controls the formation of the joint between the wrist and the thumb. One of the more important aspects of this discovery is that it is not a gene itself, but part of the regulatory region of several genes. This could affect the timing of when a gene is expressed; ultimately changing the orientation of the structure.
Additionally, this type of study highlights the importance of the unknown in the human genome. Long described as junk DNA, these intergenic regions may very well prove to be the primary distinguishing sequences between humans and their closest primate relatives (Chimpanzees, Bonobos, people from Arkansas…).

Until now, scientists have only been able to produce clones using cells from live animals. This is how researchers created Dolly the Sheep, the first mammal to be cloned from an adult animal.

Researchers had thought that frozen cells were unusable because ice crystals would have damaged the DNA. That belief would rule out the possibility of resurrecting extinct animals from their frozen remains.

Recently, scientists in Japan have generated clones from frozen mice. Mice that have been dead and frozen for 16 years. This opens the possibility of cloning mammoths and other animals that long disappeared from the extant fauna of the Earth. Jurassic Park is one step closer…

When they say that people in love have a certain chemistry, there may be something to it. Some time ago, it was observed that voles of different species can have remarkably different behaviour. In general, very few animals are monogamous, but Prairie Voles practice an unparalleled fidelity. While their close cousins are the studmuffins of the meadow. The difference appears to be in their response to vasopressin- a hormone with many functions, among them regulating blood pressure in response to stress.
However, both species (Prairie and Meadow Voles) have similar levels of vasopressin. The difference appears to lie in where the receptors for the hormone are expressed. Those animals with one or two copies of the gene that is driven to be expressed in the brain are more faithful than those that do not have the receptor. This was confirmed when the gene was transfered in to the straying Meadow Voles, which then became doting spouses.
The gene has been identified in humans along with variants in the gene coding for the enzyme that produces vasopressin. Those men with two copies of the variant allele report consistent relationship problems. No doubt, KwikKits that test for this gene will be on store shelves soon.

Is that really super tuna that they are serving you? Some students recently used DNA testing to determine how often sushi-grade meat was actually the type of fish advertised. They found that one in four samples was mislabeled! The technique that they used is called genetic fingerprinting. This involves amplifying particular segments of the genomic DNA with PCR, and then comparing the relative size of the reaction products. This is similar to the DNA tests used to determine paternity. More rigorous tests are used for criminal evidence, but the principle is the same.
Of particular interest, is that in every case a lower-quality of fish was mislabeled; leading people to believe that they were eating the expensive dish that they ordered. This type of testing is being extended to other food products as they transported around the world in bulk. Other targets for DNA finger printing include prisoners, soldiers, pets, and recently, children.

Researchers say “countless” lives could be saved with a blood test to quickly and easily determine if breast cancer survivors were suffering another bout of the disease.

Experts in the cutting-edge sciences of nanotechnology and the new field of epigenetics are teaming up to develop a test with the aim of diagnosing cancer while it is still tiny, instead of waiting for a lump to appear.

The same test could be used to determine if cancer had spread from the breast to other parts of the body, and the researchers hope it could ultimately be used to screen all women for breast cancer.

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“See what will happen if you don’t stop biting your fingernails?” — Will Rogers, to his niece on seeing the Venus de Milo

So you can just stop freaking about exams in this class. They aren’t so bad. All materialial will be entirely from lecture notes and handouts. However, none of this is a state secret (yet, see: DHS), so there will be many more references on the website. Since there will be more complicated issues as the course progresses, I will try to keep you updated with my “summary notes”, if they seem helpful.

This is a fascinating story of a gene fusion event. Last year, in a paper published in PNAS in collaboration with Richard Cordaux (now at the University of Poitiers, France) and Mark Batzer (LSU), the authors reconstructed the evolutionary history of a primate fusion gene called SETMAR. It serves as a good introduction to the kind of questions that arise from molecular genomics and the study of mobile DNA It will also provide an example of how transposons and other forms of so-called ‘junk DNA’ can, on occasions, make themselves useful in the genome. Finally this is a story that generated quite a bit of discussion on the web including theology, GM foods, and evolution.

1) Have a friend get this tattoo on their back.
2) Sit behind them.
3) Make sure that they don’t wear a shirt that day.

I expect no less dedication to the studmuffin of all molecules from each of you.