Lower Antioxidant Level Might Explain Higher Skin Cancer Rate in Males

A new study shows part of the reason why men are three times more likely than momen to get skin cancer. Although medical science does not know why, researchers at Ohio State University might have the answer. They found that male mice have lower levels of an important skin antioxidant than female mice. They also have higher levels of cancer-linked inflammatory cells. This skin antioxidant is called catalase. It inhabits skin cancer by cleaning up hydrogen peroxide and other DNA-damaging reactive-oxygen compounds that are formed during exposure to UVB. UVB, or ultra violet B light, is a common source of sunburn and cancer-causing skin damage. Studies show links of low catalase activity to skin cancer. Researchers say women have more natural antioxidant skin protection than men do, which is why men may be more susceptible to oxidative stress in the skin. This then raises the risk of skin cancer.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111201174231.htm

Surprising Pathway Implicated In Stuttering

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine have found new discoveries about stuttering. They say that at least some persistent stuttering is caused by mutations in a gene in a metabolic pathway involved in recycling old cell parts. These cellular recycling centers are called lysosomes.

Researchers do not know the answer to why this is, but now that there are clues, they can figure things out further. Why impairment in the pathway of the lysosomes lead to stuttering is what is confusing researchers. Some genetic clues are allowing them to figure things out a little easier. However, there are billions of neurons in the brain, so it is very hard to figure out which ones are involved in speech.

There were three mutations found in a gene called NAGPA. This gene encodes an enzyme responsible for the final step in "addressing" protiens to the lysosome. All three mutations in this gene were identified in people who stutter. These findings are said to offer possibilities in therapy for stuttering in the future. In order to figure out why this is all happening, researchers are performing biochemical analyses on these mutated genes.

http://www.biologynews.net/archives/2011/11/22/surprising_pathway_implicated_in_stuttering_.html

Gulf Oil Effect Bird Eggs

In Daily Science, it described Texas Tech University's experiment and research taken place regarding the effect that the weathered oil would have on unhatched eggs.

In their experiment, only 39 percent of the eggs hatched while the other 61 percent died. The weathered oil had a better outcome than the non-weathered oil. The birds whose mating seasons were interrupted due to the Gulf Spill were definitely negatively affected, but there's a chance some eggs, hopefully at least 39 percent will hatch in the wild.

There is still a chance that the covered eggs that survive may obtain developmental problems. Hopefully, the bird population will survive throughout the years.

Researchers complete first genome mapping of DNA modification

U.S. researchers have completed the first genome-wide mapping of a DNA modification code 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) in embryonic stem cells.

The molecule is predominantly found in genes that are turned on, or active, according to the researchers from the Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at University of California, Los Angeles.

The finding may prove to be important in controlling diseases like cancer, where the regulation of certain genes plays a role in disease development. Human embryonic stem cells were used because it had been shown previously that the molecule is abundant in those cells, as well as in brain cells.

In the study, the researchers found that 5hmC was associated with genes and tended to be found on genes that were active. The study also revealed that 5hmC was present on a type of DNA regulatory element, called enhancers, which help control gene expression. In particular, 5hmC was present on enhancers that are crucial for defining the nature of the human embryonic stem cells.The results suggest that 5hmC plays a role in the activation of genes. This is opposite of the role of the more well studied 5mC ( DNA methylation), which is involved in silencing genes. his relationship is in line with the view that 5hmC is created directly from 5mC.

If we can understand the function of 5hmC, that will lead to greater understanding of how genes are turned on and off and that could lead to the development of methods for controlling gene regulation, therefore helping control cancer and other human diseases.

5hmC is formed from the DNA base cytosine by adding a methyl group and then a hydroxy group. The molecule is important in epigenetics - the study of changes in gene expression caused by mechanisms other than changes in the DNA sequence - because the newly formed hydroxymethyl group on the cytosine can potentially switch a gene on and off. The molecule 5hmC was only recently discovered, and its function has not been clearly understood, Until now, researchers didn't know where 5hmC was located within the genome.

The study appears in the July issue of the journal Genome Biology.