Posted by admin On October 28, 2008
Dark chocolate, apples and coffee are among 20 foods essential for living as long and healthy a life as possible, according to a leading nutritional scientist.
Gary Williamson, Professor of Functional Foods at the University of Leeds, has drawn up a list of what he calls ‘lifespan essential’ foods needed for a long and healthy life.
In his inaugural lecture, Professor Williamson said that although each person’s lifespan is genetically pre-determined, eating ‘lifespan essential’ foods will maximise your chances of living as long as possible. It will also increase your quality of life as you age by reducing the incidence of disease.
The 20 foods are:
- apples
- blackberries
- black tea
- blueberries
- broccoli
- cereal bran
- cherries
- cherry tomatoes
- coffee
- cranberries
- dark chocolate
- green tea
- oranges
- peaches
- plums
- raspberries
- red grapes
- red onions
- spinach
- strawberries
The foods are rich in polyphenols - naturally-occurring chemicals like tannins, lignins and flavonoids found in plants which are widely accepted as having health benefits. A recent international study carried out by scientists in the US, UK and Australia which looked at the health benefits of polyphenols concluded that they helped protect against heart disease.*
Although the importance of eating fruits and vegetables as part of a balanced diet is widely understood, Professor Williamson’s work goes further by prescribing 20 foods which are essential to allow you to fulfil your life’s potential.
Professor Williamson, who has published more than 240 refereed scientific publications including more than 100 papers on polyphenols and health, says: “These foods have been chosen because they are highest in polyphenols, which reduce the risk of heart disease and help to slow down ageing processes.
“Epidemiology studies support the protective effects of polyphenol-rich foods. Lack of these components in the diet, because of low intake of fruit and vegetables, increases the risk of chronic disease.
“Although they might not be essential for growth and development or the maintenance of major body functions, there is increasing knowledge concerning their potential for health maintenance or disease risk reduction throughout adulthood and during ageing.
“This means that they are essential to fulfil the maximum individual lifespan, and so I propose that they are ‘lifespan essential’. This does not necessarily include an increase of the maximum potential lifespan, but rather an increase of the chance of reaching the genetically determined lifespan and an increase in the quality of life during aging by reducing the incidence of chronic, age-related diseases.”
Posted by admin On October 3, 2008
Dear readers it is informed to all of you that geneticliving has became a science news blasting site .Any Query related to my site please comment if u do not like anything .We want trusty readers and trusty traffics so please help us to make geneticliving better .
Thanks.
Posted by admin On October 3, 2008
New Rochelle, NY, October 3, 2008—Novel platform technologies and key advances in genomics are rapidly driving the development of molecular diagnostics, reports Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News (GEN). The payoff for successful molecular diagnostic products can be significant as Kalorama Information predicts that this market currently exceeds $3.2 billion worldwide and will reach $5.4 billion in four years, according to an article in the October 1 issue of GEN.
“Molecular diagnostic products are based on cutting-edge research in two of the most promising biotechnologies, genomics and proteomics. These novel tests also utilize sophisticated analytical techniques such as microarrays and mass spectrometry,” notes John Sterling, Editor-in-Chief of GEN. “Molecular diagnostics are particularly applicable to the early detection of cancer.” Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by admin On October 3, 2008
The latest breakthrough in a 120 year-old debate on the evolution of the bird wing was published in the open-access journal PLoS ONE, October 3, by Alexander Vargas and colleagues at Yale University, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History.
Bird wings only have three fingers, having evolved from remote ancestors that, like humans and most reptiles, had five fingers. Biologists have typically used embryology to identify the evolutionary origin (homology) of structures; the three fingers of the bird wing develop from cartilage condensations that are found in the same positions in the embryo as fingers two, three and four of humans (the index, middle and ring fingers). However, the morphology of the fingers of early birds such as Archaeopteryx corresponds to that of fingers one, two and three in other reptiles (thumb, index and middle finger). The fossil record clearly shows that fingers four and five (ring and pinky finger) were lost and reduced in the dinosaur ancestors of birds.
Further, the lack of expression of the HoxD-11 gene in the first finger of the wing makes it most similar to finger one (the “thumb”) of the mouse, consistent with comparative morphology. However, the mouse is only distantly related to birds; crocodilians, in turn, are bird’s closest living relatives.
To see whether the evidence from mouse HoxD-11 expression held up, Vargas and colleagues, working at the lab of Gunter Wagner at Yale, have examined the expression of this gene in alligators; they found the expression to be, as in mice, absent only in finger one (the “thumb”).
Developmental and evolutionary biologists are familiar with the phenomenon of homeotic transformations, in which one structure begins to develop at a different position within the body. A famous example is the case of the fruitfly mutant antennapaedia, which develops legs on its head instead of antennae. The new work by Vargas et al. rekindles the hypothesis that a “hometic frameshift” occurred in the evolution of the bird wing, such that fingers one, two and three began to develop from the embryological positions of fingers two, three and four.
Posted by admin On August 8, 2008
It is a measure question that how the bacteria group come to know that when to attack a host .The answer is that the bacteria uses a cell to cell communication to prepare their strategies to fight against the host body .The researchers at Howard Hughes Medical Institute find the ways to intercept and manipulate the bacterial communication .
The scientists of HHMI reported their work in the journal CELL on August 8, 2008 about the communication system of bacteria .Their research can be used to fight the bacteria infections by manipulating their communication system. Bonnie Bassler an investigator at HHMI studied the communication system named as “quorum sensing”.They use this system to organize groups and perform different functions .They need this system because a single bacteria can’t to any function alone they can perform any function in groups. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by admin On August 7, 2008
Scientists at University of Manchester have made a 3D structure of Mps-1 which is a protein that regulates the number of chromosomes during cell division and can be used to prepair more effective cancer therapies .
Mps-1 belongs to family of protein namedkinases.When the subset or enzymes in these families work abnormally it leads to an outcome like cancer .There are about 500 kinases out of which only 100 are known and we have developed a 3D structure of only few out of them .Knowing structure will help in synthesizing new kinase which will prevent us from disease for example “Glivec” a kinase inhibitor for treating Leukaemia in the UK in 2001.
Mps-1 is important because it controls the number of chromosomes which is vital cause of cancer .The structure is developed by Dr Patrick Eyers and his team, including Hong Kong-born PhD student Matthew Chu by usind a “super microscope ” which uses Diamond Light synchrotron .
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by admin On August 3, 2008
A new grant “Division of Neuroscience and Basic Behavioral Science ” from “NIMH’S ” has put their efforts to detect profiles of gene expression which are associated with AUTISM that is thought to become the baseline for testing disorders related to genes.The scientists are searching for ” signatures ” in pattern of expression AUTISM so that it could be used in finding the clues to the abnormalities in machine system that is responsible for switching on and and off the genes .
According to grantee Louis Kunkel, Ph.D., of Harvard Medical School and Children’s Hospital Boston. The signatures will lead to tests for diagnostic of gene machinery and abnormalities in it .Expression of Messenger RNA that is responsible for converting blueprint to the proteins is under study and also they are re arranging the genes which are producing abnormalities due to improper switching . The researchers are trying their best to know the change in genetic sequence by studying various gene expression and try to detectand cure the abnormality .
(picture showing protein synthesis signature)
Posted by admin On July 28, 2008
Studies show that their are large amount of diseases due to chromosomal abnormalitiesand study of this plays a very important role in medical field .So we will now completely discuss all the chromosomal abnormalities and various inheritance .
Posted by admin On July 27, 2008
GENETICS-THE BASIS OF INHERITANCE
Genetics is a term which relates with the term “GELESIS “ who’s Greek meaning is “DESCENT” which further means the process of “GOING ON ” .Genetics is the breathe of biology.It deals with heredity and variation .
HEREDITY
It means the features attained by offsprings and siblings from their parents .The features like color of hair,height,color of eyes etc.
VARIATION
It means some slight changes in the features acquired bye the offsprings and siblings from parents .However this resemblance is not 100 % . Mono zygotic twins are genetically alike .Moreover offsprings of single parent formed by mitosis posses exact copies of genetic character of their parents .These are carbon copies of their parents and are called RAMETS and their group is known as CLONE .
Genetics is the door which provide a way towards the mistry that how the characteristics are transferred from generation to generation and provide information about the substance on which these informations are carried .
Latest genetics progress enables the scientists or genetic engineers to manipulate the characteristics and make an organism which is best suited to our needs and environment needs .
