gene
DNA damaged by sports?
Does anybody fancy sports? No? That’s no surprise at all. Nearly daily doping disclosures cast a damning light on high performance activities and their morbid background. Well, it seems that taking part in the Tour de France is unthinkable without bringing along suitcases full of EPO, hGH and Insulin. Actually, most of our healthy and […]
No More Needles!!
This one’s a plea for more pleasant consultations. In other words: I never want to be scared to death again when visiting the doctor.
When I recently had a routine check at my GP, he noticed that my immunisation protection against Tetanus bacteria (given by a combined Td-Polio vaccine) had expired. He smiled maliciously – and […]
Genetically modified muscle monsters
Only one more day until the 2008 Summer Olympic Games start. Needless to say that these Games will be a prime example of Love, Peace and Harmony (at least when visiting the slashed “world” wide web from an internet café in Beijing…).
However, I have to muddy the good mood a little. Quit the OSM (= […]
Cancer has a cacophonous melody (really?)
Well, in my opinion, the following is quite bizarre: Gil Alterovitz, an electrical and biomedical engineer with proteomics skills (and MIT alumnus, as well), is developing a computer program that translates protein and gene expression into music.
I’m not kidding. Recently, the Technology Review (TR) published an article on this guy’s conversion of genetic activity into […]
Wikification of Genes – next Effort
Have you noticed, yet, that the wwweb has swollen up like people’s bellies after Christmas? As an example, take the ten thousands of wikis that congest the virtual world. Each of them is an epitome of wisdom (well, let’s face it: most wikis are as superfluous as the fifth leg of an antelope).
Recently, the wiki […]
Play the protein game!
You have spent ages protecting Earth against alien invaders and other evil fellows. Now it’s high time to leave your imaginary “Universe At War” for a while and contribute your game power to curing deadly diseases in reality. Researchers from Washington University around HHMI scientist David Baker recently provided the perfect opportunity for helpers: they […]
Calling Neanderthal
Aaargh!
Ough!
Huh-huh-grumpf… ouch!?
Well, speaking isn’t always that easy.
In Jean-Jacques Annaud’s film “Quest for Fire” a group of Palaeolithic humans travels its primeval world in search of a flame to relight their extinct fire. The film’s most startling feature is the invented language spoken by the prehistoric humans. It was created by British novelist and composer Anthony […]
Dachshund, Werewolf, and other crazy genes
Have you ever wondered about the origin of strange and notable gene names, such as hedgehog or swiss cheese? Most of the current genetic nomenclature has meaningful origins, while other genes were named on a mere whim.
Take the above mentioned hedgehog gene discovered in the 1970s by Nobel Prize laureates Edward Lewis, Christiane NĂĽsslein-Volhard and […]
Blue Pill Anniversary
This year marks the tenth anniversary of the event that revolutionized consumer pharmaceuticals. Sadly, we are not referring to the Schweinsohr (Swine’s ear a.k.a. Gomphus clavatus), the 1998 German “Fungus of the Year” winner.
You would be getting fairly close if you’ve guessed the 1998 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine awarded to Ferid Murad, […]
Are you a baldie?
Suffering from hair loss or thinning hair? Finding tufts of scalp hair in your shower drain every morning? Are you seriously considering purchasing a wig or hair transplants?
In other words: Are you a baldie (or on the way to becoming one)?
Don’t worry, even if your crown is analogous to a billiard ball, there’s light at […]
