Sequencing and Analysis of the Hydra Genome
Chapman, Kirkness et al., Nature
An international research collaboration reports their sequencing and analysis of the Hydra magnipapillata genome, and compare it to the genomes of several other organisms. "The Hydra genome has been shaped by bursts of transposable element expansion, horizontal gene transfer, trans-splicing, and simplification of gene structure and gene content that parallel simplification of the Hydra life cycle," the authors write. They team suggests that comparisons of the Hydra genome to the reported sequences of other animals have helped them to elucidate the evolution of several of the organism's characteristics.
Mad Cows and the Case of the Biomarker
September 08, 2008
Using 2D differential gel eletrophoresis and mass spectrometry, a group of researchers from Canada and Germany identified proteins in cattle urine relating to bovine spongiform encephalitis. Analysis of protein expression data from one protein could, the researchers report, identify cases from controls with 100 percent accuracy. A set of proteins could tell when the animal was infected (with 85 percent accuracy). The researchers are hopeful that a live cattle test for BSE will be possible.
