Many scientists spend their lives trying to answer just one question. But geneticist Jack Szostak says there’s lots of problems to solve. He spent the first two decades of his career investigating chromosomes, specifically the role played by telomeres, tiny structures at the ends of chromosomes, and the enzyme telomerase, which revolutionized what we know about the aging process.
That research, from the 1980s, earned him a share of the 2009 Nobel prize for physiology or medicine. In the 1990s, Szostak turned his attention to RNA and its role in the early evolution of life.
Tag: physiology
A Nobel Winner Looks to Create Life in His Lab
Many scientists spend their lives trying to answer just one question. But geneticist Jack Szostak says there’s lots of problems to solve. He spent the first two decades of his career investigating chromosomes, specifically the role played by telomeres, tiny structures at the ends of chromosomes, and the enzyme telomerase, which revolutionized what we know about the aging process.
That research, from the 1980s, earned him a share of the 2009 Nobel prize for physiology or medicine. In the 1990s, Szostak turned his attention to RNA and its role in the early evolution of life.
Semen Protein Acts as a Master Regulator for Females
Working with fruit-flies (Drosophila melanogaster), University of East Anglia scientists have observed “remarkable” changes in female gene expression after exposure to a protein in semen. The researchers say the effects, which may also exist in other species, include altered fertility, immunity, libido, eating and sleep patterns. Published in the journalProceedings of the Royal Society B, the new findings add to the growing list of intriguing physiological effects triggered by exposure to semen. Read full article.