Sewell MINI of Plano Wins Elite Customer Service Award

29 Apr, 2013

PLANO, Texas, April 29, 2013 /PRNewswire/ ? ;Sewell MINI of Plano has been awarded the prestigious Excellence in Sales distinction for the first time by BMW of North America, LLC. Out of 472 North American MINI and BMW dealership applications, only seven national Excellence in Sales honors were presented this year. Sewell MINI of Plano was the only MINI dealership in the country to be awarded this honor.

Sewell MINI of Plano, part of Sewell Automotive Companies, received its Excellence in Sales award in the Number One In Customer Satisfaction category. This category is evaluated specifically on the customer experience provided at the dealership, a point of pride for Sewell MINI of Plano.

?We are truly honored to be awarded the Excellence in Sales distinction, especially in the Customer Satisfaction category,? said Klint Guerry, General Manager of Sewell MINI of Plano. ?Customer service comes first for us and we stop at nothing to provide a world-class, one-of-a-kind experience for our guests.?

BMW of North America, LLC awarded the Number One In Customer Satisfaction distinction to Sewell MINI of Plano after analyzing each dealership?s process for taking care of customers. Sewell MINI of Plano?s exceptional car wash facility, customer lounge amenities (which includes an arcade), speed at which vehicles are serviced in the body shop, and the added convenience of complimentary loan cars earned top honors. Sales performance and scores from customer satisfaction surveys were also taken into consideration.

About Sewell Automotive Companies
Established in 1911, Sewell has been obsessed with service from the very beginning. This obsession with service continues today and has resulted in Sewell becoming the most awarded Texas-based dealership group for service excellence. Sewell has 14 locations in Dallas, Fort Worth, Grapevine, Houston, Plano, and San Antonio, employing over 1,900 associates, with close to $1.6 billion in annual sales. Today, Sewell represents a growing number of marquis automotive brands including Audi, Buick, Cadillac, GMC, Infiniti, Lexus, Maserati, MINI and Subaru. For more information, visit Sewell.com.

CONTACT:
Stephen Tolerico
+1-214-902-2230
Stolerico@sewell.com

;

;

SOURCE Sewell

Source: http://latinbusinesstoday.com/2013/04/sewell-mini-of-plano-wins-elite-customer-service-award/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=sewell-mini-of-plano-wins-elite-customer-service-award

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The Associated Press's Twitter hack proves that Twitter needs two-step verification immediately

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Shelly Palmer Digital Leadership Podcast Episode #33 ? Steve Vallejo, Director of Bank of the West

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Rare, lethal childhood disease tracked to protein

Apr. 29, 2013 ? A team of international researchers led by Northwestern Medicine scientists has identified how a defective protein plays a central role in a rare, lethal childhood disease known as Giant Axonal Neuropathy, or GAN. The finding is reported in the May 2013 Journal of Clinical Investigation.

GAN is an extremely rare and untreatable genetic disorder that strikes the central and peripheral nervous systems of young children. Those affected show no symptoms at birth; typically around age three the first signs of muscle weakness appear and progress slowly but steadily. Children with GAN experience increasing difficulty walking and are often wheelchair-bound by age 10. Over time, they become dependent on feeding and breathing tubes. Only a few will survive into young adulthood.

In GAN patients, nerve cells are swollen with massive build-ups of structures called intermediate filaments, cytoskeletal components that give cells their shape and mechanical properties. Goldman's team found that gigaxonin, a protein encoded by the gene involved in GAN, regulates normal turnover of the protein building blocks that form a cell's intermediate filaments. Mutations in this gene result in the malfunctioning of gigaxonin, which leads to the abnormal build-up of intermediate filaments and eventually disrupts the normal functioning of nerve cells.

"This important new research pinpoints the mechanism that allows intermediate filaments to rapidly build up in GAN patients," says Robert Goldman, chair of the department of cell and molecular biology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Goldman has studied the structural proteins of cells for more than 30 years.

"This is a huge step forward for GAN research," said Lori Sames, co-founder and CEO of Hannah's Hope Fund, the leading GAN disease organization. "GAN is juvenile ALS, but even worse. Not only do motor neurons die out, so do the sensory neurons. To find a medicinal therapy, you really need to know what mechanism to target. And thanks to Dr. Goldman's work, now we do."

To identify gigaxonin's role, scientists used cells known as fibroblasts obtained from skin biopsies of children with GAN. The cells were then grown in lab cultures, and they also contained large abnormal aggregates of intermediate filaments. When scientists introduced healthy gigaxonin genes into both control and patient fibroblasts, the results were dramatic. The abnormal aggregates of intermediate filaments disappeared. However, the cytoskeleton's two other major systems, microtubules and actin filaments were not affected by this treatment.

The study's lead author, Northwestern University postdoctoral fellow Saleemulla Mahammad, stressed that this discovery may also have implications for more common types of neurodegenerative diseases that are also characterized by large accumulations of intermediate filament proteins, including Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.

"Our results suggest new pathways for disease intervention," he said. "Finding a chemical component that can clear the intermediate filament aggregations and restore the normal distribution of intermediate filaments in cells could one day lead to a therapeutic agent for many neurological disorders."

Mahammad and other members of the Goldman Laboratory collaborated with Puneet Opal, M.D., associate professor in the Ken and Ruth Davee department of neurology and cell and molecular biology, along with researchers in the laboratory of Pascale Bomont, at the INSERM neurological institute in Montpelier, France, and the laboratory of Jean-Pierre Julien at the Universit? Laval in Quebec, Canada.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Northwestern University, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

---

Journal Reference:

1. Saleemulla Mahammad, S.N. Prasanna Murthy, Alessandro Didonna, Boris Grin, Eitan Israeli, Rodolphe Perrot, Pascale Bomont, Jean-Pierre Julien, Edward Kuczmarski, Puneet Opal, Robert D. Goldman. Giant axonal neuropathy?associated gigaxonin mutations impair intermediate filament protein degradation. Journal of Clinical Investigation, 2013; DOI: 10.1172/JCI66387

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/health_medicine/genes/~3/5IQlUZchprQ/130429164909.htm

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Make Safety Your Business | Blog@CreativeSafetySupply.com

Safety and health hazards are everywhere. In fact there are different levels of hazards present in almost every activity we do. For instance, driving a car presents the hazard of possibly being involved in a car crash. Furthermore, taking a shower when it is storming outside may put one at greater risk for being struck by lightning or electrocuted. However, since we are aware of these hazards, most times people use certain precautions to help protect themselves against such perils by wearing a seatbelt while in an automobile or by not bathing when it is storming outside, etc. This same methodology applies in the workplace. There are many different types of work environments from the relatively safe office setting to the treacherous underground caves utilized by miners, each work environment is different. However, one thing remains the same, the need for safety. Every day when an employee goes to work, he or she expects to return home in the same physical condition he or she left in. People don?t expect to go to work and then return home a week later with an immobilizing condition caused by something within their work environment. Employees expect a certain level of safety while at work and it is the employer?s job to provide that level of safety.

Ensuring Safety with the Help of OSHA

One well-known organization that helps to guide employers in creating a safe and less hazardous work environment is OSHA. OHSA or Occupational Safety and Health Administration was created in 1970 to help train, and provide information and assistance to employers in an effort to create safer work environments. Many of the safety practices outlined by OSHA are referred to as safety standards. OSHA provides safety information regarding a wide array of different safety concerns from arc flash safety to floor marking to personal protective equipment guidelines. OSHA is by far one of the top proponents regarding workplace safety in the United States.

Visual Safety

Another helpful safety tactic is the incorporation of a visual workplace. One major threat to employee safety is the improper identification of hazards. A great way to help combat this issue is to make sure hazards are labeled or identified appropriately. For example, if a warehouse features an abundance of exposed piping, the pipes should be labeled based upon their contents. If a pipe is carrying a pressurized hazardous liquid, the pipe should be labeled as such and should also identify the directional flow of the substance as well. Furthermore, if personal protective equipment (PPE) is required to enter a specific area then there should be adequate signage provided so employees and visitors are able to quickly identify that the specific area is hazardous and requires specific protection. Even though training is an important part of employee safety, visual awareness is also vital. Many times people forget certain components or details after training sessions; however, they can be instantly reminded of safety precautions through visual signage or labels when utilized correctly.

Employee Safety is Critical

Creating a safe and effective work environment can sometimes feel like a balancing act; however, it doesn?t have to be. Safety should not be just one more thing on the checklist of things to do. In fact, safety is an element that must be woven into the mindset of the business. Plain and simple, without the safety and health of the employees, the business would not succeed. Employee safety needs to be a priority within any work environment.

Mike Wilson (321 Posts)

I have spent many years teaching Lean and 5S, while integrating products and supplies to help manage clients' needs via www.CreativeSafetySupply.com

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Source: http://blog.creativesafetysupply.com/make-safety-your-business/

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Extreme political attitudes may stem from an illusion of understanding

Public release date: 29-Apr-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Anna Mikulak
amikulak@psychologicalscience.org
202-293-9300
Association for Psychological Science

Having to explain how a political policy works leads people to express less extreme attitudes toward the policy, according to new research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

The research suggests that people may hold extreme policy positions because they are under an illusion of understanding attempting to explain the nuts and bolts of how a policy works forces them to acknowledge that they don't know as much about the policy as they initially thought.

Psychological scientist Philip Fernbach of the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado, Boulder and his co-authors were interested in exploring some of the factors that could contribute to what they see as increasing political polarization in the United States.

"We wanted to know how it's possible that people can maintain such strong positions on issues that are so complex such as macroeconomics, health care, foreign relations and yet seem to be so ill-informed about those issues," says Fernbach.

Drawing on previous research on the illusion of understanding, Fernbach and colleagues speculated that one reason for the apparent paradox may be that voters think they understand how policies work better than they actually do.

In their first study, the researchers asked participants taking an online survey to rate how well they understood six political policies, including raising the retirement age for Social Security, instituting a national flat tax, and implementing merit-based pay for teachers. The participants were randomly assigned to explain two of the policies and then asked to re-rate how well they understood the policies.

As the researchers predicted, people reported lower understanding of all six policies after they had to explain them, and their positions on the policies were less extreme. In fact, the data showed that the more people's understanding decreased, the more uncertain they were about the position, and the less extreme their position was in the end.

The act of explaining also affected participants' behavior. People who initially held a strong position softened their position after having to explain it, making them less likely to donate bonus money to a related organization when they were given the opportunity to do so.

Importantly, the results affected people along the whole political spectrum, from self-identified Democrats to Republicans to Independents.

According to the researchers, these findings shed light on a psychological process that may help people to open the lines of communication in the context of a heated debate or negotiation.

"This research is important because political polarization is hard to combat," says Fernbach. "There are many psychological processes that act to create greater extremism and polarization, but this is a rare case where asking people to attempt to explain makes them back off their extreme positions."

###

In addition to Fernbach, co-authors include Todd Rogers of the Harvard Kennedy School; Craig R. Fox of the University of California, Los Angeles; and Steven A. Sloman of Brown University.

For more information about this study, please contact:

Philip M. Fernbach at philip.fernbach@gmail.com.

The APS journal Psychological Science is the highest ranked empirical journal in psychology. For a copy of the article "Political Extremism Is Supported by an Illusion of Understanding" and access to other Psychological Science research findings, please contact Anna Mikulak.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 29-Apr-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Anna Mikulak
amikulak@psychologicalscience.org
202-293-9300
Association for Psychological Science

Having to explain how a political policy works leads people to express less extreme attitudes toward the policy, according to new research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

The research suggests that people may hold extreme policy positions because they are under an illusion of understanding attempting to explain the nuts and bolts of how a policy works forces them to acknowledge that they don't know as much about the policy as they initially thought.

Psychological scientist Philip Fernbach of the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado, Boulder and his co-authors were interested in exploring some of the factors that could contribute to what they see as increasing political polarization in the United States.

"We wanted to know how it's possible that people can maintain such strong positions on issues that are so complex such as macroeconomics, health care, foreign relations and yet seem to be so ill-informed about those issues," says Fernbach.

Drawing on previous research on the illusion of understanding, Fernbach and colleagues speculated that one reason for the apparent paradox may be that voters think they understand how policies work better than they actually do.

In their first study, the researchers asked participants taking an online survey to rate how well they understood six political policies, including raising the retirement age for Social Security, instituting a national flat tax, and implementing merit-based pay for teachers. The participants were randomly assigned to explain two of the policies and then asked to re-rate how well they understood the policies.

As the researchers predicted, people reported lower understanding of all six policies after they had to explain them, and their positions on the policies were less extreme. In fact, the data showed that the more people's understanding decreased, the more uncertain they were about the position, and the less extreme their position was in the end.

The act of explaining also affected participants' behavior. People who initially held a strong position softened their position after having to explain it, making them less likely to donate bonus money to a related organization when they were given the opportunity to do so.

Importantly, the results affected people along the whole political spectrum, from self-identified Democrats to Republicans to Independents.

According to the researchers, these findings shed light on a psychological process that may help people to open the lines of communication in the context of a heated debate or negotiation.

"This research is important because political polarization is hard to combat," says Fernbach. "There are many psychological processes that act to create greater extremism and polarization, but this is a rare case where asking people to attempt to explain makes them back off their extreme positions."

###

In addition to Fernbach, co-authors include Todd Rogers of the Harvard Kennedy School; Craig R. Fox of the University of California, Los Angeles; and Steven A. Sloman of Brown University.

For more information about this study, please contact:

Philip M. Fernbach at philip.fernbach@gmail.com.

The APS journal Psychological Science is the highest ranked empirical journal in psychology. For a copy of the article "Political Extremism Is Supported by an Illusion of Understanding" and access to other Psychological Science research findings, please contact Anna Mikulak.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/afps-epa042913.php

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No more survivors likely in Bangladesh tragedy

SAVAR, Bangladesh (AP) ? Rescue workers in Bangladesh gave up hopes of finding any more survivors in the remains of a building that collapsed five days ago, and began using heavy machinery on Monday to dislodge the rubble and look for bodies.

At least 380 people were killed when the illegally-constructed, 8-story Rana Plaza collapsed in a heap on Wednesday morning along with thousands of workers in the five garment factories in the building. About 2,500 survivors have been accounted for. The building owner, Mohammed Sohel Rana, was arrested Sunday in the western border town of Benapole while he was trying to flee to India.

The collapse was the deadliest disaster to hit the garment industry in Bangladesh that is worth $20 billion annually, supplies global retailers and is a mainstay of the economy.

Volunteers, army personnel and firemen have worked around the clock since Wednesday, mostly using hands and light equipment to pull out survivors. Around midnight Sunday, authorities deployed hydraulic cranes and heavy cutting machines to break up the massive slabs of concrete into manageable segments that could be lifted away.

"We are proceeding cautiously. If there is still a soul alive, we will try to rescue that person," said army spokesman Shahinul Islam.

"There is little hope of finding anyone alive. Our men went inside and saw some dead bodies in the ground floor. But no one was seen alive," said Brig. Gen. Ali Ahmed Khan, the chief of the fire brigade at the scene.

Gone are the civilian volunteers who had swarmed the site since the disaster and crawling over the wreckage. Only army soldiers in green camouflage and hard hats were visible, watching heavy machinery digging into thick concrete. Gone also were the waiting ambulances that over the past five days had rushed the rescued to hospitals.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina visited the site and a nearby hospital to meet with survivors on Monday, the first time since the disaster.

Hasina had ordered the arrest of building owner Rana, who is a small-time political operative from her Awami League party's youth wing. He was brought back by helicopter from the border town to the capital, Dhaka, where he is expected to be charged with negligence on Monday.

He had permission to build a 5-story building but added three more illegally. He last appeared in public Tuesday in front of the Rana Plaza after huge cracks appeared in the building.

Witnesses said Rana assured tenants that the building was safe. Police, however, ordered an evacuation. A bank and some first-floor shops closed, but managers of the garment factories on the upper floors told workers to continue their shifts.

Hours later, the Rana Plaza was reduced to rubble, crushing most victims under massive blocks of concrete.

Police have also arrested four owners of three factories. Also in detention for questioning are two municipal engineers who were involved in approving the building's design. Local TV stations reported that the Bangladesh High Court has frozen the bank accounts of the owners of all five garment factories.

A garment manufacturers' group said the factories in the building employed 3,122 workers, but it was not clear how many were inside when it fell. About 2,500 survivors have been accounted for.

The death toll surpassed a fire five months ago that killed 112 people and brought widespread pledges to improve worker-safety standards. But since then, very little has changed in Bangladesh.

The collapse and previous disasters in garment factories have focused attention on the poor working conditions of workers who toil for as little as $38 a month to produce clothing for top international brands.

Its garment industry was the third-largest in the world in 2011, after China and Italy, having grown rapidly in the past decade.

Among the garment makers in the building were Phantom Apparels, Phantom Tac, Ether Tex, New Wave Style and New Wave Bottoms. Altogether, they produced several million shirts, pants and other garments a year.

The New Wave companies, according to their website, make clothing for several major North American and European retailers.

Britain's Primark acknowledged it was using a factory in Rana Plaza, but many other retailers distanced themselves from the disaster, saying they were not involved with the factories at the time of the collapse or had not recently ordered garments from them.

Wal-Mart said none of its clothing had been authorized to be made in the facility, but it is investigating whether there was any unauthorized production.

__

AP writers Gillian Wong and Julhas Alam in Dhaka contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/no-more-survivors-likely-bangladesh-tragedy-051339036.html

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Pat Healy submits Jim Miller at UFC 159, but Bruce Buffer almost announces wrong winner

Jim Miller is 5-foot-8, fights at 155 lbs., and has a bushy red beard. Pat Healy is 5-foot-9, fights at 155 lbs., and sported a trimmed red beard at UFC 159. Can you blame UFC announcer Bruce Buffer for mixing them up?

Healy, who returned to the UFC after spending much of his career in Strikeforce, put Miller to sleep with a rear naked choke in the third round of their thrilling bout. As the two stood on either side of referee Herb Dean to have the fight result announced, Buffer announced the winner by submission was Jim Mill-Pat Healy!

Healy smiled and corrected Buffer, who rarely makes such errors. It was a lighthearted moment that Healy laughed about after a thrilling bout.

Miller started out landing leg kicks and used ground and pound to beat up Healy in the first round. Near the end of the round, Healy was saved by the bell as Miller's ground and pound was close to ending the bout before the horn sounded.

[Also: Two bizarre endings mar UFC 159 prelims]

It was in the third that Healy turned the bout around. Healy weakened Miller with striking, then took him down and took his back. He sunk in the rear naked choke, and Miller's arms went limp. The fight was stopped at 4:02 in the third because Miller was out.

Miller wanted to use the bout to convince UFC president Dana White that he was ready for a title shot. Instead, it was Healy who stood out. In his post-fight interview with UFC commentator, he warned other UFC lightweights to watch out because he was "putting them on blast."

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No more survivors likely in Bangladesh tragedy

SAVAR, Bangladesh (AP) ? Rescue workers in Bangladesh gave up hopes of finding any more survivors in the remains of a building that collapsed five days ago, and began using heavy machinery on Monday to dislodge the rubble and look for bodies -- mostly of workers in garment factories there.

In renewed anger against conditions in garment factories ? a mainstay of Bangladesh's economy ? hundreds of workers poured into the streets in the Dhaka suburb of Ashulia and set fire to an ambulance Monday, the Independent TV, a private network, reported. They also tried to set fire to a factory, it said. Authorities shut down all garment factories in Ashulia and Gazipur industrial suburbs, including one that had reportedly developed cracks and was evacuated earlier.

At least 381 people were killed when the illegally constructed, 8-story Rana Plaza collapsed in a heap on Wednesday morning along with thousands of workers in the five garment factories in the building. About 2,500 survivors have been accounted for. The building owner, Mohammed Sohel Rana, was arrested Sunday in the western border town of Benapole while he was trying to flee to India.

The collapse was the deadliest disaster to hit the garment industry in Bangladesh that is worth $20 billion annually and supplies global retailers.

Volunteers, army personnel and firemen have worked around the clock since Wednesday, mostly using hands and light equipment to pull out survivors. Around midnight Sunday, authorities deployed hydraulic cranes and heavy cutting machines to break up the massive slabs of concrete into manageable segments that could be lifted away.

"We are proceeding cautiously. If there is still a soul alive, we will try to rescue that person," said army spokesman Shahinul Islam.

"There is little hope of finding anyone alive. Our men went inside and saw some dead bodies in the ground floor. But no one was seen alive," said Brig. Gen. Ali Ahmed Khan, the chief of the fire brigade at the scene.

Gone are the civilian volunteers who had swarmed the site since the disaster and crawling over the wreckage. Only army soldiers in green camouflage and hard hats were visible, watching heavy machinery digging into thick concrete. Gone also were the waiting ambulances that over the past five days had rushed the rescued to hospitals.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina visited the site and a nearby hospital to meet with survivors on Monday, the first time since the disaster.

Hasina had ordered the arrest of building owner Rana, who is a small-time political operative from her Awami League party's youth wing. He was brought back by helicopter from the border town to the capital, Dhaka, where he is expected to be charged with negligence on Monday.

He had permission to build a 5-story building but added three more illegally. He last appeared in public Tuesday in front of the Rana Plaza after huge cracks appeared in the building.

Witnesses said Rana assured tenants that the building was safe. Police, however, ordered an evacuation. A bank and some first-floor shops closed, but managers of the garment factories on the upper floors told workers to continue their shifts.

Hours later, the Rana Plaza was reduced to rubble, crushing most victims under massive blocks of concrete.

Police have also arrested four owners of three factories. Also in detention for questioning are two municipal engineers who were involved in approving the building's design. Local TV stations reported that the Bangladesh High Court has frozen the bank accounts of the owners of all five garment factories.

A garment manufacturers' group said the factories in the building employed 3,122 workers, but it was not clear how many were inside when it fell. About 2,500 survivors have been accounted for.

The death toll surpassed a fire five months ago that killed 112 people and brought widespread pledges to improve worker-safety standards. But since then, very little has changed in Bangladesh.

The collapse and previous disasters in garment factories have focused attention on the poor working conditions of workers who toil for as little as $38 a month to produce clothing for top international brands.

Its garment industry was the third-largest in the world in 2011, after China and Italy, having grown rapidly in the past decade.

Among the garment makers in the building were Phantom Apparels, Phantom Tac, Ether Tex, New Wave Style and New Wave Bottoms. Altogether, they produced several million shirts, pants and other garments a year.

The New Wave companies, according to their website, make clothing for several major North American and European retailers.

Britain's Primark acknowledged it was using a factory in Rana Plaza, but many other retailers distanced themselves from the disaster, saying they were not involved with the factories at the time of the collapse or had not recently ordered garments from them.

Wal-Mart said none of its clothing had been authorized to be made in the facility, but it is investigating whether there was any unauthorized production.

__

AP writers Gillian Wong and Julhas Alam in Dhaka contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/no-more-survivors-likely-bangladesh-tragedy-051339036.html

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So, while American TV news was mesmerized by the Royal baby ...

If those in charge of our society - politicians, corporate executives, and owners of press and television - can dominate our ideas, they will be secure in their power. They will not need soldiers patrolling the streets. We will control ourselves. - Howard Zinn

Someone pointed out to me that North Korea has been awfully quiet this week, all things considered. Or, at least, our crackerjack news networks haven?t seen fit to cover them.

True, we have had two major events happen in close succession - the Boston bombing and the plant explosion in Texas. Oh, and how our ?lawmakers? sprang into action when airline profits were threatened by the government budget battles.

Other than that, though, what else (other than stories about the Boston bomber) have we learned about?

We have seen endless footage of the Royal ?baby bump,? with anxious Americans being informed of the child?s role when it comes to succeeding the current Queen of England - roughly, a few thousand supermarket openings and other photo ops to go, kid.

We don?t actually know anything about the oddly-bland made for TV Royal couple, other than what press releases tell us . . . but then, modern journalism lives on press releases.

The opening of the George Bush Presidential Library, which featured fawning reporter after fawning reporter talking to the former president about his new found love for painting.

Som yes, Wagnerian Reader, one might possibly be forgiven for thinking that nothing else happened in the world this week. Except for . . .

I picked up a copy of the New York Times yesterday, just to see if there might have been one or two stories the networks might have let slip through the cracks, and here are some of the nuggets I found:

North Korea Issues Threat At Ceremony For Military - North Korean generals warned that not only were their forces ready to launch ICBM attacks against this country, but that the North is ? . . . one click away from pressing the launch button.? The claim was made that pilots, instead of loading up with fuel for a return trip, would be prepared to launch ?kamikaze-like? attacks against this country.

Venezuela Says U.S. Citizen Plotted Unrest - Timothy Hallett was arrested on accusations that he was working with right-wing groups hoping to promote violence, and possibly even a civil war.

Cuba: U.S. Bars Raul Castro?s Daughter from a Forum - Castro?s daughter was to attend a gay rights conference in Philadelphia next week, when she was to receive an award. No explanation was given for the decision to bar her from the conference.

South Africa: Lawmakers Pass Contentious Secrecy Bill - The South African government approved a highly criticized bill would increase the government?s power to restrict access to information.

Agency Halts Trials for AIDS Vaccine - A trial of a possible Vaccine against AIDS was halted because it appeared not to be working, according to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Cancer Specialists Attack High Drug Costs - More than 100 cancer specialist from around the globe met to take what has been described as the ?first step? in banding together in the hopes of persuading drug companies to bring their prices down.

Wouldn?t it be nice if ?lawmakers? who get campaign donations from drug manufacturers also felt such concern?

And if this wasn?t bad enough, it takes the excellent HBO documentary series VICE to lay open just what is happening in Europe, while on American TV news all we hear is that folks are in an uproar due to ?austerity measures.?

I still cling to the old-fashioned view that knowing things (real things, not conspiracy drenched crap) is important to our culture, and to ourselves as human beings. It sets good example for our friends, and for the young people in our lives, while being pig ignorant, on the other hand . . .

Maybe it?s too late to expect anything of local and national news, but we can expect more of ourselves, and it only takes a few minutes a week to stay informed.

******

And here is one bit of news a local anchor and weatherman twisted out of all proportion

A local anchor and weatherman were practically giving each other high fives a few days ago, because ?the drought is over.?

This headline from the New York Times:

In Midwest, Drought Gives way To Flood.

Deep, deep sigh.

*****

Quote of the Day

The universe is not required to be in perfect harmony with human ambition. - Carl Sagan

rsdrake@cox.net

Source: http://www.arktimes.com/StreetJazz/archives/2013/04/27/2833450-so-while-american-tv-news-was-mesmerized-by-the-royal-baby-bump-and-the-paintings-of-george-bush-here-is-what-happened-on-planet-earth

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Boeing Dreamliner Flights Resume (Voice Of America)

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Researchers identify key cellular organelle involved in gene silencing

Friday, April 26, 2013

RNA molecules, made from DNA, are best known for their role in protein production. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), however, are short (~22) nucleotide RNA sequences found in plants and animals that do not encode proteins but act in gene regulation and, in the process, impact almost all biological processes ? from development to physiology to stress response.

Present in almost in every cell, microRNAs are known to target tens to hundreds of genes each and to be able to repress, or "silence," their expression. What is less well understood is how exactly miRNAs repress target gene expression.

Now a team of scientists led by geneticists at the University of California, Riverside has conducted a study on plants (Arabidopsis) that shows that the site of action of the repression of target gene expression occurs on the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), a cellular organelle that is an interconnected network of membranes ? essentially, flattened sacs and branching tubules ? that extends like a flat balloon throughout the cytoplasm in plant and animal cells.

"Our study is the first to demonstrate that the ER is where miRNA-mediated translation repression occurs," said lead researcher Xuemei Chen, a professor of plant cell and molecular biology and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute-Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation Investigator. "To understand how microRNAs repress target gene expression, we first need to know where microRNAs act in the cell. Until now no one knew that membranes are essential for microRNA activity. Our work shows that an integral membrane protein, AMP1, is required for the miRNA-mediated target gene repression to be successful. As AMP1 has counterparts in animals, our findings in plants could have broader implications."

Study results appear today in the journal Cell.

Simply put, DNA makes RNA, and then RNA makes proteins. Specifically, RNA encodes genetic information that can be "translated" into the amino acid sequence of proteins. But noncoding RNAs ? RNAs that do not encode proteins ? are increasingly found to act in numerous biological processes. MicroRNAs are a class of noncoding RNAs whose main function is to downregulate gene expression.

Research on miRNAs has increased tremendously since they were first identified about 20 years ago. In the case of diseases, if some genes are up- or down-regulated, miRNAs can be used to change the expression of these genes to fight the diseases, thus showing therapeutic potential.

MicroRNAs are known to regulate target genes by two major modes of action: they either destabilize the target RNAs, leading to their degradation, or they do not impact the stability of the target RNAs, but simply prevent them from being translated into proteins ? a process known as translation inhibition. The end result of translation inhibition is that the genes do not get expressed. Just how miRNAs cause translational inhibition of their target genes is not well understood.

"We were surprised that the ER is required for the translational inhibition activity of miRNAs," Chen said. "This new knowledge will expedite our understanding of the mechanism of gene silencing. Basically, now we know where to look: the ER. We also suspect it is the rough ER portions that are involved."

Chen explained that the ER has two types: rough and smooth. Rough ER, which synthesizes and packages proteins, looks bumpy; smooth ER, which acts in lipid synthesis and protein secretion, resembles tubes. The ER protein AMP1, she said, is anchored in the rough ER.

"My lab has been conducting research on AMP1 for many years," she said. "And it's this protein that drew our attention to the ER. First, we realized that AMP1 is involved in miRNA-mediated translational inhibition. Then, since we already knew that AMP1 is localized in the rough ER, we shifted our focus to this organelle."

Next, her lab will attempt to crack the mechanism of miRNA-mediated translational inhibition. They will investigate, too, how miRNAs are recruited to the ER.

###

University of California - Riverside: http://www.ucr.edu

Thanks to University of California - Riverside for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

This press release has been viewed 70 time(s).

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/127962/Researchers_identify_key_cellular_organelle_involved_in_gene_silencing

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Group tied to old guard could gain in Iraq unrest

FILE - in this Tuesday, April 23, 2013 file photo, Iraqi army soldiers stage on the outskirts of Hawija, 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of Baghdad, Iraq. A shadowy militant group linked to the highest-ranking member of Saddam Hussein?s regime still at large could be among the beneficiaries of the unrest that erupted this week in Iraq and is posing perhaps the gravest challenge for Iraq?s stability since U.S. troops left. Many of its members are believed to come from Hawija _ the site of Tuesday?s security crackdown by Iraqi forces _ and other northern areas where clashes occurred.(AP Photo/Hadi Mizban, File)

FILE - in this Tuesday, April 23, 2013 file photo, Iraqi army soldiers stage on the outskirts of Hawija, 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of Baghdad, Iraq. A shadowy militant group linked to the highest-ranking member of Saddam Hussein?s regime still at large could be among the beneficiaries of the unrest that erupted this week in Iraq and is posing perhaps the gravest challenge for Iraq?s stability since U.S. troops left. Many of its members are believed to come from Hawija _ the site of Tuesday?s security crackdown by Iraqi forces _ and other northern areas where clashes occurred.(AP Photo/Hadi Mizban, File)

FILE - in this Sunday, Dec. 1, 2002 file photo, Iraqi Vice chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council, Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri salutes during a ceremony at the huge Martyrs Monument in Baghdad, Iraq, A shadowy militant group linked to the highest-ranking member of Saddam Hussein?s regime still at large could be among the beneficiaries of the unrest that erupted this week in Iraq and is posing perhaps the gravest challenge for Iraq?s stability since U.S. troops left.(AP Photo/Jassim Mohammed, File)

FILE - In this Tuesday, April 23, 2013 file photo, AK-47s seized by Iraqi security forces are seen in Hawija, 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of Baghdad, Iraq. A shadowy militant group linked to the highest-ranking member of Saddam Hussein?s regime still at large could be among the beneficiaries of the unrest that erupted this week in Iraq and is posing perhaps the gravest challenge for Iraq?s stability since U.S. troops left. The Army of the Men of the Naqshabandi Order, which takes its name from the mystical Sufi sect, has long been active in the restless northern lands where much of the violence occurred and boasts itself that it was behind several attacks in recent days.(AP Photo, File)

FILE - in this Tuesday, April 23, 2013 file photo, Iraqi army soldiers stage on the outskirts of Hawija, 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of Baghdad, Iraq. A shadowy militant group linked to the highest-ranking member of Saddam Hussein?s regime still at large could be among the beneficiaries of the unrest that erupted this week in Iraq and is posing perhaps the gravest challenge for Iraq?s stability since U.S. troops left.(AP Photo/Hadi Mizban, File)

FILE - In this Tuesday, April 23, 2013 file photo, the body of a gunman killed during clashes with Iraqi security forces lies on the ground in Hawija, 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, April 23, 2013. A shadowy militant group linked to the highest-ranking member of Saddam Hussein?s regime still at large could be among the beneficiaries of the unrest that erupted this week in Iraq and is posing perhaps the gravest challenge for Iraq?s stability since U.S. troops left. The Army of the Men of the Naqshabandi Order, which takes its name from the mystical Sufi sect, has long been active in the restless northern lands where much of the violence occurred and boasts itself that it was behind several attacks in recent days.(AP Photo, File)

BAGHDAD (AP) ? As clashes this week raise fears of a destabilizing new eruption of sectarian fighting in Iraq, a shadowy militant group linked to the top fugitive from Saddam Hussein's regime could stand to gain by attracting new Sunni Muslim support.

The Army of the Men of the Naqshabandi Order depicts itself as a nationalist force defending Iraq's Sunni minority from Shiite rule and as an alternative to the extremist version of Islam championed by al-Qaida, whose branch here alienated many in the community during the height of the country's sectarian bloodshed in the middle of the last decade.

The Naqshabandi Army boasted online that it contributed to the wave of violence that followed a government crackdown Tuesday on a Sunni protest site in the town of Hawija. The deadly clash there prompted assaults by Sunni gunmen in a string of towns and cities, mainly in the north. The violence has claimed more than 170 lives.

In a posting on its website, the group urged its fighters to prepare to storm Baghdad to confront "with an iron fist ... the enemies of Arabism and Islam" ? a reference to the Shiite-led government that many Sunnis believe is too closely allied with neighboring Shiite powerhouse Iran. While it says foreign diplomats are not its target, it warned that those who ally themselves with the government can expect no mercy.

It's not just propaganda, say officials and analysts.

"The intelligence we have clearly indicates ? beyond any doubt ? that the Naqshabandi Army is involved in the recent clashes" in the north of the country, said Shiite lawmaker Hakim al-Zamili, who sits on parliament's security and defense committee.

He told The Associated Press that the group is thought to have a cache of small and medium-sized arms, and is continuing to carry out attacks against army positions. "They are intensifying efforts to recruit more people and gather more weapons," he said.

The group, believed to be made up largely of former officers and other former members of Saddam's regime, occasionally claims responsibility for attacks on government security forces. Estimates of its size range from 1,000 to five times that.

It takes its name from the Naqshabandi order of Sufism, Islam's mystical movement, which counts many followers in northern Iraq. The militant group touts its Sufi credentials, though it is unclear how many in its ranks are adherents to the spiritual order. But the Sufi claim helps differentiate it in the eyes of the Sunni public from al-Qaida in Iraq, whose radical version of Islam usually vilifies Sufis.

Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, a former Saddam deputy who is the highest member of his inner circle still on the run, is believed to have a significant role in the Naqshabandi Army, which proudly touts Saddam-era symbols on its website.

Al-Douri was named as the head of a new insurgent coalition in 2007 called the Supreme Command for Jihad and Liberation, in which the Naqshabandi Army is the main component. Al-Douri was the "king of clubs" in the deck of playing cards issued to help U.S. troops identify key members of Saddam's regime, but he disappeared with the regime's fall in 2003. He had not been seen in public until last year, when a man purporting to be him turned up in an online video wearing a Saddam-era military uniform and railing against Iraq's Shiite-led government.

Another video of him aired in January to rally Sunni protesters demonstrating against the government, promising them the support of "all the national and Islamic forces ... until (their) legitimate demands are achieved."

Sunnis formed the backbone of the insurgency after Saddam's fall. But they also were key to the downturn in violence after tribal leaders turned against al-Qaida in Iraq, angered over its killing of civilians.

The Naqshabandi Army is maneuvering to present itself as the Sunnis' champion.

Tuesday's bloodshed followed four months of largely peaceful protests staged by Iraq's Sunni minority against the government. They complain of discrimination and political marginalization under the Shiite-led government.

An organizer of protests in the western city of Fallujah, in the country's Sunni heartland, said fighters from the group had contacted the protesters months ago offering to protect their rallies. But the protesters turned them down, wanting to maintain their movement's peaceful image, said the organizer, who spoke on condition he be identified only by his nickname Abu Ahmed for fear of government reprisals.

But after the Hawija crackdown, the Naqshabandi Army renewed its offer of protection, and the protesters accepted, he said.

The group "told us that they are different from al-Qaida and they do not kill their fellow Sunnis. They said that their goal is to defend Sunnis and to fight pro-Iran Iraqis," he said. "Our protesters now need real armed protection."

The group this week took credit for several attacks in the post-Hawija unrest, including a mortar attack on security forces and the destruction of an army vehicle near Suleiman Beg, a small town north of Baghdad that was seized by gunmen Thursday. Security forces retook control of the town after the gunmen withdrew Friday.

It was also behind deadly clashes this week in the key northern city of Mosul, Interior Ministry spokesman Lt. Col. Saad Maan Ibrahim said. The group is "trying to recruit more people and expand its operations to other Sunni provinces by taking advantage of current sectarian tensions," he said.

Michael Knights, an analyst at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, described the group as patient and strategically focused with a fairly stringent recruitment process that draws heavily on former members of Saddam's elite Republican Guard.

"The big bang ? a resurgence of Sunni militancy in Iraq ? is exactly what JRTN has been trying to foment," he said, using the abbreviation of the group's full name in Arabic. "JRTN didn't create the conditions, but it's the organization that's best equipped to exploit it."

In January, uniformed members of the Naqshabandi Army appeared in an online video urging Iraqis to continue with the anti-government protests that began in December in many Sunni areas.

The U.S. Treasury Department froze the group's assets in 2009 after it carried out raids against U.S. and coalition forces using armor-penetrating grenades, rockets, and roadside bombs. Among the attacks was a strike on a coalition convoy in Hawija in August of that year.

The department said the group intends to overthrow the Iraqi government and reinstate rule by the Saddam-era Baath Party.

Iraqi analyst Ibrahim al-Sumaidaie predicted that the Naqshabandi Army as well as al-Qaida's Iraq arm will gain support following the Hawija crackdown.

"It's a dangerous situation," he said. "We have two paths ? to get a compromise solution, or to head to a new civil war."

Some Sunnis appear willing to turn to it if the sectarian violence spirals.

"We are against any outlawed armed groups," said Mohammed Youssef, a Mosul shop owner. "We do not want any Shiite-Sunni fighting, but if the Shiite armed groups move aggressively against Sunnis, then we will all support the Naqshabandi Army. It is different from al-Qaida."

___

Associated Press writer Sameer N. Yacoub contributed reporting.

___

Follow Adam Schreck on Twitter at http://twitter.com/adamschreck

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-04-27-Iraq-Militants/id-e4878b8d7f19426c9f49b08dd7a8d042

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RBAF Combat Net Radio System Contract Signing Ceremony ...

The Ministry of Defence Negara Brunei Darussalam (?MINDEF?) signed Supplemental Agreement and Blanket Order Agreement for the supply of Combat Net Radio (CNR) System for the Royal Brunei Armed Forces (?RBAF?) with Harris Corporation, RF Communications Division (?Harris?) from United States of America.

The Contract Signing Ceremony was held at MINDEF?s premises at Bolkiah Garrison on March 29th 2013. Signing on behalf of MINDEF was Hajah Suriyah binti Haji Umar, Permanent Secretary of Administration and Finance and Allan Callaghan, Vice President International Sales and Managing Director Asia Pacific, signing on behalf of Harris.

The CNR Supplemental Agreement is an enhancement contract to the Master Agreement signed in January 2008 in which Harris supplied tactical radios, accessories and other equipment to the RBAF. The New Supplemental Program, to be implemented in five phases over a five-year period, provides the deployment of networked communications delivering secure tactical communications to individual soldiers, and improving situational awareness and force effectiveness. In addition to the Supplemental Agreement, the Blanket Order Agreement provides enhancement to RBAF?s ability to maintain and support the CNR System throughout its expected service life.

The Supplemental Program will enhance RBAF?s C4I (Command, Control, Communication, Computing & Intelligence) Systems, enabling secure voice communication links and wideband data performance allowing for information superiority in today?s battlefield.

Naval Today Staff, April 25, 2013; Image: MINDEF

Source: http://navaltoday.com/2013/04/25/rbaf-combat-net-radio-system-contract-signing-ceremony/

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This French F1-Inspired Electric City Car Is Insane - Jalopnik

This is The Morning Shift, our one-stop daily roundup of all the auto news that's actually important ? all in one place at 9:00 AM. Or, you could spend all day waiting for other sites to parse it out to you one story at a time. Isn't your time more important?

1st Gear: The Twizy Renault Sport F1 Concept Is So? French

S

You last saw the Renault Twizy electric plaything in the hands of Chris Harris, but that golf kart has nothing on this hopped up version from Renault Sport (the same people behind the Megane RS and Twingo RS).

They've added a KERS system from their very capable F1 cars, which instantly adds 100 horsepower to something that normally has just 17 horses, making it as fast as any Renault on the road (0-60 mph in sub six seconds). It's also covered in F1-style bits such as Formula Renault tires, carbon splitter, side pods, differs, and mirrors.

Oh, and there's an F1 Steering wheel.

This is just a concept, but it's a freaking crazy one, and we totally want to drive it.

2nd Gear: Hyundai's First Quarter Profit Drops

S

The good news is Hyundai made a net profit of $1.88 billion, which is 2.1 trillion won. If you haven't learned by reading TMS, your currency has a big impact on profits and that "trillion" figure should make it clear that South Korea's was, at one point, very low and thus great for manufacturers. That's not the case anymore as it's weaker relative to the Japanese yen.

There's also an issue of labor stoppages on the weekend with Hyundai's unions in South Korea which, according to Reuters, resulted in production loses of 48,000 vehicles.

Hyundai is also trying to avoid a Toyota situation whereby expansive growth leads to poorer quality and huge recalls. Is Hyundai being too cautious or just cautious enough? Time will tell.

3rd Gear: You Can Buy Enzo Ferrari's Favorite Car

S

Silverstone Auctions plans to sell Enzo Ferrari's allegedly favorite car, a 1964 Ferrari 330GT Series 1. I assume they mean the model and not this specific car.

This specific car was in the U.S. up to 2002 before being transported to the U.K. where it was stripped and resprayed in Ferrari Blu Pozzi paint. It's expected to go for a reasonable $150K to $175K.

Other vehicles up for auction include a 1986 Testarossa and a 1974 Dino 308 GT4.

4th Gear: Good And Bad News For GM

S

As a plus, Dan Akerson told a crowd at a Habitat for Humanity banquet that U.S. auto sales should continue to be up year-over-year in March by about 3.4%.

He did say, however, that lower consumer confidence and Ford's losses in Europe are something to be concerned about. That's important because for all the money GM has been making in the U.S. and China they've been losing it in the Old World.

We'll know next week just how big of a hole they're in thanks to Opel.

5th Gear: Chrysler Is Still Imported From Detroit

Chrysler is going to stay with "Imported From Detroit" as a tagline reports The Detroit Free Press, probably because it still works.

The tagline was launched in 2011 during that famous Super Bowl commercial with Eminem. It was a total Detroitgasm and has been seen on YouTube about 16 million times.

It's been contorted since then, but as long as Ralph Gilles still wears nothing but pro-Detroit t-shirts we can probably expect them to keep it up

Reverse: RIP Michele Alboreto

S

On this day in 2001, 44-year-old Italian race car driver Michele Alboreto is killed on a track in Germany during a test drive. Alboreto collected five Grand Prix wins on the Formula One (F1) circuit, where he competed during the 1980s and early 1990s, and also claimed victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race in 1997.

[HISTORY]

Neutral: Is Imported From Detroit The Best Auto Tagline Ever? Or is it "Like a Rock?"

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Just about any other day of the year, you can find Chris Harris four-wheel drifting through some? Read?Renault has a history of building some fairly taut sporting versions of regular production? Read?As part of a bizarre ad campaign, Renaultsport got Margot Laffite (F1 driver Jacque Laffite's? Read?Wow. I can't believe how amazing the Super Bowl ad from Chrysler starring Eminem is that just? Read?

Source: http://jalopnik.com/this-french-f1-inspired-electric-city-car-is-insane-480771530

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First edition of a bookworm's genome

Friday, April 26, 2013

It has co-existed quietly with humans for centuries, slurping up the spillage in beer halls and gorging on the sour paste used to bind books. Now the tiny nematode Panagrellus redivivus (P.redivivus) has emerged from relative obscurity with the publication of its complete genetic code. Further study of this worm, which is often called the beer-mat worm or, simply, the microworm, is expected to shed new light on many aspects of animal biology, including the differences between male and female organisms and the unique adaptations of parasitic worms.

Using next-generation sequencing technologies, a research team led by Jagan Srinivasan, now an assistant professor of biology and biotechnology at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), discovered just over 24,000 putative genes encoded in the worm's DNA?nearly the same number as in the human genome. The team also measured the amount and characteristics of RNA molecules transcribed from those genes to direct cellular processes?that collection of data is called the worm's transcriptome. The genome data published by Srinivasan and colleagues marks the first time a free-living nematode outside of the widely studied C. elegans immediate family has been sequenced.

The researchers detail their findings in the paper, "The Draft Genome and Transcriptome of Panagrellus redivivus Are Shaped by the Harsh Demands of a Free-Living Lifestyle," published in the April 2013 edition of the journal Genetics.

"Humans and nematodes share a common ancestor that lived in the oceans more than 600 million years ago," Srinivasan said. "Many of the basic biological processes have been conserved over the millennia and are similar in Panagrellus and humans. So we believe there is a lot to be learned from studying this organism."

Srinivasan led the P.redivivus sequencing project while working as a postdoctoral researcher at the California Institute of Technology in the laboratory of Paul Sternberg, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator and the Thomas Hunt Morgan Professor of Biology at Caltech. Adler Dillman, a graduate student at Caltech, worked closely with Srinivasan on the project and shares first-author status of the new study. Sternberg is the senior author.

Srinivasan joined the WPI faculty in the fall of 2012 and has established his own research program using the microworm and its scientifically more famous cousin, Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans), as model systems to study the neurobiological basis of social communication and how organisms react to environmental cues.

In recent years C. elegans has emerged as a star in the biomedical research world. In 1998 it became the first multicellular organism to have its genome sequenced. The experience gained from that work was fundamental to the successful completion of the Human Genome Project. Nobel prizes in 2002, 2006, and 2008 were awarded to researchers who made extraordinary discoveries studying C. elegans.

Like C. elegans, the microworm P. redivivus is a free-living nematode found in many environments around the world. An adult microworm is about 2 millimeters long and has approximately 1,000 cells. Despite its small size, the worm is a complex organism able to do all of the things animals must do to survive. It can move, eat, reproduce, and process cues from its environment that help it forage for food, seek out mates, or react to threats. Unlike C. elegans, however, P. redivivus is a gonochoristic species, meaning it has male and female individuals who must mate to reproduce. In contrast, C. elegans has evolved to be primarily a self-fertilizing hermaphrodite, producing both eggs and sperm in the same individual. (There are some male-only C. elegans worms, but they are rare in the wild.)

"Because we see true male and female individuals, Panagrellus will be a powerful model system for studying the differences between the sexes and the processes that the organism uses to find and interact with a mate," Srinivasan said.

Both P. redivivus and C. elegans are well suited for laboratory research, Srinivasan noted. The worms are easily cultured and have a short lifecycle, growing from embryo to adult in about four days. Adults live for approximately three weeks and can produce as many as 40 offspring each day. This lifecycle makes them ideal for genetic studies. Furthermore, the worms are transparent. Under a microscope researchers can look into a worm's body and see almost every cell in the living animal. They can see the cell nuclei, tag molecules with glowing fluorescent markers, and capture images of biological processes from the moment of fertilization to maturity.

As a free-living species, the microworm is considered to be an ancestor of other small worms that have evolved into parasites and colonize specific plants or animals (including humans) to survive. Studying the differences between the microworm and parasitic species will become another important area of research, Professor Sternberg noted. "Of course we want to know more about parasitic worms, given their impact on people and the environment," Sternberg said. "To know about parasites, however, you have to know about the free-living worms to place the bizarre features of parasites into context."

The current study identified the number, location, and composition of genes and RNA transcript in the microworm, and found significant and surprising differences between the P.redivivus genome and that of C. elegans even though the worms look nearly identical to the naked eye. For example, the early analysis of the microworm genome suggests that a large collection of genes have evolved as defenses against viruses and other pathogens the worms encounter in the environment?hence the "harsh demands" of their lifestyle as referenced in the paper's title.

"Studying how the genomes differ, and what processes are driven by those differences, should prove to be insightful," Srinivasan said. "Sequencing the genome and transcriptome is an important first step in what we believe will be a rich new field of study for fundamental biological processes that control development and behavior, not only in the worms, but also in humans."

###

Worcester Polytechnic Institute: http://www.wpi.edu

Thanks to Worcester Polytechnic Institute for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

This press release has been viewed 35 time(s).

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/127963/First_edition_of_a_bookworm_s_genome

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