23 posts · 19,084 views
I blog on the research that interests me - mostly (but not exclusively) Drosophila genetics. Elsewhere on my site you can find postings about my research, and my hobbies: cycling, books I've read and music I listen to
GrumpyBob
23 posts
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- July 2, 2009
- 12:46 AM
- 561 views
Sydney Brenner on C. elegans
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
The latest issue of Genetics to flop onto my desk has a rather nice article by Sydney Brenner entitled "In the Beginning Was the Worm...". This brief article (in the regularly excellent Perspectives section) presents an account of the origins of Caenorhabditis elegans research, by the beast's main man, research which ultimately earned him Nobel Prize fameRead More...... Read more »
Brenner, S. (2009) In the Beginning Was the Worm .. Genetics, 182(2), 413-415. DOI: 10.1534/genetics.109.104976
- March 20, 2009
- 12:35 PM
- 878 views
The evolution of feathers
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
Ed Yong has a nice discussion of a recent paper about a feathered dinosaur over at his blog (Not Exactly Rocket Science -Tianyulong - a fuzzy dinosaur that makes the origin of feathers fuzzier). The neat thing with this fossil is that it suggests that the evolution of feathers might have been a stepwise process, [...]... Read more »
Zheng, X., You, H., Xu, X., & Dong, Z. (2009) An Early Cretaceous heterodontosaurid dinosaur with filamentous integumentary structures. Nature, 458(7236), 333-336. DOI: 10.1038/nature07856
- March 15, 2009
- 09:37 AM
- 789 views
Fossil trackway reveals avian characteristics of theropod posture
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
It’s often claimed that intermediary fossils representing stages in the divergence of extant taxa are absent from the fossil record. Such claims are often made by those with a creationist bent, and in some cases on the back of spectacular ignorance of biology. For example Adnan Oktar’s (he publishes bizarre anti-evolution tirades under the pen [...]... Read more »
Milner, A., Harris, J., Lockley, M., Kirkland, J., & Matthews, N. (2009) Bird-Like Anatomy, Posture, and Behavior Revealed by an Early Jurassic Theropod Dinosaur Resting Trace. PLoS ONE, 4(3). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0004591
- February 27, 2009
- 02:03 AM
- 1,238 views
1.5 million year old Hominin footprints
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
Todays issue of Science contains a report on the identification of bipedal hominin footprints found at Ileret in Kenya. Of course older hominid footprints, probably of Australopithecus arafensis, were found some years ago at Laetoli and have become iconic images.
The new discovery is of fossil footprints which are morphologically distinct from the much older Laetoli [...]... Read more »
M. R. Bennett, J. W.K. Harris, B. G. Richmond, D. R. Braun, E. Mbua, P. Kiura, D. Olago, M. Kibunjia, C. Omuombo, A. K. Behrensmeyer.... (2009) Early Hominin Foot Morphology Based on 1.5-Million-Year-Old Footprints from Ileret, Kenya. Science, 323(5918), 1197-1201. DOI: 10.1126/science.1168132
- February 5, 2009
- 06:00 PM
- 917 views
In the Journals - Chemical evidence of multicellular life 635 million years ago
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
A paper in the current issue of Nature [Love et al (2009) Nature 457; 718-722] suggests that multicellular life existed about 100 million years before the explosion of bilaterian animals in the Cambrian. The evidence comes from analysis of rocks from the Arabian peninsula, in which geologically preserved derivatives of characteristic chemicals have been detected. Now [...]... Read more »
Gordon D. Love, Emmanuelle Grosjean, Charlotte Stalvies, David A. Fike, John P. Grotzinger, Alexander S. Bradley, Amy E. Kelly, Maya Bhatia, William Meredith, Colin E. Snape.... (2009) Fossil steroids record the appearance of Demospongiae during the Cryogenian period. Nature, 457(7230), 718-721. DOI: 10.1038/nature07673
- January 31, 2009
- 06:00 PM
- 944 views
In the Journals - Human expansion across the Pacific mapped by language and bacteria
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
Just as I finish reading (or rather, re-reading) chapters concerning the fate of Easter Island (Rapanui) and of Henderson and Pitcairn Islands in Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Survive by Jared Diamond, the 23rd January issue of Science arrives, bearing two articles on the spread of humans (Austronesians) from Taiwan and onwards across Micronesia to Polyne [...]... Read more »
R. D. Gray, A. J. Drummond, & S. J. Greenhill. (2009) Language Phylogenies Reveal Expansion Pulses and Pauses in Pacific Settlement. Science, 323(5913), 479-483. DOI: 10.1126/science.1166858
Y. Moodley, B. Linz, Y. Yamaoka, H. M. Windsor, S. Breurec, J.-Y. Wu, A. Maady, S. Bernhoft, J.-M. Thiberge, S. Phuanukoonnon.... (2009) The Peopling of the Pacific from a Bacterial Perspective. Science, 323(5913), 527-530. DOI: 10.1126/science.1166083
C. Renfrew. (2009) ANTHROPOLOGY: Where Bacteria and Languages Concur. Science, 323(5913), 467-468. DOI: 10.1126/science.1168953
- January 12, 2009
- 06:00 PM
- 341 views
In the Journals - Mosquito lifespan and Dengue fever control
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
Many tropical diseases are transmitted by insect vectors - malaria (which is caused by Plasmodium parasites) and yellow fever (caused by a virus) being examples of diseases transmitted by Anopheles and Aedes mosquitoes respectively. Dengue fever is another viral disease that is transmitted by Aedes aegypti. One crucial feature of the disease trRead More...... Read more »
C. J. McMeniman, R. V. Lane, B. N. Cass, A. W.C. Fong, M. Sidhu, Y.-F. Wang, & S. L. O'Neill. (2009) Stable Introduction of a Life-Shortening Wolbachia Infection into the Mosquito Aedes aegypti. Science, 323(5910), 141-144. DOI: 10.1126/science.1165326
- December 31, 2008
- 06:00 PM
- 367 views
In the Journals - Spiders, silk and evolution
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
Yet another palaeontology blog post! This story roared round the internet just before Christmas (for example the BBC News story), but I found it interesting as a non-specialist in arachnid evolution or palaeontology, partly because of the methods used for extracting fossil arthropod material from the substrate, and partly because it tells a tale of re-exaRead More...... Read more »
P. A. Selden, W. A. Shear, & M. D. Sutton. (2008) From the Cover: Fossil evidence for the origin of spider spinnerets, and a proposed arachnid order. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105(52), 20781-20785. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0809174106
- December 30, 2008
- 06:00 PM
- 366 views
In the Journals - Reproductive isolation in Drosophila hybrids
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
Of the many questions in evolutionary biology, the genetic basis of reproductive isolation between species and subspecies is a pretty hot topic. Drosophila pseudoobscura is a new world Drosophila species that has been used in evolutionary biology studies for many years. This paper looks at the genetic basis of the hybrid sterility and segregation dRead More...... Read more »
N. Phadnis, & H. A. Orr. (2008) A Single Gene Causes Both Male Sterility and Segregation Distortion in Drosophila Hybrids. Science. DOI: 10.1126/science.1163934
- December 20, 2008
- 06:00 PM
- 419 views
In the Journals - Ayurvedic Rasayana therapy in brain aging
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
While browsing through Biogerontology looking for the citation details of one of my publications (which appears to still be available only online), I came across this review, which kind of stands out because of its subject matter. And any paper with two citations from 300AD and 1300AD has to be looked at!At the outset, I should say that I kRead More...... Read more »
Ram Harsh Singh, K. Narsimhamurthy, & Girish Singh. (2008) Neuronutrient impact of Ayurvedic Rasayana therapy in brain aging. Biogerontology, 9(6), 369-374. DOI: 10.1007/s10522-008-9185-z
- December 7, 2008
- 06:00 PM
- 678 views
In the Journals - The strange origin of the Drosophila Y chromosome
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
The Y chromosome in Drosophila is a strange thing, and it has several unique features. While, just as in humans, male flies are XY and females XX, flies differ in the the Y chomosome doesn't determine "maleness". Rather the sex of the fly is determined by the ratio of X chromosomes to the number of sets of autosomes (the X:A ratio). If the X:A ratio is [...]... Read more »
Leonardo B. Koerich, Xiaoyun Wang, Andrew G. Clark, & Antonio Bernardo Carvalho. (2008) Low conservation of gene content in the Drosophila Y chromosome. Nature. DOI: 10.1038/nature07463
- December 4, 2008
- 06:00 PM
- 1,108 views
In the Journals - The origin of digits
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
Once again, I find myself interested in a paper about the analysis of a fossil! This time the point of interest is origin of the tetrapod limb digits. The origins of the proximal elements of the tetrapod limb are well understood, and can be seen as homologues of elements of the fins of sarcopterygian (lobe-finned fish). The origins of the digits may have [...]... Read more »
Catherine A. Boisvert, Elga Mark-Kurik, & Per E. Ahlberg. (2008) The pectoral fin of Panderichthys and the origin of digits. Nature, 456(7222), 636-638. DOI: 10.1038/nature07339
- November 28, 2008
- 06:00 PM
- 718 views
In the Journals - Antimicrobial Defense in Insects
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
This recent paper caught my eye, as as some of my recent research has related to the regulation of antimicrobial defence in Drosophila. Insects have a two ways of coping with microbial infection. Firstly, microbes... Read more »
E. R. Haine, Y. Moret, M. T. Siva-Jothy, & J. Rolff. (2008) Antimicrobial Defense and Persistent Infection in Insects. Science, 322(5905), 1257-1259. DOI: 10.1126/science.1165265
D. S. Schneider, & M. C. Chambers. (2008) MICROBIOLOGY: Rogue Insect Immunity. Science, 322(5905), 1199-1200. DOI: 10.1126/science.1167450
- November 22, 2008
- 06:00 PM
- 675 views
In the Journals - Selfish Genetic Elements and Polyandry
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
This interesting paper investigates whether there is a relationship between polyandry and selfish genetic elements, in the fruit fly Drosophila pseudoobscura. Polyandry - where females have multiple mating partners - is widespread in animals, but despite its frequency, little is known of the costs and benefits of this reproductive strategy ( [...]... Read more »
T. A. R. Price, D. J. Hodgson, Z. Lewis, G. D. D. Hurst, & N. Wedell. (2008) Selfish Genetic Elements Promote Polyandry in a Fly. Science, 322(5905), 1241-1243. DOI: 10.1126/science.1163766
- November 6, 2008
- 06:00 PM
- 880 views
In the Journals - Wolbachia infection and protection agaist viral infection in insects
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
Wolbachia pipientis is a rather peculiar bacterium. It's an intracellular organism, and is found in a wide variety of tax, including nematodes, crustacea, and arachnids. About 20% of insect species are thought to have Wolbachia [...]... Read more »
L. M. Hedges, J. C. Brownlie, S. L. O'Neill, & K. N. Johnson. (2008) Wolbachia and Virus Protection in Insects. Science, 322(5902), 702-702. DOI: 10.1126/science.1162418
- October 30, 2008
- 07:00 PM
- 790 views
In the Journals - Diapause adaptation in Drosophila melanogaster
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
An amino acid polymorphism in the couch potato gene forms the basis for climatic adaptation in Drosophila melanogasterMost organisms are faced with dealing with seasonal variations in environmental conditions. As winter approaches, physiological changes need to [...]... Read more »
P. S. Schmidt, C.-T. Zhu, J. Das, M. Batavia, L. Yang, & W. F. Eanes. (2008) An amino acid polymorphism in the couch potato gene forms the basis for climatic adaptation in Drosophila melanogaster. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105(42), 16207-16211. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0805485105
- October 22, 2008
- 07:00 PM
- 979 views
In the Journals - A "bizarre" feathered fossil from China
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
Perhaps I have just taken the wrong career path in science, but I do find the reports of interesting new fossils rather exciting. And how could I resist a paper describing a "bizarre Jurassic maniraptoran"? It seems that hardly a week goes by without a striking fossil from China being d [...]... Read more »
Fucheng Zhang, Zhonghe Zhou, Xing Xu, Xiaolin Wang, & Corwin Sullivan. (2008) A bizarre Jurassic maniraptoran from China with elongate ribbon-like feathers. Nature, 455(7216), 1105-1108. DOI: 10.1038/nature07447
- October 20, 2008
- 07:00 PM
- 1,266 views
In the Journals - Miller's "volcanic spark" experiment revisited
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
In the 1950s, Louis Miller conducted a number of experiments that tried to model the origin of organic compounds in a prebiotic world. Among these was the Miller-Urey experiment, in which a vessel containing water, methane, ammonia and hydrogen was heated and subjected to electrical disc [...]... Read more »
A. P. Johnson, H. J. Cleaves, J. P. Dworkin, D. P. Glavin, A. Lazcano, & J. L. Bada. (2008) The Miller Volcanic Spark Discharge Experiment. Science, 322(5900), 404-404. DOI: 10.1126/science.1161527
- October 17, 2008
- 07:00 PM
- 937 views
In the Journals - Fossils revealing ancient behaviour
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
A pair of recent issues of Science plonked into my mail box this week. Among the items that caught my eyes was an exciting brief communication in Science shows a rare example of what appears to be fossil evidence of behaviour. These are Waptia-like arthropods from the Lower [...]... Read more »
X.-G. Hou, D. J. Siveter, R. J. Aldridge, & D. J. Siveter. (2008) Collective Behavior in an Early Cambrian Arthropod. Science, 322(5899), 224-224. DOI: 10.1126/science.1162794
- September 4, 2008
- 07:00 PM
- 1,244 views
In the Journals - Polytene Chromosomes and the Evolution of Drosophila
by GrumpyBob in Flies and Bikes
A. Bhutkar, S. W. Schaeffer, S. M. Russo, M. Xu, T. F. Smith, W. M. Gelbart (2008). Chromosomal Rearrangement Inferred From Comparisons of 12 Drosophila Genomes Genetics, 179 (3), 1657-1680 DOI: 10.1534/genetics.107.086108Back when I was a carefree postdoc, one of t [...]... Read more »
A. Bhutkar, S. W. Schaeffer, S. M. Russo, M. Xu, T. F. Smith, & W. M. Gelbart. (2008) Chromosomal Rearrangement Inferred From Comparisons of 12 Drosophila Genomes. Genetics, 179(3), 1657-1680. DOI: 10.1534/genetics.107.086108
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