38 posts · 32,343 views
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Wellcome Trust Blog
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- May 12, 2010
- 10:17 AM
- 3,241 views
Smart drugs, smarter students?
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
At a Eureka Live event at Wellcome Collection in February, Professor Barbara Sahakian of the University of Cambridge said that around 16 per cent of university students use cognitive boosting drugs like Ritalin to combat tiredness, and that this practice is spreading widely. It made me realize that cognitive enhancement in students is not just [...]... Read more »
Ilina Singh, Kelly J. Kelleher. (2010) Neuroenhancement in Young People: Proposal for Research, Policy, and Clinical Management . AJOB Neuroscience, 1(1), 3-16. info:/10.1080/21507740903508591
- September 6, 2010
- 08:43 AM
- 1,421 views
The worm in sheep’s clothing
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
Good news for sheep: scientists have moved a step closer to understanding how a disease-causing worm evades the sheep immune system. Parasitic gastroenteritis (PGE) causes diarrhoea, weight loss and dehydration in sheep and can be fatal. The disease is commonly caused by a nematode worm, Teladorsagia circumcincta, which makes its home in the stomach of [...]... Read more »
Nisbet AJ, Bell NE, McNeilly TN, Knox DP, Maizels RM, Meikle LI, Wildblood LA, Matthews JB. (2010) A macrophage migration inhibitory factor-like tautomerase from Teladorsagia circumcincta (Nematoda: Strongylida). Parasite Immunol., 32(7), 503-511. DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-3024.2010.01215.x
- March 1, 2011
- 09:26 AM
- 1,100 views
PhD: Procrastination, hallucination, dissertation – Lab 1: Only the nose knows
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
Jonathan Lawson is in the first year of his Wellcome Trust Four-year PhD. Undertaking the first of three laboratory projects, he tells us how cells that help us smell might one day cure paralysis. Cells from the nose that could cure stroke or paralysis – crazy, right? That’s what I thought too, but it [...]... Read more »
Barraud P, Seferiadis AA, Tyson LD, Zwart MF, Szabo-Rogers HL, Ruhrberg C, Liu KJ, & Baker CV. (2010) Neural crest origin of olfactory ensheathing glia. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 107(49), 21040-5. PMID: 21078992
- May 28, 2010
- 08:00 AM
- 1,098 views
Just the job?
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
You may have groaned when the alarm clock went off for work this morning, but it’s long been recognised that employment is important for wellbeing. Being part of a team and having a sense of purpose can improve your quality of life. Such benefits can be especially important for people who may find themselves on [...]... Read more »
Howard, L., Heslin, M., Leese, M., McCrone, P., Rice, C., Jarrett, M., Spokes, T., Huxley, P., & Thornicroft, G. (2010) Supported employment: randomised controlled trial. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 196(5), 404-411. DOI: 10.1192/bjp.bp.108.061465
- March 30, 2011
- 11:25 AM
- 1,033 views
Guest post: Auditory processing disorder – a cause of language problems or an incidental finding?
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
What causes a child’s language problems? Is it a problem with hearing? A problem with the brain’s interpretation of speech? Is it genetic? Specialists sometimes diagnose ‘Auditory Processing Disorder’ but the term itself is a complicated affair, writes Dorothy Bishop. Five-year-old Charlie doesn’t speak very clearly, and doesn’t always understand what people are saying. His [...]... Read more »
Bishop, D. (2006) Developmental cognitive genetics: How psychology can inform genetics and vice versa. The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 59(7), 1153-1168. DOI: 10.1080/17470210500489372
Bishop, D. (2007) Using mismatch negativity to study central auditory processing in developmental language and literacy impairments: Where are we, and where should we be going?. Psychological Bulletin, 133(4), 651-672. DOI: 10.1037/0033-2909.133.4.651
Bishop DV, Hardiman MJ, & Barry JG. (2010) Lower-frequency event-related desynchronization: a signature of late mismatch responses to sounds, which is reduced or absent in children with specific language impairment. The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 30(46), 15578-84. PMID: 21084613
Dawes P, & Bishop DV. (2007) The SCAN-C in testing for auditory processing disorder in a sample of British children. International journal of audiology, 46(12), 780-6. PMID: 18049967
Dawes P, & Bishop D. (2009) Auditory processing disorder in relation to developmental disorders of language, communication and attention: a review and critique. International journal of language , 44(4), 440-65. PMID: 19925352
Ferguson MA, Hall RL, Riley A, & Moore DR. (2011) Communication, listening, cognitive and speech perception skills in children with auditory processing disorder (APD) or Specific Language Impairment (SLI). Journal of speech, language, and hearing research : JSLHR, 54(1), 211-27. PMID: 20689032
Loo JH, Bamiou DE, Campbell N, & Luxon LM. (2010) Computer-based auditory training (CBAT): benefits for children with language- and reading-related learning difficulties. Developmental medicine and child neurology, 52(8), 708-17. PMID: 20370814
Moore, D. (2006) Auditory processing disorder (APD): Definition, diagnosis, neural basis, and intervention. Audiological Medicine, 4(1), 4-11. DOI: 10.1080/16513860600568573
Moore DR, Ferguson MA, Edmondson-Jones AM, Ratib S, & Riley A. (2010) Nature of auditory processing disorder in children. Pediatrics, 126(2). PMID: 20660546
- February 17, 2011
- 06:10 AM
- 1,006 views
Genetic counselling and schizophrenia tests
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
Genetic testing has many ethical implications. These can be particularly sensitive when it comes to psychiatric conditions such as schizophrenia that are open to misconception and stigmatisation. Although knowledge of one’s risk of developing a disorder can lead to positive changes in behaviour, and allow for early intervention, these come mixed with disadvantages, including feelings [...]... Read more »
Salkovskis PM, Rimes KA, Bolton J, & Wroe AL. (2010) An experimental investigation of factors involved in the decision to undertake genetic testing for schizophrenia. Journal of mental health (Abingdon, England), 19(2), 202-10. PMID: 20433328
- July 28, 2010
- 09:11 AM
- 910 views
Attracting mosquitoes by smell
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
With around half the world’s population at risk of malaria, researchers have put a lot of effort into finding ways to prevent infection. Interventions commonly focus on preventing bites from the mosquitoes that transmit the malaria parasite using, for example, insecticide-treated bednets. However, researchers at the Ifakara Health Institute in Tanzania are working on a [...]... Read more »
Okumu, F., Killeen, G., Ogoma, S., Biswaro, L., Smallegange, R., Mbeyela, E., Titus, E., Munk, C., Ngonyani, H., Takken, W.... (2010) Development and Field Evaluation of a Synthetic Mosquito Lure That Is More Attractive than Humans. PLoS ONE, 5(1). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0008951
Okumu, F., Govella, N., Moore, S., Chitnis, N., & Killeen, G. (2010) Potential Benefits, Limitations and Target Product-Profiles of Odor-Baited Mosquito Traps for Malaria Control in Africa. PLoS ONE, 5(7). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0011573
- February 16, 2011
- 06:04 AM
- 910 views
Female fruitfly fecundity
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
The frequency with which mating occurs has differing consequences for males and female fruitflies in terms of their fitness and lifespan. For males, the more mates they have, the better their chances of reproductive success. But for females, a shift to too much mating and reproduction may be costly in terms of lifespan, given the [...]... Read more »
Wigby S, Slack C, Grönke S, Martinez P, Calboli FC, Chapman T, & Partridge L. (2011) Insulin signalling regulates remating in female Drosophila. Proceedings. Biological sciences / The Royal Society, 278(1704), 424-31. PMID: 20739318
- April 6, 2011
- 12:26 PM
- 893 views
Q&A: Dr Beau Lotto – Making anyone part of scientific discovery
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
Dr Beau Lotto Dr Beau Lotto is a neuroscientist on a mission: to get us to understand that we are each makers of how we see and understand the world. In a recent project he worked with primary school children to help them become the first in the world to plan, perform and publish [...]... Read more »
Blackawton PS, Airzee S, Allen A, Baker S, Berrow A, Blair C, Churchill M, Coles J, Cumming RF, Fraquelli L.... (2011) Blackawton bees. Biology letters, 7(2), 168-72. PMID: 21177694
Maloney LT, & Hempel de Ibarra N. (2011) Blackawton bees: commentary on Blackawton, P. S. et al. Biology letters, 7(2), 166-7. PMID: 21177691
- March 11, 2011
- 09:41 AM
- 881 views
Bites: X marks the spots
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
The human X chromosome has about 155 million base pairs. Fragile X syndrome is caused by just three of them. The genetic disease, one of the leading causes of inherited mental retardation worldwide, affects around 1 in every 4500 males and 1 in every 9000 females. It is caused by the improper duplication of the [...]... Read more »
Hallahan BP, Craig MC, Toal F, Daly EM, Moore CJ, Ambikapathy A, Robertson D, Murphy KC, & Murphy DG. (2011) In vivo brain anatomy of adult males with Fragile X syndrome: an MRI study. NeuroImage, 54(1), 16-24. PMID: 20708694
- January 18, 2011
- 05:55 AM
- 857 views
Not so wild thing
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
Different branches of biological research often use different model organisms. You’ve probably heard of some of them: E. coli, the standard organism for much bacterial research, the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster in genetics, Arabidopsis thaliana in plant research. Another model organism is the nematode C. elegans. These tiny worms that live in rotting fruit are [...]... Read more »
Weber KP, De S, Kozarewa I, Turner DJ, Babu MM, & de Bono M. (2010) Whole genome sequencing highlights genetic changes associated with laboratory domestication of C. elegans. PloS one, 5(11). PMID: 21085631
- August 3, 2010
- 05:45 AM
- 835 views
Mapping ‘the other’ malaria
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
A new map of the global distribution of malaria suggests that Plasmodium vivax malaria has a more serious impact than is commonly believed. Four species of the plasmodium parasite are known to commonly cause malaria in humans: P. falciparum, P. malariae, P. ovale, and P. vivax. Of these, P. falciparum is the most deadly and [...]... Read more »
Guerra, C., Howes, R., Patil, A., Gething, P., Van Boeckel, T., Temperley, W., Kabaria, C., Tatem, A., Manh, B., Elyazar, I.... (2010) The International Limits and Population at Risk of Plasmodium vivax Transmission in 2009. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 4(8). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0000774
- March 9, 2011
- 06:45 AM
- 826 views
Guest post: Language on the left?
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
The human brain is split into two halves, the left and the right hemisphere. But to what extent are language functions found mainly in one hemisphere, and why this might be? In the first in a series of posts from scientist bloggers, Professor Sophie Scott describes how there are two sides to language in the [...]... Read more »
Knecht, S. (2000) Handedness and hemispheric language dominance in healthy humans. Brain, 123(12), 2512-2518. DOI: 10.1093/brain/123.12.2512
- February 4, 2011
- 06:20 AM
- 805 views
Do you feel the same way too?
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
Have you ever watched a loved one stub their toe and wince yourself in sympathy? If so, you’ve perhaps unknowingly experienced a psychological phenomenon known as ‘embodied simulation’. When a you see someone making a gesture, be it emotional or physical, the regions activated in their brain are also activated in yours, creating a common [...]... Read more »
Anders S, Heinzle J, Weiskopf N, Ethofer T, & Haynes JD. (2011) Flow of affective information between communicating brains. NeuroImage, 54(1), 439-46. PMID: 20624471
- June 2, 2010
- 06:44 AM
- 802 views
Could an RSV vaccine reduce childhood pneumonia in Africa?
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
Pneumonia is the leading cause of childhood death in sub-Saharan Africa and while it is well known that many pneumonias are caused by bacteria such as Streptococcus pneumonia – for which vaccines are available – we know less about those caused by viruses. A new study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association [...]... Read more »
Berkley, J., Munywoki, P., Ngama, M., Kazungu, S., Abwao, J., Bett, A., Lassauniere, R., Kresfelder, T., Cane, P., Venter, M.... (2010) Viral Etiology of Severe Pneumonia Among Kenyan Infants and Children. JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, 303(20), 2051-2057. DOI: 10.1001/jama.2010.675
- July 26, 2010
- 05:20 AM
- 788 views
Why the first test tube baby nearly didn’t happen
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
As our Wellcome Film and Image of the Month posts yesterday indicated, it was 32 years ago that the birth of the world’s first ‘test tube baby’ using the new technique of in vitro fertilisation (IVF) occurred. It revolutionised reproductive science but this major development was privately – rather than publicly – funded as the [...]... Read more »
Johnson, M., Franklin, S., Cottingham, M., & Hopwood, N. (2010) Why the Medical Research Council refused Robert Edwards and Patrick Steptoe support for research on human conception in 1971. Human Reproduction. DOI: 10.1093/humrep/deq155
Biggers, J. (2010) Editorial. Human Reproduction. DOI: 10.1093/humrep/deq156
- July 5, 2011
- 03:11 AM
- 775 views
PhD: Procrastination, hallucination, Dissertation– Lab 2: Tea at the poles
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
Jonathan Lawson is in the first year of his Wellcome Trust Four-year PhD. Undertaking the second of three laboratory projects, he tells us how yeast come in more shapes and sizes than you might have imagined. How do cells know which way is up? This is one of the most fundamental and important questions in [...]... Read more »
Carazo-Salas RE, Antony C, & Nurse P. (2005) The kinesin Klp2 mediates polarization of interphase microtubules in fission yeast. Science (New York, N.Y.), 309(5732), 297-300. PMID: 16002618
Hayles J, & Nurse P. (2001) A journey into space. Nature reviews. Molecular cell biology, 2(9), 647-56. PMID: 11533722
La Carbona S, Le Goff C, & Le Goff X. (2006) Fission yeast cytoskeletons and cell polarity factors: connecting at the cortex. Biology of the cell / under the auspices of the European Cell Biology Organization, 98(11), 619-31. PMID: 17042740
Sawin, K.E., & Tran, P.T. (2006) Cytoplasmic microtubule organization in fission yeast. Yeast, 23(13), 1001-1014. DOI: 10.1002/yea.1404
- November 3, 2010
- 07:28 AM
- 774 views
Q&A: Tackling TB in Peru
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
Up to a third of the world’s population are infected with the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of tuberculosis (TB), according to the World Health Organization. The disease kills about two million people every year – more than any other single infection. Moreover, levels of multidrug resistant (MDR) and extensively drug resistant (XDR) TB [...]... Read more »
Ramos E, Schumacher SG, Siedner M, Herrera B, Quino W, Alvarado J, Montoya R, Grandjean L, Martin L, Sherman JM.... (2010) Optimizing tuberculosis testing for basic laboratories. The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene, 83(4), 896-901. PMID: 20889887
- May 19, 2010
- 05:30 AM
- 771 views
H1N1 measures ‘bought valuable time’ in Vietnam
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
Though some consider the precautionary measures taken during the H1N1 swine flu epidemic to have been excessive, ‘better safe than sorry’ was an understandable position for health officials to take. That stance is justified to some degree by the results of a study published today in PLoS Medicine. The analysis of the first few months [...]... Read more »
Hien, T., Boni, M., Bryant, J., Ngan, T., Wolbers, M., Nguyen, T., Truong, N., Dung, N., Ha, D., Hien, V.... (2010) Early Pandemic Influenza (2009 H1N1) in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam: A Clinical Virological and Epidemiological Analysis. PLoS Medicine, 7(5). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1000277
- January 28, 2011
- 09:09 AM
- 768 views
Tiny fish light the way to fighting cancer
by Wellcome Trust in Wellcome Trust Blog
As most of us know, a cancer cell is formed when its DNA becomes altered, either by the switching on of genes which allow uncontrolled proliferation, or by the switching off of the genes which prevent this from happening. What is unknown however, is the role that the innate immune system plays in the development [...]... Read more »
Feng Y, Santoriello C, Mione M, Hurlstone A, & Martin P. (2010) Live imaging of innate immune cell sensing of transformed cells in zebrafish larvae: parallels between tumor initiation and wound inflammation. PLoS biology, 8(12). PMID: 21179501
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