ScienceDaily (Mar. 29, 2012) ? In the beginning ... but how do you begin? That question has long perplexed scientists in fields from cosmology to anthropology. Fortunately, researchers at the Office of Science's Brookhaven National Lab (Brookhaven Lab) are beginning to get at the answer on a small but important scale -- in biology.
Specifically, the researchers looked at how cells begin to duplicate their DNA, so they can then begin to replicate themselves. DNA is the essential stuff of beginnings. Its double strands -- which consist of chemical 'letters' or base pairs -- tell cells how to remake themselves; how to build the protein machines that keep them alive and make them distinct. So before they divide, cells have to duplicate their DNA.
This is a relatively straightforward affair for bacteria (and other simple cells, also called prokaryotes) since they typically only have a single loop of DNA, even though it can be millions of base pairs long. As a consequence, they have just a single point along the strand where the copying starts, called an origin of replication.
However, most of biology that can be seen with the naked eye -- animals and plants and even humble yeast -- is composed of more complicated cells called eukaryotes. Eukaryotes have much more DNA, which is tightly wound into distinct pieces, or spindles, called chromosomes, each of which may have many origins of replication. 'Top gun' cells, say those in humans, have a need for speed, since they have some 3.4 billion DNA base pairs, all of which have to be pulled apart and copied. So in order to finish in a reasonable amount of time, those cells have to begin copying their DNA simultaneously at tens of thousands of different points.
But how do they begin? Namely, how do protein machines find and bind to the right spots along the DNA strands, and then set them up for copying? That's what the team at Brookhaven Lab studied. They used an imaging method known as cryo-electron microscopy to take extremely high resolution images of how the right proteins come together at the right point on the DNA strands, forming a structure called an "origin recognition complex" (ORC). The lab's first-of-a-kind images (taken using yeast cells, which are also eukaryotes), showed how the shape of the complex changes as it sets the DNA up for duplication.
Scientists then gathered additional details about individual parts of the structure from previously made X-ray crystallography images, which showed the positions of many individual portions of the complex. Then they took all of their information and ran a detailed computer simulation, which gave scientists a good idea of how the whole process works.
That's important since beginnings can go bad, and uncontrolled cell division is the hallmark of many cancers. The new insights from Brookhaven Lab might lead to new ways to attack cancers at a basic level, one reason that the research was also supported by the National Institutes of Health.
But there's also a deeper reason to do basic research. Beginnings are one of the most precious opportunities of all, the chance to create, to discover. That's what happens with each new experiment run at National Laboratories supported by the Office of Science: Each day it's a new chance to begin again?in the beginning.
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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by DOE/US Department of Energy. The original article was written by Charles Rousseaux.
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Europe?s biggest port and logistics hub, Rotterdam?attracted a total of 24 international businesses?in 2011 due to the effective practices of the RIA (Rotterdam Investment Agency). According to the RIA the foreign investments will greatly stimulate the local economy and job market. Their prognosis is that the new found funding by these foreign industries will produce roughly 900 additional jobs as the international investments will run up to 55 million euro?s in the coming three years. Several main investors are Cronos Group (ICT, Belgium), Sea Truck Group (off-shore, Nigeria) en Petrobras (oil and gas, Brasil). However, as in previous years, China is still the leading provider of investment projects in Rotterdam. The RIA projects China and United States to be the main sources of investment in 2012.
RIA The Rotterdam Investment Agency was established over 2 years ago, designed to attract international investment. The agency aims to draw in a 100 businesses to Rotterdam by the year 2014. ??Several benefits when investing in Rotterdam are the inexpensive basic charge for a square meter of exhibition space, the possibility of building a settlement in the heart of the city, the harbour and its convenient location alongside the high speed highway and Rotterdam?s own airport. The Rotterdam Investment Agency is also a partner of The International Correspondent.
NASA's five Anomalous Transport Rocket Experiment (ATREX) rockets finally launched yesterday after suffering a series of delays. Unfavorable weather conditions forced the ATREX project officials to?keep pushing back the launch that was originally supposed to happen on March 15.
All five rockets launched within five minutes, around 80 seconds apart from each other. They released a harmless chemical called trimethyl aluminum that dyed the clouds milky white so the scientists could see the movements of high-altitude jet streams. Using the data they gathered, the scientists will try to figure out why high-altitude streams travel at speeds that reach 300 mph, when in theory they should only be traveling at around 50 mph.
[Image credit: NASA]
[via?MSNBC]
This article was written by Mariella Moon and originally appeared on Tecca
Hollywood, Fla. ? WWE Superstars Mick Foley, Natalya and Tyson Kidd visited the Joe DiMaggio Children?s Hospital in Florida today. During an event-filled WrestleMania Week, the Superstars were on hand to meet members of the WWE Universe currently staying at the hospital. (PHOTOS)
The Superstars visited with the children; saying hello, snapping photos, signing autographs and bringing smiles to faces wherever they went.?
No matter how many stops there might be on The Road to WrestleMania, trips like this one are always at the top of Superstars? priority lists. Today was no different, and Foley, Kidd and Natalya certainly made a fair share of new friends at the DiMaggio Hospital.
Despite making his bones as the "Hardcore Legend" in the ring, away from the ring Mick Foley is generous with his time and always willing to share a smile with members of the WWE Universe. Today he presented his new friend Jefferey with his own, personal Mr. Socko ? and it was autographed by Mick, to boot! "We saw some joy and happiness and all those great emotions between joy and happiness," Foley said as he and the other Superstars went room to room.
Talking about the visit, Tyson Kidd added, "It's a very indescribable feeling to put a smile not only on the kids' faces but also on the families' faces as well." Kidd added, "This is bigger than any match I've ever had."
Echoing those sentiments, Foley said, "You're not going to be able to wipe the smile off my face for several hours." Striking a similar chord, Natalya summed up the day's experience perfectly, saying, "This to me is my WrestleMania Moment, and I wouldn't trade it for the world."
Established in 1992, Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital combines advanced technology and the expertise of the largest, most diverse group of board-certified pediatric specialists in the region. With its summer 2011 expansion, Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital now has 204 beds and is South Florida's newest freestanding children's hospital.
For more information about the Joe DiMaggio Children?s Hospital, please be sure to visit their?website and follow them on Twitter, @JDCHospital. And to check out even more photos from Thursday's visit, head over to @realMickFoley, @NatbyNature, @KiddWWE and the official WrestleMania Twitter page, @WrestleMania.
Public release date: 30-Mar-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Sathya Achia Abraham sbachia@vcu.edu 804-827-0890 Virginia Commonwealth University
RICHMOND, Va. (March 30, 2012) Man's best friend may make a positive difference in the workplace by reducing stress and making the job more satisfying for other employees, according to a Virginia Commonwealth University study.
Stress is a major contributor to employee absenteeism, morale and burnout and results in significant loss of productivity and resources. But a preliminary study, published in the March issue of the International Journal of Workplace Health Management, found that dogs in the workplace may buffer the impact of stress during the workday for their owners and make the job more satisfying for those with whom they come into contact.
The VCU researchers compared employees who bring their dogs to work, employees who do not bring their dogs to work and employees without pets in the areas of stress, job satisfaction, organizational commitment and support.
"Although preliminary, this study provides the first quantitative study of the effects of employees' pet dogs in the workplace setting on employee stress, job satisfaction, support and commitment," said principal investigator Randolph T. Barker, Ph.D., professor of management in the VCU School of Business.
"Dogs in the workplace can make a positive difference," he said. "The differences in perceived stress between days the dog was present and absent were significant. The employees as a whole had higher job satisfaction than industry norms."
The study took place at Replacements, Ltd., a service-manufacturing-retail company located in Greensboro, N.C., which employs approximately 550 people. Approximately 20 to 30 dogs are on the company premises each day. The study took place over a period of one work week in the company setting, during which time participants completed surveys and collected saliva samples. Pagers were assigned to prompt employees to complete surveys during the day.
The researchers did not observe a difference between the three employee groups on stress hormone levels, which was measured via a saliva sample, in the morning, but during the course of the work day, self-reported stress declined for employees with their dogs present and increased for non-pet owners and dog owners who did not bring their dogs to work. The team noted that stress significantly rose during the day when owners left their dogs at home compared to days they brought them to work.
According to Barker, the team observed unique dog-related communication in the workplace that may contribute to employee performance and satisfaction. For example, he said, although not part of the study, that employees without a dog were observed requesting to take a co-worker's dog out on a break. These were brief, positive exchanges as the dogs were taken and returned and also resulted in an employee break involving exercise.
Barker said that other findings revealed mostly positive comments from employees such as "pets in the workplace can be a great bonus for employee morale ," "having dogs here is great stress relief" and "dogs are positive; dogs increase coworker cooperation."
"The effect of pets in reducing the impact of stress and enhancing communication found in other settings may extend to the workplace," said Barker.
"Pet presence may serve as a low-cost, wellness intervention readily available to many organizations and may enhance organizational satisfaction and perceptions of support. Of course, it is important to have policies in place to ensure only friendly, clean and well-behaved pets are present in the workplace," he said.
According to Barker, further research with larger sample sizes within the organizational setting is needed to replicate the findings of this initial study.
Randolph Barker collaborated with Janet S. Knisely, Ph.D., associate professor of psychiatry in the VCU School of Medicine; Sandra B. Barker, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry in the VCU School of Medicine; Rachel K. Cobb, Ph.D., research faculty in the VCU School of Nursing; and Christine M. Schubert, Ph.D., assistant professor of biostatistics at the Air Force Institute of Technology.
###
The study was supported in part by the VCU Center on Human-Animal Interaction.
EDITOR'S NOTE: A copy of the study is available for reporters by contacting the journal at communications@emeraldinsight.com.
About VCU and the VCU Medical Center: Virginia Commonwealth University is a major, urban public research university with national and international rankings in sponsored research. Located on two downtown campuses in Richmond, VCU enrolls more than 31,000 students in 216 certificate and degree programs in the arts, sciences and humanities. Sixty-nine of the programs are unique in Virginia, many of them crossing the disciplines of VCU's 13 schools and one college. MCV Hospitals and the health sciences schools of Virginia Commonwealth University compose the VCU Medical Center, one of the nation's leading academic medical centers. For more, see www.vcu.edu.
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Benefits of taking Fido to work may not be far 'fetched'Public release date: 30-Mar-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Sathya Achia Abraham sbachia@vcu.edu 804-827-0890 Virginia Commonwealth University
RICHMOND, Va. (March 30, 2012) Man's best friend may make a positive difference in the workplace by reducing stress and making the job more satisfying for other employees, according to a Virginia Commonwealth University study.
Stress is a major contributor to employee absenteeism, morale and burnout and results in significant loss of productivity and resources. But a preliminary study, published in the March issue of the International Journal of Workplace Health Management, found that dogs in the workplace may buffer the impact of stress during the workday for their owners and make the job more satisfying for those with whom they come into contact.
The VCU researchers compared employees who bring their dogs to work, employees who do not bring their dogs to work and employees without pets in the areas of stress, job satisfaction, organizational commitment and support.
"Although preliminary, this study provides the first quantitative study of the effects of employees' pet dogs in the workplace setting on employee stress, job satisfaction, support and commitment," said principal investigator Randolph T. Barker, Ph.D., professor of management in the VCU School of Business.
"Dogs in the workplace can make a positive difference," he said. "The differences in perceived stress between days the dog was present and absent were significant. The employees as a whole had higher job satisfaction than industry norms."
The study took place at Replacements, Ltd., a service-manufacturing-retail company located in Greensboro, N.C., which employs approximately 550 people. Approximately 20 to 30 dogs are on the company premises each day. The study took place over a period of one work week in the company setting, during which time participants completed surveys and collected saliva samples. Pagers were assigned to prompt employees to complete surveys during the day.
The researchers did not observe a difference between the three employee groups on stress hormone levels, which was measured via a saliva sample, in the morning, but during the course of the work day, self-reported stress declined for employees with their dogs present and increased for non-pet owners and dog owners who did not bring their dogs to work. The team noted that stress significantly rose during the day when owners left their dogs at home compared to days they brought them to work.
According to Barker, the team observed unique dog-related communication in the workplace that may contribute to employee performance and satisfaction. For example, he said, although not part of the study, that employees without a dog were observed requesting to take a co-worker's dog out on a break. These were brief, positive exchanges as the dogs were taken and returned and also resulted in an employee break involving exercise.
Barker said that other findings revealed mostly positive comments from employees such as "pets in the workplace can be a great bonus for employee morale ," "having dogs here is great stress relief" and "dogs are positive; dogs increase coworker cooperation."
"The effect of pets in reducing the impact of stress and enhancing communication found in other settings may extend to the workplace," said Barker.
"Pet presence may serve as a low-cost, wellness intervention readily available to many organizations and may enhance organizational satisfaction and perceptions of support. Of course, it is important to have policies in place to ensure only friendly, clean and well-behaved pets are present in the workplace," he said.
According to Barker, further research with larger sample sizes within the organizational setting is needed to replicate the findings of this initial study.
Randolph Barker collaborated with Janet S. Knisely, Ph.D., associate professor of psychiatry in the VCU School of Medicine; Sandra B. Barker, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry in the VCU School of Medicine; Rachel K. Cobb, Ph.D., research faculty in the VCU School of Nursing; and Christine M. Schubert, Ph.D., assistant professor of biostatistics at the Air Force Institute of Technology.
###
The study was supported in part by the VCU Center on Human-Animal Interaction.
EDITOR'S NOTE: A copy of the study is available for reporters by contacting the journal at communications@emeraldinsight.com.
About VCU and the VCU Medical Center: Virginia Commonwealth University is a major, urban public research university with national and international rankings in sponsored research. Located on two downtown campuses in Richmond, VCU enrolls more than 31,000 students in 216 certificate and degree programs in the arts, sciences and humanities. Sixty-nine of the programs are unique in Virginia, many of them crossing the disciplines of VCU's 13 schools and one college. MCV Hospitals and the health sciences schools of Virginia Commonwealth University compose the VCU Medical Center, one of the nation's leading academic medical centers. For more, see www.vcu.edu.
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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.
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Europe?s biggest port and logistics hub, Rotterdam?attracted a total of 24 international businesses?in 2011 due to the effective practices of the RIA (Rotterdam Investment Agency).
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Public release date: 30-Mar-2012
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