Food for Thought Brains burn more energy than any other organ to produce and drive electrical signals along the filament-like brain cells that control everything from our breathing to our thoughts. In fact, neuroscientists estimate that 20% of our total energy budget is used just to keep our brains firing. And burning all that energy means brain cells need oxygen, and lots of it. A vast network of blood vessels (around 100,000 miles long) irrigates every nook of our brain ensuring it’s never starved of oxygen or nutrients. But there is still much to be learned about how vessels grow and form networks – a process called angiogenesis. Studying mouse brain (pictured), researchers have identified over 60 genes that could act as switches controlling the growth of vessels. In future, this could help stroke patients heal, or reversely, could be used to kill off brain tumours by stemming their blood supply. Written by Tristan Farrow — Ayşe N Başak, Boğaziçi University, Turkey Türker Kılıç, Marmara University, Turkey Originally published under Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY 2.0) Published in Vascular Cell 4:16
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Food for Thought

Brains burn more energy than any other organ to produce and drive electrical signals along the filament-like brain cells that control everything from our breathing to our thoughts. In fact, neuroscientists estimate that 20% of our total energy budget is used just to keep our brains firing. And burning all that energy means brain cells need oxygen, and lots of it. A vast network of blood vessels (around 100,000 miles long) irrigates every nook of our brain ensuring it’s never starved of oxygen or nutrients. But there is still much to be learned about how vessels grow and form networks – a process called angiogenesis. Studying mouse brain (pictured), researchers have identified over 60 genes that could act as switches controlling the growth of vessels. In future, this could help stroke patients heal, or reversely, could be used to kill off brain tumours by stemming their blood supply.

Written by Tristan Farrow

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Source: bpod.mrc.ac.uk

DNA Bricks These nanoscale structures are made out of DNA – the molecule that resides in each nucleus of each cell in our bodies. But there is a difference. DNA in our cells exists as very long double-stranded helices. DNA used to build these shapes is in the form of short, single-strand DNA bricks, each with a unique computer-designed sequence allowing them to bind other bricks. Why would scientists use DNA to build nanoscale shapes, smiley faces and a space shuttle (bottom row, middle)? Although these particular shapes serve no purpose, the aim in building them was to show the versatility of possible DNA brick designs. Nanotechnologists could, in principle, use such bricks to build precise structures for encapsulating drugs to deliver to specific organs in the body, for controlling interactions between particular proteins in a cell, or for numerous other nanoscale applications. Written by Ruth Williams — Yonggang Ke Harvard University, USA Published in Science 338(6111): 1177-1183
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DNA Bricks

These nanoscale structures are made out of DNA – the molecule that resides in each nucleus of each cell in our bodies. But there is a difference. DNA in our cells exists as very long double-stranded helices. DNA used to build these shapes is in the form of short, single-strand DNA bricks, each with a unique computer-designed sequence allowing them to bind other bricks. Why would scientists use DNA to build nanoscale shapes, smiley faces and a space shuttle (bottom row, middle)? Although these particular shapes serve no purpose, the aim in building them was to show the versatility of possible DNA brick designs. Nanotechnologists could, in principle, use such bricks to build precise structures for encapsulating drugs to deliver to specific organs in the body, for controlling interactions between particular proteins in a cell, or for numerous other nanoscale applications.

Written by Ruth Williams

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Source: bpod.mrc.ac.uk

Prison Cells These cells are trapped – stuck inside tiny square ‘rooms’ each 100,000 times smaller than a prison cell. In order to escape, they’re going to need some help from the outside. Each cell (with its membrane highlighted in green and nucleus in turquoise) has been injected with different amounts of magnetic nanoparticles: tiny pieces of metal highlighted in blue. At the flick of a switch, the particles tug the imprisoned cells towards magnets on the outside. The cell in the top right, which received the strongest magnetic shove, has developed filopodia – spiky ‘legs’ which show the cell is about to slither for freedom. Tiny man-made tools may soon be used to guide the movement of cells in our bodies, too. A helpful nudge in the right direction might one day lead stem cells into place in a damaged organ or put the brakes on cancer cells, all by remote control. Written by John Ankers — Dino Di Carlo University of California, Los Angeles, USA Reprinted by permission from Macmillan Publishers Ltd: Nature Methods Copyright 2012 Published in Nature Methods 9: 1113-1119
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Prison Cells

These cells are trapped – stuck inside tiny square ‘rooms’ each 100,000 times smaller than a prison cell. In order to escape, they’re going to need some help from the outside. Each cell (with its membrane highlighted in green and nucleus in turquoise) has been injected with different amounts of magnetic nanoparticles: tiny pieces of metal highlighted in blue. At the flick of a switch, the particles tug the imprisoned cells towards magnets on the outside. The cell in the top right, which received the strongest magnetic shove, has developed filopodia – spiky ‘legs’ which show the cell is about to slither for freedom. Tiny man-made tools may soon be used to guide the movement of cells in our bodies, too. A helpful nudge in the right direction might one day lead stem cells into place in a damaged organ or put the brakes on cancer cells, all by remote control.

Written by John Ankers

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Source: bpod.mrc.ac.uk

Cancer Goes Dotty Cancer cells become dangerous when they go on the move. Most deaths from the disease are caused by cells spreading from an initial tumour to other places in the body – a process called metastasis – making it much more difficult to treat. Researchers are trying to understand how sticky molecules around cancer cells – known as the extracellular matrix – help them to get moving, and how they could be stopped in their tracks. To find out which molecules are important, the scientists grow lung cancer cells from mice on glass slides speckled with 4000 tiny spots containing mixtures of 38 different extracellular matrix proteins. Before embarking on experiments they make sure that these proteins are all present and correct using fluorescent markers to highlight the various proteins in different colours (pictured). The result is more like a modern artwork than a vital tool to shed light on how cancer spreads. Written by Kat Arney — Sangeeta N. Bhatia David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, MIT, USA Reprinted by permission from Macmillan Publishers Ltd: Nature Communications Copyright 2012 Published in Nature Communications 3
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Cancer Goes Dotty

Cancer cells become dangerous when they go on the move. Most deaths from the disease are caused by cells spreading from an initial tumour to other places in the body – a process called metastasis – making it much more difficult to treat. Researchers are trying to understand how sticky molecules around cancer cells – known as the extracellular matrix – help them to get moving, and how they could be stopped in their tracks. To find out which molecules are important, the scientists grow lung cancer cells from mice on glass slides speckled with 4000 tiny spots containing mixtures of 38 different extracellular matrix proteins. Before embarking on experiments they make sure that these proteins are all present and correct using fluorescent markers to highlight the various proteins in different colours (pictured). The result is more like a modern artwork than a vital tool to shed light on how cancer spreads.

Written by Kat Arney

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Source: bpod.mrc.ac.uk

Painting Tears Bambi losing his mother must be one of the most memorable movie moments, sending tears streaming down the face of many a viewer. Carried within these salty droplets is the anti-bacterial enzyme lysozyme. It’s also found in our saliva and in the secretions that line our stomach and nasal passages. In 1965 David C. Phillips uncovered the structure of this protein (pictured), and in doing so discovered how it manages to kill certain bacteria. The task of illustrating this enzyme’s complexity, before the days of advanced computer programmes, was left to scientific artist Irving Geis, born this day in 1908. After six months of labour, Geis produced this colourful watercolour representation of lysozyme, published in 1966 in popular science journal, Scientific American. Written by Lux Fatimathas — Rights owned and administered by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Reproduction by permission only.
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Painting Tears

Bambi losing his mother must be one of the most memorable movie moments, sending tears streaming down the face of many a viewer. Carried within these salty droplets is the anti-bacterial enzyme lysozyme. It’s also found in our saliva and in the secretions that line our stomach and nasal passages. In 1965 David C. Phillips uncovered the structure of this protein (pictured), and in doing so discovered how it manages to kill certain bacteria. The task of illustrating this enzyme’s complexity, before the days of advanced computer programmes, was left to scientific artist Irving Geis, born this day in 1908. After six months of labour, Geis produced this colourful watercolour representation of lysozyme, published in 1966 in popular science journal, Scientific American.

Written by Lux Fatimathas

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Source: bpod.mrc.ac.uk