#32 Reptile Ageing Secrets, Communicating Neurons and Inner Genome Workings...
The secrets of reptile and amphibian ageing, proteins changing how neurons communicate and how new tech is revealing the inner workings of the human genome...
đ¸Ageing Secrets
Secrets of reptile and amphibian ageingâŚ
A new study from an international team of 114 scientists reports the most comprehensive study of aging and longevity to date, comprising data from 107 populations of 77 species of wild reptiles and amphibians worldwide.
The research team found that crocodilians and salamanders have particularly low ageing rates and extended lifespans relative to their size. Furthermore protective phenotypes such as the hard shells of turtle species contribute to slower or even a lack of biological ageing.
Dr David Miller, senior author of the study said that âAnecdotal evidence exists that some reptiles and amphibians age slowly and have long lifespans, but until now no one has actually studied this on a large scale across numerous species in the wild,â. This research aims to better understand ageing in humans as well as bring about new conservation strategies for threatened and endangered species of reptiles and amphibians.
The study used comparative phylogenetic methods to enable the investigation of the organisms evolution. This study used the mark-recapture method to analyse variation in ectotherm ageing and longevity in the wild compared to endotherms.
The thermoregulatory mode hypothesis suggests that ectotherms have lower metabolisms, requiring external temperatures to regulate their body temperatures and as a result, age more slowly than endotherms. Endotherms comparatively generate their own heat and have higher metabolisms.
The team however suggests that the way in which an animal regulates its temperature is not necessarily indicative of its aging rate or lifespan. âWe didnât find support for the idea that a lower metabolic rate means ectotherms are aging slower,â said Miller. âThat relationship was only true for turtles, which suggests that turtles are unique among ectotherms.â
The team reported that animals with protective phenotypes and traits are able to age more slowly and live much longer for their size than those without protective phenotypes. âIt could be that their altered morphology with hard shells provides protection and has contributed to the evolution of their life histories, including negligible aging - or lack of demographic aging - and exceptional longevity,â said Anne Bronikowski, co-senior author of the study.
The team went on to say that the protective traits held by some of the ectotherm group reduce the animals mortality rate because theyâre not being predated by other animals. Because of this they are more likely to live longer and so exert pressure to age more slowly. The team found the biggest support for the protective phenotype hypothesis in turtles. Again, this demonstrates that turtles, as a group, are unique.â
In some frogs, toads and crocodilians actually showed negligible aging âIt sounds dramatic to say that they donât age at all, but basically their likelihood of dying does not change with age once theyâre past reproduction,â said Reinke.
The team said that "the comparative landscape of aging across animals can reveal flexible traits that may prove worthy targets for biomedical study related to human aging.â
đ§ Neurons Communicating
Proteins to change how neurons communicateâŚ
Synapses lie between cells called neurons. These junctions can take two main forms either excitatory or inhibitory. Excitatory junctions simply increase the likelihood of the firing action potential with inhibitory synapses decreasing the likelihood of the firing action potential.
Scientists have uncovered the a major insight into the way in which these synapse structures are made and how the chemicals that neurons release can help guide which kinds of synapses form. They found this by coaxing excitatory neurons to release neurotransmitters that are usually produced by inhibitory neurons. As a result the excitatory neuron formed an inhibitory synapse.
The research team did this through forcing excitatory neurons to produce excess amounts of three proteins. Two that help make an inhibitory neurotransmitter called GABA with one of the proteins helping load GABA into containers called vesicles that store neurotransmitters at synapses.
This breakthrough discovery could have implications for treating brain diseases. Brain diseases are often triggered by malfunctions in synaptic information and processing.
âWe know very little about how the human brain functions, and at the centre of it, we need to understand how neurons communicate with each other. Understanding the fundamental mechanisms of synapse formation and maintenance has tremendous implications in understanding brain disorders,â says Soham Chanda, assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at Colorado State University, who led the study.
đ§ŹInner Genome Workings
New tech helps to reveal the inner workings of the human genomeâŚ
A new method has been developed to assess, on a large scale, the 3D structure of the human genome or how the genome folds. The genome is defined as the complete set of genetic instructions enabling an organism to function.
The researchers demonstrated that cell function may be affected by groups of simultaneously interacting regulatory elements in the genome rather than pairs of these components.
âKnowing the three-dimensional genome structure will help researchers better understand how the genome functions, and particularly how it encodes different cell identities,â said senior author Dr Marcin ImieliĹski, core member of the New York Genome Center.
Previous technology to assess genome's three dimensional structure has allowed researchers to study how frequently two loci interact. Pairs of loci called enhancers and promoters have been observed and are components in the genome that interact with one another to influence gene expression. However, information about these pairings offers incomplete insight into genome structure.
The relation between the genomes folding pattern and how the genome encodes for a specific cell identity such as an epithelial cell, has been difficult said the team. Scientists have theorized that the folding influences gene expression. âBut how cell types are encoded, particularly in the structure of DNA, has been a mystery,â said ImieliĹski.
The lab research team led by ImieliĹski has developed a new genome wide assay and algorithm to allow them to study groups of loci rather than pairs. Furthermore, they developed statistical models to determine which locus groupings were important based on whether they interacted cooperatively to affect gene expression. This new technology allows the team to prioritize the group interactions that are likely to matter for genome function, and ignore the 3D interactions of the genome are not important.
Future experiments will explore which specific groupings of genomic components are essential for various aspects of cell identity. The new technology may also help researchers to understand how stem cells differentiate into different cells.
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Reference List
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đ¸Ageing Secrets
Reinke, B., Cayuela, H., Janzen, F., LemaĂŽtre, J., Gaillard, J., Lawing, A., Iverson, J., Christiansen, D., MartĂnez-Solano, I., SĂĄnchez-Montes, G., GutiĂŠrrez-RodrĂguez, J., Rose, F., Nelson, N., Keall, S., Crivelli, A., Nazirides, T., Grimm-Seyfarth, A., Henle, K., Mori, E., Guiller, G., Homan, R., Olivier, A., Muths, E., Hossack, B., Bonnet, X., Pilliod, D., Lettink, M., Whitaker, T., Schmidt, B., Gardner, M., Cheylan, M., Poitevin, F., GoluboviÄ, A., TomoviÄ, L., Arsovski, D., Griffiths, R., Arntzen, J., Baron, J., Le Galliard, J., Tully, T., Luiselli, L., Capula, M., Rugiero, L., McCaffery, R., Eby, L., Briggs-Gonzalez, V., Mazzotti, F., Pearson, D., Lambert, B., Green, D., Jreidini, N., Angelini, C., Pyke, G., Thirion, J., Joly, P., LĂŠna, J., Tucker, A., Limpus, C., Priol, P., Besnard, A., Bernard, P., Stanford, K., King, R., Garwood, J., Bosch, J., Souza, F., Bertoluci, J., Famelli, S., Grossenbacher, K., Lenzi, O., Matthews, K., Boitaud, S., Olson, D., Jessop, T., Gillespie, G., Clobert, J., Richard, M., Valenzuela-SĂĄnchez, A., Fellers, G., Kleeman, P., Halstead, B., Grant, E., Byrne, P., FrĂŠtey, T., Le Garff, B., Levionnois, P., Maerz, J., Pichenot, J., Olgun, K., ĂzĂźm, N., AvcÄą, A., Miaud, C., Elmberg, J., Brown, G., Shine, R., Bendik, N., OâDonnell, L., Davis, C., Lannoo, M., Stiles, R., Cox, R., Reedy, A., Warner, D., Bonnaire, E., Grayson, K., Ramos-Targarona, R., Baskale, E., MuĂąoz, D., Measey, J., de Villiers, F., Selman, W., Ronget, V., Bronikowski, A. and Miller, D., 2022. Diverse aging rates in ectothermic tetrapods provide insights for the evolution of aging and longevity. Science, 376(6600), pp.1459-1466.
Press Release: https://www.psu.edu/news/research/story/secrets-reptile-and-amphibian-aging-revealed/
đ§ Neurons Communicating
Burlingham, S., Wong, N., Peterkin, L., Lubow, L., Dos Santos Passos, C., Benner, O., Ghebrial, M., Cast, T., Xu-Friedman, M., SĂźdhof, T. and Chanda, S., 2022. Induction of synapse formation by de novo neurotransmitter synthesis. Nature Communications, 13(1).
Press Release: https://www.buffalo.edu/ubnow/stories/2022/06/neurons.html
đ§ŹInner Genome Workings
Deshpande, A., Ulahannan, N., Pendleton, M., Dai, X., Ly, L., Behr, J., Schwenk, S., Liao, W., Augello, M., Tyer, C., Rughani, P., Kudman, S., Tian, H., Otis, H., Adney, E., Wilkes, D., Mosquera, J., Barbieri, C., Melnick, A., Stoddart, D., Turner, D., Juul, S., Harrington, E. and ImieliĹski, M., 2022. Identifying synergistic high-order 3D chromatin conformations from genome-scale nanopore concatemer sequencing. Nature Biotechnology,.
Press Release: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2022/06/new-technology-helps-reveal-inner-workings-human-genome