| Genentech Scientist to Lead Rockefeller University Marc Tessier-Lavigne will be the first to leave Genentech’s top scientific ranks since its acquisition by Roche in March 2009. feeds.nytimes.com |
Urban living helps people develop resistance to disease, say scientists Scientists have discovered that generations of urban living develops resistance to TB, leprosy and other diseasesLiving in urban areas has helped people develop an immunity to diseases, a study published today suggested. Researchers discovered that people who have a history of living in more populated regions are more likely to have a genetic variant which gives them a resistance to diseases such as tuberculosis and leprosy.Poor sanitation and high population densities provided an ideal breeding ground for disease in ancient cities. Past exposure to pathogens led to disease resistance spreading through populations because ancestors passed it on to their descendants, scientists said. Dr Ian Barnes, from the School of Biological Sciences at Royal Holloway College, said: "This seems to be an elegant example of evolution in action."It flags up the importance of a very recent aspect of our evolution as a species, the development of cities as a selective force. It could also help to explain some of the differences we observe in disease resistance around the world."Researchers analysed DNA samples from populations across Europe, Asia and Africa and compared rates of genetic disease resistance with urban history. They found that in the areas with a long history of urban settlements, today's inhabitants were more likely to possess the DNA variant which provides some resistance to infection.The study, which was conducted by researchers at Royal Holloway, the University of London, University College London and Oxford University, is published in the journal Evolution.EvolutionBiologyHealthguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Weight Classes Aim to Balance Races While most races allow runners to compete in age divisions, a number also offer participants the chance to compete in weight divisions. feeds.nytimes.com |
Losing talent? Astrophysicist Paul Crowther warns of brain drain if science cuts go too deep bbc.co.uk |
[news] BAS ranked in top ten British institutions in environment and ecology British Antarctic Survey ranked 9th in a survey of 303 British institutions which have produced the most influential papers of the last ten years in the category of environmental sciences and ecology, according to a survey published by Times Higher Education in July.The survey calculated the average number of times research papers were cited in articles by other scientists during the period from... antarctica.ac.uk |