Bond LSC Research, Page 17 // Bond Life Sciences Center

June 20, 2014

Nerve cell communication mechanisms uncovered, may lead to new therapeutic approaches for neurodegenerative diseases

Story by Madison Knapp/ Bond Life Sciences summer intern Simple actions like walking, swallowing and breathing are the result of a complex communication system between cells. When we touch something hot, our nerve cells tell us to take our hand off the object. This happens in a matter of milliseconds. This hyperspeed of communication…

June 10, 2014

SoyKB: Leading the convergence of wet and dry science in the era of Big Data

Yaya Cui, an investigator in plant sciences at the Bond Life Sciences Center examines data on fast neuron soybean mutants that are represented on the SoyKB database. The most puzzling scientific mysteries may be solved at the same machine you’re likely reading this sentence. In the era of “Big Data” many significant scientific discoveries —…

June 4, 2014

MU Scientists Successfully Transplant, Grow Stem Cells in Pigs

New line of pigs do not reject transplants, will allow for future research on stem cell therapies Story by Nathan Hurst/MU News Bureau COLUMBIA, Mo. – One of the biggest challenges for medical researchers studying the effectiveness of stem cell therapies is that transplants or grafts of cells are often rejected by the hosts. This…

May 12, 2014

New screening tool gives scientists more control over genetic research

A tangled spool of yarn represents DNA, while the fingers holding the section represent the insulators just added by MU researchers to improve a scientific, screening tool. | Paige Blankenbuehler Here’s a scenario: You are trying to find a lost section of string in the world’s most massively tangled spool of yarn. Then try cutting…

April 28, 2014

A drug that packs a punch: new compound works better against resistant HIV

Bond LSC researcher Stefan Sarafianos stands in the LSC atrium. The virologist is an associate professor of molecular microbiology and immunology and Chancellor’s Chair of Excellence in Molecular Virology with appointments in MU’s School of Medicine and the Department of Biochemistry. Resistance is the price of success when it comes to treating HIV. Virologists at…

April 25, 2014

Frogs help researchers find genetic mechanism for mildew susceptibility in grapevine

Powdery mildew on a cabernet sauvignon grapevine leaf. | USDA Grape genetics publications and research A princess kisses a frog and it turns into a prince, but when a scientist uses a frog to find out more information about a grapevine disease, it turns into the perfect tool narrowing in on the cause of crop…

April 24, 2014

Chemical beacons: LSC scientist discovers how plants beckon bacteria to attack

Scott Peck, Bond LSC scientist and associate professor of biochemistry, studies Arabidopsis and how bacteria perceive it before initiating an infection. Roger Meissen/ Bond LSC Sometimes plants inadvertently roll out the red carpet for bacteria. Researchers at the University of Missouri Bond Life Sciences Center recently discovered how a plant’s own chemicals act as a…

March 21, 2014

MU researchers find key gene in spinal locomotion, yield insight on paralysis

Samuel Waters and graduate researcher Desiré Buckley review stages of embryonic development. — BLANKENBUEHLER The difference between walking and being paralyzed could be as simple as turning a light switch on and off, a culmination of years of research shows. Recently, University of Missouri Assistant Professor of biology Samuel T. Waters isolated a coding gene…

Feb. 7, 2014

Quicker anthrax detection could save millions of dollars, speed bioterror response

Anthrax bacteria is a rod-shaped culture. Most common forms of transmission are through abrasions in the skin and inhalation. Imagine researchers in hazmat suits moving slowly and deliberately through a lab. One of them holds up a beaker. It’s glowing. This light — or the absence of it — could save millions of dollars…

Feb. 3, 2014

Mind map: Bond LSC research explains how proteins guide migrating neurons

Bond LSC scientist Anand Chandrasekhar studies the zebrafish model to learn how motor neurons develop. These adult zebrafish lay eggs used to gain insight into how motor neurons arrange themselves as embryos grow into adults. Roger Meissen/ Bond LSC Three thousand zebrafish swim circles in tanks located on the ground floor of the Bond Life…