Investigations: Nature vs. Nurture

Many scientists, mostly geneticists, have argued for years whether it is our genetics that determine our personality and development versus whether it is our environment that determines our personality and development. According to the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the issue of nature versus nurture can finally but be put to rest, because there is evidence to show that there is an interaction between biology and environment in early life that determines and greatly influences human development. According to Marla Sokolowski, a genetiscist from University of Toronto, biologists used to believe that our differences between each other are pre-programmed within our genes while psychologists believed that each person was born with a clean slate and over time, each experience molded us into the person we are today.
A study was done by Sokolowski and her colleagues to see how a stressor in early life can affect adult life. They did this study by taking fruit flies and giving them a malnourished diet and observed their behavior later on as they reached the adult stage.Their results showed that the malnourished fruit flies at an early stage had a great impact upon their adult stage. When they gave another group of fruit flies a well nourished diet at an early stage and observed their adult life, they realized the well nourished diet had a great impact upon their adult life. This is due to the fact that the foraging gene made an enzyme called PKG. When the fruit fly is malnourished, there is a low level of PKG produced, hence the not so health fruit flies that resulted. But when the fruit fly is well nourished, the PKG level is high. This proves that genes work hand in hand with the environment.

http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1112721044/impact-adversity-early-life-development-102612/

Investigations: Brain Disease Treatment?

Earlier within my blog posts, I talked about the benefits of cloning and how cloning can help those who have diseases such as Alzheimer's, Huntington's, and Parkinson's. There is still a lot of debate on using techniques to clone, but in the mean time is there another way to help treat these degenerative diseases? According to Science  Daily, scientists transplanted embryonic neurons into the brains of newborn mice and to their astonishment, these embryonic neurons survived. It turns out that a type of brain cell linked to many different neurological disorders (GABA-secreting interneurons) can be added in significant numbers into the brain and can survive without causing any harmful affects. What the scientists found to be most amazing is that these embryonic neurons survived even when added in large numbers. For years they thought that the brain could only hold a certain amount or had a limited capacity for these cells, but this experiment done with the mice proved their theory wrong.
In laboratory rats, the insertion of these GABA-secreting interneurons showed that transplanting these cells into the brain can increase plasticity, reduce seizures, and reduce Parkinson's-like symptoms in rats. They can also help to decrease pain sensation.
If research is pursued within this area, maybe we won't need to use cloning for nerve degenerative diseases. Even though these experiments show that transplanting GABA-secreting interneurons in rats can treat degenerative diseases in rats, this does not mean that it can do the same in humans.There is a chance that it will.

Dictionary: Spermatogenesis

Our bodies are constantly replacing old cells with new cells through the process of mitosis. But how does the human body develop our sex cells? This process is done through meiosis. In males, the production of sperm is known as spermatogenesis and the production of eggs is known as oogenesis. In spermatogenesis, the gametes produced by the male are known as spermatozoa or sperm. In oogenesis, females produce ova, or eggs.
Spermatogenesis begins at puberty and occurs within the testes. Within the testes are seminiferous tubules. The walls of the seminiferous tubules are filled with cells called Sertoli cells. Sertoli cells provide nutrients and protection for the developing sperm. In between the seminiferous tubules are Leydig cells. Leydig cells are responsible for the hormone productino of testosterone. There are five steps that are needed for the developing sperm to turn into mature sperm. The first stage is known as the spermatogonium which happens within the outer region of the seminiferous tubules. The spermatogonium is where the cells replicate DNA in the S phase of meiosis. Next the primary spermatocyte is produced through Meiosis I. The secondary spermatocyte is produced through Meiosis II. As the developing sperm get closer to the lumen, the spermatid is formed. Lastly, the spermatozoan is formed and heads out the lumen (inner region of the seminiferous tubules) and through the epididymis.