News tagged with model organism

Scientists map and sequence genome of switchgrass relative foxtail millet

A newly published genetic sequence and map of foxtail millet, a close relative of switchgrass and an important food crop in Asia, is giving scientists working to increase biofuel and crop yields a powerful new tool.

Biology / Biotechnology

created 17 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

FANCM plays key role in inheritance

Scientists of KIT and the University of Birmingham have identified relevant new functions of a gene that plays a crucial role in Fanconi anemia, a life-threatening disease.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Apr 30, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Study shows developing organisms can identify and fix abnormalities in head and face

Developmental biologists at Tufts University have identified a "self-correcting" mechanism by which developing organisms recognize and repair head and facial abnormalities. This is the first time that such ...

Biology / Other

created Apr 25, 2012 | popularity 4 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Simple fungus gives researchers new insight on key DNA process

(Phys.org) -- In the University of Oregon lab of Eric U. Selker, a simple fungus continues to provide big clues about a fundamental biological process that is essential for normal growth and development in ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Apr 23, 2012 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (3) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Scientists show how social interaction and teamwork lead to human intelligence

Scientists have discovered proof that the evolution of intelligence and larger brain sizes can be driven by cooperation and teamwork, shedding new light on the origins of what it means to be human. The study appears online ...

Biology / Evolution

created Apr 19, 2012 | popularity 3.7 / 5 (3) | comments 3 | with audio podcast

Compounds shared by all worms may lead to parasite treatment

(Phys.org) -- Worms are important decomposers in soil and are great for fishing, but in humans, the slimy wrigglers spell trouble. Hookworms, whipworms, Ascaris, Guinea worms and trichina worms are just a ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Apr 17, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

How tropolones synthesized in fungi: 70-year-old chemical mystery solved

Chemists and biologists from the University of Bristol have finally cracked one of the longest standing chemical mysteries. In a paper published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the team demons ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Apr 16, 2012 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (5) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Evolution in action: Genetic study may answer why we have plenty of fish in the sea

(PhysOrg.com) -- Three-spine sticklebacks aren't as pretty as many aquarium fish, and anglers don't fantasize about hooking one. But biologists treasure these small fish for what they are revealing about the ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Apr 04, 2012 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 4 | with audio podcast

Chemical pollution in Europe's seas: The monitoring must catch up with the science

According to a recent poll of more than 10,000 citizens from ten European countries, pollution is the primary concern of the public at large among all issues that threaten the marine environment. A new position paper of the ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Mar 21, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Researchers uncover new mechanistic insight into mRNA biogenesis and export

A team of EU-funded Spanish and Polish researchers have revealed the structure of a protein complex that is essential for messenger RNA (mRNA) biogenesis and export. Writing in the European Molecular Biology ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Mar 19, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Biologists offer clearer picture of how protein machine systems tweak gene expression

Indiana University biologists have found that specific types of RNA polymerase enzymes, the molecular machines that convert DNA into RNA, can differ in function based on variation in the parts -- in this case ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Mar 01, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Gases drawn into smog particles stay there, study reveals

Airborne gases get sucked into stubborn smog particles from which they cannot escape, according to findings by UC Irvine and other researchers published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of ...

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created Feb 21, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Researchers discover method to unravel malaria's genetic secrets

The parasite that causes malaria is a genetic outlier, which has prevented scientists from discovering the functions of most of its genes. Researchers at National Jewish Health and Yale University School of Medicine have ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Jan 25, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Microbe metabolism: For the smallest organisms, size determines how microbes spend energy

Every living organism balances a budget of sorts — by allocating energy to various parts of its body to fuel essential life processes. Throughout its lifetime, an organism may rebalance this budget to ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Jan 04, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Physicist creates scale model of LHC ATLAS experiment of out LEGO blocks

(PhysOrg.com) -- The Large Hadron Collider at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Switzerland has generated a lot of news of late, e.g. the announcement that a team had found what it believes ...

Physics / General Physics

created Dec 30, 2011 | popularity 3.6 / 5 (17) | comments 19 | with audio podcast report

Model organism

A model organism is a species that is extensively studied to understand particular biological phenomena, with the expectation that discoveries made in the organism model will provide insight into the workings of other organisms. In particular, model organisms are widely used to explore potential causes and treatments for human disease when human experimentation would be unfeasible or unethical. This strategy is made possible by the common descent of all living organisms, and the conservation of metabolic and developmental pathways and genetic material over the course of evolution. Studying model organisms can be informative, but care must be taken when generalizing from one organism to another.

For more information about Model organism, read the full article at Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.

Related topics: genes , genome , fruit flies , yeast