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Salk scientist Terrence Sejnowski elected to National Academy of Sciences

LA JOLLA, CA—Salk Institute professor Terrence J. Sejnowski, Ph.D., whose work on neural networks helped spark the neural networks revolution in computing in the 1980s, has been elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences. The Academy made the announcement today during its 147th annual meeting in Washington, DC. Election to the Academy recognizes distinguished and continuing achievements in original research, and is considered one of the highest honors accorded a U.S. scientist.


American Philosophical Society inducts Fred H. Gage

LA JOLLA—Salk scientist Fred H. Gage, a professor in the Laboratory for Genetics and the Vi and John Adler Chair for Research on Age-Related Neurodegenerative Diseases, has been elected to the American Philosophical Society (APS). Founded in 1743 by Benjamin Franklin and modeled after the Royal Society of London, the APS was the first organization in America to promote scientific endeavors and knowledge.


Glass Artist Dale Chihuly, Salk President Brody to Discuss Sculpture Installation at the Salk Institute During Meet-and-Greet with Media on April 24

What: Renowned artist Dale Chihuly and Salk President William R. Brody, M.D., Ph.D., will address members of the media and take questions regarding Chihuly at the Salk, an installation of glass sculpture currently on display in celebration of the Institute’s 50th anniversary.


Lessons from the pond: Clues from green algae on the origin of males and females

La Jolla, CA—A multicellular green alga, Volvox carteri, may have finally unlocked the secrets behind the evolution of different sexes. A team led by researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies has shown that the genetic region that determines sex in Volvox has changed dramatically relative to that of the closely related unicellular alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii.


Artist Dale Chihuly to attend official opening of Chihuly at the Salk April 24, 2010

The Salk Institute for Biological Studies today confirmed the attendance of Dale Chihuly for the official opening of Chihuly at the Salk on April 24 in La Jolla, Calif. The Seattle-based artist will be available for media interviews beginning at 10 a.m. The outdoor installation of dramatically colorful glass sculptures kicks off the Institute’s 50th anniversary with daily tours April 22-27.


All for one and one for all!

LA JOLLA, CA—There is strength in numbers if you want to get your voice heard. But how to do you get your say if you are in the minority? That’s a dilemma faced not only by the citizens of a democracy but also by some neurons in the brain.


Zebrafish study with human heart implications: Cellular grown-ups outperform stem cells in cardiac repair

LA JOLLA, CA—Bony fish like the tiny zebrafish have a remarkable ability that mammals can only dream of: if you lop off a chunk of their heart they swim sluggishly for a few days but within a month appear perfectly normal. How they accomplish this—or, more importantly, why we can’t—is one of the significant questions in regenerative medicine today.


Gatsby Charitable Foundation awards $4 million to Salk-UC San Diego consortium to study brain circuitry

LA JOLLA—A new consortium of four research teams from the Salk Institute for Biological Studies and the University of California, San Diego has been selected by the Gatsby Charitable Foundation, based in the United Kingdom, to receive a $4 million grant over five years to study neuronal circuits underlying higher brain function.


Salk Institute Kicks off 50th Anniversary Celebration with Chihuly at the Salk April 22-27, 2010

The bold iconic laboratory buildings of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies will receive a dramatic jolt of colorful artwork April 22-27 when the Institute kicks off its 50th anniversary celebration with Chihuly at the Salk – an outdoor installation by artist Dale Chihuly.


Salk Institute cancer researcher Tony Hunter named to Frederick W. and Joanna J. Mitchell Chair

LA JOLLA, CA—The Salk Institute for Biological Studies today announced the appointment of Professor Tony Hunter, Ph.D., as the inaugural holder of the Frederick W. and Joanna J. Mitchell Chair, created in memory of their daughter Marian Mitchell through a $2 million gift by the estate of Frederick W. Mitchell.


Root or Shoot: Power struggle between genetic master switches decides stem cell fate, growth orientation of plants

LA JOLLA, CA—The first order of business for any fledgling plant embryo is to determine which end grows the shoot and which end puts down roots. Now, researchers at the Salk Institute expose the turf wars between two groups of antagonistic genetic master switches that set up a plant’s polar axis with a root on one end and a shoot on the other.


The mouse with a human liver: a new model for the treatment of liver disease

LA JOLLA, CA—How do you study—and try to cure in the laboratory—an infection that only humans can get? A team led by Salk Institute researchers does it by generating a mouse with an almost completely human liver. This “humanized” mouse is susceptible to human liver infections and responds to human drug treatments, providing a new way to test novel therapies for debilitating human liver diseases and other diseases with liver involvement such as malaria.


Golf Tournament Highlights 50th Anniversary Celebration, Inaugural Fundraiser for Salk Institute

LA JOLLA, CA–As part of its 50th anniversary celebration, the Salk Institute for Biological Studies is inviting the public to celebrate five decades of groundbreaking scientific discoveries by participating in the 1st annual Salk Institute Golf Tournament, which takes place May 11, 2010 at the Del Mar Country Club. All proceeds from the event will directly benefit Salk’s pre-eminent medical research.


Nuclear pore complexes harbor new class of gene regulators, offer clues to gene expression and cancer

LA JOLLA, CA—Nuclear pore complexes are best known as the communication channels that regulate the passage of all molecules to and from a cell’s nucleus. Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, however, have shown that some of the pores’ constituent proteins, called nucleoporins, pull double duty as transcription factors regulating the activity of genes active during early development.


Stress peptide and receptor may have role in diabetes

LA JOLLA, CA—The neuropeptide corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) makes cameo appearances throughout the body, but its leading role is as the opening act in the stress response, jump-starting the process along the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have found that CRF also plays a part in the pancreas, where it increases insulin secretion and promotes the division of the insulin-producing beta cells.


Unwanted guests: How herpes simplex virus gets rid of the cell’s security guards

LA JOLLA, CA—A viral infection is like an uninvited, tenacious houseguest in the cell, using a range of tricks to prevent its eviction. Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have identified one of the key proteins allowing herpes simplex virus (HSV) DNA to fly under the radar of their hosts’ involuntary hospitality.


Dual role for immune cells in the brain

LA JOLLA, CA—We all have at one time or another experienced the typical signs of an infection: the fever, the listlessness, the lack of appetite. They are orchestrated by the brain in response to circulating cytokines, the signaling molecules of the immune system. But just how cytokines’ reach extends beyond the almost impenetrable blood-brain barrier has been the topic of much dispute.


Seeing without looking

LA JOLLA, CA—Like a spotlight that illuminates an otherwise dark scene, attention brings to mind specific details of our environment while shutting others out. A new study by researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies shows that the superior colliculus, a brain structure that primarily had been known for its role in the control of eye and head movements, is crucial for moving the mind’s spotlight.


Mobilizing the repair squad: Critical protein helps mend damaged DNA

LA JOLLA, CA—In order to preserve our DNA, cells have developed an intricate system for monitoring and repairing DNA damage. Yet precisely how the initial damage signal is converted into a repair response remains unclear. Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have now solved a crucial piece of the complex puzzle.


Delaying the aging process protects against Alzheimer’s disease

LA JOLLA, CA—Aging is the single greatest risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease. In their latest study, researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies found that simply slowing the aging process in mice prone to develop Alzheimer’s disease prevented their brains from turning into a neuronal wasteland.