La Jolla, CA – Mice are not usually noted for their stalwart natures, but a new Salk Institute study shows that the loss of a single gene can render them especially anxious. The resulting "neurotic" mice approach new situations tentatively and appear to experience stress more acutely than normal mice.
La Jolla, CA – If you think you’re living in the past, you’re right – and science can tell you just how far behind the times you are. According to a new Salk study, it’s at least 80 milliseconds, just slightly longer than the blink of an eye.
La Jolla, CA – The first gene to control male fertility without affecting sexual behavior or physical appearance has been identified by Salk researchers. The study, appearing in the current Nature Genetics, demonstrates that a certain genetic mutation eliminates sperm development in male mice. It has no effect on females.
La Jolla, CA – Manicuring golf courses and the ritual mowing of suburban lawns may soon be relegated to history with the discovery of a new “dwarf” gene that limits plant stem length.
La Jolla, CA – A new technique developed by Salk scientists allows the first glimpse of HIV inside a living cell and shows how the virus advances toward its ultimate target, the nucleus.
La Jolla, CA – A gene that speeds up the maturation process in plants, resulting in earlier development and flowering, has been isolated by a team of scientists at The Salk Institute.
La Jolla, CA – The living cell is the prototypical shape-shifter. At any given moment, it will reorganize itself to move, grow, replicate and even die.
La Jolla, CA – Should you hit the treadmill before hitting the books?
La Jolla, CA – To make sure your heart’s in the right place, you need to add just the right amount of vitamin A.
La Jolla, CA – A home movie of toddlers will show them wobble and weave, often to the amusement of adult viewers. But for babies born with the rare genetic disease ataxia-telangiectasia, commonly known as A-T, what may seem like normal and adorable lack of polish accelerates into a progressive and pervasive loss of muscle control and early death.
La Jolla, CA – The three-dimensional structure of a linchpin enzyme plants need to thrive – and one viewed as a key player in the growing nutraceutical market – has been revealed in atomic detail by scientists at The Salk Institute.
La Jolla, CA – During the turbulent ’60s, the phrases “flower power” and “petal power” were counterculture slogans that invoked peace and love. Though science has yet to design flowers capable of fulfilling the wishes of a bygone era, researchers at The Salk Institute are learning more about the genetic power behind flower formation that one day could yield designer blooms.
La Jolla, CA – Joseph R. Ecker, one of the nation’s leading authorities on the molecular biology and genetics of plants, will be joining the faculty of The Salk Institute, effective next summer.
La Jolla, CA – A single gene can transform embryonic tissue destined to form a wing into a leg instead, Salk Institute investigators have found. Their studies were performed in chickens, and the gene, called Tbx4 , appears to be involved in limb formation in mammals as well, including humans.
La Jolla, CA – With the aid of a common virus used to ferry a clotting factor gene into liver cells, a team led by researchers at The Salk Institute for Biological Studies has cured a form of hemophilia in mice.
La Jolla, CA – A computer program developed by a Salk-led team has been trained to distinguish among a number of facial cues, helping to sort false from genuine expressions. What’s more, the program performs as well as a psychologist trained to read faces and markedly better than human non-experts.
La Jolla, CA – Can regular exercise strengthen the brain? According to a new Salk study, animals that get regular voluntary exercise on running wheels grow more new brain cells than sedentary counterparts.
La Jolla, CA – Like a sextant that helps guide ships at sea, a specific combination of genes has been identified that directs newly born nerve cells to their final destinations in developing organisms.
La Jolla, CA – Zinc has long been recognized as an essential trace element, and a current study led by Salk Institute investigators shows it to be an integral part of ion channels, structures that regulate communication among nerve cells.
La Jolla, CA – To paraphrase a classic rock anthem, flies missing a gene that affects sexual behavior “can’t get no satisfaction” no matter how hard they try.
