Archive: Mar 2017

by Paris Bentley figures by Michael MacArthur The immediate environmental effects of nuclear bomb testing during the Cold War era were undoubtedly devastating. Having left enormous negative environmental and socioeconomic impacts all over the world, it…

The intricate process of reading genes in our DNA to make proteins is arguably the most fundamental part of life. In this talk, we will dive into one critical step within this process, called RNA splicing. We will discuss what RNA splicing is, how…

Armigeres subalbatus mosquito of the ‘Nagasaki colony’ having a meal [Image: CDC/ Frank Collins, PhD. acquired from Public Health Image Library] With the warm weather of summer quickly approaching, a common enemy known as the mosquito will…

Repatha’s clinical trial involved over 27,000 patients and cost over $1 billion. [‘The City’ from Herry Lawford] We just learned a lot more about a drug called Repatha, one of the newest weapons in the war against heart disease. …

by Kimberly Hagel figures by Alexandra Was We, as humans, tend to idealize that which is bigger, better, faster, and stronger. It is in our nature to strive towards the best. To improve. To win. Indeed, the penetrance of this mentality reaches to our…

The recent discovery of Earth-like planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system has been a major headline for the past few weeks. A team led by Michael Gillon found three planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system in 2016, and recently reported at least 4 more which may…

These colorful fractions were obtained upon purifying a synthetic small-molecule through flash column chromatography. Though most of these were impurities (bright colors in organic chemistry is usually not a great sign), it served as a reminder to…

Come learn about the role of genetics in obesity risk and appetite! Along the way, we’ll learn about the fundamentals of modern genetic research and the genomics revolution. We’ll discuss what “big data” in genetics has taught us about obesity and…

Update: Since the writing of this article, Donald Trump has picked Scott Gottleib as FDA commissioner. -SITN editorial staff by Linda Honaker figures by Rebecca Clements Donald Trump will soon pick a new commissioner for the Federal Drug Administration…

Scientists may have found an explanation for why the first amphibious fish moved from water to land. On a small island in the South Pacific Ocean, four species of blennies spend half their time in water and half on land. To test whether predation could…