Mean, green and squeaky clean photocells
If plants could speak, they’d probably tell us to use a newly developed technology that is making solar energy even more green-friendly-literally. A new solar cell technology from Massey University’s Nanomaterials Research Centre in New Zealand employs a synthetic dye that closely resembles the chlorophyll plants use to capture sunlight, and colours the solar panels green. Unlike silicon solar cells, these green solar cells can generate power even in low light, and would cost a tenth as much as silicon solar panels. The team is also testing a photocell using a pigment similar to the hemoglobin that is responsible for blood’s red colour.
Source: Massey University news service
-Sandy Huen
Girls really do rule
Researchers studying Duchenne muscular dystrophy at the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh have stumbled upon an unusual discovery: stem cells from female mice are better at regenerating cells than male stem cells. The researchers were using stem cells from both male and female mice to test the viability of its use as a delivery system of dystrophin, a protein that Duchenne patients lack. Regardless of the sex of the stem-cell recipient, male donor stem cells were able to regenerate into significantly healthy muscle cells only 10 per cent of the time. Stem cells derived from females, on the other hand, were successful 40 per cent of the time and generally made more robust cell populations than male stem cells. The researchers are now trying to pinpoint the innate differences between male and female stem cells that may be able to explain this result. This is the first study to show a stem cell gender bias.
Source: Journal of Cell Biology
-S.H.
Japan’s bad bugs
We all know that the flu comes in different varieties and that some are deadlier than others, but one Japanese team is still wondering: exactly how often do dangerous forms arise in each strain? The influenza virus comes in two main types: A and B. The Japanese scientists have found that type B influenza develops drug resistance less frequently than type A. Influenza A is associated with epidemics that cause more deaths, but type B viruses still result in many annual outbreaks worldwide. Both types can be treated with drugs like neuraminidase inhibitors, but this can lead to drug-resistant viruses. Japan prescribes drugs for flu infections more than anywhere else in the world, making it an ideal setting to study the development of drug resistance. Researchers discovered reduced drug sensitivity developing at a rate of 1.4 per cent for influenza B viruses, compared to between 5.5 and 18 per cent among influenza A. Despite the lower rate of generation, drug-resistant type B viruses still appear to be transmitted within communities and families, and requires close monitoring.
Source: JAMA
-Mayce Al-Sukhni
