Two quick science updates to make you sound smart to your friends. Pythons can go up to a year between eating. Then when they do, their hearts can grow up to 25% in a single day and more than double their pulse. Two weeks later, everything returns to normal. Researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder have discovered at least part of why this happens. Eating triggers an epigenetic shift, causing lots of different genes in the python to be expressed differently, including ones that make it less stiff, more energy efficient, and make it burn fat instead of sugar for fuel. If we can figure out how to do the same in humans, that would be amazing. It's not just the heart. The researchers think that the same mechanism might end up being useful in treating other organs like the lungs and the liver. Sit down, spidey, it's time for a snake man. You know how when you're walking down the street and you get a whiff of something that smells super gnarly? Sometimes it makes you cough and other times you sneeze. Until now, we didn't really know how the brain decides which one to do. The researchers just discovered a sneeze neuron, beautifully named Merga Perk 11 in mice that sends a sneeze-specific signal to the brain when they smell certain compounds. And to confirm it, they genetically engineered mice to lack this gene. and then gave them the flu, and watched as the mice didn't sneeze at all. If this carries over to humans, it might lead to some interesting new sneeze treatments.
Additional notes
Which one did you find more intersting? #science #stem #sciencenews 📚Studies: DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2322726121 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.08.009
References
- Postprandial cardiac hypertrophy is sustained by mechanics, epigenetic, and metabolic reprogramming in pythons. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2322726121. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2322726121
- Divergent sensory pathways of sneezing and coughing. DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.08.009. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2024.08.009