Knowledge Update

​London, Feb 15 (IANS) Researchers have identified more than 200 genetic markers that may help predict a man's chance of severe hair loss, in a study over 52,000 males.

Male pattern baldness can have substantial psychosocial effects and it has been phenotypically linked to adverse health outcomes such as prostate cancer and cardiovascular disease. 

Based on the presence or absence of certain genetic markers, the researchers from the University of Edinburgh in Britain, created a formula to try and predict the chance that a person will go bald. 

The findings, published in PLOS Genetics, pinpointed 287 genes, many of which are related to hair structure and development, and could provide possible targets for drug development to treat baldness or related conditions.

Further, the study showed-in line with a previous study, but with much greater precision that a substantial proportion of individual differences in hair loss patterns can be explained by common genetic variants on the autosomes as well as on the X chromosome -- the gene for the androgen receptor, which binds to the hormone testosterone. 

"We identified hundreds of new genetic signals. It was interesting to find that many of the genetics signals for male pattern baldness came from the X chromosome, which men inherit from their mothers," said Saskia Hagenaars, doctoral student at the University of Edinburgh.

"We are still a long way from making an accurate prediction for an individual's hair loss pattern. However, these results take us one step closer. The findings pave the way for an improved understanding of the genetic causes of hair loss," added Riccardo Marioni from the University of Edinburgh. 

​New York, Feb 15 (IANS) Astronomers have spotted a rare pulsating star which is expanding and contracting in three different directions simultaneously.

It is situated 7,000 light years away from Earth in the constellation Pegasus, said astronomer Farley Ferrante, a member of the team that made the discovery at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.

The star is one that pulsates and so is characterised by varying brightness over time. 

Called a variable star, this particular star is one of only seven known stars of its kind in our Milky Way galaxy.

"It was challenging to identify it," Ferrante said in a university statement. 

The Milky Way has more than 100 billion stars. But just over 400,900 are catalogued as variable stars. 

Of those, a mere seven -- including the newly-identified one -- are the rare intrinsic variable star called a Triple Mode 'high amplitude delta Scuti' or Triple Mode HADS(B), for short.

"The discovery of this object helps to flesh out the characteristics of this unique type of variable star. These and further measurements can be used to probe the way the pulsations happen," Robert Kehoe, Professor at Southern Methodist University, said.

"Pulsating stars have also been important to improving our understanding of the expansion of the universe and its origins, which is another exciting piece of this puzzle," Kehoe said.

The astronomers discovered the variable star by analysing light curve shape -- a key identifier of star type -- created from archived data procured by ROTSE-I telescope.

​New York, Feb 15 (IANS) In a surprising discovery, astronomers have observed a black hole producing cold, star-making fuel from hot plasma jets and bubbles.

The researchers found that powerful radio jets from the black hole -- which normally suppress star formation -- are stimulating the production of cold gas in the galaxy's extended halo of hot gas. 

This newly identified supply of cold, dense gas could eventually fuel future star birth as well as feed the black hole itself, said the study published in the Astrophysical Journal.

The researchers studied a galaxy at the heart of the Phoenix Cluster, an uncommonly crowded collection of galaxies about 5.7 billion light-years from Earth.

The team analysed observations of the Phoenix cluster gathered by the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA), a collection of 66 large radio telescopes spread over the desert of northern Chile. 

The researchers believe that the new findings may help to explain the Phoenix cluster's exceptional star-producing power. 

They may also provide new insight into how supermassive black holes and their host galaxies mutually grow and evolve.

"With ALMA we can see that there's a direct link between these radio bubbles inflated by the supermassive black hole and the future fuel for galaxy growth," said study lead author Helen Russell, an astronomer with the University of Cambridge in Britain.

"This gives us new insights into how a black hole can regulate future star birth and how a galaxy can acquire additional material to fuel an active black hole," Russell said.

What the researchers believe to be happening is that, as jet inflate bubbles of hot gas near the black hole, they drag behind them a wake of slightly cooler gas. 

The bubbles eventually detach from the jets and float further out into the galaxy cluster, where each bubble's trail of gas cools, forming long filaments of extremely cold gas that condense and rain back onto the black hole as fuel for star formation.

"It's a very new idea that the bubbles and jets can actually influence the distribution of cold gas in any way," said study co-author Michael McDonald, an astrophysicist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US.

New York, Feb 14 (IANS) While anti-ageing moisturisers only go skin deep, reducing calorie consumption can slow the ageing process at cellular level, suggests new research. The study, published in the journal Molecular & Cellular Proteomics, showed that when ribosomes -- the cell's protein makers -- slow down, the ageing process slows too. The decreased speed lowers production but gives ribosomes extra time to repair themselves. "The ribosome is a very complex machine, sort of like your car, and it periodically needs maintenance to replace the parts that wear out the fastest," said study senior author John Price, Professor at Brigham Young University in in Provo, Utah, US. So what causes ribosome production to slow down in the first place? Reduced calorie consumption, show the results of the study tested in mice. Price and his fellow researchers observed two groups of mice. One group had unlimited access to food while the other was restricted to consume 35 per cent fewer calories, though still receiving all the necessary nutrients for survival. "When you restrict calorie consumption, there's almost a linear increase in lifespan," Price said. "We inferred that the restriction caused real biochemical changes that slowed down the rate of ageing," he added. "The calorie-restricted mice are more energetic and suffered fewer diseases," Price said. "And it's not just that they're living longer, but because they're better at maintaining their bodies, they're younger for longer as well," he said. Despite this study's observed connection between consuming fewer calories and improved lifespan, Price assured that people should not start counting calories and expect to stay forever young. Calorie restriction has not been tested in humans as an anti-ageing strategy, the researchers pointed out.

Kathmandu, Feb 14 (IANS) Chinese technology company Coolpad on Tuesday launched Cool 1 smartphone in Nepal. Priced at Nepali Rs 30,996, the smartphone has dual rear 13MP camera, dual-tone LED flash and 5.5-inch full-HD display. "We aim to sell around 5,00,000 units of Coolpad smartphone and be one of the top five players in 2017 in Nepal," said James Du, Global CEO, Coolpad, in a statement. Cool 1 is powered with 1.8GHz octa-core processor and comes with two different RAM variants -- 3GB and 4GB -- with an internal storage of 32GB. The device sports 8MP front camera and houses 4,000mAh battery with fast charging support. The company also showcased three other models -- Note 3S, Mega 3 and Mega 2.5D -- in the country.

​London, Feb 14 (IANS) A bold vision to transform London's Thames Estuary into a hub for the creative and cultural industries was unveiled by Mayor Sadiq Khan.

The mayor on Monday said the project would bring thousands of jobs and growth to benefit the capital and the wider south east corner of England, Xinhua news agency reported.

The proposal spans seven London boroughs as well as the counties of Essex and Kent, and is expected to generate $44 billion a year to London's economy.

Khan's plan would see the Thames Estuary transformed into a global centre of excellence for the creative industries, with several large-scale developments proposed.

He called on ministers to put the creative industries at the heart of their industrial strategy.

A spokesman for the mayor said: "The creative industries are Britain's biggest growth sector, with 1.3 million people working in the creative economy across London and South East."

Khan's plan outlines a future where the Thames Estuary becomes an internationally-renowned centre for major creative production facilities for building, innovating and testing new ideas -- supporting growth, championing a low carbon economy, providing job opportunities and investing in a skilled workforce.

The vision document, which has been submitted to the Lord Heseltine, head of the Thames Estuary 2050 Growth Commission, identifies the potential for several large-scale national hubs which add up to one of the largest investments in industrial infrastructure since Canary Wharf was built in the 1980s.

The proposals include London's largest film studio complex in Dagenham, a national theatre-making studios complex in Bexley, a state-of-the-art facility and foundry for manufacturing large-scale artworks and sculptures, including Britain's biggest 3D printing centre.

It will also see a new national centre for experiential arts in Woolwich and studios in Purfleet that will be Britain's leading independent media production facility.

Khan said: "London leads the way across the whole of the creative economy, from fashion to film, design to gaming, performing arts to the visual arts."

"It's only right that we build on this success and transform the Thames Estuary into a world-class centre for creative production, leading global innovation, developing the talent of the future and cultivating world-changing ideas," he said.

London, Feb 14 (IANS) A specific gene that plays a crucial role in ensuring DNA is copied correctly when cells divide and grow can cause growth defects associated with a rare type of dwarfism, says a study.

"This research sheds new light on the mechanisms underlying DNA replication, and the effect on human health when this process goes wrong," said Grant Stewart from University of Birmingham in Britain.

During the study, published today in Nature Genetics, the researchers looked at genetic information from more than 250 people around the world with microcephalic dwarfism, a group of disorders characterised by short stature and reduced head size.

They found that 29 of the individuals had faulty versions of a gene called DONSON.

Tests on cells growing in the laboratory revealed that this gene plays a crucial role in ensuring DNA is copied correctly when cells divide and grow.

Cells from patients with mutations in the DONSON gene had difficulty in efficiently replicating their DNA and protecting it from uncontrolled damage, ultimately leading to the growth defects typical of microcephalic dwarfism.

This research raises the potential of more accurate diagnoses for patients with genetic microcephaly, in addition to providing an insight into how similar rare hereditary diseases are caused.

Johannesburg, Feb 14 (IANS) A reptile related to early mammals was the first to produce venom in order to survive the rough conditions offered by the deadly South African environment 260 million years ago -- some 100 million years before the very first snake was even born -- a study says.

Computerised tomography (CT) scans of fossils of the dog-sized reptile, Therapsid Euchambersia, showed anatomical features, designed for venom production, according to the study published in the journal, PlosOne.

"Today, snakes are notorious for their venomous bite, but their fossil record vanishes in the depth of geological times at about 167 million years ago. So, at 260 million years ago, the Euchambersia evolved venom more than a 100 million years before the very first snake was even born, " said Julien Benoit from University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa.

As venom glands do not fossilise, Benoit and his colleagues at Wits University, in association with the Natural History Museum of London used CT scanning and 3D imagery techniques to analyse the only two fossilised skulls of the Euchambersia ever found, and discovered stunning anatomical adaptions that are compatible with venom production. 

"This is the first evidence of the oldest venomous vertebrate ever found, and what is even more surprising is that it is not in a species that we expected it to be," Benoit said.

The first Euchambersia fossil was found in 1932, and the second in 1966. According to measurements of the two fossils, the Euchambersia was a small dog-like pre-mammalian reptile that grew between 40 and 50 cm long.

"A wide, deep and circular fossa (a space in the skull) to accommodate a venom gland was present on the upper jaw and was connected to the canine and the mouth by a fine network of bony grooves and canals," Benoit said. 

"Moreover, we discovered previously undescribed teeth hidden in the vicinity of the bones and rock: two incisors with preserved crowns and a pair of large canines, that all had a sharp ridge. Such a ridged dentition would have helped the injection of venom inside a prey," Benoit explained.

​Seoul, Feb 13 (IANS) The United States' recent withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement is expected to weaken its economic and strategic status in the Asia-Pacific region, a state-run think tank in Seoul said on Monday.

New York, Feb 13 (IANS) Losing weight through surgical approaches appears to reset chemical messages that fat cells send, substantially reducing people's risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, a study has found. Fat cells -- also known as adipocytes -- send messages to other cells in the form of exosomes -- nanosised blobs whose contents regulate which proteins are produced by genes. However, the messages contained in exosomes from patients who are obese alter how the body processes insulin, setting the stage for Type 2 diabetes, said researchers from the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. For the study, published in the journal Obesity, the team worked with six adults scheduled to receive gastric bypass surgery, whose average age was 38 years, and had an average body mass index (BMI) of 51.2 kg/m2. Blood samples showed that at least 168 microRNAs -- the molecules responsible for sending specific messages -- had changed before and after surgery. Further analyses showed that many of these microRNAs were involved in insulin signalling, the pathways that the body uses to regulate blood sugar. By changing these outgoing microRNAs for the better, adipocytes actively were encouraging higher insulin sensitivity in other cells, warding off Type 2 diabetes, said Robert J. Freishtat, Associate Professor at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. Post-surgery each volunteer showed better insulin sensitivity and other improved markers of metabolic health. "These volunteers were essentially cured of their diabetes after surgery. The changes we saw in their surgery-responsive microRNAS correlated with the changes we saw in their metabolic health," Freishtat said. The findings offer hope to the nearly 2 billion adults who are overweight or obese worldwide that many of the detrimental effects of carrying too much weight can recede, even on the molecular level, once they lose weight, the researchers noted.