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IMAGE: The collaborative team successfully used their computer-guided design tool IRENE to reconstruct the gene regulatory network controlling the identity of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). view more
Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University
(BOSTON) There is a great need to generate various types of cells for use in new therapies to replace tissues that are lost due to disease or injuries, or for studies outside the human body to improve our understanding of how organs and tissues function in health and disease. Many of these efforts start with human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) that, in theory, have the capacity to differentiate into virtually any cell type in the right culture conditions. The 2012 Nobel Prize awarded to Shinya Yamanaka recognized his discovery of a strategy that can reprogram adult cells to become iPSCs by providing them with a defined set of gene-regulatory transcription factors (TFs). However, progressing from there
New model offers clearer picture of life on Mars harvard.edu - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from harvard.edu Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Model explains how life emerged on Mars
Watching Perseverance’s journey across a dry, dusty river delta on Mars, it’s difficult to imagine that landscape once glistened with flowing water. But geological evidence, including satellite images and observations from Perseverance’s NASA siblings Curiosity, Spirit and Opportunity, point to an ancient Mars that was once warm and wet.
But much is still unknown about the climate on early Mars. For one, how did the atmosphere evolve to support these periods of warmth? How long did these periods last? How do you explain the diverse and seemingly contradictory chemistry of minerals detected by the rovers and by orbiting satellites?
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Does a warmer climate mean more dry land? For years, researchers projected that drylands including deserts, savannas and shrublands will expand as the planet warms, but new research from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) challenges those prevailing views.
Previous studies used atmospheric information, including rainfall and temperature, to make projections about future land conditions. The real picture is more complicated than that, said Kaighin McColl, Assistant Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences and of Environmental Science and Engineering at SEAS and senior author of the paper. Historically, we have relatively good records of rainfall and temperature but really poor records of the land surface, things like soil moisture and vegetation, said McColl. As a result, previous definitions of drylands are based only on how the atmosphere is behaving, as an approximation of the land surface. But models can now simulat
Uncovering hidden chemicals
Leah Burrows
Editor s note: Reprinted with permission from the Harvard Gazzette. T
he Harvard scientists in this study are part of the STEEP Superfund Research Program Center, a partnership between the University of Rhode Island, Harvard, and the Silent Spring Institute, working closely with the Town of Barnstable and the Barnstable Clean Water Coalition.
Researchers from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have found large quantities of previously undetectable compounds from the family of chemicals known as PFAS in six watersheds on Cape Cod using a new method to quantify and identify PFAS compounds. Exposures to some PFAS, widely used for their ability to repel heat, water, and oil, are linked to a range of health risks including cancer, immune suppression, diabetes, and low infant birth weight.