SAN FRANCISCO, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Marine biologists at Stanford University have discovered that corals activate a specific group of ancient, defensive
genes when exposed to stressful environmental conditions.
By monitoring three coral colonies in a lagoon on Ofu Island, American Samoa, for their response to stressors like high temperatures, oxygen, and ocean
acidity, the researchers saw a significant change in which genes the corals were
activating within their cells.
These stress-induced genes could serve as a kind of warning sign for coral bleaching events.
Under stressful conditions, a coral's normal cellular functions begin to fail. In response, the group of genes identified in this study triggers a
process, called the unfolded protein response, that works to restore normal
conditions within the cell. If conditions continue to worsen, the corals bleach
and eventually die.
Over the course of the seventeen-day study, Steve Palumbi, a professor of marine sciences and an author of a paper published in the latest issue of
Science Advances, together with graduate student Lupita Ruiz-Jones, monitored
over 17,000 coral genes at just after noon each day.
On the seventh and eighth day, when tides were lowest and temperatures hottest, the corals' genes initiated the cellular unfolded protein response. On
day nine, the tides rose and the corals' systems returned to normal.
"For the first time, we are able to ask those corals, 'how are you doing?' They don't have a heartbeat. They don't have a pulse. We need to know their
vital signs in order to understand how they react to the environment," Palumbi
was quoted as saying in a news release from Stanford.
The lagoon on Ofu Island, a shallow turquoise bathtub, provided the ideal coral laboratory for studying heat-tolerant corals. The corals on Ofu experience
water temperatures near human body temperature, enough to kill most coral
species. However, they prosper in stressful environmental conditions.
Scientists believe that frequent, pulsing exposure to high temperatures may make corals stronger, much in the same way athletes train for competition.
Understanding why some of the world's toughest corals are so heat-tolerant could
help scientists identify and map other survivor coral colonies around the globe.
The stress response has been observed in mammals as well as some yeast species. Humans activate the same ancient genes in response to diseases, like
cancer.
In times of stress, a cell's misfolded and unfolded proteins accumulate in the endoplasmic reticulum, a series of flattened, tube-like structures in the
cell that assist with building proteins. The unfolded protein response is a
reaction to the flood of misassembled proteins.
"It's basically the organism recognizing that something isn't right," Ruiz-Jones said.
In the corals' case, Palumbi said, "they started using a whole set of genes that they had just not been using before."
HO CHI MINH CITY nike air presto white australia , Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- Seventy automobile models from 12 foreign and Vietnamese firms, including Ford, Mercedes-Benz and
Honda nike air presto black australia , were on display at Vietnam Motor Show 2017 which kicked off here on Monday.
During the five-day event, some small car models with reasonable prices were being showcased, which were expected to attract many potential buyers nike air presto uncaged australia , exhibitors said.
Vietnamese people are expected to buy more low-cost cars from 2018, when import taxes from Southeast Asian nations will be cut to zero percent under the
ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA).
Vietnam spent over 1.1 billion U.S. dollars importing completely-built automobiles and components for assembly in the first seven months of this year,
with a year-on-year drop of 9.4 percent nike air presto essential australia , according to the General Statistics Office.
China marks PLA's 90th anniversary with grand rally
President Xi attends reception for founding anniversary of PLA
Xi reviews parade in field for first time
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Military parade held to mark PLA 90th birthday (Part I)
SWAT team members take part in drill
Acrobatic show staged in China's Xinjiang
Martial arts competition held in China's Henan
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MONTEVIDEO, March 31 (Xinhua) -- Uruguay's Football Association (AUF) President Sebastian Bauza quit his job Monday in the wake of criticism sparked
by violent stadium brawls that have left scores of fans and police injured.
The clashes even led Uruguayan President Jose Mujica Friday to call on the sport's leaders to try to curb the fighting.
""Football needs decision making and the current political and institutional state of things won't allow it,"" Bauza wrote in a letter resigning his post as
head of the executive council.
The pressure on Bauza had been mounting for some time www.nikeprestoaustralia.com , even before Mujica last week ordered police not to provide security at two top
stadiums, leading to the cancellation of a match between leading team Penarol
and Miramar.
On Feb. 17, first and second divisions teams handed Bauza a no- confidence vote due to another matter. He had failed to back their legal suit against the
South American Football Confederation ( Conmebol) nike air presto australia , alleging a lack of transparency in the way the regional body granted television broadcasting rights of the Libertadores Cup.
Bauza, who took over the AUF in 2009, wrote that the recent events ""demonstrate the need to step aside and allow (others) to bring governability
to football.""
Under his leadership air presto australia , Uruguay's national team, which will be playing in the 2014 Brazil World Cup,
ranked fourth at the 2010 South African games and won the America Cup in
Argentina in 2011.
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