GENETICS

Cayetano, Camille G.
BS PSY 3Y1-1

10/2/12
Ms. Ana Ranoco

Well basically learning ones capabilities physiologically is one thing,

but applying the knowledge behind those areas is another thing. While it
does help in the formulation/revision of the fundamental knowledge most
especially in medicine, the risk is great if they even try to have it applied on
humans, given if they were producing some sort of formula and
inject/introduce any research substance into them. If they are planning to, for
the sake of treating degenerative diseases, then a lot of measures must be
done in order to fill in the gaps and lapses of the research (which is an
inevitable part).
Regeneration. It is actually a very interesting topic. Our liver is capable
of regenerating its part when cut/damaged, unlike our brain cells, which
only mature and degenerate along with time. Although the regenerating
capability of the liver depends on the medical condition of a person. A lizard
(in the topic) is capable of regenerating its parts when, for example, its limbs
go missing. But stimulating the genes responsible for this action is not the
only thing to be considered; it is actually the first step.
Regeneration is the process of renewal, restoration, and growth that
makes genomes, cells, organs, organisms,
and ecosystems resilient to
natural fluctuations or events that cause disturbance or damage. Every
species is capable of regeneration, from bacteria to humans
Some lizards can regrow their tail when it is cut off. Well humans are
capable of regenerating their fingernails, especially when children lose a
fingertip. But out of thousand of living organism groups in Earth, only a few
could totally regenerate an entire limb and humans are not included. But
with the breakthrough of modern medical technologies and discoveries,
scientists might be able to shed some more light into this area of knowledge.
Right now, I believe they are working on the interventions to do with
degenerative diseases. This pool of discoveries will be able to help them in
that field.

GENETICS
Cayetano, Camille G.
BS PSY 3Y1-1

10/2/12
Ms. Ana Ranoco

Understanding How Salamanders Grow New Limbs Provides

Insights Into The Potential Of Human Regenerative Medicine
Main Category: Genetics
Also Included In: Biology / Biochemistry
Article Date: 28 Sep 2012 - 0:00 PDT

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/250719.php

Based on two new studies by researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, regeneration of
a new limb or organ in a human will be much more difficult than the mad scientist and supervillain,
Dr. Curt Connors, made it seem in the Amazing Spider-man comics and films.
As those who saw the recent "The Amazing Spiderman" movie will know, Dr. Connors injected
himself with a serum made from lizard DNA to successfully regrow his missing lower right arm - that
is, before the formula transformed him into a reptilian humanoid.
But by studying a real lizard-like amphibian, which can regenerate missing limbs, the Salk
researchers discovered that it isn't enough to activate genes that kick start the regenerative process.
In fact, one of the first steps is to halt the activity of so-called jumping genes.
In research published in Development, Growth & Differentiation, and Developmental Biology,the
researchers show that in the Mexican axolotl, jumping genes have to be shackled or they might
move around in the genomes of cells in the tissue destined to become a new limb, and disrupt the
process of regeneration.
They found that two proteins, piwi-like 1 (PL1) and piwi-like 2 (PL2), perform the job of quieting down
jumping genes in this immature tadpole-like form of a salamander, known as an axolotl - a creature
whose name means water monster and who can regenerate everything from parts of its brain to
eyes, spinal cord, and tail.
"What our work suggests is that jumping genes would be an issue in any situation where you wanted
to turn on regeneration," says the studies' senior author, Tony Hunter, a professor in the Molecular
and Cell Biology Laboratory and director of the Salk Institute Cancer Center.
"As complex as it already seems, it might seem a hopeless task to try to regenerate a limb or body
part in humans, especially since we don't know if humans even have all the genes necessary for
regeneration," says Hunter. "For this reason, it is important to understand how regeneration works at

GENETICS
Cayetano, Camille G.
10/2/12
BS PSY 3Y1-1
Ms. Ana Ranoco
a molecular level in a vertebrate that can regenerate as a first step. What we learn may eventually
lead to new methods for treating human conditions, such as wound healing and regeneration of
simple tissues."
The research team, which included investigators from other universities around the country, sought
to characterize the transcriptional fingerprint emerging from the early phase of axolotl regeneration.
They specifically looked at the blastema, a structure that forms at a limb's stump.
There the scientists found transcriptional activation of some genes, usually found only in germlime
cells, which indicated cellular reprogramming of differentiated cells into a germline state.
In the Development, Growth & Differentiation study, the research team, led by Wei Zhu, then a
postdoctoral researcher in Hunter's laboratory, focused on one of these genes, the long interspersed
nucleotide element-1 (LINE-1) retrotransposon.
LINE-1 elements are jumping genes that arose early in vertebrate evolution. They are pieces of DNA
that copy themselves in two stages - first from DNA to RNA by transcription, and then from RNA to
DNA by reverse transcription. These DNA copies can then insert themselves into the cell's genome
at new positions.
A few years ago, Fred Gage, professor in the Laboratory of Genetics at the Salk Institute, discovered
that LINE-1 elements move around during neuronal development, and may program the identities of
individual neurons.
"Most of these copies appear to be 'junk' DNA, because they are defective and can never jump
again," says Hunter. But all mammals, including humans, still have active LINE-1 genes, and the
salamander, whose genome is 10 times larger than a human's, contains many more.
Active LINE-1 retrotransposons can keep jumping, and that was true in the developing blastema
where LINE-1 jumping was dramatically switched on. But in the researchers' companion study,
in Developmental Biology, they found that PL1 and PL2 switch off transcription of repeat elements,
such as LINE-1. "The idea is that in the development of germ cells, you definitely don't want these
things hopping around," says Hunter. "The mobilization of these jumping genes can introduce
harmful genomic rearrangements or even abort the regeneration process."
In fact, when the researchers inhibited PL1 and PL2 activity in the axoloti limb blastema,
regeneration was significantly slowed down.
"The need to switch on one set of genes to stop other genes from jumping just illustrates how
amazingly difficult it would be to regenerate something as complex as a limb in humans," Hunter
says. "But that doesn't mean we won't learn valuable lessons about how to treat degenerative
diseases."