(August 2003) As early as the 19th century it was known that phosphates could be bound to proteins. Most examples of these ‘phosphoproteins’ were found in milk (caseins) and egg yolk (phosvitin) and were simply considered a biological method of providing phosphorus as a nutrient. Therefore, the existence of phosphoproteins was considered a consequence of metabolic reactions, and nothing more, for almost a century after their discovery [1]. In the 1950’s this all began to change as phosphoproteins began to emerge as key regulators of cellular life. An initiating factor of this emergence occurred in 1954, when an enzyme activity…

(August 2003) In the beginning, there were chickens Surprisingly enough, our understanding of tumour formation has its roots not in humans, but in the chicken. For the past century it has been known that viruses can be causative agents of cancer. Cancer-causing elements were first described in viruses infecting poultry in 1909 [1]. Later, it was shown that the injection of these viruses was sufficient for tumour formation. But the molecular basis of cancer was unearthed only with the discovery of cellular homologues to these cancer-causing elements in 1976 [1]. When the viral DNA sequences were isolated and characterized they…

(August 2003) Conversation in the biological world is quite natural. Even on the level of the cell, a busy broadcast of communications is occurring; a fact which has caught the attention of biologists. Today, one of the hottest areas in cell biology research is the study of ‘signal transduction’. Signal transduction is the study of how a cell communicates [1]. Every cell is able to communicate through having evolved the ability to produce, recognize, interpret and respond to signals in its environment. The word ‘signals’ in this context refers to nothing more than chemical molecules that are floating around. Cells…

The behavior of a cell often relies on the chemical signals it is exposed to in its environment. In general, two types of chemical signals can be found floating through the cellular environment: water-soluble (hydrophilic) molecules or fat-soluble (hydrophobic) molecules. Both are important components of cellular communication and physically interact with cellular structures to facilitate this function. In virtually every case, the cellular structures that these chemical signals interact with are receptor proteins. Receptors and the Surface of a Cell A cell is surrounded by a membrane, which forms a barrier between the inside and outside of the cell. This…

(August 2004) Introduction Apoptosis, or programmed cell death, is a highly regulated process that allows a cell to self-degrade in order for the body to eliminate unwanted or dysfunctional cells. During apoptosis, the genome of the cell will fracture, the cell will shrink and part of the cell will disintegrate into smaller apoptotic bodies. Unlike necrosis, where the cell dies by swelling and bursting its content in the area, which causes an inflammatory response, apoptosis is a very clean and controlled process where the content of the cell is kept strictly within the cell membrane as it is degraded [1].…

(August 2003) Although seen by many as a development of the 20th century, biotechnology was, in fact, one the first technologies developed, and the earliest examples of these technologies are still the most economically important. Early use primarily consisted of methods of fermentation, both for preserving foods, and for the production of alcoholic beverages. In spite of the length of time that has passed since biotechnology came into use, it is only in the past century that we have begun to understand how these innovations work and how they can be improved. Furthermore, great strides have been made in developing…

Advocates of biotechnology have consistently upheld the notion that the field contributes to human health care, environmental protection, and industrial-scale synthesis of complex chemicals. Despite the obvious importance of these areas, biotechnology also has much to offer to other fields. One of the oldest of these is the mining industry. The earliest use of microbial processes for mining occurred long before it was clear that microbes were responsible for the effects observed. At the Rio Tinto (Red River) mine in Seville, Spain, Roman era copper mine workings were rediscovered in 1556. Evidence suggests that the mine used water from the…

(August 2004) Animal or plant cells, removed from tissues, will continue to grow if supplied with the appropriate nutrients and conditions. When carried out in a laboratory, the process is called Cell Culture. It occurs in vitro (‘in glass’) as opposed to in vivo (‘in life’). The culture process allows single cells to act as independent units, much like a microorganism such as a bacterium or fungus. The cells are capable of dividing, they increase in size and, in a batch culture, can continue to grow until limited by some culture variable such as nutrient depletion. Cultures normally contain cells…

(August 2004) Generally, this term refers to food crops that have been altered using a variety of molecular biology techniques in order to provide them with either new or enhanced characteristics. Examples of such enhancements of modifications are herbicide tolerance, pesticide resistance, greater nutritional content or increased tolerance of cold temperatures. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) can also be referred to as transgenic organisms. Transgenic simply means that the organism’s genes come from more than one source. The idea of enhancing desired traits in food crops is not new. Upon domestication of many plants, farmers used the process of artificial selection…