RNA silencing is an evolutionarily conserved system that
functions as an antiviral mechanism in higher plants and
insects. To counteract RNA silencing, viruses express
silencing suppressors that interfere with both siRNA- and
microRNA-guided silencing pathways. We used comparative
in vitro and in vivo approaches to analyse the molecular
mechanism of...
table isotope analysis is a powerful tool for assessing plant carbon and water relations and their impact on biogeochemical processes at different scales. Our process-based understanding of stable isotope signals, as well as technological developments, has progressed significantly, opening new frontiers in ecological and interdisciplinary research. This has promoted the...
The ability of many domesticated animals to follow human pointing gestures to locate hidden food has led to scientific debate on the relative importance of domestication and individual experience on the origins and development of this capacity. To further explore this question we examined the influence of different prior training...
The domestic cat (Felis silvestris catus) has shared an intertwined existence with humans for thousands of years, living on our city streets and in our homes. Yet, little scientific research has focused on the cognition of the domestic cat, especially in comparison to human’s other companion, the domestic dog (Canis...
We constructed an experimental apparatus that used lasers to provide the probe beams for measuring the transient absorption kinetics of bacterioplankton that contain proteorhodopsin, a microbial protein that binds retinal and is analogous to animal rhodopsin. With this approach we were able to observe photocycles characteristic of functioning retinylidene ion...
Acetylene is a slow-binding inhibitor of the Ni- and Fe-containing dimeric hydrogenase isolated
from Azotobacter vinelandii. Acetylene was released from hydrogenase during the recovery from inhibition.
This indicates that no transformation of acetylene to another compound occurred as a result of the interaction
with hydrogenase. However, the release of C2H2...
I was honored to be the keynote speaker at the 30th Annual Society of Toxicologic Pathology Symposium “Toxicologic Pathology and the Immune System.” I had the opportunity to reminisce about events in the 1970s that set the stage for the birth and subsequent growth of the field of immunotoxicology and...