Why Can't I Comb My Hair?

 

    Have you ever tried combing your hair and wondered why it won't detangle or style the way you want it to? Most parents started to get worried when they realized their child's hair was different from others. Luckily, they aren't alone. Human geneticist Regina Betz of University Hospital Bonn in Germany and her team linked three genes that causes this silvery, spangly, spun glass hair. This is known as uncombable hair syndrome when the hair tends to grow in opposite directions. Currently there is no treatment, however, most kids outgrow these symptoms once adolescents. The gene PADI3 encodes an enzyme involved in hair shaft formation. Mutations within the PADI3 gene can disrupt hair structure. Some of the cases studied were linked to variants of TGM3 or TCHH which affect hair shaft structure. Uncombable hair syndrome isn't linked with any other health conditions which is a relief for parents. 

Rice Has Two Moms

Researchers from the University of Queensland found that all rice variants have two maternal genomes. There are two main categories of rice that were used in this study: wild and domesticated. Domesticated rice is pollenated by the nearby wild rice, which therefore incorporated the wild rice genome into the domestic rice. The maternal lineages are reserved within the seeds, so the researchers looked more closely with them. They found that the seeds contained both genomes from the domesticated rice and the wild rice, but both genomes were maternal, therefore the new rice that will grow from this seed will have two maternal genomes, one domesticated and one wild. I think this is really interesting, especially since rice is a huge portion of the diets of many people around the world. It is really cool to know that rice can become more varied than it already is, and that the rice we eat is a hybrid of domesticated and wild species. Although this new discovery may help with the supplying of food, I hope these rice farmers, especially big corporations, do not over grow rice and overuse the land. Agriculture and livestock, mostly from large corporations that focus on supply and demand more than the quality of what they're producing, is the number one usage of water in the world and leaves a huge carbon footprint. Therefore, I hope the rice industry uses this information and new discovery wisely, because were all affected by this. 

https://scitechdaily.com/genetic-heritage-rice-has-many-fathers-but-only-two-mothers/ 

https://www.oecd.org/agriculture/ministerial/background/notes/4_background_note.pdf

Thank You Genetic Changes For My Precious Cat

Everyone knows that cats are the best animal, but little was known about how genetics influenced the domestication of the cat. A recent study showed that found some of the genes that were responsible for the differences in wildcats and house cats. The research was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that also looks at a journal article released in Gigascience that was about the cat genome. This was worked on internationally because cats are just that important. Really, they are important because more than 250 diseases that are found in humans are similar in cats. Cats are useful for the study of medicine and diseases for humans.

My cat Scruffles with Goldie the Chicken. He doesn't ever attack chickens.

The study showed that that the difference in house and wild cat personalities are their genes according to Stephen O'Brien. He said that cat domestication began with the spread of agriculture and wildcats were scavenging for waste. He believes that our human ancestors worked their way up to approaching a feeding wildcat and maybe even got their hands on a few kittens.
Looking at the genome, researchers found 3 possible genetic links that lead to a change in the temperament of the cats. House cats have mutations on genes to mediate aggressive behavior, form memories, and control the ability to learn based on stimuli. These cats mated and passed these gene changes onto their precious little kittens. Humans also were found to change the genes involved in cat diets because cats began to be able to digest plant matter much more efficiently. Getting involved with humans caused cats to become more domesticated and become the lovable cuddly balls of fur they are today.
This article is exciting because the genomes of cats have been examined more and can lead to medical changes for humans as more research is done. It also shows how genome sequencing are being deciphered and how scientists can link certain genes to certain traits and discover mutations and changes. It is also just exciting because it is about cats. Overall this article is a good read though.

Article: http://www.wired.com/2014/11/genes-cat-domestication/