taste of science: Construction in the brain, and parents in our genes

The Extreme Architecture of Neurons and Oligodendrocytes

Neurons are electrically active cells in the brain whose signaling relies on the formation of cellular extensions called axons and dendrites. Axons can reach 1 meter in humans; proteins and cellular machinery can take days to be transported along these axons. In addition, oligodendrocytes insulate axons in fatty sheaths shaped like very long paper towel rolls. I will discuss how these structures form, how transport occurs, and why they're important in diseases like Alzheimer's, ALS and MS.

Speaker: Meng-meng Fu, Stanford

>Battle of the sexes: Allelic regulation in your DNA

“You have your dad’s nose and your mom’s eyes!”, people say. In reality, every cell in your body has two copies of every gene - mom’s and dad’s - and the combination of their genes lead to your unique traits. Usually, when a cell turns on a gene both mom’s copy and dad’s copy are turned on. But there are cases where only one copy wins out. This genetic battle of the sexes arises as you develop from embryo to adult, and the resulting gene expression affects cancer, neural signaling, and more.

Speaker: Ava Carter, Stanford