On Science Friday this past week, Holly Ingraham of UCSF was interviewed on her new study of atrazine’s impact on human placental cells. This builds on our conversation with atrazine, starting from March’s discussion on atrazine in frogs. In the study, they showed atrazine (& its metabolized products) increased activity of a gene that results in abnormal baby weight. Also they found amplification of a gene that is highly active in infertile women (no direct association yet).
Holly also studied atrazine impacts on zebrafish, a widely used animal in developmental studies. She observed some genetic changes at doses as low as 2 part per billion (EPA’s drinking water limit is 3 ppb). In terms of human effects, she started to see genetic changes at 200 ppb (syngenta called these levels environmentally irrelevant). The chief effect in humans was changing hormone signaling mechanisms, which is fairly significant.
Future studies will focus on how atrazine affects the brain, specifically areas that control metabolism. This will hopefully shed light on why atrazine affects endocrine cells.
A quote from Holly:
These atrazine- sensitive genes are central to normal reproduction and are found in steroid producing tissues. You have to wonder about the long-term effects of exposing the rapidly developing fetus to atrazine or other endocrine disrupters.
Her research was funded by the National Institutes for Health.
KQED Quest ran a great piece tonight detailing the rapid decline in frog population, especially here in the Bay Area. Frog population declines have been happening for over 10 years. Our March speaker, Dr. Tyrone Hayes, detailed the rising data indicating severe stress on frogs, from climate change to pesticides. The resulting immuno-suppression is scientists’ best guess at the decline.
Check out the piece below. It also indicates how a newly discovered fungus is playing a role in the decline.
And here’s an additional web only piece featuring Tyrone Hayes.
One of the goals of my science cafe and blog is to humanize the science and the scientist. But I often get asked about all these studies I often quote. Who are these people? How do the researchers find these subjects?
It was probably a touch simpler to just interview some past study participants, but where’s the fun in that? So I took part in a meditation/anxiety study in February.
The study focused on emotion processing & anxiety and how these might change with mindfulness based stress reduction or cognitive-behavioral therapy i.e. how meditation affects anxiety.
The process was similar to the one shown in this vid (courtesy Science Friday)
Day 1 was relatively simple…just a phone screen making sure I was capable of taking part in the study. I’m not pregnant, I meet certain demographic criteria, I’m not currently in any other studies, yadda yadda.
Dear beloved Albert Hoffman passed away on Tuesday at the ripe old age of 102.
Who’s Albert Hoffman? He’s responsible for the little marvel: LSD.
From the NY Times obit:
“Through my LSD experience and my new picture of reality, I became aware of the wonder of creation, the magnificence of nature and of the animal and plant kingdom,” Dr. Hofmann told the psychiatrist Stanislav Grof during an interview in 1984. “I became very sensitive to what will happen to all this and all of us.”
Years after his initial accidental ingestion of the drug, Hofmann became an advocate of its use…mainly as a tool for psychiatry and he hoped as means to awaken man to his connection to nature. He did emphasize sacred use of the drug, treating it with the reverence that many native societies treated psychoactive plants.
In many ways, I see Hofmann furthering the natural synthesis movement (isolation & replication of active molecules occurring in plants). He was a great service to that area of chemistry.
I have never used LSD, but certainly the drug of “enlightenment” has impacted my life. I’d be without a lot of good albums without it (credit for that joke goes to the eternal Bill Hicks below).
This weekend is the annual Maker Faire, a celebration of the DIY enthusiast (read: mad scientists of the world). It’s an incredible, family friendly event with a whole host of things to do, see, and MAKE. The Faire is at the San Mateo Country Fairgrounds, more info available on their website: http://makerfaire.com/
This year, there will be science discussions happening at the Maker Faire. From 12-4 PM on Saturday & Sunday. I’ll be there on Sunday helping facilitate the cafe discussion. So come on down and join the fun!
The lineup includes (but not limited to):
- ZEKE KOSSOVER: physics circus
Monday, May 19th, 2008 7-9 PM Where:Atlas Cafe What: This is Your Brain on Drugs: Psychoactives & Your Brain Who: Professor David Presti, UC Berkeley, Fire & Earth Founders of Erowid.org The Deets: Psychoactives...the name itself conjures up hundreds of images: hippies at Woodstock, those "well acted" anti-drug PSAs, even Colombian drug cartels. One thing is for sure, human history and psychoactive use are intertwined.
The term psychoactive covers a wide range of compounds...ranging from caffeine & alcohol to heroin & meth. Within that range, there again exists a wide range of use...historical use, cultural use, recreational use, and abuse.
But what do psychoactives reveal about our brain and its neural mechanisms? the connection between our mind & body? our spirituality?
These questions & more will be answered by our panel this month. Dr. David Presti is Professor of Neurobiology at UC Berkeley. Fire & Earth are founders of the member supported site Erowid, delivering access to information about psychoactives.
For once, we're going to have an honest discussion of psychoactives. Starting with the science, moving into historical/cultural use, and finally discussing the social impact today.
This discussion will be driven by YOU. No presentations. No fancy powerpoints. Just your questions, your experience, and your curiosity.
Monday, June 16th, 2008 7-9 PM Where:Atlas Cafe What: A Solution to the Omnivore’s Dilemma: The Perspective of a Nutrition Scientist Who: Dr. Christopher Gardner, Stanford University The Deets:
Blueberries. Fish. Soy. Broccoli. Whole Wheat Bread. The Mediterranean Diet. Vegetarian Diets. The Paleolithic Diet. The Atkins Diet. Big Macs. Whoppers. Supersized fries. Krispy Kreme Donuts. Organic. Local. Sustainable.
People have been eating food for as long as….well, for as long as there have been people. Scientists have been studying foods and their impact on health for a long time too, although not as long as there have been people. The variety of foods and food-like substances available for consumption has increased more in the last 50 years than in the last 50 million years. It is frustrating that nutrition scientists and related health professionals aren’t more helpful with clear advice and guidance as to how to navigate among all these choices.
It can’t be all that hard to study it, can it? After all, it’s just food. Christopher Gardner, an associate professor of medicine at Stanford University, with a PhD in Nutrition Science from UC Berkeley, has been studying foods and their relationships to human health by conducting NIH-funded nutrition trials for the past decade. He doesn’t have all the answers. In fact, he doesn’t even have all the questions. But he is prepared to share the insights of his last 10 years studying nutrition and health.
Monday, July 21st, 2008 7-9 PM Where:Atlas Cafe What:The Toxicology of Everyday Products Who: Dr. Paul Blanc, UCSF The Deets:There are hidden health dangers in many of the seemingly innocent products we encounter every day - a tube of glue in a kitchen drawer, a bottle of bleach in the laundry room, a rayon scarf on a closet shelf, a brass knob on the front door, a wood plank on an outdoor deck. This is not a matter of one exceptional or corrupt industry, but rather of how run-of-the-mill manufacturing processes and consumer marketing expose workers and the general public alike to toxic hazards. More troubling still, even when such hazards are recognized, calls for their control are routinely ignored. Dr. Blanc, Professor of Medicine and Chief of the Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine at the University of California San Francisco, is a physician with extensive experience in public health and medical toxicology. He is the author of How Everyday Products Make People Sick
Science in Action Events Science in Action is a series of tours, trips, and hikes intended to put you in the middle of active science in the Bay Area.
If you're interested in attending, send me an email.
Note: Moved back to June 21st! Kunde Sustainable Winemaking Hike
Saturday June 21st 8AM-4PM Cost: $15 - Includes Wine Tasting The Basics: The hike starts at 10AM at Kunde Winery in Kenwood, CA (1.5 hour north of SF). The hike lasts about 4 hours, with a return to SF by 4 PM. It is moderately strenous. Please pack a sack lunch and wear hiking boots or appropriate footwear. Also bring sunscreen and water, especially on hot days.
The Deets:
Join Sonoma Valley Docent Bill Myers on a fun, casual and up-close hike through the 1,850 acre volcanic and vertical Kunde Estate. This is a great opportunity to see sustainable winegrowing practices at work while taking in some of wine country’s most spectacular scenery. Bill’s tours wind through the estate’s distinct eco-systems, each one uniquely contributing to the process of sustainable winegrowing.
