Science: The Coolest paper in 2011..Can we get younger?

As a biologist, I am interested in how aging happens. I'm not directly working on it, but do read some relevant papers out of curiosity.

Following paper appeared in a prestigious journal Nature in 2011 November. It's about recent mice-based research that shed light on aging process.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22048312

The researchers ingeniously eliminated cells that are senescent (=non-proliferative; "aged") and expressing a certain marker protein (called p16INK4A in case you are interested) from the bodies of progeroid mice. These progeroid mice carry a mutation and show signs of aging at early age (hunchback, cataract , artery hardening etc). But surprise. The elimination of senescent cells actually made the progeroid mice "younger".

Their paper suggests that at least a part of aging process is caused by senescent cells in the tissue. The researchers speculate that senescent cells are secreting some factors that are detrimental to tissue/organ functions.

The paper was "the coolest paper in 2011" in my personal nomination.

The other day I read news, "A 26-year-old Vietnamese woman has left doctors baffled as she lost her once youthful appearance"

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/mystery-allergy-causes-woman-to-age-decades.html

After a severe allergy attack and some attempts of herbal medicine, a 26-years old woman mysteriously started looking like an old woman.

Why?

My speculation is that, because of her severe allergy (and wrong kind of traditional medicine, perhaps), extensive cellular damage happened. Damaged cells probably got eliminated to some extent, but some might have ended up with "senescent" cells. They do not proliferate, but they start secreting factors that "age" surrounding tissues.

Of course her case is open to many more hypotheses. But if this speculation is correct, and if we find out ways to eradicate senescent cells (two big IFs), we may be able to cure her condition, or we may be able to get "younger". Biology is fun. Seriously.

Dance: "Beginning Argentine Tango" Kindle version release

Yesterday we finished conversion of our paperback book "Beginning Argentine Tango: To the people who are interested in dancing Argentine Tango--This is how to do it" to Kindle and uploaded it to KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing).

   Paperback version 
(http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1468083473/ref=s9_simh_gw_p14_d0_g14_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1SCPN6DF1XV8D6Y1ADEV&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846)

   Kindle version
(http://www.amazon.com/Beginning-Argentine-Tango-Tango-This-ebook/dp/B007BUPHJG/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpt_1)

It may take a few days to merge the information in these pages better. Amazon seems to do this kind of information arrangement as it goes. I have seen the bare bone-looking page changed to a page comparable to other pages in Amazon. It is an interesting experience.

Conversion took some reformatting from paperback edition (images to JPEG, Chapter marking, etc). To accommodate a Kindle feature, font size change, line breaks needed to be changed as well. The conversion was straightforward but not a smooth sailing. At the first a few attempts, on occasion image loading was slow and image appeared in unintended positions. We needed some browsing of the author forum to fix these issues. 

Now at least on the preview page, the converted version looks nice. Hope everything comes out nicely on your Kindle.

Science: What is Translational Cancer Research and why am I talking about it?

I read following article.

"Three UCLA researchers honored for bravery in face of threats from extremests"

http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/three-ucla-faculty-honored-for-229165.aspx

According to the article, so called anti-animal research extremests did some criminal acts on UCLA scientists working on animal research. The crimes including set fire on the car and the house, flooded the house and confronted family members. In my opinion the extremests qualify as domestic terrorist.

The scientists have been recognized by the American Association for the Advancement of Science for "their strong defense of the importance of the use of animals in research and their refusal to remain silent in the face of intimidation" by anti-animal research extremests.

I don't know exact research the targeted and honored scientists do. All I know is that thay use rats and monkeys for behaviological or neurological studies.

This article caught my attention, because I work with mice, and feel some need to advocate at least for the segment of animal-based research I work on (translational cancer research).


Now, being a top cause of death, cancer has touched lives of so many people. They would know how much we still need more effective therapy, cancer-preventive diet and early diagnostic tools.

Translational Cancer research is a segment of cancer research to bridge knowledge obtained from biological/biomedical studies with model system such as cultured cells and test tubes to clinical practice to prevent, diagnose or cure cancer.

In short, it is a part of process to send a new cancer drug or new regimen or a new diagnostic tool/kit from laboratory to clinic. 

For the purpose, researchers use preclinical animal models, usually rodents (laboratory mice and rats). It is out of necessity. The stance of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) for the use of animals is clear. "Human diseases justify the use of animals". Since cancers develop in highly complex environments observed only in living animals, there are no substitutes.

On the other hand, for obvious ethical reasons, researchers cannot ask human to participate in such risky studies in the early stage. Besides, human-based studies take too much time. Set things up now, and we'll see the results in 10-30 years. That's too long. We want to know whether the drug works or not ASAP.

Following is a part of what we actually do. Let's say we are testing a promising cancer prevention drug on laboratory mice with cancer-prone genetic mutation. Because of the genetic mutation, the mice are supposed to get cancers in 5 month. We feed the mice with food mixed with the drug. The task is to observe the size and frequency of cancers in the mice. If the drug is working, the cancer size would be smaller, and the frequency would be rarer.

Only after the drug show a promise in this test, the drug may be approved to move toward small scale trial on human. Search for a drug is time-consuming and labor-intensive task, but is necessary.

Another task of ours is to figure out why the drug is working. Usually these drugs in question are designed to target particular biological process, and the actions are backed up by the studies in test tube and with cultured cells. But tissue- or organ-level response to a drug in living animals is entirely different issue.

I do have sentiments for the lives lost in the course of animal-based studies. But we need to determine what works and what not. I believe my priority setting is correct. Not misplaced  like that of those extremests.

In Japan, there was a small tombstone next to animal research facility for animals so that you could appreciate and pray for the mice, rats, rabbits and others. Japanese native belief is animistic. As in Hayao Miyazaki movies, a lot of animals and things can have spiritual presence or a soul, and can be a god or a deity of sorts. And their souls can be consoled through prayers. As in the Grudge movies, an angry soul can turn to a harmful demon or a monster. It is better to pray for the soul to rest in peace.

Some other religions believe animals don't have souls, so that we need not to worry about it.

It is amusing to know how we deal with the sentiments associated with animals.

Dance: Feed the good wolf, Nice Vietnamese party

There is a Cherokee fable, "Feed the good wolf".

A Native American grandfather was talking to his grandson.

He said, "I feel as if I have two wolves fighting in my heart. One wolf is the vengeful, angry, violent one. The other wolf is the loving, compassionate one".

The grandson asked him, "which wolf will win the fight in your heart?"

The grandfather answered: "The one I feed."

While you dance a partner dance, the same applies. When you are dancing well, you only feel joy and fun. But occasionally, there are times that the dance is not going well; your partner is off balance and pulling you heavy, your partner is not paying attention and non-responsive, you are rushing, or being rushed. A response is by the vengeful wolf, "WTF?". The vengeful wolf response is like a static noise in the music tune, ruining nice flow of the dance.

Don't listen to the vengeful wolf. Choose to have fun and go with the loving wolf.

Especially in some contest settings in which you dance with someone you don't regularly dance, I heard comments like, "I couldn't do anything", "He was rushing" and "She was too heavy". That's the vengeful wolf talking.

Those who make this kind of comments are usually amateur novices. Most pros are experienced enough to dismiss the vengeful wolf, knowing the long-term negative effects. Besides, it is different kind of fun to pursue a "perfect" dance for contest purpose and to enjoy the partner's response on the occasion. The point is, you can always choose to be amused by even the  occasional oops situations, and get the most fun out of them.

Last night we were invited to a party. It was a nice Vietnamese party at a new studio in NW OKC with a large floor space (15x50 ft, give or take), and the place was packed. A few different live bands played and sang danceable Asian songs. I did not know Viennese waltz was popular in Vietnam. It was fun. Thank you for invite. 

Dance: A difference between social Argentine Tango and Show Tango 1

Today I uploaded a video of our Argentine Tango. We found an open room and asked a friend to film it on the spot (Thank you!). We did not choreograph it beforehand. So that the dance was pretty much un-pre-choreographed, social version for us. The range of motions was small enough for somewhat crowded floor. Since the floor was wide open, I did not adhere to the line of dance strictly.




http://youtu.be/itJSshIoDyI



The wonderful thing about Argentine Tango is improvisation. I don't even remember how we came up with this dance in the video. If we dance this same song tomorrow, we would be dancing differently.

Later we will upload a Show version, so that the difference should be clear.

Life: Foods for body, Foods for mind

What do you eat?

My usual diet is something like, cereals or bread, tea, juice, yogurt and fruits for breakfast and lunch, and Japanese/Asian-ish (rice and something else) or sort of Mediterranean (pasta, bread, meat etc with olive oil (or tomato)-based sauce) for dinner. Adding some American, Chinese, Indian, Thai or Vietnamese for dining out and for occasional cooking. My mother told me to eat a lot of vegetables, and I try to remind myself of that. I don’t feel like I am putting much restriction on my food. I eat meat. I drink some beer, wine and sake occasionally. I eat ice cream (Haagen Daz is my favorite brand) and sweets, too.

My general dietary rules are that the food to be balanced in terms of carbohydrate, protein, fat, and vegetable/fruits components, and I should not eat too much of one type of food over certain time. Also, there are many foods that are good for you. You can reduce the risk of cancer with your choice of food for example, and I try to eat good stuff. It is okay to enjoy ice cream and sweets occasionally. I have no guilt over eating yummy stuff in moderation.

Overall I am happy with what I eat. I believe my eating habit is helping to maintain my current shape and appearance, and I am happy with the result. My weight is stable. For 5’10 height with athletic build, about 185 pound is quite acceptable for me.

I also believe if I over-indulge in ice cream and burger diet, my shape and health will change for worse.

So far I wrote about food for my body. Now, what do you eat for your mind?

I consider any information intake (book, movie, gaming, music, TV, webpage, comic, talk etc) as food for my brain/mind/spirit/soul. And I want my brain/mind/spirit/soul to be in good shape and health, too. Too much of certain food can make you out-of-shape. Unbalanced diet can make you unhealthy. Likewise, too much gaming, manga and porn can make your brain/mind/spirit/soul out-of-shape and unhealthy. In moderation it is okay, I think.

So, for my brain/mind/spirit/soul, I apply the same rules; balance, good stuff and in moderation.

Some people argue that religions and ideas are like virus or parasites to your mind. In the movie “Inception” a Leonard DiCaprio character says that ideas are extremely resilient and difficult to eradicate, and that they can manifest if we let them. I agree. Certain ideas can be medicinal, others be poisonous.

Ideas can change your brain/mind/spirit/soul. Your brain/mind/spirit/soul determines your actions. Your actions will eventually come back with results, good or bad.

When it comes to diet for mind, the result may not be as easy to see as with diet for body. It may not be as easy to see my own shape and health in terms of brain/mind/spirit/soul. A lot of times we may have to wait until we see the results of our actions. But for now I am thrilled by the vast options for the diet to my brain/mind/spirit/soul. And I am also thrilled by the fact that I can choose my diet.

Book: "Teaching what you don't know"

I am designing a college-level teaching course. This time it is for my core expertise. Since I have studied the subject long enough,  I know the subject well...I think....well enough to talk about it and teach comfortably. There is not much "stretch", meaning that I don't have to teach a subject that I am not as familiar with.

I am reading a book about this "stretch" in teaching. Namely, "Teaching what you don't know" by Therese Huston. The title can be already provocative. Teachers are supposed to teach something they know well, right?..Well, not necessarily in this world. On occasion situation demands teachers to teach a subject that are not their core expertise (like a biochemist specialized for protein dynamics has to teach biology of Fat). And that happens maybe more often than you think.

In such a situation, the teacher may feel he is an imposter. It may be a natural reaction because he has been trained to take his expertise seriously, and excellence in his tiny research field has been the requirement to get his degree and his position.

However, now he's got to teach something out of his expertise. Given the situation, there are some questions come up. Is the teaching by a "stretched" teacher ineffective? (The author says not necessarily). What can the teacher do to better prepare for the course? What kind of strategies and tactics can he use in the classroom for better teaching?

There are many thought provoking issues in this book. I am enjoying reading the book both from intellectual and practical standpoints. For me it is easy to relate to.

What would you do if (when) you find yourself in the situation? How comfortable would you be to teach something you don't know well?

Blog startup

Thank you for visiting this blog.

As in the title comment ("Dance, Science and Life"), this blog should cover pretty much everything that comes along. One day I may be writing about dancing. For some reason I love dancing. I watch performances. I read about dance. I do dancing myself. I even published a book about start dancing Argentine Tango. And I enjoy all of these. The other day I may be writing about Science, in which I am professionally involved for years and still enjoy. I am still excited about the progress in science, especially in medical science. Everyone lives every day and everything else can go with Life category.

I am setting up general rules for this blogging, at least until I get used to this business. For now I'll stick to them.

(1)  Aim to post once in a week on average. May be more but try not less. Find time to write this, but mind priorities.
(2)  No length restriction.
(3)  Comments are closed. I should be able to read your comments when you write them, but they will not be open to the entire web.
(4)  Avoid sending negative message. We all come across good and bad, but how we take them is up to us. I choose not to pass on crappy stuff and choose to send potential positives and usefuls.
(5)  Be honest.
(6)  Write in a casual manner. This is not an academic publication.
(7)  Respect identity and privacy of others. Unless I have prior permission or he/she/organization/event is in public domain, I will not use identifiable information (real name, address etc).


And here is a disclaimer. Blogging is inherently an expression of opinions and unique perspectives. Even if I seem to be mentioning someone or something, please consider it's a fiction. If you like it, good. If you don't, stop reading.

When I wrote up this year (2012)'s resolutions, the title was "Moving year. Think more". I am hoping this blog is going to aid more thinking on my side, and is of some form of service to readers.