LA JOLLA, CA—A close collaboration between researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies and the Institute for Advanced Study found that the tumor suppressor p53, long thought of as the "Guardian of the Genome," may do more than thwart cancer-causing mutations. It may also prevent established cancer cells from sliding toward a more aggressive, stem-like state by serving as a "Guardian against Genome Reprogramming."…

 LA JOLLA, CA—In addition to fast food, desk jobs, and inertia, there is one more thing to blame for unwanted pounds-our genome, which has apparently not caught up with the fact that we no longer live in the Stone Age.

That is one conclusion drawn by researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, who recently showed that mice lacking a gene regulating energy balance are protected from weight gain,…

 LA JOLLA, CA—Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have discovered how AMPK, a metabolic master switch that springs into gear when cells run low on energy, revs up a cellular recycling program to free up essential molecular building blocks in times of need.

In a paper published in the Dec. 23, 2010 edition of …

 Protein required for early stages of melanoma development can also predict melanoma outcome.…

 Scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have described for the first time a key inhibitory role for the IL-1 signaling pathway in the human innate immune system, providing novel insights into human inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and potential new treatments.…

By Kim McDonald…

 Red tides and similar blooms can render some seafood unsafe to eat, though it can be difficult to tell whether a particular batch harbors toxins that cause food poisoning.…

 By Inga Kiderra

Not a happy holiday thought, but an important one: The number of babies who die of SIDS, or sudden infant death syndrome, surges by 33 percent on New Year’s Day. The suspected reason? Alcohol consumption by caretakers the…

 UC San Diego engineering students recently sent a weather balloon up 80,000 feet to near space to study the effects of solar power, climate change and even the survival rate of anti-freeze beetles. The launch, sponsored by the California Space Grant Consortium, is the fifth of its kind for UC San Diego since 2008. …

 LA JOLLA, CA – November 30, 2010 – Scripps Research Institute scientists have made a significant leap forward in the drive to find a way to safely reprogram mature human cells and turn them into stem cells, which can then change into other cell types, such as nerve, heart, and liver cells. The ability to transform fully mature adult cells such as skin cells into stem cells has potentially profound implications for treating many diseases.

 …

 ORLANDO, Fla., November 30, 2010 – Daniel Kelly, M.D., and his colleagues at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) at Lake Nona have unveiled a surprising new model for studying muscle function: the couch potato mouse. While these mice maintain normal activity and body weight, they do not have the energy to exercise. In the December 1 issue of Cell Metabolism, Dr. Kelly’s team reports what happens when muscle tissue lacks PGC-1, a…

 As a 7.2-magnitude earthquake rattled Baja California on April 4, 2010, scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego were tracking the temblor along the U.S.-Mexico border using data from a network of seismic monitoring tools on the ground and in space.



Scripps research teams will present preliminary research findings from ongoing studies of the so-called "Easter Sunday" earthquake during several presentations at the 2010 American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall…

 Climate researchers have observed reductions in black carbon's warming effect in California, an unexpected benefit from two decades of the state's clean air laws. Black carbon, a form of particulate pollution associated with biomass burning and vehicle emissions, has been recognized as a major contributor to global warming. In another aspect of black carbon research, computer scientists have discovered that cell phones can be used as a real-time, ultra low-power black carbon data collection…

 SAN DIEGO - (December 9, 2010) A La Jolla Institute team, led by leading type 1 diabetes researcher Matthias von Herrath, M.D., has demonstrated the effectiveness of a recently developed computer model in predicting…