What are the evolutionary origins of the vitamin B12 molecule?

More Derek Townshend's questions See All

Is there a demand for illustrators in the microbiology or medical fields?

My experiences in the design profession have given me various graphic skills; 3D Studio MAX, as well as a variety of other computer graphics packages. I am curious to know whether I could...

31 December 2013 6,442 6 View

Do indoor plants affect the built environment microbiome?

This article is very interesting indeed. I am following on from it is the question of whether plants would in any way balance / influence the results.

11 December 2013 534 1 View

Does LTA (from gram positives) do the same as LPS from (from gram negatives)?

LPS (from gram-negatives) upregulates our gene expression for H2S production, does LTA (from gram-positives) also do the same? In burn wounds and septic shock (by Staph.aureus) one finds greatly...

10 November 2013 967 2 View

Can someone advise on a study on the aesthetics and greening of main road intersections?

I am looking for any resources related to this field. It might include things like 1] aesthetic treatments to hard surfaces (soffit, paved traffic islands, bridge retaining walls, etc), 2]...

10 November 2013 4,753 6 View

Self-Organizing Superorganisms—as envisaged by Nenad Sestan (2018)?

The rate of glucose consumption by the neocortex is reduced by over 80% during anesthesia (Sibson et al. 1998), which disables the synapses (Richards 2002) that are inundated by glial tissue (Engl...

08 August 2024 3,118 0 View

The Bigger You Are, the Harder You Fall (some lessons from Dinosaurs)?

Evolutionary fitness is based on an organism’s ability to adapt rapidly to changing environmental circumstances. Large-bodied mammals have been equipped with large brains (and hence a high...

06 August 2024 4,849 2 View

Are there instances where molecules with larger molecular weights exhibit greater mobility than those with smaller molecular weights?

Hi, I know that low molecular weight (MW) molecules generally tend to have higher mobility, while high molecular weight molecules tend to have lower mobility. However, in my experimental...

06 August 2024 1,495 2 View

Why do we equate male and female arousal?

Women, on the other hand, can become physically aroused (increased blood flow in the reproductive organs) without becoming psychologically aroused even in the slightest. (Robert Weiss)

05 August 2024 9,537 2 View

Weak DAPI staining after immunohistochemistry - how to improve?

After immunohistochemistry of previously fixed in PFA and EtOH and then frozen 20 μm sections of zebrafish brain, DAPI staining is very weak (right) compared to the same sections stained without...

05 August 2024 9,637 2 View

Measuring the Intelligence of a Species?

Larger brains, which typically contain more neurons, store and transfer more information (Tehovnik and Chen 2015), but the precise relationship between number of neurons and information has yet to...

05 August 2024 1,238 2 View

The Curse of Evolution and Complexity?

Brain and body mass together are positively correlated with lifespan (Hofman 1993). The duration of neural development is one of the best predictors of brain size, and conception is the best...

05 August 2024 6,247 3 View

For an in-vitro drug release study, what molecular weight cut-off (MWCO) dialysis bag is required for a 117 kDa protein?

kindly reply me. Thanking you in advance.

05 August 2024 7,727 4 View

How to start a Molecular Dynamics Simulation?

Is it possible to conduct a molecular dynamics simulation to see the effects of a specific carbohydrate on the structure of lipids (e.g., micelle structure)? I am a beginner in this field and plan...

03 August 2024 3,371 3 View

Which will be the best software for the Hydration shell analysis with molecular dynamics?

I am using a windows system, what software I should use for hydration shell analysis with molecular dynamics?

02 August 2024 3,143 4 View

Scott Ferrenberg

Not sure if this article is answering your question, but it describes the independent evolution, and likely selective driver of B12 synthesis in microbial taxa.

http://mbe.oxfordjournals.org/content/28/10/2921.full

Derek Townshend

Thanks Scott. That is exactly the type of background information I am looking for.