Pinning down my favorite topic amid all thatâs possible in biology is nearly impossible. Still, in recent years the field of evolutionary developmental biology, or Evo/Devo, has been near the top of my list.
Admittedly, the details of Evo/Devo get pretty tricky to wrap your mind around, but what should one expect from a field that seeks to unlock the finer points of how bodies are made? The answer to so many questions has been and will be opened by studying this field of biology. For example, what was behind the transition of fish to amphibians? How did snakes lose their legs? Where did the hind limbs of dolphins and whales go? What causes the formation of different body types and organ systems in life? All of these questions and many more will be answered through the lens of Evo/Devo.
Plants in the bean family (legumes) form nodules on their roots to take up nitrogen. Legumes will stop nodule production when nitrogen is plentiful, but precisely how nitrate presence controls nodule formation in these plants has been a mystery.
COVID19 s cytokine storm ushers in a local complement storm in the lungs
A new study published in the journal
Science Immunology analyzed lung epithelial cells from patients infected with COVID-19 and found the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) induces the complement system as a dangerous weapon for viral infection.
The complement system is an extension of the innate immune system to recognize pathogens and remove them. Prior research has shown a correlation between severe COVID-19 infection and high levels of complement.
The mechanism of action is driving the JAK1/2-dependent local complement hyperactivation. Using the JAK1/2 inhibitor ruxolitinib alone or with remdesivir normalized interferon signature genes inhibited the C3a protein of the complement system created from infected lung cells.