Correctly estimating the age of a gene or gene family is important for a variety of fields, including molecular evolution, comparative genomics, and phylogenetics, and increasingly for systems biology and disease genetics. However, most studies use only a point estimate of a gene's age, neglecting the substantial uncertainty involved in this estimation. Here, we characterize this uncertainty by...

Hair has always played an important role in the history of mankind. Egyptian hieroglyphics are testimony of the paramount importance of hair for this ancient civilization, not only because of the visual effect, but also because of the erotic symbolism connected with hair. For the ancient Romans hair was not only a question of fashion but was used as a symbol of beauty, virility, class and intel...

Introduction and history This article highlights many of the issues of concern for analytical scientists working in the area of bioanalysis. It draws mainly on topics presented at the Reid International Bioanalytical Forum which is a microcosm of the issues faced by workers in this field and their attempts to solve them. The Forum was established in 1975 by the late Dr Eric Reid, Director of th...

There is an intangible quality of implausibility to Australia that is impossible to put into words. It has an ancient and fragile feel: it is almost a continental equivalent of a tree sprouting out of a seemingly solid rock; precarious and beautiful and not quite sustainable. It is a continent where the unexpected is usual, and yet it is always surprising and thrilling when the unexpected is fo...

We review two new methods to determine the age of globular clusters (GCs). These two methods are more accurate than the classical isochrone fitting technique. The first method is based on the morphology of the horizontal branch and is independent of the distance modulus of the globular cluster. The second method uses a careful binning of the stellar luminosity function and determines simultaneo...

Atherogenesis comprises three stages, including intimal thickening, plaque formation and destabilization and rupture of the plaque. Intimal thickening develops depending upon aging and is characterized by increased collagenous matrix. Plaque formation is characterized by an accumulation of intraand extracelluar lipids in intima, resulting in the advanced lesion with atheroma. Finally, advanced ...

The terrestrial age, or the terrestrial residence time of a meteorite, together with its exposure history provides us with useful insight into the history of the meteorite. It is easy to observe that stony meteorites can weather quickly in humid environments. However, we find that large numbers of meteorites found in semi-arid and arid environments can survive for much longer times. Meteorites ...

The pathogenesis of diabetic retinopathy is multifactorial, and a range of hyperglycemia-linked pathways have been implicated in the initiation and progression of this condition. All cells in the retina are affected by the diabetic milieu, and in view of such disease and tissue complexity, it is unlikely that any single process is solely responsible for retinal pathophysiology. Nevertheless, es...