There's more to Krever's report than the blood issue -- much more

Although coverage of the recent release of the Krever commission''s findings concentrated almost solely on recommendations concerning the safety of the blood-supply system, lawyer Karen Capen says physicians can take many lessons from this exhaustive report that extend far beyond blood. She describes it as "must reading" for physicians and says their organizations should use it as a teaching tool.     

Contributing more to science

Scientists have a crucial role in educating the public about the importance of science if we are to have any hope of facilitating future innovation. A few notable scientists have taken this duty to heart, altering their career tracks to promote science and education.     

Insect trypanosomatids: the need to know more

Of ten recognized trypanosomatid genera, only two - pathogenic Trypanosoma and Leishmania - have been actively investigated for any length of time while the plant flagellates - Phytomonas - have recently begun to attract attention due to their role as agricultural parasites. The remaining genera that comprise parasites associated with insects have been largely neglected except for two or three containing popular isolates. This publication reviews current knowledge of trypanosomatids from insects.     

There's more to macroecology than meets the eye

Macroecology sits at the junction of, and can contribute to, the fields of ecology, biogeography, palaeontology and macroevolution, using a broad range of approaches to tackle a diverse set of questions. Here, we argue that there is more to macroecology than mapping, and that while they are potentially useful, maps are insufficient to assess macroecological pattern and process. The true nature of pattern can only be assessed, and competing hypotheses about process can only be disentangled, by adopting a statistical approach, and it is this that has been key to the development of macroecology as a respected and rigorous scientific discipline.     

Responding to infection affects more than just the host

An infection triggers a dramatic suite of changes in host physiology and behavior. While seemingly localized, the host response affects many other organisms, both within and beyond the boundaries of the host’s body, with far-reaching ecological implications. Here, I call for more awareness and integration of those potential ‘off-host’ effects.     

There is more to the dissection of a pig's heart

In order to name and classify a plant they see, children use their existing mental models to provide the plant with a name and classification. In this study pupils of a range of ages (5, 8, 10, and 14 years old) were presented with preserved specimens of six different plants (strictly, five plants and a fungus) and asked a series of questions about them. Their responses indicate that pupils of all ages mainly recognise and use anatomical features when naming the plants and explaining why they are what they are. However, older pupils are more likely to also use habitat features. For both girls and boys, the home and direct observation are more important sources of knowledge than school, TV, videos, CD-Roms, or books, although TV, videos, CD-Roms, and books seem more important for boys than for girls. As pupils age, their reasons for grouping plants become more complicated: in addition to relying on shared anatomical and habitat features, they begin to show evidence of a knowledge of taxonomy and use this knowledge to group plants.     

FGF signaling in flies and worms: more and more relevant to vertebrate biology

FGF signaling in the invertebrate model systems Drosophila melanogaster and Caenorhabditis elegans was initially most obviously involved in cell motility events. More recently, however, FGFs and FGF signaling in these systems have been shown to affect many additional cellular processes. This recent work has shown that the pleiotropies of these FGF receptors resemble those of their vertebrate counterparts, and, in many cases, serve as excellent models for understanding the fundamental molecular mechanisms controlling these events.