Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Start of Life Gene Discovered

Posted by Zonk on from the sign-me-up-for-six dept.

gollum123 writes "The BBC reports that scientists from the UK and France have may found a gene responsible for controlling the fertilization of a new egg." From the article: "The HIRA gene is involved in the events necessary for the fertilisation that take place once a sperm enters an egg. Faults in this gene might explain why some couples struggle to get pregnant despite having healthy sperm ... Although their work in Nature is based on fruit flies, the same genetic processes are present in humans."

13 of 305 comments (clear)

  1. Maybe it's coincidence by threedognit3 · · Score: 5, Funny

    So if I mate with a fruit fly and she doesn't conceive....I'll know why.

    1. Re:Maybe it's coincidence by oberondarksoul · · Score: 4, Funny

      I think in this case, you may have slightly bigger issues at hand...

      Oh hell, that reads worse and worse every time...

      --
      And tomorrow the stock exchange will be the human race
  2. NOOO by eebra82 · · Score: 1, Funny

    Just when you thought you'd get rid of those flies for some time now during the winter, scientists come up with a way to help those damn flies to reproduce?

    --
    Full Tilt
  3. This just in by mnemonic_ · · Score: 3, Funny

    God is dead.

    1. Re:This just in by Ithika · · Score: 4, Funny

      But has it been confirmed? By Netcraft?

      --
      the layman's guide to computer science
    2. Re:This just in by chris_eineke · · Score: 4, Funny

      Nietzscraft would be more appropiate ;)

      --
      "All you have to do is be fragile and grateful. So stay the underdog." Chuck Palahniuk, Choke
    3. Re:This just in by Trogre · · Score: 2, Funny

      "Nietzsche is dead" - God

      --
      "Nine times out of ten, starting a fire is not the best way to solve the problem." - my wife
  4. Re:Well... by Dachannien · · Score: 4, Funny

    I dunno, I generally regard cleavage as being eye-catching.

  5. Another term for this gene might be... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    "bootstrap code"...

    Anyone know if it's an Award or a Phoenix? :-)

    (In any case, the ramifications are stupendous - literally
    seems that we're learning something new about genes every day,
    like the story yesterday about Black Death/Plague and HIV)

  6. Re:Does it really matter? by PGC · · Score: 3, Funny

    Then so is eating turkey. Once a year millions of turkeys get slaughtered for a feast. And what have they done to you ? Did they plan to assassinate you ? No it can't. It is a living organism for crying out loud ! What in the world makes you think you have the privilege, oh I'm sorry, the 'right' as you call it, to take the life of an absolutely helpless innocent turkey ? I'll answer that last one for you ... they taste nice ^_^

    --
    The Dutch will inherit the earth. If not, we'll settle for a bit of ocean. Beta delenda est!
  7. Praise God! by paiute · · Score: 3, Funny

    Praise God, who in His infinite wisdom and omnipotence, used the same genetic methodology in fruit flies as He used in that created in His image.

    He works in mysterious ways, so don't bother to wonder why He couldn't optimize the system in each species.

    --
    If Slashdot were chemistry it would look like this:Cadaverine
  8. Start a life gene? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Where do I sign up?

  9. Wonderful research by earthforce_1 · · Score: 1, Funny

    Just as long as Dr. Van Parijs, formerly of MIT's biology department had absolutely no involvement with collecting the data.

    --
    My rights don't need management.