News Sources: Researchers Create Synthetic Bacterium

Taking a significant step toward the creation of synthetic forms of life, researchers reported Thursday that they had manufactured the entire genome of a bacterium by stitching together its chemical components. Reporters looking for experts to interview on this topic can find them online at the collegenews.org database of news sources and subject matter experts from America's leading liberal arts colleges, including the following (click on names for contact infomation):

Karen Rader - Professor and Chair for Science Technology and Society, Sarah Lawrence College - A recipient of grants from and a reviewer for the Woodrow Wilson and Mellon foundations and the National Science Foundation, Rader is an expert on the relations between society and science, particularly laboratory work, and political, social and ethical issues in American culture. She focuses on biotechnology, gender and science, and genetics.

David Bourgaize - Fletcher Jones Professor of Molecular Genetics, Whittier College -Bourgaize i an expert on biotechnology, genetic engineering and the role of genetics and eugenics in society. He has received major research grants from the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Science Foundation and Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

Michael P. Roberts - Assistant Professor of Biology, Dickinson College - Roberts can comment on DNA testing, molecular genetics, cloning, and the process of genetic selection. His research includes regulation of gene expression and cell differentiation. Roberts has lectured and served as an American Cancer Society Post-doctoral Fellow at Princeton University.

Fishing for Answers? Centre's Barton Has 'Em

"When you're talking fish, you're talking Michael Barton." So says Esquire magazine, and that's why Esquire's editors tapped the Centre College biology professor's expertise to answer the eternal question: "Do fish pee?"

Students Working with Stem Cells

"Stem Cells and Cloning," a new biology class at Swarthmore College, lets students conduct research using embryonic stem cells from mice. It is believed to be the first and only course of its kind in the country.

Sounding the Alarm for Leaf-Peepers

Tree species are being affected by global warming, and that in turn is hurting the fall foliage in the Northeast, says Hamilton College Professor of Biology Ernest H. Williams, Jr. Warmer climates are causing a decline in the sugar maples and red maples that are responsible for most of the magnificent oranges and reds, says Williams, who is the author of The Nature Handbook: A Guide to Observing the Great Outdoors.

The Buzz on Bee Disappearances

Colony collapse disorder is an epidemic among bees that has gained national attention due to the importance of bees to agriculture as pollinators. Just a few miles from the beekeeper who first raised his voice about disappearing bee colonies, two Bucknell University professors are busy exploring how the condition may be related to the workings of the bee brain.

Experiments in Space

The effects of microgravity on the immune system and wound-healing mammalian cells are similar to the body’s response following trauma on Earth. BioSTAR West and Harvey Mudd College are taking advantage of this similiarity through science experiments that are on board the current flight of the Space Shuttle Endeavour. The experiements test the effects of the polysaccharide chitosan to accelerate the wound healing process, reduce infection and ultimately reduce wound scarringmicrogravity on wound repair.