Testing Mars Missions in Morocco

March 10, 2011 / Written by: Leslie Mullen A group of scientists recently gathered in a remote region of Morocco to test instruments being developed for a mission to Mars. The arid and varied Morocco landscape provides plenty of opportunities for scientists to test the limits of the many instruments that will be included in the ExoMars effort. ExoMars is a joint venture of NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA), and will study the martian atmosphere, geology, and water cycle, and also search for signs of past and present life. The mission will include an orbiter, a lander and two rovers. Source: [astrobio.net]

The Ribosome: Structure, Function & Evolution -- An Astrobiology All-access Event

March 23, 2011 / Posted by: Wendy Dolci A two-day symposium using NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI) remote communications tools, on The Ribosome: Structure, Function & Evolution, will be held on April 1-2, 2011. As with the recent NAI Workshops Without Walls, real-time participation requires only an internet connection and is available to interested scientists from around the world. More details, including connection and registration information, is available on the meeting website. The 2011 Suddath Symposium on the Ribosome at Georgia Tech brings together researchers who are exploring various aspects of ribosome structure and function. The ribosome is a molecular machine that is responsible for protein synthesis in all living cells. This indispensable component of life, which contains both RNA and proteins, can be viewed as a molecular fossil. That is, the comparison of ribosomal RNA and proteins from distantly related organisms suggests that the origins and evolution of protein synthesis remain imprinted in present day ribosomes, providing a rewindable molecular recording of early evolution that appears to go all the way back to the origin of life. Because the ribosome is central to the biochemistry of all life, it is a major target for drug development. For example, the mode of action of many antibiotics is to inhibit translation or cause bacterial ribosome to make mistakes during protein synthesis. Due to differences between bacterial and eukaryotic ribosomes, the result of billions of years of divergent evolution, drugs can be highly effective against bacterial ribosomes without causing appreciable side effects in human cells. Thus, studies of ribosome structure, function and evolution have scientific implications ranging from understanding the origin and early evolution of life to the development of novel pharmaceuticals

The Ribosome: Structure, Function & Evolution

An Astrobiology All-access Event April 1-2, 2011 The 2011 Suddath Symposium on the Ribosome at Georgia Tech brings together researchers who are exploring various aspects of ribosome structure and function. The ribosome is a molecular machine that is responsible for protein synthesis in all living cells. This indispensable component of life, which contains both RNA and proteins, can be viewed as a molecular fossil. That is, the comparison of ribosomal RNA and proteins from distantly related organisms suggests that the origins and evolution of protein synthesis remain imprinted in present day ribosomes, providing a rewindable molecular recording of early evolution that appears to go all the way back to the origin of life. Because the ribosome is central to the biochemistry of all life, it is a major target for drug development. For example, the mode of action of many antibiotics is to inhibit translation or cause bacterial ribosome to make mistakes during protein synthesis. Due to differences between bacterial and eukaryotic ribosomes, the result of billions of years of divergent evolution, drugs can be highly effective against bacterial ribosomes without causing appreciable side effects in human cells. Thus, studies of ribosome structure, function and evolution have scientific implications ranging from understanding the origin and early evolution of life to the development of novel pharmaceuticals.

Program Symposium begins at 8:30AM Eastern Daylight Time on April 1st, 2011. If you miss a presentation, links to recordings will be posted on the program page. Click here to view the Program. (opens in a new window)

Introducing Virtual Hallway Conversations In addition to the main online meeting room, for this event were going to experiment with virtual hallway conversations. Responding to feedback from recent NAI Workshops Without Walls, weve set up a separate Facebook Chat

area on the right column of the symposium website. Scientists will be present in the Facebook Chat virtual hallway during the symposium to answer questions and respond to comments.

Registration and Remote Participation Please fill out the registration form below to receive information on how to connect to the symposium. Participant registration helps with planning because we will know approximately how many people will be attending. It will be easy to join in! All you will need is a computer with a browser and an internet connectionno special software or hardware is required. The slides and video of the speaker will be displayed in your browser, and you will be able to hear the presentations through the speaker on your computer. Questions to the speaker will be entered in a chat area in the browser window.