IIT-Madras tool bridges quake science and dam safety
PFOS, a widespread industrial ‘forever chemical’, weakens the body’s ability to fight viral infections, a study has found. Researchers found that it binds to an immune protein called IRF3, which keeps it from triggering the release of interferons, our immune system’s top antiviral defence. Tests in human cells and mice showed that everyday levels of PFOS exposure led to more severe infections from viruses like influenza and hepatitis B.
As a result, viruses can multiply faster.
Scientists have found a new species of amoeba, Incendiamoeba cascadensis , in hot springs in California that has set a record for the upper temperature limit of eukaryotic life. To survive such heat, it activates genes to repair DNA and cell membranes. Its proteins’ chemical properties are such that they don’t clump together, a trick heat-loving bacteria use as well.
Scientists previously thought these lifeforms couldn’t reproduce above 60° C. However, I. cascadensis replicates at 63° C.
