India is second most populous country and makes up around one-sixth of the world’s population, yet it has been sorely under-represented in genome-wide studies of human genetic variation. Recently a group led by Lalji Singh of the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology in Hyderabad, India and David Reich of the Broad Institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts, analyzed more than 500,000 genetic markers across the genomes of 132 individuals from 25 diverse groups, representing 13 states, all six language families, traditionally “upper” and “lower” castes, and tribal groups in order …

A fully funded Ph.D. position is available in the Developmental Genetics Group to study the BMP signalling/antagonist pathway in controlling vertebrate organogenesis with particular emphasis on limb bud development. Our aim is to understand how stem-cell like progenitor cells integrate inputs from different pathways to regulate their fates, survival and proliferation potential. We combine advanced mouse molecular genetics with systems biology approaches that include genome-wide transcriptome, ChIP Seq and proteome analysis. Some of these studies and modelling of limb development are done in collaboration with the neighbouring ETH Systems Biology …

The next webinar of science group is on Tuesday, September 22, 2009 featuring “Apoptotic Signaling in Normal and Cancer Cell Biology”.
Date: Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Time: 12:00 noon ET; 9:00 a.m. PT; 4:00 p.m. GMT
Duration: 1 hour
Register now and submit your questions LIVE to the experts during the webinar!
For more information and complimentary registration visit:
www.sciencemag.org/webinar

Development is seeking to appoint an Online Editor to join an expanding team on this top ranking research journal.
Are you a web savvy developmental biologist with a broad interest in developmental biology, excellent writing skills, strong interpersonal skills and a proven enthusiasm for communicating scientific ideas? If so, then we could have just the job for you at Development.
To find out more about this position, please email your CV and / or summary of your relevant experience to our Human Resources Officer, Miriam Ganczakowski at miriam@thecob.demon.co.uk no later than 2 …

Remember in December last year we had a special issue from Evolution: Education and Outreach dealing with the aspect related to evolution of eyes.That special issue was edited by T. Ryan Gregory, who also wrote the Introduction to the issue.
Now there is another journal “Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B” has come out with some excellent collection of papers on “The evolution of phototransduction and eyes”,edited by some very well known scientists Trevor D. Lamb, Detlev Arendt, and Shaun P. Collin.

Like Drosophila so here is an opportunity, a postdoctoral position is available to investigate the genetic basis of morphological evolution in Drosophila in the group of Dr. Alistair McGregor at the Institute for Population Genetics, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria.
Candidates with experience in Drosophila genetics, molecular biology and population genetics are particularly encouraged to apply.
The initial appointment will be made for one year, with a possible extension to up to three years. The annual salary is 54,180 Euro (before deductions). The position is available from January 1st 2010, but …

Last issue of current biology reports an exciting find from the lab of Konrad Basler in Zurich ,where they demonstrate Transcription in the Absence of Histone H3.3. Normally methylation of histone H3 lysine 4 (H3K4me2 and H3K4me3) are indications of chromatin at active genes.Martina Hödl and Konrad Basler looked into this aspect into more details by by replacing wild-type H3.3 with a mutant form (H3.3K4A) that cannot be methylated. Studying the effects of mutant form of H3.3K4A in Drosophila ,authors looked into the transcription output in response to different signaling …