1:45 p.m. -- Rousimar Palhares will talk about his recent release from the UFC and what's next.
2:05 p.m. -- Garry Cook, the UFC's executive vice president and managing director of Europe, Middle East and Africa, will talk about UFC Fight Night 30 and the promotion's international expansion plans.
2:45 p.m. -- Pat Miletich will talk about receiving a lifetime achievement award from RFA on Friday night.
3:05 p.m. -- AKA's Javier Mendez will look back at Cain Velasquez and Daniel Cormier's performance at UFC 166.
3:15 p.m. -- We'll answer your #themmahour questions on anything and everything going on in the MMA world. Hit us up on Twitter using that hash tag, leave a question in the comments section below, or give us a call.
Plus, we'll be taking your calls on anything and everything. Got a question or comment? Give us a call at 1-888-418-4074.
Watch the show live below beginning at 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT/ 6 p.m. GMT. Subscribe to The MMA Hour on iTunes: audio feed here; video feed here. Download previous episodes here. Listen to the show via Stitcher here or via TuneIn here.
LSUHSC bird study finds key info about human speech-language development
Public release date: 17-Oct-2013 [
| E-mail
| Share
]
Contact: Leslie Capo lcapo@lsuhsc.edu 504-568-4806 Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center
New Orleans, LA A study led by Xiaoching Li, PhD, at the LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans Neuroscience Center of Excellence, has shown for the first time how two tiny molecules regulate a gene implicated in speech and language impairments as well as autism disorders, and that social context of vocal behavior governs their function. The findings are published in the October 16, 2013 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience.
Speech and language impairments affect the lives of millions of people, but the underlying neural mechanisms are largely unknown and difficult to study in humans. Zebra finches learn to sing and use songs for social communications. Because the vocal learning process in birds has many similarities with speech and language development in humans, the zebra finch provides a useful model to study the neural mechanisms underlying speech and language in humans.
Mutations in the FOXP2 gene have been linked to speech and language deficits and in autism disorders. A current theory is that a precise amount of FOXP2 is required for the proper development of the neural circuits processing speech and language, so it is important to understand how the FOXP2 gene is regulated. In this study, the research team identified two microRNAs, or miRNAs, miR-9 and miR-140-5p that regulate the levels of FOXP2. (MicroRNAs are a new class of small RNA molecules that play an important regulatory role in cell biology. They prevent the production of a particular protein by binding to and destroying the messenger RNA that would have produced the protein.) The researchers showed that in the zebra finch brain, these miRNAs are expressed in a basal ganglia nucleus that is required for vocal learning, and their function is regulated during vocal learning. More intriguingly, the expression of these two miRNAs is also regulated by the social context of song behavior in males singing undirected songs.
"Because the FOXP2 gene and these two miRNAs are evolutionarily conserved, the insights we obtained from studying birds are highly relevant to speech and language in humans and related neural developmental disorders such as autism," notes Xiaoching Li, PhD,
LSUHSC Assistant Professor of Cell Biology and Anatomy as well as Neuroscience. "Understanding how miRNAs regulate FOXP2 may open many possibilities to influence speech and language development through genetic variations in miRNA genes, as well as behavioral and environmental factors."
###
The research team also included Zhimin Shi, PhD, and Lijuan Fu, PhD, from the LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans Neuroscience Center, Zhide Fang, PhD, from the LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Public Health, and Guanzheng Luo, PhD, and XiuJie Wang, PhD, from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
This research was supported by grants to LSUHSC's Dr. Li from the National Institutes of Health and the Brain Behavior Research Foundation.
LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans educates Louisiana's health care professionals. The state's academic health leader, LSUHSC comprises a School of Medicine, the state's only School of Dentistry, Louisiana's only public School of Public Health, and Schools of Allied Health Professions, Nursing, and Graduate Studies. LSUHSC faculty take care of patients in public and private hospitals and clinics throughout the region. In the vanguard of biosciences research in a number of areas in a worldwide arena, the LSUHSC research enterprise generates jobs and enormous economic impact. LSUHSC faculty have made lifesaving discoveries and continue to work to prevent, advance treatment, or cure disease.
To learn more, visit http://www.lsuhsc.edu and http://www.twitter.com/LSUHSCHealth
[
| E-mail
| Share
]
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
LSUHSC bird study finds key info about human speech-language development
Public release date: 17-Oct-2013 [
| E-mail
| Share
]
Contact: Leslie Capo lcapo@lsuhsc.edu 504-568-4806 Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center
New Orleans, LA A study led by Xiaoching Li, PhD, at the LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans Neuroscience Center of Excellence, has shown for the first time how two tiny molecules regulate a gene implicated in speech and language impairments as well as autism disorders, and that social context of vocal behavior governs their function. The findings are published in the October 16, 2013 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience.
Speech and language impairments affect the lives of millions of people, but the underlying neural mechanisms are largely unknown and difficult to study in humans. Zebra finches learn to sing and use songs for social communications. Because the vocal learning process in birds has many similarities with speech and language development in humans, the zebra finch provides a useful model to study the neural mechanisms underlying speech and language in humans.
Mutations in the FOXP2 gene have been linked to speech and language deficits and in autism disorders. A current theory is that a precise amount of FOXP2 is required for the proper development of the neural circuits processing speech and language, so it is important to understand how the FOXP2 gene is regulated. In this study, the research team identified two microRNAs, or miRNAs, miR-9 and miR-140-5p that regulate the levels of FOXP2. (MicroRNAs are a new class of small RNA molecules that play an important regulatory role in cell biology. They prevent the production of a particular protein by binding to and destroying the messenger RNA that would have produced the protein.) The researchers showed that in the zebra finch brain, these miRNAs are expressed in a basal ganglia nucleus that is required for vocal learning, and their function is regulated during vocal learning. More intriguingly, the expression of these two miRNAs is also regulated by the social context of song behavior in males singing undirected songs.
"Because the FOXP2 gene and these two miRNAs are evolutionarily conserved, the insights we obtained from studying birds are highly relevant to speech and language in humans and related neural developmental disorders such as autism," notes Xiaoching Li, PhD,
LSUHSC Assistant Professor of Cell Biology and Anatomy as well as Neuroscience. "Understanding how miRNAs regulate FOXP2 may open many possibilities to influence speech and language development through genetic variations in miRNA genes, as well as behavioral and environmental factors."
###
The research team also included Zhimin Shi, PhD, and Lijuan Fu, PhD, from the LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans Neuroscience Center, Zhide Fang, PhD, from the LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Public Health, and Guanzheng Luo, PhD, and XiuJie Wang, PhD, from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
This research was supported by grants to LSUHSC's Dr. Li from the National Institutes of Health and the Brain Behavior Research Foundation.
LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans educates Louisiana's health care professionals. The state's academic health leader, LSUHSC comprises a School of Medicine, the state's only School of Dentistry, Louisiana's only public School of Public Health, and Schools of Allied Health Professions, Nursing, and Graduate Studies. LSUHSC faculty take care of patients in public and private hospitals and clinics throughout the region. In the vanguard of biosciences research in a number of areas in a worldwide arena, the LSUHSC research enterprise generates jobs and enormous economic impact. LSUHSC faculty have made lifesaving discoveries and continue to work to prevent, advance treatment, or cure disease.
To learn more, visit http://www.lsuhsc.edu and http://www.twitter.com/LSUHSCHealth
[
| E-mail
| Share
]
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market hit an all-time high Thursday as Wall Street put the government shutdown and debt ceiling crisis behind it and focused on corporate earnings.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 11.61 points, or 0.7 percent, to close at 1,733.15 — a record close. Nine of the 10 industry groups in the index finished higher, with technology the only group that fell.
The market rose throughout the day as investors got back to focusing on corporate earnings and economic data. American Express and Verizon rose the most in the Dow Jones industrial average after reporting earnings that beat expectations from financial analysts.
The Dow ended the day down two points, or 0.01 percent, to 15,371.65. The index of 30 big U.S. companies was held back by declines in IBM, Goldman Sachs and UnitedHealth.
IBM's third-quarter revenue fell and missed Wall Street's forecast by more than $1 billion. The stock closed down $11.90, or 6 percent, to $174.80. Earlier, it had touched its lowest level of the past year — $172.57
Goldman Sachs also weighed down the index. The investment bank's revenue fell sharply as trading in bonds and other securities slowed. Goldman fell $3.93, or 2.4 percent, to $158.32.
The focus on earnings is a change of pace for Wall Street, which had been absorbed in Washington's political drama over the last month.
Now that the U.S. has avoided the possibility of default, at least for a few months, earnings news is expected to dominate trading for the next couple weeks. So far, only 79 companies in the S&P 500 have reported third-quarter results, according to S&P Capital IQ. Analysts expect earnings at those companies to increase 3.3 percent over the same period a year ago.
"I don't think we can completely close the door on the debt ceiling chapter just yet, but we can get back to the stuff that really matters," said Jonathan Corpina, who manages trading on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange for Meridian Equity Partners.
Other indexes also posted noticeable gains. The Nasdaq composite closed up 23.71 points, or 0.6 percent, to 3,863.15.
The Russell 2000 index, which is made up of primarily smaller, riskier companies, also hit an all-time high. It closed up 9.85 points, or 0.9 percent, to 1,102.27 and has risen nearly 30 percent this year.
Market analysts think the 16-day partial shutdown of the government caused billions of dollars of damage to the economy. Government employees were furloughed, contracts were delayed, and tourism declined at national parks.
Analysts at Wells Fargo said the shutdown likely lowered economic growth by 0.5 percentage point.
There remain broader concerns that Democrats and Republicans won't be able to draw up a longer-term budget. The deal approved late Wednesday only permits the Treasury Department to borrow through Feb. 7 and fund the government through Jan. 15.
"The agreement represents another temporary fix that pushes fiscal uncertainty into the early months of next year," Wells Fargo analysts said.
Despite the worries, signs of normalcy returned to financial markets Thursday.
The one-month Treasury bill was back to trading at a yield of 0.01 percent, about where it was a month ago, and down sharply from 0.35 percent on Tuesday.
Usually a staid, conservative security, the one-month T-bill was subjected to a wave of selling at the beginning of the month. Investors feared the T-bill would be the first piece of government debt to be affected by a U.S. default if the debt ceiling was breached and the federal government could no longer pay its obligations.
The yield on the more closely-watched 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.60 percent from 2.67 percent Wednesday.
Among other stock moves:
— Verizon rose $1.65, or 4 percent, to $48.90. The telecommunications company earned an adjusted 77 cents per share for the recent quarter, beating expectations of financial analysts.
— UnitedHealth Group dropped $3.82, or 5 percent, to $71.37. The health insurance giant narrowed its 2013 profit forecast, instead of raising it, giving some analysts pause.
HOUSTON – There were few surprises at the weigh-in for UFC 166 on Friday at the Toyota Center, with both heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez and former champion Junior dos Santos declaring themselves fit and ready for their rubber match Saturday for the belt.
Velasquez, who routed dos Santos at UFC 155 in December to retain the title, weighed in at 241. Moments earlier, dos Santos, who won the belt with a first-round knockout of Velasquez on Nov. 12, 2011, at UFC on Fox 1, was 240.
Dos Santos promised more fireworks.
"I'm here to give you guys one more knockout," dos Santos told the loud pro-Velasquez crowd.
Velasquez had little to say, as usual, other than saying he expects a tough fight.
"He's a tough dude and I expect this fight to be tougher than the second," Velasquez said. "That's what I trained for. That's what I'm ready for. I trained for a five-round fight and I'm ready for whatever comes."
Other weights:
Daniel Cormer, 224, vs Roy Nelson, 249.
Gilbert Melendez, 156, vs. Diego Sanchez, 156.
Gabe Gonzaga, 257, vs. Shawn Jordan, 255.
John Dodson, 125, vs. Darrell Montague, 126.
Tim Boetsch, 186, vs. C.B. Dollaway, 186.
Nate Marquardt, 171, vs. Hector Lombard, 169.
Jessica Eye, 135, vs. Sarah Kaufman, 135.
George Sotiropoulous, 155, vs. K.J. Noons, 156.
T.J. Waldburger 170.5, vs. Adlan Amagov, 171.
Tony Ferguson, 155, vs. Mike Rio, 156.
Andre Fili, 148.5, vs. Jeremy Larsen, 145.5. (Fili was 2.5 pounds over and the UFC decided not to re-weigh him. He forfeits 20 percent of his purse to Larsen for missing weight.)
TUESDAY, APRIL 20, 2010, AT 6:19 PM Tornado Kills at Least Five in Oklahoma
FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2011, AT 3:07 PM Obama Gets Firsthand Look at a Tornado Damage
TUESDAY, APRIL 20, 2010, AT 6:19 PM Tornado Kills at Least Five in Oklahoma. Very long title. Long long long. Tornado Kills at Least Five in Oklahoma. Very long title. Long long long.
TUESDAY, APRIL 20, 2010, AT 6:19 PM Tornado Kills at Least Five in Oklahoma. Very long title. Long long long. Tornado Kills at Least Five in Oklahoma. Very long title. Long long long.
Meteorologist Eric Holthaus has made his career monitoring the Earth's climate, and he's alarmed at what he sees. After reading a new, bleak international report on climate change, Holthaus has decided one important way to reduce his carbon footprint is to give up airplane travel for good.
![[ Back to EurekAlert! ]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_uC8gzBMSERqTtCNgnYH5GF2vDkxG5ld2AEyYamNgTg1DOj5Vuhb4m7qwAASM2D9JA4kWurFANlMp0ZrP4s0xAiC5i93RskhJe69a-dllk=s0-d){kind=small}
Share
HOUSTON – There were few surprises at the weigh-in for UFC 166 on Friday at the Toyota Center, with both heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez and former champion Junior dos Santos declaring themselves fit and ready for their rubber match Saturday for the belt.
