Humans as Model Organisms

A short overview about cadmium and its toxicity focused on humans, bioindicators and model organisms

According to Paracelsus (1493-1541) everything from this planet is poison, only the dose makes the poison to be harmless. Even the essential elements for life support are toxic for all organisms in high amounts. Mercury, cadmium, metalloid arsenic and lead were responsible for poisoning and death of many humans and life forms from this planet for centuries. Cadmium forms different compounds tha...

a short overview about cadmium and its toxicity focused on humans, bioindicators and model organisms

according to paracelsus (1493-1541) everything from this planet is poison, only the dose makes the poison to be harmless. even the essential elements for life support are toxic for all organisms in high amounts. mercury, cadmium, metalloid arsenic and lead were responsible for poisoning and death of many humans and life forms from this planet for centuries. cadmium forms different compounds tha...

Humans and primates: New model organisms for evolutionary developmental biology?

If the animals in George Orwell’s Animal Farm had been biologists, they might have proclaimed that while all organisms are unique, some are more unique than others. Perhaps with some justification, we humans often apply that essentialist view to our own especially interesting phenotype. We are the only striding, tailless bipeds; we have absurdly long ontogenies for our body size; our brains are...

Genes encoding longevity: from model organisms to humans.

Ample evidence from model organisms has indicated that subtle variation in genes can dramatically influence lifespan. The key genes and molecular pathways that have been identified so far encode for metabolism, maintenance and repair mechanisms that minimize age-related accumulation of permanent damage. Here, we describe the evolutionary conserved genes that are involved in lifespan regulation ...

Evolution and Speciation - Insects as Model Organisms