NEWS OF THE WEEK MICROSCOPY
EYE ON ORGANICS IN SIGHT A3-D reconstruction of fluorescence data allows anthracene (blue) to be observed on the surface of a corn leaf ρ where cell walls and other components are shown in green and chloroplasts are in red. Leaf cross sections (below) show anthracene initially on the surface but later migrating into the epidermal cell cytoplasm.
Fluorescence method allows imaging and tracking of chemicals in plant tissues
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W O - P H O T O N EXCITATION
microscopy (ΤΓΡΕΜ), a fluo rescence technique com monly used to image cell and tissue samples of plants and animals, has been used for the
IMAGES COURTESY OF EDWARD WILD
first time to visualize how or ganic compounds from pesti cides or air pollution migrate through the cellular structure of living plants. T h e researchers who developed the novel appli cation believe that it could help improve the design and use of
pesticides, track the global fate of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), and design new strate gies for bioremediation of con taminated soil. InTPEM, a laser is used to ex cite a biological sample with two low-energy photons, which, upon combining at a focal point, have sufficient energy to induce fluo rescence without damag ing the prepared sam ple. Fluorescent dyes, greenfluorescentprotein tags, or other markers typically are needed to highlight specific cell structures. The detected fluores cence in turn can be used to gen erate an image for further study Chemistry Ph.D. student Ed ward Wild, environmental chem istry professor Kevin C.Jones, and colleagues at Lancaster Universi ty in England, came to realize that the natural fluorescence of some cell structures and aromatic or ganic compounds could be visual ized without the need for fluo rescence markers [Environ. Sci. TechnoL, 38,4195 (2004)}. Using anthracene as a model
compound, they developed im ages that show the chemical as it migrates over a four-day period from the waxy outer surface of corn leaves to the epidermal cell wall and then into the aqueous cytoplasm of the epidermal cells. Optical filters allowed the com ponents of the leaves and the an thracene to be visualized as dif ferent colors. Anthracene was chosen to be representative of POPs, which before now were believed to partition nearly ex clusively into the lipophilic layer on leaf surfaces. The Lancaster team's results have challenged that assumption by showing that or ganic compounds can migrate in to essentially all parts of the leaf structure. Plants can be invaluable biomonitors, notes chemistry pro fessor Donald Mackay of Trent University, Peterborough, On tario. But research in this area has been plagued by a lack of funda mental understanding of the mechanisms of uptake —where POPs go, how they get there, and how fast they migrate into the plant tissues. "This new tech nique promises to elucidate those mechanisms," Mackay says. "We can see the journey of the POPs for the first time. This should en able more reliable models and predictive methods to be con structed. "-STEVE RITTER
EMPLOYMENT
Bay Area Biotech Job Outlook Is Partly Sunny
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hile "offshoring" and outsourcing are bitter words for many U.S. job hunters, a new report, "The Future of Bay Area Jobs," puts this business practice in perspec tive and offers some positive biotech job news for the region. The report was completed by the management consulting firm A. T. Kearney in collaboration with the Bay Area Economic Forum, Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network, and Stanford Proj ect on Regions of Innovation & Entrepreneurship. It draws on 120 interviews, an analysis of 9,000 job listings, and other data. According to the report, Bay Area biotechnology can expect an average annual job growth rate of 5 to 9% over the next 10 years. As information technology (IT), biotech, and nanotech evolve, 150,000 to 500,000 bio- and nanotech jobs could be cre ated over the next 10 to 15 years. "In the biotech industry, the
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main job growth in the Bay Area will come from the research and product development function. Almost 60% of jobs will be in these areas," Matthew M. Gardner, president of BayBio, says in the study. BayBio is Northern California's bioscience association. The report also observes that investors are increasingly pressur ing early-stage IT as well as biotech companies to explore offshoring. Bay Area biotech companies are beginning to manufacture in China, Singapore, Ireland, Wales, and other "low-cost locations." Some firms seek to move their clinical trials overseas. Size is a decisive factor: Expanding companies with 100 to 200 employees are more likely to create jobs outside the Bay Area. Biotech venture capitalists interviewed for the report say that, rel ative to the East Coast, the Bay Area has a shortage of pharma ceutical talent for later stage product development.—VIVIEN MARX
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