Cell sounds stimulate differentiation

Studies conducted at UT Southwestern Medical Center found that the sound produced due to randomness of biological reactions acts as a stimulant to differentiation. Randomness in those reactions contributes to biological noise, technically referred to as stochastic fluctuations. To determine the biological role for noise, the researchers analyzed a genetic circuit that controls the transformation of bacteria cells from one state to another. This process, called differentiation, is akin to that used by human stem cells to change into a specific tissue type. It was determined that by dampening the noise level within the bacterial cells, they could prevent the cells' transformation between states, essentially "tuning" cellular behavior.

http://www.biologynews.net/archives/2007/03/23/cells_use_noise_to_make_cellfate_decisions.html

Tanisha Sharma