Cloned Gene

And now for another episode of [Seinfeld:Frankford] Science. On Monday we talked about cooler sports uniforms, one of George Costanza's crusades. Well, now it's Kramer's idea for a cologne that would make you smell like the beach. [Scientists:Researchers] from the University of East Anglia have just cloned the gene [responsible:formality] for that briny, fishy scent we associate with the seaside. Andrew Johnston and his [colleagues:trainers] harvested some [bacteria:virus] from a coastal salt marsh. And they isolated a gene that makes dimethyl sulfide, a gas whose essence is pure eu d' ocean.In its natural environment, dimethyl sulfide helps sea birds sniff out a meal - in this case the plankton that produce it. And the compound is generated in such large quantities that it even forms clouds over the ocean that help cool the Earth's climate. Although Johnston and his team cloned the gene from a bacterium that thrives in the sea, they also found it in some unexpected places, including microbes that live in the roots of plants. Because these species are so different, he [suspects:inspects] that the bugs got the gene through a process akin to mating. Now, why they would want it is anybody's guess. Maybe, like Kramer, they just like the smell.