WTI Sinks -- March 7, 2018 -- For The Granddaughters: Pangolins and Palindromes

Now that the data has finally sunk in -- it took about two hours -- the price of WTI plummets. There are many, many reasons for this, but this must be one of the bigger reasons: re-balancing is trending in the wrong direction; re-balancing is now back up to 29 weeks.

In addition, refineries are only operating at 88% capacity and yet US gasoline inventories are at record highs. Driving season may not "save" the crude oil bulls. Saudi has to be alarmed. The kingdom recently cut their price to regain market share in China/Asia.

After the weekly petroleum data was released by the EIA, the price of WTI slumped 3% and is now at risk of closing below the floor ($60/bbl).

I have a lot of graphics to post, but I'm in the mood for something else right now, so I will post those graphics later.

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Notes For The Granddaughters

Prelapsarian.

No, I did not know what that meant either until I looked it up.

I came across it in a short note on the pangolin in the current issue of  London Review of Books. I canceled my subscription to The New York Review of Books because the editor is still affected with TDS. I just couldn't take it any more. Unfortunately the New York Review might be better and more relevant for my tastes than the London Review which I have not yet canceled. The jury is still out on whether I cancel the London Review also.

Anyway:

• prelapsarian: characteristic of the time before the Fall of Man; innocent and unspoiled; in the context of the word as originally "invented," it does not fit this short essay very well, but that's another story
• pangolin: a scaly anteater (more below)
• Harare: the capital and most populous city of Zimbabwe

Data points:

• pangolins: currently  the most trafficked animals in the world, their scales used in traditional Chinese medicines and their flesh eaten as a delicy
• roasted pangolin meat is thought to stimulate lactation and improve blood circulation
• Beijing customs have seized more than tonne of scales being shipped into China; each tonne is the equivalent of 1,660 animals

Pangolins:

• prelapsarian
• pre-historic, in fact
• more than 80 million years old
• humans: 8 million years old
• eight species of pangolin: two are listed as Critically Endangered in the IUCN Red list of Threatened Species
• global warming won't kill them but the Chinese will

More about pangolins from wiki

• one extant familiy
• one Asian genus with four species
• one African genus with two species
• another African genus with two species
• with their keratin scales, they are the only known mammals with this feature
• the tongue of a pangolin is longer than its body; the tongue is kept furled in an interior pounch near its hip

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Bonus Note For The Granddaughters

CRISPR.

CRISPR-Cas9.

Until this week, I knew nothing of significance about CRISPR. For whatever reason I mentioned CRISPR to our 14-year-old granddaughter on the way to school the other day, and she became incredibly animated. She loved "CRISPR" and knew more about it than I did.

Whatever she knows about CRISPR she learned on her own. I doubt they have yet studied it in high school, although it's possible it's been mentioned

I'll have fun talking to her about CRISPR over the next few weeks.

CRISPR is part of the DNA genome. Back in 1993, a biologist studying bacteria in Spanish swamps, found bacteria whose DNA contained repeated sequences of DNA that did not correspond to anything previously seen.

Because of the nature of these repeated sequences (clusters, regularly interspersed, and short palindromic repeats) he labeled them CRISPR for short.

It turns out that these palindromic repeats of "meaningless" genome were actually pieces of viral DNA -- viruses that had invaded bacteria as pathogens (bacteriophages -- to eat bacteria).

It is hypothesized that by incorporating this "meaningless" viral genome, bacteria are more quickly able to defend against a virus from attacking it (a second time).

And like everything else in biology, there is more to the story.

Molecular biology dogma: DNA makes RNA makes protein.

CRISPER makes RNA but this RNA does not make a protein. By itself, the CRISPR-RNA is worthless.

But, as it turns out, as in a Rudyard Kipling "just so" story, bacteria also contain an enzyme (or protein) called Cas9 -- short for CRISPER-associated protein 9. If the biologists had had a sense of humor, it would be easier to remember as"Mama Cass protein" -- CRISPR-associated protein that loves to eat.

But a very special way of eating.

As noted above CRISPER-RNA by itself is worthless.

But with the Cas9 enzyme "stuff happens." Cas9 enzyme is a "cutter."

CRISPER-RNA guides Cas9 enzyme to the virus with the corresponding DNA genome.

At the viral DNA genome, the Cas9 enzyme gets to work, cutting out the viral genome that corresponds to CRISPR-RNA.

Pretty clever, huh?

Know who connected the dots, figured this out?

A Danish yogurt company. Yup, Danisco -- a Danish yogurt company.

Danisco is now owned by Dow Dupont.

Researchers now use CRISPER-Cas9 to target any region/gene in any DNA genome and cut it out / remove it. By removing a gene, researchers are better able to discern the purpose of a previously non-understood gene.

If a bacteria is able to do what a bacteria normally does and now loses a certain function because it has lost a certain gene, scientists have a pretty good idea of what that gene must be responsible for.

Likewise, researchers can do that to any mammalian genome.

Much, much more to the story but I now have enough to share with our granddaughter and still be able to keep up with her.

This was from "Diary" in the current issue of London Review of Books. Another source is here.