Latest science news in Biology & Nature
New stinging ant species could cause problems for Kentuckians
University of Kentucky entomologists want people to be aware of a new stinging pest in the state, the Asian needle ant.
Brain receptor pulls open electrical gate like a puppet master
For the first time, researchers in the lab of CSHL Professor Hiro Furukawa have been able to track each atom in the NMDA receptor, an important brain protein, as it...
Plant tissue engineering improves drought and salinity tolerance
After several years of experimentation, scientists have engineered thale cress, or Arabidopsis thaliana, to behave like a succulent, improving water-use efficiency, salinity tolerance and reducing the effects of drought. The...
Wild bees depend on the landscape structure
Sowing strips of wildflowers along conventional cereal fields and the increased density of flowers in organic farming encourage bumblebees as well as solitary wild bees and hoverflies. Bumblebee colonies benefit...
Bubbling and burping droplets of DNA
Liquid droplets formed from DNA display a peculiar response to enzymes. An international collaboration between LMU and UCSB has now been able to explain the mechanisms behind bubble formation.
Lab-grown 'mini-brains' suggest COVID-19 virus can infect human brain cells
Researchers have found that organoids known as 'mini-brains' can be infected by the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.
Scientists develop novel predictable multi-nucleotide deletion systems in plants
Many small regulatory elements, including miRNAs, miRNA binding sites, and cis-acting elements, comprise only five to 24 nucleotides and play important roles in regulating gene expression, transcription and translation, and...
Novel species of fungi discovered on bat carcasses in the limestone caves of southwest China
A subterranean expedition led by Prof. Xu Jianchu from the Kunming Institute of Botany of the Chinese Academy of Sciences highlights the importance of understanding the ways in which the...
Spider silk can create lenses useful for biological imaging
Spiders—what are they good for? The answer, it turns out, is more than just insect control.
Police chase zoo's escaped peacock through New York neighborhood
Police in New York ended up in an unusual chase when a peacock escaped from the Prospect Park Zoo and went for a run through Brooklyn.
Malaria's secret to surviving in the blood uncovered
New research from the Francis Crick Institute has found how the malaria parasite protects itself from toxic compounds in red blood cells.
Soil in Amazon found to host a large number of fungi types
In a paper published in the journal Ecology and Evolution, an international team of researchers reports finding that soil in the Amazon River Basin hosts a surprisingly large number of...
Whales used to identify Arabian horses
A computer program that mimics in software the social interactions of the humpback whale has been used by researchers in Egypt to build a system for the identification of Arabian...
Researchers access both enantiomers by varying reaction time
Homochirality is a fundamental feature of all living organism. It is well known that a pair of enantiomers of chiral drug molecules, whose structures have a non-superimposable mirror-image relationship to...
Ecologists detect warning signals of malaria outbreak
Researchers at the University of Georgia have demonstrated that disease surveillance data can be used to predict certain infectious disease outbreaks. The team detected early warning signals of a 1993...
Mapping marine megafauna on the high seas
A Western Australian scientist has compiled the largest global dataset ever on the travel habits of large marine animals. The collaboration involves hundreds of researchers from around the world and...
Checklist of Pa. bees documents 49 new species and some that may be endangered
A study documenting bees that are reported to occur in Pennsylvania has found the presence of 437 species, including 49 never before recorded in the state. Researchers said the resulting...
Controlling plants with the power of colored light
Scientists have found a way to control different plant processes -- such as when they grow -- using nothing but colored light. The development reveals how colored light can be...
A histone modifier that facilitates an epigenetic switch
Epigenetic regulation of gene expression is associated with switching between chromatin states characterized by distinct histone modifications.
Raw milk may do more harm than good
Raw or unpasteurized cows' milk from U.S. retail stores can hold a huge amount of antimicrobial-resistant genes if left at room temperature, according to a new study.
California enters a perilous phase as coronavirus spread intensifies
Officials express alarm over people flouting safety rules as the state records its highest number of new coronavirus cases reported in a single day.
Researchers look for answers as to why western bumblebees are declining
A University of Wyoming researcher and her Ph.D. student have spent the last three years studying the decline of the Western bumblebee. The two have been working with a group...
Scientists urge business and government to treat PFAS chemicals as a class
All per- and polyfluorinated substances (PFAS) should be treated as one class and avoided for nonessential uses, according to a peer-reviewed article published today in Environmental Science & Technology Letters.
Researchers look for answers as to why western bumblebees are declining
The decline of the Western bumblebee is likely not limited to one culprit but, instead, due to several factors that interact such as pesticides, pathogens, climate change and habitat loss.
Newsom threatens to reverse California reopening as coronavirus spreads
Gov. Gavin Newsom said the state is prepared to reinstate restrictions of his stay-at-home order as cases of the coronavirus continue to increase in California.
Declining eyesight improved by looking at deep red light
Staring at a deep red light for three minutes a day can significantly improve declining eyesight, finds a new study, the first of its kind in humans.
Producing a gaseous messenger molecule inside the body, on demand
Nitric oxide is an important signaling molecule in the body, with a role in building nervous system connections that contribute to learning and memory. It also functions as a messenger...
Researcher tackles long-standing mysteries about membrane protein structure
Ion channels and membrane transporters are in the business of moving ions and small molecules across cellular membranes. They are essential for metabolic and cellular homeostasis, and for a host...