Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Scientists capture rare footage of mother skink fighting a deadly brown snake to protect her babies
Unlike many mammals and birds, most reptiles show little sign of being caring parents. But our new research shows one lizard species may be more doting parents than we thought—the...
New research reveals these 20 Australian reptiles are set to disappear by 2040
Action came too late for the Christmas Island forest skink, despite early warnings of significant declines. It was lost from the wild before it was officially listed as "threatened," and...
Researchers develop dual-excitation decoding strategy for high-accuracy thermal sensing
Luminescent nanothermometry is a non-invasive method of detecting temperature in vivo, which is important in biology and nanomedicine researches.
Study reveals RNA G-quadruplex structures in nature for the first time
Researchers have resolved a longstanding biological debate by revealing the existence and function of complex RNA structures in plants.
Scientists name 20 Australian snakes and lizards on path to extinction
Australia has more reptile species than any other country; we are home to about 10% of the world's species.
Scientists have the answer to a tadpole mystery
The advance could help protect amphibians from extinction by protecting their breeding grounds.
New test can detect crown-of-thorns starfish as quickly as a home pregnancy kit
Researchers at the Australian Institute of Marine Science have developed a dipstick test that can detect crown-of-thorns starfish (CoTS) on coral reefs by using the same technology as home pregnancy...
Plant pathogens reorder physical structures of effectors to escape plant recognition
Phytophthora infestans is an oomycete, or water mold, that causes the devastating potato disease known as late blight or potato blight and was responsible for the famous Irish Famine of...
Unmanned aerial vehicles help wheat breeders
Breeding programs for crops with limited per-plant seed yield require one or more generations of seed increase to generate sufficient quantities for sowing replicated yield trials. The ability to accurately...
Newly identified gene grants tomatoes resistance to bacterial speck disease
Bacterial speck disease, which reduces both fruit yield and quality, has been a growing problem in tomatoes over the last five years. Because the culpable bacterium, Pseudomonas syringae, prefers a...
Researchers warn of food-web threats from common insecticides
In light of emerging evidence showing how a commonly used class of insecticides can spread through the environment to pollinators, predators and other insects they are not intended to kill,...
U.S. Open tennis: No. 1 seed Karolina Pliskova falls; Novak Djokovic rallies
Top-seeded Karolina Pliskova suffered an upset loss in the second round of the U.S. Open on Wednesday at Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens, N.Y.
Newly identified gene grants tomatoes resistance to bacterial speck disease
Bacterial speck disease, which reduces both fruit yield and quality, has been a growing problem in tomatoes over the last five years. Because the culpable bacterium, Pseudomonas syringae, prefers a...
Engineered yeast produce hyoscyamine and scopolamine
Scientists design longest, most complex engineered pathway, involving more than 20 enzymes and other proteins
DARPA's air-breathing hypersonic missiles ready for free-flight tests
Captive carry tests of two hypersonic weapons have been completed, with their first free flights scheduled for later this year, according to DARPA and the U.S. Air Force.
New study on migration success reinforces need for monarch butterfly milkweed habitat
A recent study presents evidence that the migration success of monarchs hasn't declined in recent years and thus cannot explain the steep decline in the monarch population over the last...
Using tattoo ink to find cancer
The humble ink in a tattoo artist's needle could be the key to improving the detection of cancer. Researchers recently developed new imaging contrast agents using common dyes such as...
Genomic analysis of Shiga-toxin E.coli (STEC) in a child reveals insights on a virulent, emerging foodborne pathogen
Researchers have completed the genomic analysis of an increasingly common strain of Shiga-toxin E. coli (STEC) that can cause severe disease outbreaks.
Globalization is reweaving the web of life
As introduced species spread around the world, the complex networks of interactions between plants and animals within ecosystems are becoming increasingly similar, a process likely to reinforce globalization's imprint on...
New study shows birds can learn from others to be more daring
House sparrows can be found on nearly every continent including North America, South America, Africa and Australia, where they are not native but an invasive species. New research into these...
An unprecedented discovery of cell fusion
Like humans, bacteria live together in communities, sometimes lending a hand—or in the case of bacteria, a metabolite or two—to help their neighbors thrive. Understanding how bacteria interact is critical...
Birds can learn from others to be more daring
New research into highly social yet invasive house sparrows reveals that they can learn from each other and adapt their behavior.
An unprecedented discovery of cell fusion
Understanding how bacteria interact is critical to solving growing problems such as antibiotic resistance, in which infectious bacteria form defenses to thwart the medicines used to fight them. Researchers have...
Zimbabwe investigating deaths of 22 elephants, more expected
The number of elephants dying in western Zimbabwe from a suspected bacterial infection, possibly from eating poisonous plants, has risen to 22, and "more deaths are expected," a spokesperson for...
Microbial genetics: A protean pathogen
The bacterium Helicobacter pylori is linked to increased risk of stomach cancer, and is genetically highly variable. A new study by researchers of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich explores the role...
Parasitic plants attack crops when defending themselves from microbes
Researchers at the RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science (CSRS) in Japan have discovered a link between defensive responses in plants and the beautiful but devastating crop parasite witchweed. Published...
Origin of a complex life form revealed
Researchers from McGill University have revealed the steps by which two very distinct organisms—bacteria and carpenter ants—have come to depend on one another for survival to become a single complex...
Study details how general anesthetics and 'benzos' act on receptors in the brain
As you drift into unconsciousness before a surgery, general anesthetic drugs flowing through your blood are putting you to sleep by binding mainly to a protein in the brain called...