Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Deprived of a sense of smell, worms live longer
Many animals live longer when raised on low calorie diets. But now researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have shown that they can extend the life...
Mouse Genes Guide Search For Human Anxiety Disorder Genes
We are all familiar with the question "Are you a man or a mouse?" What if the answer is "a little of both"? Because of the power of molecular genetics...
Digesting The Termite Digestome: A Way To Make Biofuels?
If the biofuel known as bioethanol is to make a major contribution to our fuel supplies, then we may well require the assistance of some tiny insect helpers, says an...
Gene Mutation In Worms Key To Alcohol Tolerance
Scientists have found that a genetic mutation in worms could further understanding of alcoholism in humans.
Scientists find way to erase memories in mice
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - It seems like a movie plot, but scientists have developed a way to erase specific memories in mice while leaving others intact and not damaging the brain.
'New prostate' grown inside mouse
Scientists have grown new prostate glands in mice, in another advance for stem cell technology.
Silencing a protein could kill T-Cells, reverse leukemia
Blocking the signals from a protein that activates cells in the immune system could help kill cells that cause a rare form of blood cancer, according to physicists and oncologists...
Crossing Blood-Brain Barrier: Scientists Develop Drug Delivery System For Brain Cancers, Other Diseases
Scientists have developed a new drug delivery system that is capable of crossing the blood-brain barrier to reach and kill cancer cells in the brain. Following successful preclinical studies, the...
L.A. councilman wants to ban elephants at zoo
Tony Cardenas advocates against keeping the animals in enclosures at the L.A. Zoo, which has already spent $10 million on a new exhibit, and suggests keeping them at a sanctuary...
Individual's Gene Variations Linked To Likelihood Of Surviving Cancer
New research shows that certain genes can influence a person's likelihood to contract particular diseases, cancer for example. The finding demonstrates that genetic markers may also show a person's likelihood...
Building A Better Bee
A researcher known for her honey bee line "New World Carniolans" has crossed her bees with their Old World counterparts to enhance their positive characteristics.
Biologists Discover Gene Behind 'Plant Sex Mystery'
An enigma -- unique to flowering plants -- has been solved by researchers from the UK and South Korea. Scientists already knew that flowering plants require not one, but two...
India's only gorilla lonely without companion
Even though Polo is 6 feet tall, dark-haired, bilingual and good-natured, the 36-year-old silverback gorilla is still single after a fruitless eight-year search.
First Dinosaur Feathers for Show, Not Flight?
A new pigeon-size species found in Mongolia had long, ribbon-like tail feathers that suggest plumage first evolved for ornamentation rather than for flight, scientists say.
'Flying syringe' mosquitos, other ideas get Gates funding
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation awarded 100,000 dollars each on Wednesday to scientists in 22 countries including funding for a Japanese proposal to turn mosquitos into "flying syringes" delivering...
Egg Whites Solve The 3-D Problem
The real world is three-dimensional. That's true even in the laboratory, where scientists have to grow cells to study how they develop and what happens when their growth is abnormal....
Fish farms catching on in Malawi
Aquaculture is bringing food security to hundreds of families in drought prone areas of Malawi.
Gene find sheds light on motor neuron diseases like ALS
Scientists have identified a gene in mice that plays a central role in the proper development of one of the nerve cells that goes bad in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or...
Les Schobert dies at 61; Los Angeles Zoo's former general curator
Les Schobert, a former general curator of the Los Angeles Zoo who advocated more open space and less isolation for elephants, chimpanzees and other animals in captivity, has died. He...
VIDEO: New Marine Species Discovered
Researchers have discovered more than 300 new species, including a new stingray, living in the waters off the Australian coast.
Plague kills Grand Canyon biologist
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz., Oct. 22 (UPI) -- Epidemic specialists say a Grand Canyon National Park biologist who died last year caught the plague from a mountain lion.
Spider males good for mating, food
For Mediterranean tarantulas, eating a male means having tougher and more baby spiders
Avian airlines: Alaska to New Zealand nonstop
Tracked bar-tailed godwits break previous nonstop flight record for birds
Heat sensors guide insects to a hot meal
Bugs home in on seeds by detecting infrared
Scientists enhance immune system attacks on cancer
In an Early Edition issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) published online on October 20, 2008, the scientists describe how they used multiple tactics to...
New DNA Tool Probes Rice Genome
(PhysOrg.com) -- A new tool for investigating the rice genome has been developed by researchers at UC Davis led by Pamela Ronald, professor of plant pathology. The inexpensive, publicly-available rice...
Beyond recognizing odors, a single neuron controls reactions
(PhysOrg.com) -- Babies will smile when they catch the scent of vanilla, but a whiff of rotting meat will send them into fits. From people to mice and flies to...
New Method May Rapidly And Effectively Detect Significant Food-Borne Pathogen
Researchers from Sweden and Finland have developed a rapid and specific method that may detect the bacterium Yersinia enterocolitica, a common cause of gastric illness, in food.