Latest science news in Biology & Nature
How corals adapt to day and night
Polyps of the symbiotic coral Stylophora pistillata. Researchers have uncovered a gene in corals that responds to day/night cycles, which provides some tantalizing clues into how symbiotic corals work together...
Childhood Brain Cancer Genes Identified
Scientists have isolated three important genes involved in the development of a type of childhood brain cancer. Researchers have found three genes associated with specific characteristics of ependymoma — the...
Scientists purify parasites with light
EDINBURGH, Scotland, Sept. 15 (UPI) -- British and Scottish scientists say they've come up with a better way to separate parasites from their host cells, allowing detailed studies...
Photo Reveals Rare Okapi Survived Poaching Onslaught
A set of stripy legs in a camera trap photo snapped in an African forest indicates something to cheer about, say researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society.
Immunity Traits May Be Involved In Mate Choice In Some Human Populations
Some human populations may rely on biological factors in addition to social factors when selecting a mate. Scientists have reported genomic data showing that immunity traits may be involved in...
Gene tests 'create undue stress'
Gene tests to predict risk of disease are inaccurate, and may cause unnecessary stress, an expert argues.
Mini antibodies: biotech's next big thing?
LONDON (Reuters) - GlaxoSmithKline Plc's head of biotech research is excited about a new generation of "slimline" antibody medicines that may be successors to current blockbusters such as Avastin and...
Gene mutation underlies some mad cow disease: study
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A rare genetic mutation may underlie some cases of mad cow disease in cattle and its discovery may help shed light on where the epidemic started, U.S....
When genetics gets personal
Just five years after the Human Genome Project announced it had decoded the first human DNA, the era of personal genetics is dawning, bringing with it not just the promise...
Sleep Apnea May Cause Erectile Dysfunction
Condition may persist, but mouse research shows drug restores oxygen, sexual functioning
Instant insight: Nature’s fruitful chemistry
Bernhard Kräutler and Thomas Müller explain why the changing colour of autumn leaves could be to our advantage
NIH funds chemical biology network
$280 million to find chemical probes for tracking cellular processes
Food Soil Stuck To Surfaces Can Hold Bacteria In Food Processing Factories
Tiny amounts of food soil stuck to surfaces can act as a reservoir for potentially pathogenic bacteria. This food may help bacteria to survive industrial cleaning regimes in food processing...
Eight organisms that make you go 'eww'
Mother Nature can be downright disturbing sometimes. From gut-spewing ocean dwellers to carcass-chomping creatures of the sky, here's a look at eight organisms that gross us out.
Feature: Research helps old bodies work smarter
Swinburne researchers are helping to address the challenges of an ageing population by designing new products and adapting existing ones to take into account the effects of ageing.
Whales Had Legs, Wiggled Hips, Study Says
A prehistoric whale had back legs, a tail like a dog's, and a hip-wiggling swimming style, says a study that may shed light on the origin of modern whales' wide,...
Recipes for Health: Gazpacho
Here’s what to do with that last bit of baguette, too hard to eat, and the last of this summer’s tomato crop.
Japan university gets patent for stem cell breakthrough
Japan has given Kyoto University a patent for groundbreaking stem cell research in what is believed to be a world first for such scientific research, officials said Friday.
Copper-bottomed Guarantee For Safe Shellfish In Restaurants
Putting brass where your money is could be a guarantee of safety according to researchers looking at the dangers of eating raw fish and shellfish in seafood restaurants, scientists report.
Friendly Invaders
New research suggests that exotic species, instead of causing extinctions, may actually aid diversity.
Any River Will Do for One Spawning Fish
The sea lamprey can’t go home again, and researchers think they know why.
Urology Field Slowly Altered, by Women
It turns out that the field of urology is undergoing a gender transformation.
Fruit Flies Feel Peer Pressure
Who the insects hang out with determines how they communicate--and mate
A Second Career for a Growth Factor Receptor: Keeping Nerve Axons on Target
Neurons constituting the optic nerve wire up to the brain in a highly dynamic way. Using the mouse visual system, a team of Salk Institute for Biological Studies investigators led...
PHOTO IN THE NEWS: Wild Okapi Caught on Film -- A First
The sun-dappled body of a mammal with a distinctive zebra-striped rump represents one of the first photographs of an elusive okapi in the wild, scientists report.
In Biodiversity, What You Do Matters More Than Who You Are
When it comes to biodiversity, the ecological roles filled by species matter more than the number of species in the system. A recent study of parasitic wasps and their aphid...
Natural Cures Pack Dangerous Chemicals
More than 20 percent of ayurvedic cures contained dangerous amounts of lead, arsenic and mercury.
Sounds of Sex
While mating, female Physocylus globosus spiders emit high-frequency squeaks to let males know what they should be doing. Credit: Universidad de Costa Rica, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute