Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Aquatic Insect 'Family Trees' Provide Clues About Sensitivity To Pollution
A new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that examining an insect's "family tree" might help predict a "cousin" insect's level of tolerance to pollutants,...
Project Succeeding To Relocate Caspian Terns
A major initiative to create alternative nesting sites for the largest colony of Caspian terns in the world -- and to help protect juvenile salmon and steelhead in the Columbia...
VIDEO: "Mutant" Mosquitoes Created
U.K. scientists are genetically modifying mosquitoes to be resistant to malaria, which kills millions annually. But some experts fear these supermosquitoes would upset the ecosystem.
Developing Unique Brain Maps To Assist Surgery And Research
Researchers are developing new technology to create individualized brain maps that will revolutionize diagnosis of disease and enhance the accuracy of brain surgery.
Researchers Witness Assembly Of Molecules Critical To Protein Function
Iron-sulfur clusters are critical to life on earth. They are necessary for protein function in cellular processes, such as respiration in humans and other organisms and photosynthesis by plants. A...
Immune Molecule That Plays A Powerful Role In Avoiding Organ Rejection Identified
When a mouse's immune system is deciding whether to reject a skin graft, one powerful member of a molecular family designed to provoke such a response can effectively reduce the...
Molecular pathway may hike lung stem cells
PHILADELPHIA, June 19 (UPI) -- A U.S. study shows the activation of a molecular pathway important in stem cell and developmental biology leads to an increase in lung...
Chimps Help Each Other Cope
Chimpanzees and humans share many similarities, which isn't surprising considering they're our closest living relatives. A new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences this week has...
The APCs Of Nerve Cell Function
Best known for its role in colorectal cancer, the protein adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) has recently been found to play an essential role in the nervous system. This new study...
Marine Biologists Investigate Aliens Beneath The Waves
Marine biologists are appealing for help from the public in looking at ways to detect and stop the spread of marine aliens.
Test Of Bacteria Toxin Delivery System Could Pave Way For New Antibiotic Drugs
Researchers have achieved a breakthrough in monitoring the toxin-delivery system of highly pathogenic bacteria -- an accomplishment that could help pave the way for new drugs that will be capable...
Study: Olfactory bulb size may change
DRESDEN, Germany, June 18 (UPI) -- German scientists say they've found the brain's olfactory bulb appears to change in size in a way that corresponds to changes in...
Flies Found To Have Internal Thermosensors To Monitor Environmental Temperatures
Flies, unlike humans, can't manipulate the temperature of their surroundings so they need to pick the best spot for flourishing. New research in Nature reveals that they have internal thermosensors...
Africa should invest in GMOs for small farmers
Africa needs a Green Revolution, including local research into genetically engineered crops for small farmers, says Robert Paarlberg.
New molecule helps nerve stem cells mature
DALLAS, June 17 (UPI) -- U.S. medical scientists say they have created a small molecule that stimulates nerve stem cells to begin maturing into nerve cells in culture.
Bee Species Outnumber Mammals And Birds Combined
Scientists have discovered that there are more bee species than previously thought. In the first global accounting of bee species in over a hundred years, scientists at the Division of...
From Canada To The Caribbean: Tree Leaves Control Their Own Temperature, Study Reveals
The temperature inside a healthy, photosynthesizing tree leaf, about 21 degrees C, is affected less by outside environmental temperature than originally believed, according to new research from biologists at the...
Possible Link Between Different Forms Of Epilepsy Discovered
Carnegie Mellon neuroscientists have identified what may be the first known common denominator underlying inherited and sporadic epilepsy -- a disruption in an ion channel called the BK channel. Although...
Michigan Tech Scientist Models Molecular Switch
Ranjit Pati and his team have developed a model to explain the mechanism behind computing's elusive Holy Grail, the single molecular switch.
Salamander crossing to provide squish-free passage
Four miniature tunnels have been built in a national park south of Calgary to save hundreds of migrating salamanders from being squashed to death by traffic.
A-maizing: Asia's drought-resistant maize varieties
The first drought-tolerant maize varieties developed by the Asian Maize Network, established to tackle poor harvests, are showing promise.
Natural plant materials to regulate starch digestion
Researchers in Switzerland are reporting discovery of natural plant materials that may regulate starch digestion — slowing down the body's conversion of potatoes, rice, and other carbohydrate-rich foods into sugar....
The APCs of nerve cell function
Rapid information processing in the nervous system requires synapses, specialized contact sites between nerve cells and their targets. One particular synapse type, cholinergic, uses the chemical transmitter acetylcholine to communicate...
Endangered Parrot's New Fight: Cancer
Elvis, one of the last survivors of an endangered species of thick-billed parrots, is undergoing radiation at a Texas hospital to cure a malignant melanoma on his beak.
Coffee's aroma kick-starts genes in the brain
Drink coffee to send a wake-up call to the brain? Or just smell its rich, warm aroma? An international group of scientists is reporting some of the first evidence that...
Protecting The Wild Cousin Of Llama, The Guanacos, In Chile
The Wildlife Conservation Society has launched a study in Chile's Karukinka reserve on Tierra del Fuego to help protect the guanaco -- a wild cousin of the llama that once...
Deadly frog disease under watch
A disease that has lead to the extinction of 200 frog species worldwide is now being carefully monitored, as a result of Australian research.
New hope for mystery cancers
A study has revealed that cancer diagnosed without an organ of origin may be a specific type of tumour, and survival rates could be better than thought.