Latest science news in Biology & Nature
7 Condors Poisoned by Lead; One Dies
The birds started turning up sick about a month ago during random trappings at Bitter Creek National Wildlife Refuge in Southern California.
Mexico to track sharks through sonar
ACAPULCO, Mexico (AP) -- A scientist says experts will use sonar to track sharks off Mexico's Pacific Coast in the hopes of preventing new attacks on humans....
Bacteria could stop frog killer
Bacteria may hold the key to halting the fungal disease which is devastating amphibian populations around the world.
Gene shows potential as imaging tool
ATLANTA, June 5 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say mammalian cells can produce tiny magnetic particles after introduction of a bacterial gene, providing a possible new imaging tool.
Scientists find human virus in chimpanzees
BLACKSBURG, Va., June 5 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say they have found evidence chimpanzees are becoming sick from viral infections they likely contract from humans.
Gene called DLC1 is tumor suppressor
COLD SPRING HARBOR, N.Y., June 5 (UPI) -- U.S. medical scientists searching for cancer-causing genes say they've discovered a gene called DLC1 is actually a tumor suppressor.
Bacteria found in 120,000-year-old ice
STATE COLLEGE, Pa., June 5 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists report discovering a tiny species of bacteria that has survived for more than 120,000 years within a Greenland glacier.
New neurons found in mammalian brain
TURIN, Italy, June 5 (UPI) -- Italian scientists say they have, for the first time, discovered evidence of neurogenesis, the creation of new neurons, in the cerebellum of...
Synthetic molecules hold promise for new family of anti-cancer drugs
Synthetic molecules designed by two Hebrew University of Jerusalem researchers have succeeded in reducing and even eliminating the growth of human malignant tissues in mice, while having no toxic effects...
Arthritis Hope: Engineers Use High Pressure To Stimulate Growth Of New Cartilage
Bioengineers have discovered that intense pressure -- similar to what someone would experience more than a half-mile beneath the ocean's surface -- stimulates cartilage cells to grow new tissue with...
New Zealand Bird Outwits Alien Predators
New research which found that the New Zealand bellbird is capable of changing its nesting behavior to protect itself from predators, could be good news for island birds around the...
Memory In Honeybees: What The Right And Left Antenna Tell The Left And Right Brain
The idea that all vertebrate species, even nonhuman ones without any linguistic skills, have an asymmetric brain seems to be finally accepted. Now brain lateralization has been extended beyond the...
Transgenic Plants Don't Hurt Beneficial Bugs, Entomologists Find
Genetically modified (GM) plants that use Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis), a common soil bacterium, to kill pests won't harm the pests' natural enemies, according to new research by Cornell entomologists. That...
Bats Eat Dirt to Stay Healthy
The odd habit of eating dirt may help bats fight off poisons, new research suggests.
I'm with stupid: dumber flies live longer, study shows
It doesn't pay to be smart and ignorance really is bliss if you want a long life -- at least if you're a fly, according to new research by a...
Makeup Turns Birds From Scrubs To Studs
A little strategically placed makeup quickly turns the wimpiest of male barn swallows into chick magnets, amping up their testosterone and even trimming their weight, new research shows.
Parasitoid turns its host into a bodyguard
There are many examples of parasites that induce spectacular changes in the behaviour of their host. Flukes, for example, are thought to induce ants, their intermediate host, to move up...
Makah tribe seeks U.S. whaling rights
SEATTLE, June 4 (UPI) -- U.S. officials say the Makah Indian Tribe is seeking federal permission to continue limited hunting of eastern North Pacific gray whales.
Microsurgery on the brain of the fruit fly leads to new insights into irreparable nerve injuries
Every year, one million Europeans are confronted with potentially irreparable brain or spinal cord injuries resulting from traffic accidents. Because the nerves in a damaged spinal cord cannot, or cannot...
Bees translate dances of foreign species
Honeybees can communicate with others from far-off continents by learning to interpret their moves
Fruit Fly Helps Identify Protein Critical To Eggshell Formation That May Be Pesticide Target
The common fruit fly circling your week-old peach has helped scientists zero in on a protein critical to the insect's eggshell formation. The paradoxical finding gives scientists a better understanding...
Researchers Discover Natural Inflammation-fighting Mechanism In Body-fat Cells
Researchers have shown for the first time that fat-storing cells, or adipocytes, contain a protective anti-inflammatory immune mechanism that prevents the cells from over-reacting to inflammation-causing stimuli, such as fatty...
How Defects In One Gene Causes Three Devestating Diseases; Risk For Cancer, Early Aging
The protein XPD is one component of an essential repair mechanism that maintains the integrity of DNA. Pinpoint mutations of this single protein are responsible for three different human diseases...
Thinness Vs. Obesity Not Directly Linked To Eating Habits, Study Suggests
Whether you are fat or thin isn't directly determined by your eating habits, suggest researchers who report new findings made in worms. While both feeding and fat in worms depends...
Flow of potassium ions in brain cells is key to sexual arousal
When it comes to sex, a female rat knows how to avoid a communication breakdown. To announce her sexual readiness, she will automatically arch her back, deflect her tail and...
Possible New Approach To Purifying Drinking Water
A genetic tool used by medical researchers may also be used in a novel approach to remove harmful microbes and viruses from drinking water. In a series of proof-of-concept experiments,...
N.B. will be abuzz with mosquitoes this summer, says expert
New Brunswickers should invest in bug spray this summer, according to an expert on pest control.
Great White Lies About Great White Sharks
In the water, fear the jellyfish. On land, watch for those bees. They are far deadlier than sharks.