Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Zoologists call for beach closures to reduce impact on wildlife
University of Otago zoologists are calling for seasonal beach closures to be considered at sites where increasing numbers of visitors are likely to have detrimental impacts on wildlife.
Genome sequencing reveals potential endangered mechanisms of alpine herb in China
Kingdonia uniflora Balf. f. and W.W. Sm. (Circaeasteraceae, Ranunculales), an alpine herb, has a very narrow distribution in the world and is listed as an endangered species in China. The...
Researchers find colder temperatures barely slow down striking rattlers.
In nature, how quickly a creature moves can mean the difference between life and death. Venomous rattlesnakes defend themselves by uncoiling and striking out when faced with predators or prey.
The post-COVID workplace: Expert weighs in on whether employees will be safe
After nearly four months of a coronavirus-compelled shutdown, many workers across the U.S. are being asked to return to offices and shop floors. The kind of workplace they'll be returning...
Researchers accidentally breed sturddlefish
A team of researchers working at Hungary's National Agricultural Research and Innovation Centre, Research Institute for Fisheries and Aquaculture, has accidentally bred a new kind of fish—dubbed the sturddlefish by...
Flexible ethylene sensor indicates when kiwi fruit is ripe
The sensor's easy-to-see color change could help growers and consumers monitor ripening fruit
Unparalleled inventory of the human gut ecosystem
An international team of scientists has collated all known bacterial genomes from the human gut microbiome into a single large database, allowing researchers to explore the links between bacterial genes...
Bushfires could mean rise in threatened native species
The damage caused by the catastrophic 2019-2020 Australian bushfires could lead to a dramatic jump in the number of native species at risk, according to new research.
A new directed evolution technique to unlock the potential of xeno-nucleic acids
As well as being required for some of the core techniques of molecular biology, reverse transcriptase (RT) enzymes have played a key role in synthetic genetics by enabling synthesis, replication,...
Restoration of the critically endangered seabird
The global population of the critically endangered Chinese crested tern has more than doubled thanks to a historic, decade-long collaboration among Oregon State University researchers and scientists and conservationists in...
Label-free imaging helps predict reproductive outcomes
Researchers at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology and the Department of Animal Sciences have collaborated to develop a new technique that can be used to determine the...
Everything you ever wanted to know about leech sex but were afraid to ask
Today, we pull the veil back on the secret sex lives of leeches and how researchers at McMaster University and Fisheries and Oceans Canada are using that information to learn...
If it's big enough and leafy enough the birds will come
A new study from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology highlights specific features of urban green spaces that support the greatest diversity of bird species. The findings were published today in...
A mechanical way to stimulate neurons
Magnetic nanodiscs can be activated by an external magnetic field, providing a research tool for studying neural responses.
MRI scans of the brains of 130 mammals, including humans, indicate equal connectivity
Researchers conducted a first-of-its-kind study designed to investigate brain connectivity in 130 mammalian species. The intriguing results, contradicting widespread conjectures, revealed that brain connectivity levels are equal in all mammals,...
European sea bass absorb virtually no microplastic in their muscle tissue
Researchers gave young European see bass feed laced with microplastic for months, but found virtually no microplastic particles in the fish fillets.
أساليب غير مسبوقة لتعقيم كمامات الوجه (N95) اتبعتها المشافي خلال جائحة فيروس الكورونا
مع نقص إمدادات مستلزمات الوقاية الطبية لجأت مرافق الرعاية الصحية لتعقيم وإعادة استخدام مستلزمات مُصممة للإستخدام و الرمي مباشرة
Specialized cellular compartments discovered in bacteria
Researchers have discovered bacterial organelles involved in gene expression, suggesting that bacteria may not be as simple as once thought. This finding could offer new targets for the development of...
How smart, ultrathin nanosheets go fishing for proteins
An interdisciplinary team has developed a kind of bait with which to fish protein complexes out of mixtures.
The hair-raising reason for goosebumps
Researchers have discovered that the cells that cause goosebumps are also important for regulating the stem cells that regenerate hair. In the skin, the muscle that contracts to create goosebumps...
COVID-19 replicating RNA vaccine has robust response in nonhuman primates
A replicating RNA vaccine, formulated with a lipid-based nanoparticle emulsion, produces antibodies against the COVID-19 coronavirus in mice and primates with a single immunization. These antibodies potently neutralize the virus...
Ultracold mystery: Solved
Last December, researchers designed technology that could achieve the lowest temperature chemical reactions and then broke and formed the coldest bonds in the history of molecular coupling. Now, though reactions...
Mutant zebrafish reveals a turning point in spine's evolution
A chance mutation that led to spinal defects in a zebrafish has opened a little window into our own fishy past. The single-letter mutation showed that both the ancient and...
'Grim work': Climate-change clock ticking on world's polar bears
The climate-change clock is ticking on the world's polar bears and a group of Canadian and U.S. scientists say they've determined when that time will run out.
Coronavirus-infected cells sprout filaments that may spread the virus
Like a scene out of a sci-fi movie, cells invaded by the coronavirus can sprout probing appendages bedecked with viral bits. Human cells infected with SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, formed more...
Advanced Cryo-EM reveals viral RNA replication complex structure in stunning detail
For the first time, scientists at the Morgridge Institute for Research have generated near atomic resolution images of a major viral protein complex responsible for replicating the RNA genome of...
The hair-raising reason for goosebumps is revealed
If you’ve ever wondered why we get goosebumps, you’re in good company — so did Charles Darwin, who mused about them in his writings on evolution. Goosebumps might protect animals with thick fur...