Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Climate change could make toxic algal blooms in our oceans more deadly
Late spring and early summer in California bring thousands of marine mammals to the state's beaches, as groups of California sea lions, elephant seals and harbor seals give birth along...
A short segment of a prion protein plays a critical role in its susceptibility to cross-species prion transmission
A short segment of an infectious protein known as a prion protein plays a crucial role in determining how susceptible the protein is to interspecies prion transmission, RIKEN researchers have...
These ultra-black fish camouflage with the darkness of the deep sea
The ultra-black Pacific black dragon (Idiacanthus antrostomus), the second-blackest fish studied by the research team. (Karen Osborn, Smithsonian/)When we think of deep ocean creatures adapting to the dark, bioluminescent jellyfish or the glowy...
Sperm discovery reveals clue to genetic 'immortality'
New insights into an elusive process that protects developing sperm cells from damage in growing embryos, sheds light on how genetic information passes down, uninterrupted, through generations.
Using neural-network soundscapes to protect natural environments
A team of researchers from Imperial College London, the University of Sydney and Cornel University has found that it is possible to create a soundscape from noises in the natural...
Hummingbirds can count to find favourite flowers, even with brains 7,000 times smaller than humans
How can hummingbirds find their preferred flowers? By counting, say researchers. Andrew Hurly, a professor emeritus in biology at the University of Lethbridge, is one of the co-authors of a...
Scientists discover new species of sponge on deep-sea reefs off B.C.'s coast
The new species — called Desmacella hyalina — was discovered using an underwater robot that travelled along the ocean floor, surveying reefs and collecting samples.
Scientists uncover first atomic structure of Epstein-Bar virus nucleocapsid
A team of Chinese scientists, led by Prof. Yu Xuekui from the Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica (SIMM) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and Prof. Zeng Musheng from...
Teazer is here! 295-kg shark being tracked off eastern P.E.I.
A 295 kilogram, 3.27 metre-long great white shark named Teazer was tracked off the coast of P.E.I. Wednesday evening.
Shark pulls 10-year-old from fishing boat in Australia
A shark "grabbed" a 10-year-old boy from a fishing boat off Australia on Friday but swam off after his father jumped in to save him, officials said.
Megaphages harbor mini-Cas proteins ideal for gene editing
The DNA-cutting proteins central to CRISPR-Cas9 and related gene-editing tools originally came from bacteria, but a newfound variety of Cas proteins apparently evolved in viruses that infect bacteria.
Pine beetles successful no matter how far they roam—with devastating effects
Whether they travel only a few metres or tens of kilometres to a new host tree, female pine beetles use different strategies to find success—with major negative consequences for pine...
Megaphages harbor mini-Cas proteins ideal for gene editing
Cas proteins like CRISPR-Cas9 have great potential for gene therapy to treat human disease and for altering crop genes, but the gene-targeting and gene-cutting Cas proteins are often large and...
Memorial Tournament: Tony Finau leads by one shot, Tiger Woods in the hunt
Tony Finau finished with seven birdies over his final 10 holes in Thursday's opening round of the Memorial Tournament to grab a one-shot lead at Muirfield Village Golf Course in Dublin,...
Scientists shed light on how the blackest fish in the sea 'disappear'
Experts have shed light on the mystery of how the blackest fish in the deep sea are camouflaged.
Watch: Missing dog rescued from drain pipe on university campus
Firefighters in California came to the rescue of a dog found trapped in a drain pipe on the University of California Santa Barbara campus.
Pioneering method reveals dynamic structure in HIV
Viruses are scary. They invade our cells like invisible armies, and each type brings its own strategy of attack. While viruses devastate communities of humans and animals, scientists scramble to...
Scientists fear for the world's most endangered sea turtle as the Park Service cuts back
Every summer, thousands of people travel to Padre Island National Seashore at dawn to cheer on sea turtle hatchlings as they are released into the surf.
New study sheds light on how nutrient-starved cells recycle internal components
The idea of the cell as a city is a common introduction to biology, conjuring depictions of the cell's organelles as power plants, factories, roads, libraries, warehouses and more. Like...
'Proofreading' proteins stop and reel in DNA to correct replication errors
On the DNA assembly line, two proofreading proteins work together as an emergency stop button to prevent replication errors. New research from North Carolina State University and the University of...
Researchers discover 2 paths of aging and new insights on promoting healthspan
Molecular biologists and bioengineers at the University of California San Diego have unraveled key mechanisms behind the mysteries of aging. They isolated two distinct paths that cells travel during aging...
Two paths of aging: New insights on promoting healthspan
Scientists have unraveled key mechanisms behind the mysteries of aging. They isolated two distinct paths that cells travel during aging and engineered a new way to genetically program these processes...
A GoPro for beetles: Researchers create a robotic camera backpack for insects
Researchers have developed a tiny camera that can ride aboard an insect or an insect-sized robot.
A UC Riverside researcher may have discovered a way to save our citrus trees
A researcher at UC Riverside has found a naturally occurring protein molecule that appears to "cure" huanglongbing (HLB), otherwise known as citrus greening disease, which has devastated Florida's citrus...
Ultrasound imaging for biochemistry
Noninvasive technique allows scientists to visualize biomolecular processes in tissues
Fish reef domes a boon for environment, recreational fishing
Humanmade reefs can be used in conjunction with the restoration or protection of natural habitat to increase fish abundance in estuaries, researchers have found.
When many act as one, data-driven models can reveal key behaviors
Researchers have shown that data science approaches can reveal subtle clues about the origins of such collective behaviors as aggregation of bacteria.
Look: Entangled owl rescued from soccer net in Ohio
An animal control officer in Ohio came to the rescue of an owl that apparently flew into a soccer net and became entangled.