Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Quack Medicines, Insect Immigrants, and What Eats What Revealed by DNA Barcodes
The newfound scientific power to quickly "fingerprint" species via DNA is being deployed to unmask quack herbal medicines, reveal types of ancient Arctic life frozen in permafrost, expose what eats...
Isolated reefs regenerate faster: study
A recent study published in CSIROs Marine & Freshwater Research reveals isolated reefs may have a better ability to regenerate compared to those closer to human activity.
Science Weekly podcast: Your beating heart
Vastly superior to any artificial mechanical pump, a human heart beats without pause for an entire human lifetime and is exquisitely tuned to the body's changing needs from moment to moment. In...
Protecting the red coral of the Catalan coastline, Spain
Poaching accounts for the loss of up to 60% red coral biomass in the Medes Islands Marine Reserve, according to a new article. The article reports the first study of...
Restaurants plan DNA-certified premium seafood
(AP) -- Restaurants around the world will soon use new DNA technology to assure patrons they are being served the genuine fish fillet or caviar they ordered, rather than...
Cancer Screening: Changing Hype To Hope
A problem began to come into existence a few decades ago and in the polarized climate enabled by instant access to partisan spin, it's only going to get worse.The problem...
What lurks beneath a scientist's lab coat?
A surprising number of scientists are sporting tattoos related to their trade. Carl Zimmer explores the stories behind the inkCarl Zimmer
Eminent scientists and their tattoos | Feature
From DNA to dinosaurs, scientists have a surprising and secret penchant for tattoos – of a particularly cerebral natureI happen to be friends with Professor Sandeep Robert Datta, a neurobiologist at Harvard Medical...
Traditional Farmland Provides Overwintering Habitat For Spanish Great Bustards
We humans may be tempted to think that one farm is like any other, but at least one species of bird--the great bustard, Otis tarda--shows clear preferences for some agricultural...
Power lines a major risk for migratory birds
When flamingos, storks, pelicans and other migratory birds undertake their long seasonal flights, they risk their lives winging their way through the endless power grids that cover the world.
Video: Video: 8th grader's bat study helps scientists
An eighth grade scientist is conducting ground-breaking research on bat disease for Bucknell University. WVIT's Brad Drazen reports. (NBC News)
Small forest with big impact: Fragmented rainforests maintain their ecological functionality
Rainforests that are subject to use by the human population and are divided into forest fragments can maintain their ecological functionality.
Rare species make home in Broads
A quarter of the UK's rarest plants and animals are found in the Norfolk and Suffolk Broads, according to a survey.
Endangered baby gorilla born at Chicago zoo dies
(AP) -- A preliminary exam shows that an endangered baby gorilla born nine days ago at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo died of head trauma.
St Maarten finds local lionfish tainted with toxin
(AP) -- Conservationists in St. Maarten are warning islanders not to eat lionfish after tests found a naturally occurring toxin in the flesh of the candy-striped invasive species, officials...
War-torn Colombian valley now produces butterflies
A mother-daughter team's butterfly raising and exporting business provides jobs to disadvantaged women and brings a new spirit to a long-suffering land.Not long ago, Olga Lucia Salazar was breaking chicken...
Sickle cell anemia as malaria defense
Researchers get a glimpse into how mutated hemoglobin genes defend their cells against attack by a malaria parasite.Sickle cell anemia causes pain, fatigue and delayed growth, all because of a...
Worms Can Evolve to Survive Intersex Populations
Experimental evolution reveals a possible intermediate stage in the evolution of sex determination.
The shark, a predator turned prey
Sharks may strike terror among swimmers at the beach but the predators are increasingly ending up as prey, served up in fish-and-chips shops, sparking concern among environmentalists.
Sudden stress shifts human brain into survival mode
(Medical Xpress) -- In threatening situations, the brain adapts within seconds to prepare for an appropriate response. Some regions are temporarily suppressed. Others become more active and form temporarily alliances...
Fishing-related Species Declines Impact Provisioning Of Ecosystem Services
As more and more studies find that human disturbance impacts some species more than others, ecologists are shifting their focus to the next logical research question: What is the consequence...
Conducting how neurons fire
Contrary to expectations that the neurotransmitter GABA only inhibited neuronal firing in the adult brain, RIKEN-led research has shown that it can also excite interneurons in the hippocampus of the...
Researchers decode a puzzling movement disorder
Neurodegenerative diseases represent one of the greatest challenges of our aging society. However, investigation into these diseases is made particularly difficult due to the limited availability of human brain tissue....
Dantrolene protects neurons from Huntington's disease
Huntington's disease (HD) is characterized by ongoing destruction of specific neurons within the brain. It affects a person's ability to walk, talk, and think - leading to involuntary movement and...
The ABCC9 of sleep: A genetic factor regulates how long we sleep
Researchers have shown that ABCC9, a known genetic factor in heart disease and diabetes, also influences the duration of sleep in humans. This function is evolutionarily conserved as knock-out of...
How crabs avoid getting eaten
Crabs quickly learn to distinguish if an approaching creature is a friend or foe according to its direction of approach, new research shows.
Super-resolution microscope coming to a lab near you
Max Planck Society to commercialize latest breakthrough
Spiders, webs and insects: A new perspective on evolutionary history
The orb web, typical of a large number of spider species, has a single evolutionary origin, according to molecular phylogenetic research. The study presents the hypothesis that the diversification of...