Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Publication of the first global macrogenetic map of marine habitat-forming species
Species known as marine habitat-forming species —gorgonians, corals, algae, seaweeds, marine phanerogams, etc.— are organisms that help generate and structure the underwater landscapes. These are natural refuges for other species,...
Large-scale long terminal repeat insertions found to produce a significant set of novel transcripts in cotton
TEs (transposable elements), especially LTRs, are known to play an important role in determining the basic genome structure and influencing the expression of functional genes. Insertion of TE or LTR...
The first global macrogenetic map of marine habitat-forming species
Species known as marine habitat-forming species --gorgonians, corals, algae, seaweeds, marine phanerogams, etc.-- are organisms that help generate and structure the underwater landscapes.
These spiny mice have a highly unusual feature among living mammals: tails armored with bony plates
Spiny mice in the genus Acomys look much like more familiar house mice in the genus Mus, although their coats do have stiff guard hairs that give them their name.
Researchers introduce valuable traits in plants without creating transgenic plants
Academic researchers and companies in the agricultural biotechnology sector will be able to use a patent-pending Purdue University biology innovation to introduce valuable traits to plants without integrating novel DNA...
Increasing heat likely a major factor in human migration
Rising temperatures due to climate change are likely influencing human migration patterns, according to a new study by Rita Issa of University College London and colleagues, published May 24 in...
'Brain-eating' amoeba ruled out in 'cluster of illnesses' in Oklahoma. What could the cause be?
Oklahoma's state health department is investigating reports of suspected meningitis in people who swam in local lakes and rivers. The cause remains unknown, but a dangerous brain-eating amoeba has been...
U.S. gives nearly $524 million in drought aid to Horn of Africa
U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield Wednesday announced nearly $524 million in drought aid for the Horn of Africa.
Heat-stressed fish embryos can induce stress in nearby embryos
Heat-stressed fish embryos release chemical signals that change the appearance, behavior, and development of fish embryos that were not heat stressed, according to a study. Stress during development can change...
Endangered chimpanzees contaminated with pesticides and flame retardants
Wild chimpanzees are being exposed to a cocktail of harmful chemicals.
Precisely measuring the differing filamentary cytoskeletal characteristics of mobile and stationary cells
Most biological cells have a fixed place in an organism. However, cells can become mobile and move through the body. This happens, for example, during wound healing or when tumor...
African spiny mouse joins a small but mighty group of bony plated mammals
Spiny mice can regenerate skin, muscle, nerves, spinal cord, and possibly cardiac tissue. Deposit Photos The armadillo is beloved for its ability to scrunch itself up in a ball with their protective flexible...
Where do our limbs come from? Study uncovers new clues about the origin of paired appendages
An international collaboration that includes scientists from the University of Colorado School of Medicine has uncovered new clues about the origin of paired appendages—a major evolutionary step that remains unresolved...
Some mice tails are secretly reinforced with bony scales, just like dinosaurs
CT scans revealed a layer of bony scales, or osteoderms, hidden beneath the skin of the tails in spiny mice.
The world's worst animal disease is killing frogs worldwide—a testing breakthrough could help save them
For the past 40 years, a devastating fungal disease has been ravaging frog populations around the world, wiping out 90 species. Unlike the global COVID-19 pandemic, you may not even...
New production process for therapeutic nanovesicles
Particles known as extracellular vesicles play a vital role in communication between cells and in many cell functions. Released by cells into their environment, these "membrane particles" consist of a...
DNA facilitates escape from metastability in self-assembling systems
Prof. Liang Haojun from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) proposed a new catalytic assembly approach to escape from metastable...
Decades-old question surrounding the start of the tree of life could finally be solved
Scientists use a novel application of chromosomal analysis to finally answer a question that has challenged biologists for over a century.
Miami zoo's meet-a-kiwi scheme ruffles feathers in New Zealand
New Zealand's prime minister on Wednesday joined a chorus of Kiwis complaining about the treatment of their national bird by a Miami zoo.
Scientists from the Global South innovate to track ongoing amphibian pandemic
The Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Center at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) in Panama partnered with the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology in India to develop and...
Short-chain Fatty Acids Reduce Inflammation in the Lungs of Older Mice
The gut microbial community structure--communities of bacteria, viruses and fungi that live in the intestines--influences the inflammatory response in the lungs of aging mice, according to researchers from the Institute...
Engineers create bacteria that can synthesize an unnatural amino acid
University of Delaware researchers in the lab of Aditya Kunjapur, assistant professor in the College of Engineering's Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, have engineered bacteria to synthesize an amino...
Watch a great white shark devour a seal off the coast of Cape Cod, shocking nearby whale watchers
A video that captures a shark attacking a gray seal is going viral and marks the first great white shark sighting of the season in Cape Cod.
Engineers create bacteria that can synthesize an unnatural amino acid
In a study recently published in Nature Chemical Biology, researchers focused on para-nitro-L-phenylalanine (pN-Phe), a non-standard amino acid that is neither one of the twenty standard amino acids nor observed...
Long-term study shows tree species diversity increases likelihood of planting success
Planting forests with diverse species can help ensure their success, according to a new study published May 18 from the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) and The Nature Conservancy. The...
How the body changes in space — usually, for the worse
From causing muscle loss to raising the risk of blood clots, long-haul space missions can have a profound impact on the human body.
Look: Two foxes rescued from 10-foot deep concrete window well
Animal rescuers in California said a pair of gray foxes were returned to the wild after being found trapped in a 10-foot deep concrete window well.
New study challenges age-old conjecture that bilaterally symmetrical flowers increase pollination accuracy by animals
In nature, flowers may share morphological features, even across distantly related species. Bilateral symmetry is one such feature found in flowers of various taxa, such as orchids and legumes. Animals...