Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Study: Some sharks have stereo rear vision
BOCA RATON, Fla., Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Florida Atlantic University researchers say they have determined the wide heads of hammerhead sharks give the animal exceptional stereo vision.
Scientists find clue to mystery of biological clock
How does our biological system know that it is supposed to operate on a 24-hour cycle? Scientists at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have discovered that a tiny molecule holds...
Catalina Island rattlesnake may be a new subspecies
DNA studies aim to find if the venomous reptiles are distinct from the rattlers found around Southern California. ...
Control of mosquito vectors of malaria may be enhanced by a new method of biocontrol
Biopesticides containing a fungus that is pathogenic to mosquitoes may be an effective means of reducing malaria transmission, particularly if used in combination with insecticide-treated bednets, according to a modeling...
Ecologists sound out new solution for monitoring cryptic species
Ecologists have worked out a way of using recordings of birdsong to accurately measure the size of bird populations. This is the first time sound recordings from a microphone array...
RNA network seen in live bacterial cells for first time
New technology has given scientists the first look ever at RNA in a live bacteria cell -- a sight that could offer new information about how the molecule moves and...
Fruit fly sperm makes females do housework after sex
The sperm of male fruit flies are coated with a chemical 'sex peptide' which inhibits the female's usual afternoon siesta and compels her into an intense period of foraging activity.
Science Briefing
Cellphones linked to unsafe walking / Surprising diversity in deep seas / Algae threatens Klamath fish / 'Covert' coping may hurt the heart / ECMO machine helps some flu patients...
What a grind: Bruxism at night likely a sign of stress by day
You can practically track Steve Barkley's stress by the level of activity in his temporomandibular joint, or TMJ, the hinge joint that connects the lower jaw to the temporal bone...
A forensic study of human death through the life of insects
A Cleveland entomologist is studying insects collected from the bodies found in Anthony Sowell's duplex. 'I follow where the bugs lead me. Their lives tell a story about death.' ...
Ecological speciation by sexual selection on good genes
Darwin suggested that the action of natural selection can produce new species, but 150 years after the publication of "On the Origin of Species" debate continues on the mechanisms of...
How plants and bacteria 'talk' to thwart disease
Unwrapping some of the mystery from how plants and bacteria communicate to trigger an innate immune response, scientists have identified the bacterial signaling molecule that matches up with a specific...
Ser62 – Another piece of the puzzle…
The molecular functions of Folliculin (FLCN) are poorly understood, but indirect interactions between FLCN and AMPK (of the mTOR signaling network) mediated by FNIP1 and FNIP2 have been firmly established...
Golden Oldie: Key Role for Ancient Protein in Algae Photosynthesis
The discovery that an ancient light harvesting protein plays a pivotal role in the photosynthesis of green algae should help the effort to develop algae as a biofuels feedstock. Researchers...
Knockouts in human cells point to pathogenic targets
Researchers have developed a new approach for genetics in human cells and used this technique to identify specific genes and proteins required for pathogens. With the ability to generate knockout...
Pregnant pipefish dads cannibalize young
Male pipefish not only carry fertilized eggs - like their relatives seahorses; they also absorb nutrients from them, essentially cannibalizing their offspring.
Uruguay to set up its first science academy
The Uruguayan government has approved the establishment of a National Academy of Sciences, and the first 15 members will be selected by other academies in the region.
Nuclear science to fight sleeping sickness
The International Atomic Energy Agency on Friday announced an agreement to help African nations battle the tsetse fly, the main carrier of parasites that causes sleeping sickness with its bites.
MS 'blood blockage theory' tested
US scientists are testing a radical new theory that MS is caused by blockages in the veins that drain the brain.
RNA on the move
In the fruit fly Drosophila, oskar mRNA, which is involved in defining the animal's body axes, is produced in the nuclei of nurse cells neighbouring the oocyte, and must be...
First-ever blueprint of a minimal cell is more complex than expected
What are the bare essentials of life, the indispensable ingredients required to produce a cell that can survive on its own? Can we describe the molecular anatomy of a cell,...
New discovery may lead to heartier, high-yielding plants
Scientists have shown how a family of genes (1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate synthase, or ACS genes), in the weed Arabidopsis thaliana, are responsible for production of ethylene. This gas affects many aspects of...
Coma recovery case attracts doubters
(AP) -- Rom Houben's mother remembers her son's amazement when he finally started communicating again after spending 23 years locked in a paralyzed body that was misdiagnosed as vegetative.
S.Leone elephants 'wiped out' by poachers: official
Poachers "wiped out" the entire elephant herd in Sierra Leone's only wildlife park, wildlife managers said Thursday after police said they had arrested a gang of 10 poachers.
New Switchgrass Germplasm Collected in Florida
(PhysOrg.com) -- Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists and cooperators have collected 46 new populations of switchgrass in Florida, adding valuable new accessions to the germplasm collection of this potential bioenergy...
BLUE BANANA PICTURE: Glowing Spots Reveal How Cells Die
Seen under ultraviolet light, a ripening banana's brown spots are each ringed by an eerie blue glow created by dying cells, offering researchers a new way to study how plants...
Whiteflies sabotage alarm system of plant in distress
(PhysOrg.com) -- When spider mites attack a bean plant, the plant responds by producing odours which attract predatory mites. These predatory mites then exterminate the spider mite population, thus acting...
Australian territory to cull 6,000 wild camels
Australian authorities plan to corral about 6,000 wild camels with helicopters and gun them down after they overran a small Outback town in search of water, trampling fences, smashing tanks...