Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Proteins By Design: Biochemists Create New Protein From Scratch
Using design and engineering principles learned from nature, a team of biochemists have built -- from scratch -- a completely new type of protein. This protein can transport oxygen, akin...
Astrocytes distinguish man from mouse
ROCHESTER, N.Y., March 26 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers say they've discovered brain cells called astrocytes are what distinguish the human brain from that of other animals.
Scientists find potential way to create safer stem cells from skin
There may be a safe way to turn human skin cells into stem cells with the potential to be steered toward the body's repair system, scientists said Thursday.
Antibiotic thiostrepton genes identified
ATLANTA, March 26 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say they've identified the genetic machinery responsible for synthesizing thiostrepton, a powerful antibiotic produced by certain bacteria.
DNA Duplication: A Mechanism For 'Survival Of The Fittest'
Scientists have discovered that DNA duplications have given plants an evolutionary advantage. This mechanism enabled plants -- in contrast to the dinosaurs -- to survive the Cretaceous-Tertiary mass extinction of...
Scientists find tiny genetic change keeps nicotine from binding to muscle cells
A tiny genetic mutation is the key to understanding why nicotine - which binds to brain receptors with such addictive potency - is virtually powerless in muscle cells that are...
Social Isolation Makes Strokes More Deadly, Study Finds
New research in mice suggests that social isolation may promote more damaging inflammation in the brain during a stroke. Researchers found that all the male mice that lived with a...
Single embryo transfer is the cheapest and most effective strategy for assisted reproduction
Transferring single embryos to women's wombs over several assisted reproduction cycles that use both fresh and frozen embryos is more effective and cheaper than transferring two or more embryos at...
To Fight Drug Addiction, Researchers Target The Brain With Nanoparticles
A precise, new nanotechnology treatment for drug addiction may be on the horizon. Scientists have developed a stable nanoparticle that delivers short RNA molecules in the brain to "silence" or...
Evolution Of Fins And Limbs Linked With That Of Gills
The genetic toolkit animals use to build fins and limbs is the same one that controls the development of part of the gill skeleton in sharks. Also, the skeleton of...
Genomic variations in African-American and white populations
Deletions, duplications or rearrangements of genomic regions in the human genomes produce differences in gene copy numbers, referred to as copy number variations (CNV). Those variations account for a substantial...
Starve a yeast, sweeten its lifespan
Johns Hopkins researchers have discovered a new energy-making biochemical twist in determining the lifespan of yeast cells, one so valuable to longevity that it is likely to also functions in...
Fresh pot of tea strikes anti-cancer gold
Researchers might one day brew up a cancer treatment in their afternoon cuppa, says a study in a Royal Society of Chemistry journal...
Most detailed malaria map ever highlights hope and challenges facing global community
The most detailed map ever created of malaria risk worldwide is published today by an international team of researchers funded by the Wellcome Trust. The Malaria Atlas Project (MAP) will...
Coenzyme rare to bacteria critical to Mycobacterium tuberculosis survival
Coenzyme F420, a small molecule that helps certain enzymes transfer electrons, is found in microorganisms known as methane-producing archaea, some of which thrive in extreme environments. It also helps the...
Diabetics on high-fiber diets might need extra calcium
The amount of calcium your body absorbs might depend, in part, on the amount of dietary fiber you consume.
First auto carbohydrate synthesiser
Scientists have unveiled the first fully automated carbohydrate synthesiser, hoped to speed vaccine development
Human Genes Required For Hepatitis C Viral Replication Identified
Researchers are investigating a new way to block reproduction of the hepatitis C virus -- targeting not the virus itself but the human genes the virus exploits in its life...
New research reveals the earliest evidence for corn in the New World
Among the hundreds of plants that have been domesticated in the New World, none has received as much attention or been subject to as much debate as corn, or maize...
Fighting fungal weapons, not fungi
Selective compounds engineered to battle crop disease, not harm beneficial species
Oozing Through Texas Soil, a Team of Amoebas Billions Strong
A field of genetically identical amoebas in Texas raises the possibility that cells might organize on much larger scales than once thought.
Researchers find 4,000-year-old coral species
Deep-sea corals are the oldest living animals with a skeleton in the seas, claims new research that found a 4,265-year-old coral species off the coast of Hawaii.
New research may save lives in suicide bombings
Florida Institute of Technology researchers have determined that where a person is standing in a room or other location during a suicide terrorist attack can have a great bearing on...
Recipes for Health: Getting Your Grains — and Greens, Too
I find whole grains appealing, even addictive, because of their chewy textures as well as their flavors.
More research needed to tap Africa's biogas potential
Sub-Saharan Africa is missing out on the benefits of biogas production due to a lack of local research, say researchers.
Va. botanical garden welcomes two eaglets
NORFOLK, Va., March 23 (UPI) -- A botanical garden in Norfolk, Va., is home to two new eaglets whose eggs hatched in recent days, a site spokeswoman said...
Scientists Can See Brain Blunders Coming
About a second before mistakes are made, brain wave patterns predict the looming blunder.
New DNA test gives cold case hope
A new technique which can decipher previously unintelligible DNA samples is made available to all police forces in England and Wales.