Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Scientists Reveal How Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Differ From Embryonic Stem Cells
The same genes that are chemically altered during normal cell differentiation, as well as when normal cells become cancer cells, are also changed in stem cells that scientists derive from...
Nanoparticles Can Damage DNA Without Crossing Cellular Barrier
Metal nanoparticles use a newly observed cell signal process to wreak havoc indirectly Scientists know that nanoparticles can damage DNA in cells through direct interaction. Now, though, it appears that nanoparticles can also...
Bacteria flourish in favorite ecosystems on the human body
Study offers most comprehensive inventory yet of the human microbiome and a basis for understanding how those microbes affect health
Enzyme binds both sides of the mirror
Bacterial enzyme found to bind both enantiomers of a chiral molecule simultaneously
Coral reefs inspire rare consensus - just save them
One of the first set of studies to examine what tourists and recreation enthusiasts actually think about coral reef ecosystems suggests they are a rare exception to controversies over human...
Study reveals how plants and bacteria 'talk' to thwart disease
When it comes to plants' innate immunity, like many of the dances of life, it takes two to tango. A receptor molecule in the plant pairs up with a specific...
Early scents really do get 'etched' in the brain
Common experience tells us that particular scents of childhood can leave quite an impression, for better or for worse. Now, researchers reporting the results of a brain imaging study online...
Horse genome sequence and analysis published in Science
An international team of researchers has decoded the genome of the domestic horse Equus caballus, revealing a genome structure with remarkable similarities to humans and more than one million genetic...
Genomes of biofuel yeasts reveal clues that could boost fuel ethanol production worldwide
As global temperatures and energy costs continue to soar, renewable sources of energy will be key to a sustainable future. An attractive replacement for gasoline is biofuel, and in two...
Spirit bears become 'invisible'
Being invisible to fish is what helps a rare white morph of black bear, known as a spirit bear, survive, scientists discover.
CU-Boulder map of human bacterial diversity shows wide interpersonal differences
A University of Colorado at Boulder team has developed the first atlas of bacterial diversity across the human body, charting wide variations in microbe populations that live in different regions...
Male sabertoothed cats were pussycats compared to macho lions
Despite their fearsome fangs, male sabertoothed cats may have been less aggressive than many of their feline cousins, says a new study of male-female size differences in extinct big cats...
Crossing the line: How aggressive cells invade the brain
In diseases such as multiple sclerosis, cells of the immune system infiltrate the brain tissue, where they cause immense damage. For many years, it was an enigma as to how...
Stanford study shows neural stem cells in mice affected by gene associated with longevity
A gene associated with longevity in roundworms and humans has been shown to affect the function of stem cells that generate new neurones in the adult brain, according to researchers...
Caught In The Act: Butterfly Mate Preference Shows How One Species Can Become Two
Breaking up may not be hard to do, say scientists who've found a population of tropical butterflies that may be splitting into two distinct species. The cause of this particular...
Top 10 Smartest Mammals*
Elephants have much heavier brains than we humans, but when it comes to a neuron count, we tie with the pachyderms.
Calculating Animal Intelligence.
In a column posted a few days ago (November 1) I mentioned that my friend John Evans, a Cambridge (England) mathematician, has developed a general formula for estimating biocomplexity. It...
Horse genome added to growing list of barnyard genetics projects
Shedding new light on chromosome structures, equines join pigs and cucumbers on roster of organisms to have DNA code spelled out letter by letter
Polycystins : proteins that regulate the cellular barometer
What is the role of proteins called polycystins in patients with polycystic kidney disease? A team of researchers from CNRS and INSERM, led by Eric Honoré from the Institut de...
Humans, Other Mammals Similarly Voice Frustrations
Pet owners and scientists who spend a lot of time in the wild say that they can tell when an animal is upset by the sound of its voice. Now...
Jamaica to tackle species threatening biodiversity
Jamaica and four other Caribbean countries have been granted US$1.7 million to reduce the biodiversity threat of invasive alien species.
For Gene Therapy, Seeing Signs of a Resurgence
Three recent successes, though small, are prompting hopes among scientists that a still-experimental idea of correcting genetic disorders may be back.
Before Flowers, Odd Bugs Pollinated Plants
Animal pollinators were flitting about long before flowering plants evolved.
Frigid Antarctica Loaded with Viruses
A lake in Antarctica is home to a surprising number of viruses, a new study says.
Scientists halt brain disease with new gene therapy
LONDON (Reuters) - Scientists have managed to halt a rare and fatal brain disease with an experimental gene therapy technique using a deactivated version of the AIDS virus, a study...
Study provides insights into the molecular basis of tumor cell behavior
A new study by a team of researchers led by Crislyn D'Souza-Schorey, associate professor of biological sciences at the University of Notre Dame, sheds light on the molecular basis by...
Project to collect species' genetic codes
SANTA CRUZ, Calif., Nov. 5 (UPI) -- A biomolecular engineer at the University of California-Santa Cruz is proposing the collection of genetic codes for 10,000 vertebrae species.
Melatonin, a hormone segregated by human body, regulates sleep better than somniferous
Melatonin, a natural hormone segregated by the own human body, is an excellent sleep regulator expected to replace somniferous, which are much more aggressive, to correct the sleep/wakefulness pace when...