Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Adult Gut Can Generate New Neurons
The adult lower digestive tract can be stimulated to add neurons to the intestinal system, according to new mouse research. The study shows that drugs similar to the neurotransmitter serotonin...
Orangutans use tools to fool predators with kiss squeaks
Clever orangutans are using tools to change the sound of their kiss squeaks' a call made in response to predators. Scientists reporting in Proceedings B of the Royal Society explain...
Scientists isolate protein that may be 'boon' to medicine
Scientists at UC Santa Barbara have isolated a unique protein that appears to have a dual function and could lead to a 'boon in medicine.' The findings are published in...
Joint research into an enzyme that causes genetic diseases
Researchers from CIC bioGUNE's Structural Biology Unit and Columbia University (New York) have conducted a joint research project, published in the prestigious scientific journal Structure, to gain in-depth knowledge of...
Protein Complex Key In Avoiding DNA Repair Mistakes, Cancer
Lymphoma and other cancers may occur when a delicate gene recombination process in antibody-making cells goes awry, according to preliminary studies in mice at the University of Michigan.
Popular Insect Repellent Deet Is Neurotoxic
The active ingredient in many insect repellents, deet, has been found to be toxic to the central nervous system. Researchers say that more investigations are urgently needed to confirm or...
Abnormal brain circuits may prevent movement disorder
MANHASSET, NY -- Most people who carry a genetic mutation for a movement disorder called dystonia will never develop symptoms, a phenomenon that has puzzled scientists since the first genetic...
Silenced Genes As Warning Sign Of Blood Cancer
In the genetic material of cancer cells, important growth inhibitors are often switched off by chemical labels in the DNA. How this happens has now been investigated. Scientists discovered in...
Link Uncovered Between Viral RNA And Human Immune Response
In its fight against an intruding virus, an enzyme in our immune system may sense certain types of viral RNA pairs, according to scientists.
Neuropathic Pain: The Sea Provides A New Hope Of Relief
A compound initially isolated from a soft coral collected at Green Island off Taiwan, could lead scientists to develop a new set of treatments for neuropathic pain -- chronic pain...
First-ever 'Wanderlust Gene' Found In Tiny Bony Fish
A gene previously associated with physical traits is also dictating behavior in a tiny fish widely regarded as a living model of Darwin's natural selection theory, according to a new...
New plastic beehives to boost UK population
A new plastic beehive was launched in Britain on Wednesday to encourage people to keep bees in their gardens or on rooftoops to help boost declining honeybee populations.
New Mexico library has Billy the Kid letters
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) -- The handwritten letter to the governor is polite, articulate and to the point....
Bone's material flaws lead to disease
The weak tendons and fragile bones characteristic of osteogenesis imperfecta, or brittle bone disease, stem from a genetic mutation that causes the incorrect substitution of a single amino acid in...
Exxon ignores calls from 50 000 people to stop threatening rare whales
'The Western Grey Whale population is at great risk of extinction. It is imperative that all oil companies operating in its feeding area acknowledge the effects of their operations on...
Cell-sized vesicle assembly line
Scientists have created a production line that pumps out microspheres that are all the same size and surrounded by a single lipid bilayer
New stem cell research could make lab mice redundant
Researchers from the University of Bath are embarking on a project to use stem cell technology that could reduce the number of animal experiments used to study conditions such as...
Bcl6 Gene Sculpts Helper T Cell To Boost Antibody Production
Expression of a single gene programs an immune system helper T cell that fuels rapid growth and diversification of antibodies in a cellular structure implicated in autoimmune diseases and development...
Understanding Biology Of Guam's Native Fadang Tree
Self-sustaining organisms like plants possess the ability to synthesize their own food using inorganic materials. Plants use water and carbon dioxide to begin this process in their green tissues. The...
Keep bees, conservation body urges England's city dwellers
People in English towns areas are being encouraged to keep bees to help declining populations.
Zoo pelican swallows cell phone
A pelican at the Tautphaus Park Zoo took something other than food in his bill when a cell phone that had been dropped in a pool at the exhibit made...
Rare Alpine Frog Bred in Australia
"We don't think they are poisonous, but they certainly taste bad," an ecologist says of Australia's corroboree frog, an endangered species that has now been successfully bred in captivity. Video.
UC Riverside releases new citrus variety
RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- Citrus researchers at the University of California, Riverside have released a new mandarin (or tangerine) for commercial production. Named 'DaisySL' for Daisy seedless, the new fruit...
Mountain Gorillas Pose No AIDS Threat, Researchers Say
(PhysOrg.com) -- Mountain gorillas do not pose an AIDS threat to humans, according to researchers at the UC Davis Mountain Gorilla One Health Program.
Fingertip Force
Animation of a human finger performing a rubbing task that requires the combined control of fingertip motion and force. This task was the subject of a recent study that explored...
Stem cell hierarchy offers potential for isolating, growing cells
Researchers at the University of Toronto Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering (IBBME) and Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH), led by U of T's Professor J.E. Davies, have made important progress...
A Flight Simulator For Flies Helps Humans Build Better UAVs
Flies may not seem like nature's ace pilots when they're bumping up against a closed window or getting squashed beneath a rolled-up copy of the New York Times Magazine, but a German...
Fish mend in troubled fisheries
A study has found that fish stocks are recovering in many managed populations – a sign that the right treatment can work.