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News from: Biology News
Pollination with precision: How flowers do it
Next Mother's Day, say it with an evolved model of logistical efficiency ? a flower. A new discovery about how nature's icons of romance manage the distribution of sperm among female gametes with industrial precision helps explain why the delicate beauties have reproduced prolifically enough to dominate the earth.
New technique reveals unseen information in DNA code
This image shows the differences in chemical structure of the
5-methylcytosine (5mC) base (left) from the 5-hydroxymethylcytosine
(5hmC) base in DNA against a background of DNA sequencing imagery. Imagine reading an entire book, but then realizing that your glasses did not allow you to distinguish "g" from "q." What details did you miss?
Ancient giant turtle fossil revealed
This is a reconstruction of Carbonemys preying upon a small crocodylomorph. Picture a turtle the size of a Smart car, with a shell large enough to double as a kiddie pool. Paleontologists from North Carolina State University have found just such a specimen ? the fossilized remains of a 60-million-year-old South American giant that lived in what is now Colombia.
Abundance of rare DNA changes following population explosion may ho…
One-letter switches in the DNA code occur much more frequently in human genomes than anticipated, but are often only found in one or a few individuals.
Elephant seal tracking reveals hidden lives of deep-diving animals
Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, who pioneered the use of satellite tags to monitor the migrations of elephant seals have compiled one of the largest datasets available for any marine mammal species, revealing their movements and diving behavior at sea in unprecedented detail.
Color of robins' eggs determines parental care
A male robin will be more diligent in caring for its young if the eggs its mate lays are a brighter shade of blue.
A microRNA prognostic marker identified in acute leukemia
A study has identified microRNA-3151 as a new independent prognostic marker in certain patients with acute leukemia. The study involves patients with acute myeloid leukemia and normal-looking chromosomes (CN-AML).
Researchers use light to switch on gene expression
Imagine being able to control genetic expression by flipping a light switch. Researchers at North Carolina State University are using light-activated molecules to turn gene expression on and off. Their method enables greater precision when studying gene function, and could lead to targeted therapies for diseases like cancer.
New 'Map of Life' project aims to show distribution of all animals,…
A research team involving Yale University and the University of Colorado Boulder has developed a first public demonstration version of its "Map of Life," an ambitious Web-based endeavor designed to show the distribution of all living plants and animals on the planet.
UCLA scientists unlock mystery of how 'handedness' arises
Colored patches represent parallelogram outlines around pairs of triangles that have formed chiral super-structures. Parallelograms having different "handedness " and orientations are color-coded and superimposed over each other. The overwhelming majority of proteins and other functional molecules in our bodies display a striking molecular characteristic: They can exist in two distinct forms that are mirror images of each other, like your right hand and left hand. Surprisingly, each of our bodies prefers only one of these molecular forms.
Scientists discover new inflammatory target
Scientists from Queen Mary, University of London have found a new therapeutic target to combat inflammation.
Antarctic octopus sheds light on ice-sheet collapse
Scientists at the University of Liverpool have found that genetic information on the Antarctic octopus supports studies indicating that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet could have collapsed during its history, possibly as recently as 200,000 years ago.
One-quarter of grouper species being fished to extinction
The critically endangered Atlantic goliath grouper, Epinephelus itajara, is from the subtropical and tropical Atlantic. Groupers, a family of fishes often found in coral reefs and prized for their quality of flesh, are facing critical threats to their survival. As part of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Species Survival Commission, a team of scientists has spent the past ten years assessing the status of 163 grouper species worldwide. They report that 20 species (12%) are at risk of extinction if current overfishing trends continue, and an additional 22 species (13%) are Near Threatened. These findings were published online on April 28 in the journal Fish and Fisheries.
The Auburn Tiger trapdoor spider -- a new species discovered from a…
Researchers at Auburn University have reported the discovery a new trapdoor spider species from a well-developed housing subdivision in the heart of the city of Auburn, Alabama. Myrmekiaphila tigris, affectionately referred to as the Auburn Tiger Trapdoor spider, is named in honor of Auburn University's costumed Tiger mascot, Aubie.
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