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The pheromone that attracts female mice to the odour of a particular male has been identified. Named 'darcin' by researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Biology (after Darcy, the attractive hero in Jane Austen's novel "Pride and Prejudice"), this unusual protein in a male's urine attracts females and is responsible for learned preference for specific males.

Eating three or more burgers a week may boost a child's risk of asthma and wheeze - at least in developed nations - reveals a large international study, published in Thorax today.

Conversely, a Mediterranean diet, rich in fruit, vegetables, and fish seems to stave off the risk, the research shows.

The research team base their findings on data collected between 1995 and 2005 on 50,000 children between the ages of 8 and 12 from 20 rich and poor countries around the world.

Scientists may be on the cusp of pinpointing a gene that is involved in the progression and spread of bowel cancer, indicates research published ahead of print in the Journal of Medical Genetics.

If proved correct, the discovery could open up the possibility of new preventive or treatment options, say the authors.

Bowel cancer is the third most common cancer in the UK and the second leading cause of cancer death in the US.

The use of synthetic testosterone to combat symptoms of the so-called "male menopause" is questionable, given that it's not clear whether such a syndrome exists, and that the evidence of the hormone's effectiveness in these circumstances is inconclusive, says the Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin (DTB).

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Michigan State University scientists have developed a pioneering, comprehensive approach that makes conserving and managing freshwater lakes, streams and wetlands more integrated and effective.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Less ice covers the Arctic today than at any time in recent geologic history.

That's the conclusion of an international group of researchers, who have compiled the first comprehensive history of Arctic ice.

For decades, scientists have strived to collect sediment cores from the difficult-to-access Arctic Ocean floor, to discover what the Arctic was like in the past. Their most recent goal: to bring a long-term perspective to the ice loss we see today.

ANN ARBOR, Mich.---A new synthetic Petri dish coating could overcome a major challenge to the advancement of human embryonic stem cell research, say University of Michigan researchers.

Under today's regulations, current stem cell lines have limitations in yielding human therapies because the cells have been grown on animal-based substances that don't behave in predictable ways.

A new study from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA suggests that increasing cigarette taxes could be an effective way to reduce smoking among individuals with alcohol, drug or mental disorders.

The study, published online in the American Journal of Public Health, found that a 10 percent increase in cigarette pricing resulted in an 18.2 percent decline in smoking among people in these groups.

As people head to the beach this summer, very few if any, really know how likely they are to develop skin cancer from their outdoor fun. That's about to change, thanks to a new discovery by an international team of scientists that makes it possible for doctors to access people's personal risk for skin cancer.

A nutrient that's common to all living things can make hibernating marmots hungry - a breakthrough that could help scientists understand human obesity and eating disorders, according to a new study by a Colorado State University biologist.

The study appears in the current issue of the Journal of Experimental Biology. The full paper is available at http://jeb.biologists.org/cgi/reprint/213/12/2031.

A University of Alberta researcher has discovered a rare practice by red squirrels that seems to have human-like dimensions of altruism, but at its heart is also a survival tactic.

U of A researcher Jamieson Gorrell was observing a red-squirrel population when he discovered a female had adopted a newborn squirrel abandoned by its biological mother.

Are new medical residents a threat to patient health? According to sociology professor David Phillips and his student Gwendolyn Barker from the University of California, San Diego, fatal medication errors peak in July in counties with teaching hospitals, which coincides with the yearly influx of new medical residents who are given increased responsibility for patient care.

Their findings are published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, the official journal of the Society of General Internal Medicine, published by Springer.

The many populations of sockeye salmon in Bristol Bay, Alaska act like a diversified portfolio of investments, buffering fisheries and incomes from the ups and downs of particular stocks. Sockeye salmon are one of the most valuable fisheries in the U.S., and since 1950, more than 60% of that value has come from Bristol Bay.