Culture
The discoloured fish that rest in glass jars in museums across the world are normally used by specialists as references to study the traits that identify certain species. But a new study proposes an additional use for such 'samples.'
Published in the Journal of Applied Ichthyology, the paper suggests using such specimens to estimate the length-weight relationships of fish that are hard to find alive in their natural environment.
In some former Soviet bloc countries, men often die early due to alcohol abuse. Alcoholism-related mortality varies considerably from one region to another, according to a study in the European part of Russia, Belarus, Lithuania and Poland.
Cancer researchers have known for years that Black and Hispanic patients have worse outcomes than their non-Hispanic White peers. At least when it comes to adults. But few studies have explored these same disparities in pediatric patients, and fewer still have looked for racial/ethnic differences in treatment outcomes in pediatric brain cancer patients.
Scientists have discovered that gorillas really are territorial - and their behaviour is very similar to our own.
Published in the journal Scientific Reports, the research shows for the first time that groups of gorillas recognise "ownership" of specific regions. They are also more likely to avoid contact with other groups the closer they are to the centre of their neighbours' home range, for fear of conflict.
Intense sunlight damages the chloroplasts that are essential for photosynthesis, and generates toxic products that can lead to cell death. Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich biologists have now identified a signaling pathway which mitigates the effects of light stress.
Whether running away from a predator or to win an Olympic gold, how fast we run determines the final outcome. Locomotion is produced when limb muscles contract in a co-ordinated fashion. This, in turn, is caused by electrical impulses sent by nerve cells called motor neurons located in the spinal cord. Earlier work showed that based on an animal's momentary needs, brain circuits select a suitable course of action and set the frequency of motion. Then, just like engaging gears in an automobile, spinal 'speed' modules are selectively activated to achieve a certain speed.
East Hanover, NJ. March 12, 2020. Among the many challenges to independence and quality of life after spinal cord injury, two complications have emerged as top priorities for researchers - neurogenic bowel and neurogenic bladder. With funding from the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation, researchers formulated a framework for planning and executing the research needed in these areas, and established recommendations for translating research findings into practical recommendations for community use by individuals with spinal cord injury.
Scientists have been realizing that bacteria can mutate and evolve in our intestines much faster than previously thought. But know, researchers from the Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, have found that certain bacteria cells can evolve to mutate at rates 1000-fold higher than normal - called mutators - and thus generate bursts of diversity at unprecedented amounts.
In Senegal, groundnut and maize are commonly contaminated with highly toxic, cancer-causing chemicals called aflatoxins, which are produced by fungi in the genus Aspergillus when they infect crops. The main aflatoxin-producing species is A. flavus. This contamination typically occurs before harvest and can worsen depending on storage conditions. Consumption of these crops when containing high aflatoxin levels can result in rapid death.
DURHAM, N.C. - Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz can decline for up to two years after a piracy attack, a new Duke University study finds, but the adverse effects of the slowdown are far greater on some Persian Gulf countries than others.
Brazilian researchers have just reported proving the potential of zika virus to combat advanced-stage central nervous system tumors in dogs. The study was published on Tuesday, March 10, in the journal Molecular Therapy.
Breathing dirty air takes a heavy toll on gut bacteria, boosting risk of obesity, diabetes, gastrointestinal disorders and other chronic illnesses, new University of Colorado Boulder research suggests.
The study, published online in the journal Environment International, is the first to link air pollution to changes in the structure and function of the human gut microbiome - the collection of trillions of microorganisms residing within us.
Life converts food into cells via dense networks involving thousands of reactions. New research uncovers insights as to how such networks could have arisen from scratch at life's origin. An international team of researchers in Germany, New Zealand and the U.S.A. has investigated metabolic networks of primitive microbes and identified autocatalytic sets (interconnected collections of self-reinforcing reactions) that are older than genes.
LA JOLLA, CA--Within two months, SARS-CoV-2, a previously unknown coronavirus, has raced around globe, infecting over a 100,000 people with numbers continuing to rise quickly. Effective countermeasures require helpful tools to monitor viral spread and understand how the immune system responds to the virus.
Driven by the discovery of mechanisms associated with the microbiota (the set of microbes that make up the intestinal flora) and its impact on health, the two scientific articles now published are the result of work previously developed at IGC and which involves three Research Groups. In 2014, when researchers first realized that the bacterium E. coli, when introduced into the host, developed genetic mutations with a speed and frequency never before anticipated, new questions arose: What is the influence of the other species of bacteria in the intestine in this process?