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Working to identify key genes in the root development of poplar trees, three Michigan Technological University scientists have come up with a new model for how genes interact and affect each other's function. They also identified a network of genes that cause poplar roots to grow well in low-nitrogen soil, making them ideal candidates for biofuel tree plantations on marginal lands.

Moths are nocturnal, and they have one major enemy; the bat. As a defense many moths developed ears sensitive to the bat´s echolocation cries, and they have also developed different behaviors to avoid bats. Now it turns out that many moths are able to use both their hearing and their avoidance behavior to an entirely different purpose: to communicate about sex. According to a Danish/Japanese research team the various moth species probably talk about sex in a great number of different ways. This sheds new light on the evolution of sound communication and behavior.

Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed a new metallic bubble wrap that is lighter, stronger and more flexible than sheet metal and more heat- and chemical-resistant than plastic or other polymer-based bubble wraps. Potential applications include automobile body panels, the wing edges of airplanes, suitcases, helmets and cases for computers and other electronic devices.

A new study, by Marco Malagodi from the Università degli Studi di Pavia in Italy and colleagues, uses a range of analytical methods to identify the techniques used by violin master Antonio Stradivari in the 17th century, and attempts to replicate his craftsmanship. The work is published online in Springer's journal, Applied Physics A - Materials Science & Processing.

New Orleans, LA -- Research led by Priyanshi Ritwik, DDS, MS, LSUHSC Associate Professor of Pediatric Dentistry at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, reports important findings about side effects and how long they linger after discharge of common oral drugs used to sedate some children during dental procedures. The results of the study, published in the current issue of Anesthesia Progress, provide pediatric dentists and parents with new information on this previously little-investigated aspect of children's dental health care.

London, 8 July 2013: Studies over the past 20 years have suggested (though not unequivocallyconfirmed) that semen quality is in decline, reflected most evidently in falling sperm counts andreduced sperm motility.(1) The explanations have been controversially attributed toenvironmental factors (such as exposure to toxins) and to male smoking.

London, 8 July 2013: The first birth has been achieved following the analysis of embryos using anew genome sequencing technique which promises to revolutionise embryo selection for IVF.The technique, which has never before been applied in the screening of embryos, is reportedtoday at the annual meeting of ESHRE by Dr Dagan Wells of the NIHR Biomedical ResearchCentre at the University of Oxford, UK.

Hypertension is a very common condition that is responsible for more than one of every eight premature deaths nationwide.

Diuretics are commonly prescribed to treat hypertension, and recent reports suggest that chlorthalidone may work better than hydrochlorothalizide.

Considering the potential for adverse effects, hydrochlorothiazide may be a safer treatment than chlorthalidone for elderly patients with uncomplicated hypertension.

A new technique for detecting cancer by imaging the consumption of sugar with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been unveiled by UCL scientists. The breakthrough could provide a safer and simpler alternative to standard radioactive techniques and enable radiologists to image tumours in greater detail.

The new technique, called 'glucose chemical exchange saturation transfer' (glucoCEST), is based on the fact that tumours consume much more glucose (a type of sugar) than normal, healthy tissues in order to sustain their growth.

STANFORD, Calif. — Children with Duchenne muscular dystrophy often die as young adults from heart and breathing complications. However, scientists have been puzzled for decades by the fact that laboratory mice bearing the same genetic mutation responsible for the disease in humans display only mild symptoms and no cardiac involvement.

Storrs, Conn. — Using highly sensitive fluorescent probes, a team of scientists from the University of Connecticut has captured the never-before-seen structural dynamics of an important protein channel inside the cell's primary power plant – the mitochondrion.

University of Toronto researchers are helping demystify an important class of proteins associated with disease, a discovery that could lead to better treatments for cancer, cystic fibrosis and many other conditions.

Igor Stagljar, Professor in the Faculty of Medicine's Donnelly Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, and his team developed the first roadmap for ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter proteins. These proteins are crucial components of every cell, and are also involved in tumor resistance.

Cancer cells spread and grow by avoiding detection and destruction by the immune system. Stimulation of the immune system can help to eliminate cancer cells; however, there are many factors that cause the immune system to ignore cancer cells.

Regulatory T cells are immune cells that function to suppress the immune system response. In the Journal of Clinical Investigation, researchers led by Ronald Levy at Stanford University found that regulatory T cells that infiltrate tumors express proteins that can be targeted with therapeutic antibodies.

The bone cell-derived hormone osteocalcin promotes the production of testosterone in the mouse testis.

Interestingly, osteocalcin-deficient mice exhibit increased levels of leutenizing hormone (LH), a pituitary hormone that regulates sex steroid synthesis in the testes. Additionally, osteocalcin levels appear to be linked to insulin secretion and sensitivity and circulating levels of testosterone in humans.

C3 glomerulopathy refers to a group of kidney conditions characterized by innappropriate activation of an immune system response mechanism known as complement.

Normally the complement system helps to clear pathogens from the body. It consists of a number of small proteins that, upon immune activation, are broken up into fragments that bind to foreign material or pathogen-infected cells to trigger their destruction.