ScienceDaily: Plants & Animals News

Antibiotics give rise to new communities of harmful bacteria Posted: 23 Feb 2015 01:45 PM PST Most people have taken an antibiotic to treat a bacterial infection. Now researchers reveal that the way we often think about antibiotics -- as straightforward killing machines -- needs to be revised.

'DNA spellchecker' means that genes aren't all equally likely to mutate Posted: 23 Feb 2015 11:23 AM PST A study that examined 17 million mutations in the genomes of 650 cancer patients concludes that large differences in mutation rates across the human genome are caused by the DNA repair machinery. 'DNA spellchecker' is preferentially directed towards more important parts of chromosomes that contain key genes. The study illustrates how data from medical sequencing projects can answer basic questions about how cells work.

Long-term nitrogen fertilizer use disrupts plant-microbe mutualisms Posted: 23 Feb 2015 11:22 AM PST When exposed to nitrogen fertilizer over a period of years, nitrogen-fixing bacteria called rhizobia evolve to become less beneficial to legumes -- the plants they normally serve, researchers report in a new study.

Carnivorous plant packs big wonders into tiny genome Posted: 23 Feb 2015 11:22 AM PST Great, wonderful, wacky things can come in small genomic packages. That's one lesson to be learned from the carnivorous bladderwort, a plant whose tiny genome turns out to be a jewel box full of evolutionary treasures. A new study breaks down the plant's genetic makeup, and finds a fascinating story.

Threat of ocean acidification to coastal communities in US Posted: 23 Feb 2015 09:26 AM PST Coastal communities in 15 states that depend on the $1 billion shelled mollusk industry (primarily oysters and clams) are at long-term economic risk from the increasing threat of ocean acidification, a new report concludes.

Retracing the roots of fungal symbioses Posted: 23 Feb 2015 09:25 AM PST In the roots of host plants, mycorrhizal fungi exchange the sugars plants produce for nutrients they absorb from the soil. To understand the basis for fungal symbiotic relationships with plants, researchers and longtime collaborators reported the first broad, comparative phylogenomic analysis of mycorrhizal fungi. The results help researchers understand how the mutualistic association provides host plants with beneficial traits for environmental adaptation.

La Niña-like conditions associated with 2,500-year-long shutdown of coral reef growth Posted: 23 Feb 2015 09:23 AM PST La Niña-like conditions in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Panamá were closely associated with an abrupt shutdown in coral reef growth that lasted 2,500 years, scientists have found. The study suggests that future changes in climate similar to those in the study could cause coral reefs to collapse in the future.

Bacteria network for food Posted: 23 Feb 2015 07:41 AM PST It is well-known that bacteria can support each others' growth and exchange nutrients. Scientists however, have now discovered a new way of how bacteria can achieve this nutritional exchange. They found that some bacteria can form nanotubular structures between single cells that enable a direct exchange of nutrients.

Flawed method puts tiger rise in doubt, calls for new approach Posted: 23 Feb 2015 07:41 AM PST Flaws in a method commonly used in censuses of tigers and other rare wildlife put the accuracy of such surveys in doubt, a new study suggests. The study exposes, for the first time, inherent shortcomings in the 'index-calibration' method that means it can produce inaccurate results. Amongst recent studies thought to be based on this method is India's national tiger survey (January 2015) which claimed a surprising but welcome 30 percent rise in tiger numbers in just four years.

Standard operation procedure to effectively detect dietetically absorbed plant miRNAs Posted: 23 Feb 2015 06:18 AM PST Researchers systematically characterized the kinetics of plant microRNAs in human plasma after healthy volunteers drank watermelon juice or ate fruits. The group also addressed some critical technical problems, such as the lack of a standard method for RNA extraction and the lack of proper internal controls that may cause inconsistent results in measuring exogenous plant miRNAs.

Acute use of cannabinoids depresses motor neuron activity Posted: 23 Feb 2015 05:42 AM PST A new study could explain the acute lack of coordination and difficulty speaking and breathing experienced by some people who habitually use cannabis.

Yellow Sugarcane Aphid Detected in Continental Europe Posted: 23 Feb 2015 05:42 AM PST Yellow sugarcane aphid has been discovered in Tarragona and Girona (NE Spain), which probably arrived from Northern Africa, researchers report. The yellow sugarcane aphid feeds on plants from the grass family. To date it is unknown to what extent the aphid could represent a threat to European crops of this kind, such as rice and corn. Therefore the authors of a new report recommend to create a European distribution map of this species and to evaluate its potential pest behavior.

Community-led marine reserve produces benefits for fisheries, conservation Posted: 23 Feb 2015 05:41 AM PST The first and only fully protected marine reserve in Scotland is continuing to provide benefits for fisheries and conservation, according to new research. Backing from the local community has been crucial to the success of Lamlash Bay marine reserve after its creation off the Isle of Arran in 2008, following a decade-long campaign by the local Community of Arran Seabed Trust (COAST).

New products from bark to replace fossil compounds: Adhesives and insulating foams from softwood bark tannins Posted: 23 Feb 2015 05:40 AM PST Scientists have developed tannin extraction from softwood bark. At least 130 kg of crude tannin powder can be produced from one ton of dry wood bark, still leaving 87% of the original bark mass available for incineration. In Finland, tannin could replace, in particular, fossil-based phenols in adhesives used in the wood products industry.

Newborn neurons in adult brain may help us adapt to environment Posted: 21 Feb 2015 04:22 PM PST The discovery that the human brain continues to produce new neurons in adulthood challenged a major dogma in the field of neuroscience, but the role of these neurons in behavior and cognition is still not clear. In a review article, researchers synthesize the vast literature on this topic, reviewing environmental factors that influence the birth of new neurons in the adult hippocampus.

Study in Myanmar confirms artemisinin-resistant malaria close to border with India Posted: 19 Feb 2015 06:18 PM PST Resistance to the antimalarial drug artemisinin is established in Myanmar and has reached within 25km of the Indian border, a new study reports. Artemisinin resistance threatens to follow the same historical trajectory from Southeast Asia to the Indian subcontinent as seen in the past with other antimalarial medicines.

Mitochondria adopt a crosswise pathway for decoding their genome Posted: 19 Feb 2015 10:31 AM PST Mitochondria, true energy power plants of cells, are able to release the energy contained in food by means of the oxygen which we inhale. Now, a team has discovered a new component of the process, unheard of in mammals.