ScienceDaily: Plants & Animals News

Under pressure: Mechanical stress is a key driver of cell-cell fusion Posted: 12 Feb 2015 03:36 PM PST Just as human relationships are a two-way street, fusion between cells requires two active partners: one to send protrusions into its neighbor, and one to hold its ground and help complete the process. Researchers have found that one way the receiving cell plays its role is by having a key structural protein come running in response to pressure on the cell membrane, rather than waiting for chemical signals to tell it that it's needed.

Remoras don't suck: Their iconic clinch is far more complex Posted: 12 Feb 2015 03:36 PM PST Researchers have long studied animals like tree frogs, geckos, and spiders for their adhesive abilities, but what makes remoras unique in this group is they combine three key elements: the ability to securely fasten themselves for long periods of time; attach to different types of surfaces; release quickly without harming the surface.

New mechanism that controls immune responses discovered Posted: 12 Feb 2015 03:35 PM PST Researchers have identified a common signaling mechanism to produce interferon -- one of the main proteins used to signal the immune system when the body needs to defend itself against a virus, tumor, or other diseases.

Data-storage for eternity, stored in the form of DNA Posted: 12 Feb 2015 12:46 PM PST How can we preserve our knowledge today for the next millennia? Researchers have found a way to store information in the form of DNA, presumably preserving it for nearly an eternity.

Curious monkeys share our thirst for knowledge Posted: 12 Feb 2015 12:46 PM PST Monkeys are notoriously curious, and new research has quantified just how eager they are to gain new information, even if there are not immediate benefits. The findings offer insights into how a certain part of the brain shared by monkeys and humans plays a role in decision making, and perhaps even in some disorders and addictions in humans.

Urban pollinators get the job done Posted: 12 Feb 2015 12:45 PM PST Native bees in San Francisco provide adequate pollination to crop plants such as tomato plants, new research shows. Plants left open to the air produced more and larger tomatoes than those that self-pollinated only, and even matched the production of artificially pollinated plants. The research also found that the density of flowers in a garden -- and not the garden's size -- is the key factor in attracting more pollinators.

Making teeth tough: Beavers show way to improve our enamel Posted: 12 Feb 2015 12:45 PM PST Beavers don't brush their teeth or drink fluoridated water, but a new study reports beavers do have protection against tooth decay built into the chemical structure of their teeth: iron. This pigmented enamel, the researchers found, is both harder and more resistant to acid than regular enamel, including that treated with fluoride. This discovery is among others that could lead to a better understanding of human tooth decay, earlier detection of the disease and improving on current fluoride treatments.

First evidence of Seoul hantavirus found in wild rat population in the Netherlands Posted: 12 Feb 2015 12:40 PM PST Researchers report discovering the first evidence of Seoul hantavirus (SEOV) in the wild rat population in the Netherlands. The discovery comes on the heels of similar ones in France, Belgium and the United Kingdom in recent years, and has some researchers concerned about the potential spread of the virus to humans.

Common biomarkers of sleep debt found in humans, rats Posted: 12 Feb 2015 11:14 AM PST Researchers found common molecules signifying perturbed metabolism in response to sleep restriction in a comprehensive metabolic profiling of blood from both rats and humans. Their findings point to an overall shift in how lipids are metabolized and evidence of systemic oxidative stress.

New fluorescent protein permanently marks neurons that fire Posted: 12 Feb 2015 11:14 AM PST A new tool lets scientists shine a light on an animal's brain to permanently mark neurons that are active at a particular time. The tool -- a fluorescent protein called CaMPARI -- converts from green to red when calcium floods a nerve cell after the cell fires. The permanent mark frees scientists from the need to focus a microscope on the right cells at the right time to observe neuronal activity.

Earliest-known arboreal and subterranean ancestral mammals discovered Posted: 12 Feb 2015 11:14 AM PST The fossils of two interrelated ancestral mammals, newly discovered in China, suggest that the wide-ranging ecological diversity of modern mammals had a precedent more than 160 million years ago.

Observing stem cells maturing into blood cells in living mouse Posted: 12 Feb 2015 10:18 AM PST In the bone marrow, blood stem cells give rise to a large variety of mature blood cells via progenitor cells at various stages of maturation. Scientists have developed a way to equip mouse blood stem cells with a fluorescent marker that can be switched on from the outside. Using this tool, they were able to observe, for the first time, how stem cells mature into blood cells under normal conditions in a living organism.

Key to blocking influenza virus may lie in a cell's own machinery Posted: 12 Feb 2015 10:16 AM PST Researchers have found an unexpected way the immune system fights the flu virus: By targeting cells' protein-cutting enzymes, which the virus needs to mature and spread.

How the Eastern tiger swallowtail got 'scary' Posted: 12 Feb 2015 10:16 AM PST Scientists know a lot about Eastern tiger swallowtail -- the state insect in five states -- but they hadn't managed to sequence their genome. Now, researchers have sequenced the complete genome of one wild-caught individual, and they say that it has already told them more than they had anticipated about the butterflies and some of their most intriguing features.

Dogs know that smile on your face Posted: 12 Feb 2015 10:16 AM PST Dogs can tell the difference between happy and angry human faces, according to a new study. The discovery represents the first solid evidence that an animal other than humans can discriminate between emotional expressions in another species, the researchers say.

Microbes prevent malnutrition in fruit flies, and maybe humans, too Posted: 12 Feb 2015 10:15 AM PST A new study sheds significant new light on a surprising and critical role that microbes may play in nutritional disorders such as protein malnutrition.

A new species of hummingbird? Posted: 12 Feb 2015 09:23 AM PST The Bahama Woodstar is a hummingbird found in the Bahamas, and comprises two subspecies. One of these is found throughout the islands of the Bahamas, and especially in the northern islands. The other is found only among the southern Inaguan islands of the Bahama Archipelago. A research team now argues that the two subspecies should be recognized as two distinct species.

Aggressive form of HIV uncovered in Cuba: HIV to AIDS in three years Posted: 12 Feb 2015 09:22 AM PST Engaging in unprotected sex with multiple partners increases the risk of contracting multiple strains of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Once inside a host, these strains can recombine into a new variant of the virus. One such recombinant variant observed in patients in Cuba appears to be much more aggressive than other known forms of HIV. Patients progress to AIDS within three years of infection -- so rapidly that they may not even realize they were infected.

Bubonic bottleneck: Scientists overturn dogma on the plague Posted: 12 Feb 2015 09:20 AM PST Researchers discover that the accepted theory of how Yersinia pestis microbes travel from fleabite to lymph node is off base. Most bacteria get trapped in a bottleneck and never make it to the lymph node, where infection takes root. Finding out why could lead to new ways to stop the pathogen.

Make like a squid and transform: Squid can recode their genetic make-up on-the-fly to adjust to their surroundings, study finds Posted: 12 Feb 2015 08:43 AM PST A new study showcases the first example of an animal editing its own genetic makeup on-the-fly to modify most of its proteins, enabling adjustments to its immediate surroundings.

Ants are more than just convenience food to young spiders Posted: 12 Feb 2015 07:27 AM PST Southern European spiders are genetically programmed to prefer harvester ants. Harvester ants are more than just a convenient snack for the southern European spider, Euryopis episinoides. The young spiderlings innately have a nose for these ants. Euryopis episinoides is a tiny, 3-mm-long spider that only catches ants - in particular members of the Messor group of which there are more than 100 species. Conveniently laying her egg sacks close to such ant nests is about as much parental care as a female Euryopis episinoides spider gives to her offspring. Once hatched, the spiderlings fend for themselves.

High seas fishing ban could boost global catches, equality Posted: 12 Feb 2015 06:25 AM PST Closing the high seas to commercial fishing could be catch-neutral and distribute fisheries income more equitably among the world's maritime nations, according to new research.

Investigation reveals network of links between public health scientists and sugar industry Posted: 11 Feb 2015 05:40 PM PST Public health scientists and a government committee working on nutritional advice receive funding from the very companies whose products are widely held to be responsible for the obesity crisis, an investigation by The BMJ reveals. Recipients of research funding from sugar and other related industries include members of the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN), which is currently updating official advice on carbohydrates consumption, and researchers working for the Medical Research Council's Human Nutrition Research unit (HNR).

Avian malaria also affects wild birds in Austria Posted: 10 Feb 2015 02:08 AM PST Avian malaria is not uncommon in Central Europe, as many endemic wild birds are infected with species of Plasmodium, which cause avian malaria. In most cases these blood parasites, transmitted by mosquitoes, do not produce any symptoms in endemic birds, as they have adapted to the parasites. A team of pathologists recently showed for the first time that native birds, too, are susceptible to avian malaria.

Beating high blood pressure with a combination of coconut oil and physical exercise: Animal study Posted: 09 Feb 2015 02:13 PM PST Researchers set out to test the hypothesis that a combination of daily coconut oil intake and exercise training would restore baroreflex sensitivity and reduce oxidative stress, resulting in reduction in blood pressure.

Rice growers: New resource against the rice water weevil Posted: 09 Feb 2015 02:13 PM PST Rice growers now have a new resource for controlling the rice water weevil, the most harmful insect pest of rice in the United States and many other parts of the world.