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Categories: Ecology: Endangered Species, Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published The positional transmitter of statoliths unveiled: It keeps plants from getting lazy
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Plants orient their organs in response to the gravity vector, with roots growing towards gravity and shoots growing in the opposite direction. The movement of statoliths responding to the inclination relative to the gravity vector is employed for gravity sensing in both plants and animals. However, in plants, the statolith takes the form of a high-density organelle, known as an amyloplast, which settles toward gravity within the gravity sensing cell. Despite the significance of this gravity sensing mechanism, the exact process behind it has eluded scientists for over a century.
Published Tattoo technique transfers gold nanopatterns onto live cells
(via sciencedaily.com) For now, cyborgs exist only in fiction, but the concept is becoming more plausible as science progresses. And now, researchers are reporting that they have developed a proof-of-concept technique to 'tattoo' living cells and tissues with flexible arrays of gold nanodots and nanowires. With further refinement, this method could eventually be used to integrate smart devices with living tissue for biomedical applications, such as bionics and biosensing.
Published Researchers identify peptides for pollen tube growth in rice
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Rapid alkalinization factors (RALFs) are required for pollen tube germination and elongation, an essential process in plant fertilization. But their role in monocot plants remains unexplored. Scientists have now identified OsRALF17 and OsRALF19 in rice and determined their functions in pollen tube germination and growth. This study provides novel insights into the role of RALFs in rice fertilization, paving the way for enhanced grain yield.
Published Fossil feces infested with parasites from over 200 million years ago
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Fossilized feces preserve evidence of ancient parasites that infected an aquatic predator over 200 million years ago, according to a new study.
Published The oldest and fastest evolving moss in the world might not survive climate change
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A 390-million-year-old moss called Takakia lives in some of Earth's most remote places, including the icy cliffs of the Tibetan Plateau. In a decade-long project, a team of scientists climbed some of the tallest peaks in the world to find Takakia, sequence its DNA for the first time, and study how climate change is impacting the moss. Their results show that Takakia is one of the fastest evolving species ever studied -- but it likely isn't evolving fast enough to survive climate change.
Published The 'unknome': A database of human genes we know almost nothing about
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers hope that a new, publicly available database they have created will shrink, not grow, over time. That's because it is a compendium of the thousands of understudied proteins encoded by genes in the human genome, whose existence is known but whose functions are mostly not.
Published Whale-like filter-feeding discovered in prehistoric marine reptile
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A remarkable new fossil from China reveals for the first time that a group of reptiles were already using whale-like filter feeding 250 million years ago.
Published Latest in body art? 'Tattoos' for individual cells
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Engineers have developed nanoscale tattoos -- dots and wires that adhere to live cells -- in a breakthrough that puts researchers one step closer to tracking the health of individual cells.
Published Butterflies can remember where things are over sizeable spaces
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Heliconius butterflies are capable of spatial learning, scientists have discovered. The results provide the first experimental evidence of spatial learning in any butterfly or moth species.
Published Discovery in nanomachines within living organisms -- cytochromes P450 (CYP450s) unleashed as living soft robots
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new study suggests that Cytochromes P450 (CYP450s) enzymes can sense and respond to stimuli, acting like soft robots in living systems.
Published Kordofan giraffes face local extinction if poaching continues
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Poaching of two Critically Endangered Kordofan giraffes per year could result in extinction in just 15 years within Cameroon's Bénoué National Park without intervention.
Published Researchers are using monkey poop to learn how an endangered species chooses its mates
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Northern muriquis, which live in the Atlantic forest of Brazil, are one of the most endangered species of monkey in the world. To better understand what goes on in the mating lives of muriquis, researchers turned to the monkeys' poop to help gain insight into how the primates choose their mates.
Published Sea level rise shifts habitat for endangered Florida Keys species
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A newly published study describes the response to sea level rise by the silver rice rat, an endangered species only found in the Florida Keys.
Published Why you shouldn't declaw tigers or other big cats
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers looked at the effects of declawing on larger cat species and found that declawing disproportionately impacts their muscular capabilities as compared to their smaller brethren.
Published New chemical process makes it easier to craft amino acids that don't exist in nature
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Chemists describe a powerful new way to create new-to-nature, 'unnatural' amino acids, which could find use in protein-based therapies and open up novel branches of organic chemistry.
Published Scientists discover secret of virgin birth, and switch on the ability in female flies
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have pinpointed a genetic cause for virgin birth for the first time, and once switched on the ability is passed down through generations of females.
Published Researchers tickle rats to identify part of the brain critical for laughter and playfulness
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source To study play behaviors in animals, scientists must be able to authentically simulate play-conducive environments in the laboratory. Animals like rats are less inclined to play if they are anxious or restrained, and there is minimal data on the brain activity of rats that are free to play. After getting rats comfortable with a human playmate, tickling them under controlled conditions, then measuring the rats' squeaks and brain activity, a research team reports that a structure in rat brains called the periaqueductal gray is essential for play and laughter.
Published 'Time-traveling' pathogens in melting permafrost pose likely risk to environment
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Ancient pathogens that escape from melting permafrost have real potential to damage microbial communities and might potentially threaten human health, according to a new study.
Published Scientists vacuum animal DNA from air in a Danish forest
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Over 60 animal species in three days. That is how many mammals, birds and amphibians researchers found DNA traces from in the air in a Danish forest. The results can pave the way for a new and innovative way of mapping biodiversity.
Published Bacteria as Blacksmiths
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A hot bath is a place to relax. For scientists, it is also where molecules or tiny building blocks meet to form materials. Researchers take it to the next level and use the energy of swimming bacteria to forge materials. A recent study shows us how this works and the potential sustainability benefits that may arise from this innovative approach.