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Categories: Biology: Developmental, Ecology: Animals
Published Study illuminates mechanism that annotates genetic information passed from fathers to offspring
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have identified a key part of a mechanism that annotates genetic information before it is passed from fathers to their offspring. The findings shed new light on genomic imprinting, a fundamental, biological process in which a gene from one parent is switched off while the copy from the other parent remains active. Errors in imprinting are linked to a host of diseases, such as the rare disease Silver-Russell syndrome along with certain cancers and diabetes.
Published Disease affects blackbirds more than previously thought
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source When humans are ill, we tend to be less active. This also applies to wild animals, but so far, it has not been known how long the reduced activity lasts or which activities are affected the most. New research shows that birds' activity decreases for up to three weeks when they become ill -- something that could mean the difference between life and death.
Published Discovery of new cell type in thymus
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Biomedical scientists have confirmed that newly discovered cells in the thymus are just like M cells, which are mostly known for their presence in the intestinal epithelium.
Published Unveiling the mechanism of 3D folding of cell sheets
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A team of researchers has revealed that the Dumpy protein, a component of extracellular matrices -- or ECM -- is the key factor in regulating the stereotypic origami-like folding of wing-cell sheets. Their findings that wing cells never divide during folding nor do they exhibit spatially distinct behaviors suggest how external cues can create consistent 3D tissue structures.
Published Human shoulders and elbows first evolved as brakes for climbing apes
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers report that the flexible shoulders and elbows that allow us to throw a football or reach a high shelf may have evolved as a natural braking system that let our primate ancestors get out of trees without dying. The researchers used sports-analysis software to compare the climbing movements of chimpanzees and small monkeys called mangabeys. While the animals climb up trees similarly, the researchers found that the shallow, rounded shoulder joints and shortened elbow bones that chimps have -- similar to humans -- allow them to fully extend their arms above their heads when climbing down, holding onto branches like a person going down a ladder to support their greater weight. When early humans left forests for the grassy savanna, these versatile appendages would have been essential for gathering food and using tools for hunting and defense. The findings are among the first to identify the significance of 'downclimbing' in the evolution of apes and early humans.
Published Invasive species are animals, too: Considering a humane approach
(via sciencedaily.com) Invasive alien species are animals that may pose a threat to biodiversity, but it's time to deal with that threat in a more ethical way.
Published Large herbivores keep invasive plants at bay
(via sciencedaily.com) Elephants, buffaloes and other heavy herbivores are effective against invasive plants. This is the conclusion of a new study that used Indian data, including data from the world's largest survey of wildlife based on camera traps. But smaller animals can do the same: you don't need elephants to get the same effect, the researchers point out.
Published Farms that create habitat key to food security and biodiversity
(via sciencedaily.com) Diversified farming is an important complement to forest protections for reversing tropical biodiversity declines.
Published Invasive spotted lanternfly may not damage hardwood trees as previously thought
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In 2012, when the spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) arrived in the U.S. from its home in China, scientists, land managers, and growers were understandably concerned that the sap-feeding insect would damage native and commercial trees. New long-term research has discovered that hardwood trees, such as maple, willow and birch, may be less vulnerable than initially thought.
Published Immune cells shape their own path
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source When fighting disease, our immune cells need to reach their target quickly. Researchers have now discovered that immune cells actively generate their own guidance system to navigate through complex environments. This challenges earlier notions about these movements. The researchers' findings enhance our knowledge of the immune system and offer potential new approaches to improve human immune response.
Published Di-isononyl phthalate disrupts pregnancy in mice, study finds
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In a new study, researchers used mice to understand how DiNP affects pregnancy.
Published Mutation rates in whales are much higher than previously reported
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source An international team of marine scientists has studied the DNA of family groups from four different whale species to estimate their mutation rates. Using the newly determined rates, the group found that the number of humpback whales in the North Atlantic before whaling was 86 percent lower than earlier studies suggested.
Published The search for the super potato
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source As climate change continues to pose severe challenges to ensuring sustainable food supplies around the world, scientists are looking for ways to improve the resilience and nutritional quality of potatoes. Scientists have assembled the genome sequences of nearly 300 varieties of potatoes and its wild relatives to develop more nutritious, disease-free, and weather-proof crop. A team has now created a potato super pangenome to identify genetic traits that can help produce the next super spud.
Published Rare 14-ft smalltooth sand tiger shark washes up on Irish coast
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists believe a huge 14ft smalltooth sand tiger shark, which washed up at Kilmore Quay, Co. Wexford, earlier this year, represents the first of its species to have been found in Ireland's waters. Two other individuals of the same species also washed up on the UK coastline, suggesting this species' geographic range has shifted. The scientists believe these rare finds may offer a window into the future, with more and more species traditionally confined to more tropical waters expected to visit Irish and British waters.
Published After Chernobyl nuclear accident: The wild boar paradox, finally solved
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source While the contamination of deer and roe deer decreased over time as expected, the measured levels of radioactivity in the meat of wild boar remained surprisingly high -- higher than the half-life of cesium would suggest. For many years, this 'wild boar paradox' was considered unsolved. Now an explanation has been found: It is a late aftermath of the nuclear weapons tests from the 1960s.
Published Bat study reveals how the brain is wired for collective behavior
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers used wireless neural recording and imaging devices to 'listen in' on the hippocampal brain activity of groups of Egyptian fruit bats as they flew freely within a large flight room. The researchers were surprised to find that, in this social setting, the bat's 'place' neurons encoded not only the animal's location, but also information about the presence or absence of other bats, and even the identity of bats in their path.
Published Want to fight climate change? Don't poach gorillas (or elephants, hornbills, toucans, etc.)
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new article found that overhunting of gorillas, elephants, and other large fruit-eating seed-dispersers make tropical forests less able to store or sequester carbon.
Published New approach to fighting malaria
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Findings can open up new avenues for targeted approaches toward therapeutic strategies against the malaria-causing P. falciparum that are aimed at stopping the parasite's life cycle progression and its sexual differentiation, thus blocking the transmission of the parasite into mosquitoes.
Published Scientists invent new way to sort cells by type using light
(via sciencedaily.com) Researchers have developed and demonstrated a new method for high-throughput single-cell sorting that uses stimulated Raman spectroscopy rather than the traditional approach of fluorescence-activated cell sorting. The new approach could offer a label-free, nondestructive way to sort cells for a variety of applications, including microbiology, cancer detection and cell therapy.
Published Unlocking the secrets of cell antennas
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The NSL (non-specific lethal) complex regulates thousands of genes in fruit flies and mammals. Silencing the NSL genes leads to the death of the organism, which gave the complex its curious name. Researchers have now discovered that the genes regulated by the NSL complex also include genes of the intraciliary transport system. This enables different cell types to form cilia on their surface, which are important for cell communication. The study shows that these genes are 'switched on' by the NSL complex, regardless of whether a particular cell has cilia or not. The researchers found that this class of cilia-associated genes is crucial for the function of podocytes. This is a highly specialized cell type of the kidney that, paradoxically, does not have cilia. These findings have important implications for ciliopathies and kidney disease.