Showing 20 articles starting at article 201
< Previous 20 articles Next 20 articles >
Categories: Biology: Microbiology, Space: Astronomy
Published Researchers pinpoint brain cells that delay first bite of food
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Do you grab a fork and take a first bite of cake, or say no and walk away? Our motivation to eat is driven by a complex web of cells in the brain that use signals from within the body, as well as sensory information about the food in front of us, to determine our behaviors. Now, scientists have identified a group of neurons in a small and understudied region of the brain -- the parasubthalamic nucleus (PSTN) -- that controls when an animal decides to take a first bite of food.
Published Pumpkin disease not evolving, could make a difference for management
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The pathogen that causes bacterial spot is very good at what it does. Forming small lesions on the rinds of pumpkins, melons, cucumbers, and other cucurbits, it mars the fruits' appearance and ushers in secondary pathogens that lead to rot and severe yield loss. The bacterium, Xanthomonas cucurbitae, is so successful that it has had no reason to evolve through time or space.
Published Discovery of a new defense mechanism in bacteria
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source When confronted with an antibiotic, toxic substance, or other source of considerable stress, bacteria are able to activate a defense mechanism using cell-to-cell communication to 'warn' unaffected bacteria, which can then anticipate, shield themselves and spread the warning signal.
Published Not so simple: Mosses and ferns offer new hope for crop protection
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Mosses, liverworts, ferns and algae may offer an exciting new research frontier in the global challenge of protecting crops from the threat of disease.
Published The origins of dark comets
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Up to 60% of near-Earth objects could be dark comets, mysterious asteroids that orbit the sun in our solar system that likely contain or previously contained ice and could have been one route for delivering water to Earth, according to a new study.
Published New period product offers progress in women's health
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have created an eco-friendly, blood absorbent biomaterial that improves the performance of menstrual products by minimizing blood leakage and spilling, while also helping prevent infection.
Published Phage-derived enzyme targets E. faecalis biofilms to mitigate acute graft-versus-host disease
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Acute graft-versus-host disease occurs when donor immune cells attack the recipient's tissues after an allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HCT). Researchers recently identified a bacteriophage-derived enzyme called endolysin capable of targeting biofilms formed by Enterococcus faecalis. Their findings offer hope for tailored interventions in allo-HCT.
Published Big gain in battle against harmful bacteria
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source An unexpected find has enabled important progress to be made in the battle against harmful bacteria.
Published The plague may have caused the downfall of the Stone Age farmers
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Ancient DNA from bones and teeth hints at a role of the plague in Stone Age population collapse. Contrary to previous beliefs, the plague may have diminished Europe's populations long before the major plague outbreaks of the Middle Ages, new research shows.
Published Strong evidence for intermediate-mass black hole in Omega Centauri
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Most known black holes are either extremely massive, like the supermassive black holes that lie at the cores of large galaxies, or relatively lightweight, with a mass of under 100 times that of the Sun. Intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs) are scarce, however, and are considered rare 'missing links' in black hole evolution.
Published Found with Webb: A potentially habitable icy world
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A international team of astronomers has made an exciting discovery about the temperate exoplanet LHS 1140 b: it could be a promising 'super-Earth' covered in ice or water.
Published New one-step method to make multiple edits to a cell's genome
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A team of scientists have developed a new method that enables them to make precise edits in multiple locations within a cell -- all at once. Using molecules called retrons, they created a tool that can efficiently modify DNA in bacteria, yeast, and human cells.
Published 'Sacrifice' of virus data clears the path to open a disease discovery pipeline
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Tens of millions of still-unknown or misunderstood viruses can cause diseases -- including new pandemics -- and affect the health of valuable terrestrial and marine environments. Now a new pipeline to investigate the 'virosphere,' or all the genomes of viruses and bacteriophages (viruses that attack bacteria) of the world, has been developed by an international collaboration.
Published Cracking open a tasty menu for captive marsupials to sink their teeth into
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source From sifting through topsoil for native truffles to cracking open hard shells of seeds and nuts to munch on the tasty kernels, Australia bettongs and potoroos are described as 'ecosystem engineers' in a two-way relationship between their rich diet and environmental health. However, with native ecosystems and potoroid marsupial numbers in decline, ecology and evolution experts are working to understand how difficult it is to bite into the foods these leading foragers seek out.
Published New way for beneficial microbes to survive extreme conditions and space exploration
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Investigators sought to help figure out how to send materials like probiotics into space and to better treat a variety of gastrointestinal (GI) and metabolic diseases. The team's formulations allow microbial therapeutics, including those used to treat gastrointestinal diseases and improve crop production, to maintain their potency and function over time despite extreme temperatures.
Published Stench of a gas giant? Nearby exoplanet reeks of rotten eggs, and that's a good thing
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source An exoplanet infamous for its deadly weather has been hiding another bizarre feature -- it reeks of rotten eggs, according to a new study of data from the James Webb Space Telescope.
Published A gut microbe could hold a key to help people benefit from healthy foods
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In a study involving 50,000+ individuals from around the world, higher gut levels of Blastocystis, a single-celled organism commonly found in the digestive system, were linked to more favorable indicators of health.
Published Raw milk is risky, but airborne transmission of H5N1 from cow's milk is inefficient in mammals
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source While H5N1 avian influenza virus taken from infected cow's milk makes mice and ferrets sick when dripped into their noses, airborne transmission of the virus between ferrets -- a common model for human transmission -- appears to be limited. These and other new findings about the strain of H5N1 circulating among North American dairy cattle this year come from a set of laboratory experiments. Together, they suggest that exposure to raw milk infected with the currently circulating virus poses a real risk of infecting humans, but that the virus may not spread very far or quickly to others.
Published Scientists discover how to improve vaccine responses to potentially deadly bacterium
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have taken a leap forward in understanding how we might fight back against the potentially deadly MRSA bacterium. They have shown in an animal model that targeting a key suppressive immune molecule (IL-10) during the delivery of a vaccine improves the ability of the vaccine to protect against infection.
Published Study reveals environmental impact of artificial sweeteners
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A recently published study demonstrates how sucralose affects the behavior of cyanobacteria -- an aquatic photosynthetic bacteria -- and diatoms, microscopic algae that account for more than 30% of the primary food production in the marine food chain.