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Categories: Biology: Microbiology, Offbeat: Plants and Animals

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Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Zoology Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Long snouts protect foxes when diving headfirst in snow      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

When hunting for mice in winter, red and arctic fox are known to plunge headfirst at speeds of 2-4 meters per second, but their sharp noses reduce the impact force in snow and protect them from injury, according to a new study.

Biology: Cell Biology Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

One in eight grown-ups love extreme tartness      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

For most people, biting into a lemon would leave them puckered up and desperate to lose that sour flavor, but a new study revealed that roughly one in eight adults like intensely sour sensations. The cross-cultural study demonstrated there is a subset of 'sour likers' who enjoy exceptionally sour foods.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology
Published

Possible alternative to antibiotics produced by bacteria      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Many bacteria produce substances to gain an advantage over competitors in their highly competitive natural environment. Researchers have discovered a new so-called lantibiotic, namely epilancin A37. It is produced by staphylococci that colonize the skin and acts specifically against their main competitors there, the corynebacteria. This specificity is presumably mediated by a very special mechanism of action, which the researchers were able to decipher in detail.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Scientists develop strong yet reusable adhesive from smart materials      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have developed a smart, reusable adhesive more than ten times stronger than a gecko's feet adhesion, pointing the way for development of reusable superglue and grippers capable of holding heavy weights across rough and smooth surfaces. The research team found a way to maximize the adhesion of the smart adhesives by using shape-memory polymers, which can stick and detach easily when needed simply by heating them. This smart adhesive can support extremely heavy weights, opening new possibilities for robotic grippers that allow humans to scale walls effortlessly, or climbing robots that can cling onto ceilings for survey or repair applications.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Sea Life Geoscience: Environmental Issues Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Fixin' to be flexitarian: Scrap fish and invasive species can liven up vegetables      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Greening the way we eat needn't mean going vegetarian. A healthy, more realistic solution is to adopt a flexitarian diet where seafoods add umami to 'boring' vegetables. A gastrophysicist puts mathematical equations to work in calculating the umami potential of everything from seaweed and shrimp paste to mussels and mackerel.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular
Published

Study details a common bacterial defense against viral infection      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers report on the molecular assembly of one of the most common anti-phage systems -- from the family of proteins called Gabija -- that is estimated to be used by at least 8.5%, and up to 18%, of all bacteria species on Earth.

Biology: Zoology Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Test reveals mice think like babies      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Are mice clever enough to be strategic? A neuroscientist who studies learning in humans and animals, and who has long worked with mice, wondered why rodents often performed poorly in tests when they knew how to perform well. With a simple experiment, and by acting as 'a little bit of a mouse psychologist,' he and his team figured it out.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Sea Life
Published

Florida dolphin found with highly pathogenic avian flu      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Report details first-ever finding of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus in North American dolphin.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Biochemistry Ecology: Endangered Species Geoscience: Environmental Issues Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils
Published

Ancient Maya blessed their ballcourts      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Using environmental DNA analysis, an international team of researchers identified a collection of plants used in ceremonial rituals in the ancient Maya city of Yaxnohcah in Mexico. The plants, known for their religious associations and medicinal properties, were discovered beneath a plaza floor where a ballcourt was built.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Microbiology
Published

Surprising evolutionary pattern in yeast study      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Research study reports intriguing findings made through innovative artificial intelligence analysis about yeasts -- small fungi that are key contributors to biotechnology, food production, and human health. These findings on simple yeast organisms not only challenge widely accepted ideas about yeast evolution, but also provides access to an incredibly rich yeast analysis dataset that could have major implications for future evolutionary biology and bioinformatics research for years to come.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Genetic hope in fight against devastating wheat disease      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Fungal disease Fusarium head blight (FHB) is on the rise due to increasingly humid conditions induced by climate change during the wheat growing season, but a fundamental discovery could help reduce its economic harm.

Biology: Botany Biology: Evolutionary Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Mathematics: Modeling Mathematics: Statistics
Published

AI deciphers new gene regulatory code in plants and makes accurate predictions for newly sequenced genomes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Elucidating the relationship between the sequences of non-coding regulatory elements and their target genes is key to understanding gene regulation and its variation between plant species and ecotypes. Now, an international research team developed deep learning models that link gene sequence data with mRNA copy number for several plant species and predicted the regulatory effect of gene sequence variation.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Endangered Species Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Barley plants fine-tune their root microbial communities through sugary secretions      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Different types of barley recruit distinct communities of soil microbes to grow around their roots by releasing a custom mix of sugars and other compounds, according to a new study.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Nature
Published

These jacks-of-all-trades are masters, too: Yeast study helps answer age-old biology question      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The results suggest that internal -- not external -- factors are the primary drivers of variation in the types of carbon yeasts can eat, and the researchers found no evidence that metabolic versatility, or the ability to eat different foods, comes with any trade-offs. In other words, some yeasts are jacks-of-all-trades and masters of each.

Biology: Microbiology
Published

Treatment for deadly superbug C. diff may be weakening      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The antibiotic vancomycin, recommended as first-line treatment for infection caused by the deadly superbug C. difficile (C. diff), may not be living up to its promise, according to new research.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

With hybrid brains, these mice smell like a rat      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Mice lacking an olfactory system have had their sense of smell restored with neurons from rats, the first time scientists have successfully integrated the sensory apparatus of one species into another.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology
Published

Synthetic droplets cause a stir in the primordial soup      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Our bodies are made up of trillions of different cells, each fulfilling their own unique function to keep us alive. How do cells move around inside these extremely complicated systems? How do they know where to go? And how did they get so complicated to begin with? Simple yet profound questions like these are at the heart of curiosity-driven basic research, which focuses on the fundamental principles of natural phenomena.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Zoology Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

How do birds flock? Researchers do the math to reveal previously unknown aerodynamic phenomenon      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

How do birds fly in a coordinated and seemingly effortless fashion? Part of the answer lies in precise, and previously unknown, aerodynamic interactions, reports a team of mathematicians. Its breakthrough broadens our understanding of wildlife, including fish, who move in schools, and could have applications in transportation and energy.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular
Published

Advanced cell atlas opens new doors in biomedical research      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed a web-based platform that offers an unprecedented view of the human body at the cellular level. The aim is to create an invaluable resource for researchers worldwide to increase knowledge about human health and disease.