News Archive for May 2017

Varanus douarrha. Image credit: Valter Weijola.

Varanus douarrha: Researchers Rediscover Long-Lost Species of Monitor Lizard

May 3, 2017 by News Staff

An international team of researchers has found and re-described a species of monitor lizard, Varanus douarrha, from the island of New Ireland in the Bismarck...

According Lehmer et al, moons around migrant hot Jupiters could hold onto atmospheres for billions of years. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech.

Melting Moons Could Hold on to Atmospheres and Surface Water Oceans for Billions of Years

May 3, 2017 by James Romero

Exomoons around migrant hot Jupiters could hold onto life-giving atmospheres and maintain surface oceans for billions and billions of years. This is the...

This X-ray image of the hot gas in the Perseus Cluster was made from 16 days of Chandra observations. An oval highlights the location of an enormous wave found to be rolling through the gas. Image credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center / Stephen Walker et al.

Astronomers Find Enormous Wave of Hot Gas Rolling through Nearby Galaxy Cluster

May 2, 2017 by News Staff

A wave spanning 200,000 light-years (about twice the size of our Milky Way Galaxy) is rolling through the Perseus Cluster, according to observations from...

According to Leitao-Goncalves et al, gut bacteria control food choice and egg laying in Drosophila melanogaster. Image credit: Leitao-Goncalves et al, doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.2000862.

Gut Bacteria ‘Speak’ to Brain to Control Food Choices in Animals

May 2, 2017 by News Staff

In a study published recently in the journal PLOS Biology, neuroscientists identified three gut bacteria species — Acetobacter pomorum, Lactobacillus...

Tea Tree Genome Sequenced

May 2, 2017 by News Staff

A multi-institutional team of researchers from China and the United States has sequenced the genome of the cultivated tea tree (Camellia sinensis). A tea...

This illustration shows Cassini about to make one of its dives between Saturn and its innermost rings as part of the mission’s Grand Finale. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech.

Dust-Free Region between Saturn and Its Rings Puzzles Cassini Scientists

May 2, 2017 by News Staff

On April 26, 2017, NASA’s Cassini orbiter made its first ‘Grand Finale’ dive through the previously unexplored gap between Saturn and its rings....

Schematic of the analyses conducted to discover longevity associated variants (LAV), LAV with significant joint effect on extreme longevity (jLAV), and LAV with effects on extreme survival age (eSAV). The top panels include description of the four studies (SICS - Southern Italian Centenarian Study, LLFS - Long Life Family Study, LGP - Longevity Gene Project, NECS - New England Centenarian Study) and additional controls from the Illumina repository. Image credit: Sebastiani et al, doi: 10.1093/gerona/glx027.

Geneticists Identify New Extreme Longevity Variants

May 1, 2017 by News Staff

An international team of researchers from the United States and Italy has identified new genetic variants associated with extreme survival and reduced...

Representatives from each of the 23 clades of breeds. Breeds and clades are listed for each picture from left to right, top to bottom: (A) Akita/Asian spitz; (B) Shih tzu/Asian toy; (C) Icelandic sheepdog/Nordic spitz; (D) Miniature schnauzer/schnauzer; (E) Pomeranian/small spitz; (F) Brussels griffon/toy spitz; (G) Puli/Hungarian; (H) Standard poodle/poodle; (I) Chihuahua/American toy; (J) Rat terrier/American terrier; (K) Miniature pinscher/pinscher; (L) Irish terrier/terrier; (M) German shepherd dog/New World; (N) Saluki/Mediterranean; (O) Basset hound/scent hound; (P) American cocker spaniel/spaniel; (Q) Golden retriever/retriever; (R) German shorthaired pointer/pointer setter; (S) Briard/continental herder; (T) Shetland sheepdog/UK rural; (U) Rottweiler/drover; (V) Saint Bernard/alpine; (W) English mastiff/European mastiff. Image credit: Parker et al, doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2017.03.079.

DNA Study Sheds Light on Evolution of Dog Breeds

May 1, 2017 by News Staff

Genetic material from 161 modern breeds helped a team of researchers at the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) of the National Institutes...

The Livingstone’s mole-rat (Fukomys livingstoni). Image credit: Rebecca Gelernter, www.nearbirdstudios.com.

Two New Species of African Mole-Rats Discovered in Tanzania

May 1, 2017 by News Staff

Scientists working in Tanzania have discovered and named two new species of the mole-rat genus Fukomys. The research was published in the journal PeerJ. The...

This image snapped by Hubble’s WFC3 camera shows the spiral galaxy NGC 5917, which lies in the constellation Libra, about 87 million light-years away. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble.

Hubble Space Telescope Looks at NGC 5917

May 1, 2017 by Sergio Prostak

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has captured this stunning image of the spiral galaxy NGC 5917. This image snapped by Hubble’s WFC3 camera shows...

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