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The Anna’s hummingbird (Calypte anna). Image credit: Kevin Cole / CC BY 2.0.

Hummingbirds Process Motion in Unique Way, Study Shows

Jan 10, 2017 by News Staff

According to new research published in the journal Current Biology, a key area of the hummingbird brain processes motion in a unique, unexpected way. The...

Scanning electromicrograph of an HIV-infected H9 T cell. Image credit: NIAID / CC BY 2.0.

Retroviruses Originated in Ocean 450 Million Years Ago, New Study Says

Jan 10, 2017 by News Staff

Retroviruses (Retroviridae) — a family of viruses that includes pathogens such as HIV, feline leukemia, and several cancer-causing viruses —...

A false-color scanning electron micrograph of G. sulfurreducens-P. aestuarii co-culture. Scale bar - 5 μm. Image credit: Phuc T. Ha et al, doi: 10.1038/ncomms13924.

Biologists Discover New Type of Microbial Photosynthesis

Jan 9, 2017 by News Staff

An international team of biologists led by Washington State University Professor Haluk Beyenal has discovered a new type of cooperative photosynthesis...

Four newly identified CRISPR-Cas9 inhibitor proteins encoded by Listeria monocytogenes prophages prevent Cas9 binding and gene editing in bacteria and human cells, including currently the most widely used Cas9 from Streptococcus pyogenes. Image credit: Benjamin J. Rauch et al, doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2016.12.009.

Researchers Discover Off-Switch for CRISPR-Cas9 System

Jan 3, 2017 by News Staff

A team of scientists at the University of California, San Francisco, has discovered a way to inactivate the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing system using newly...

Toucan. Image credit: Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0.

New Estimate: There are Over 18,000 Bird Species on Earth

Dec 29, 2016 by News Staff

A new study published in the journal PLoS ONE suggests that there are 18,043 bird species in the world — nearly twice as many as previously thought. Toucan....

Picture of the distribution of the genetic information in an E. coli cell. Image credit: University of Bielefeld.

Optical ‘Tractor Beam’ Traps Biological Cells

Dec 28, 2016 by News Staff

Physicists in Germany have developed a novel technique for trapping biological cells with a laser beam. Using this technique, the researchers obtained...

This pointy-nosed blue chimaera (Hydrolagus trolli) was videotaped by MBARI’s remotely operated vehicle Tiburon near Hawaii at a depth of 5,384 feet (1,641 m). Image credit: Amber N. Reichert et al, doi: 10.1186/s41200-016-0095-5.

Pointy-Nosed Blue Chimaera Spotted in North Pacific Ocean

Dec 19, 2016 by News Staff

A large deep-water fish that was previously identified in the Southeastern Pacific has recently been found around the Hawaiian Islands and off the coast...

Mathieu Quesnel-Vallières et al induced autistic-like behavior in mice by lowering the levels of nSR100 protein, which is important for normal brain development. Image credit: Mathieu Quesnel-Vallières et al, doi: 10.1016/j.molcel.2016.11.033.

Study: Drop in nSR100 Protein Levels Causes Autistic-Like Behavior in Mice

Dec 16, 2016 by News Staff

As many as 33% of autism cases could be explained by a scarcity of a protein called nSR100 in the brain, a new study in the journal Molecular Cell has...

Minke whale. Image credit: Len Joh / CC BY-ND 2.0.

Mysterious Sound Recorded in Mariana Trench Believed to be from Minke Whales

Dec 15, 2016 by News Staff

A strange sound in the Mariana Trench notable for its complexity likely represents the discovery of a new minke whale call, says a team of marine researchers...

Lechuguilla Cave, New Mexico. Image credit: Max Wisshak.

Multi-Drug Resistant Bacteria Found Deep in New Mexico’s Lechuguilla Cave

Dec 13, 2016 by News Staff

According to a team of researchers led by Gerald Wright, a professor of biochemistry and biomedical sciences at McMaster University, Lechuguilla Cave —...

Bathochordaeus charon and its ‘house’ in Monterey Bay: giant larvaceans use their oikoplastic cells to secrete complex filters or ‘houses’ that allow them to concentrate and feed on particles; a ‘house’ consists of a large, diaphanous outer structure as well as a smaller, more convoluted and bi-lobed inner structure that functions as a filter; together these serve to concentrate appropriately-sized food particles from the surrounding water; in situ, larvaceans in the genus Bathochordaeus are often visible from several meters away because their houses may span a meter in longest dimension. Image credit: MBARI.

Mysterious Deep-Sea Animal Rediscovered after 116 Years

Dec 6, 2016 by Natali Anderson

Bathochordaeus charon — an extremely rare species of giant larvacean — has been rediscovered, more than a century after the only previous known...

This image is a digital reproduction of a painting by John Lewin of a platypus in 1808.

Platypus Venom Could Hold Key to Successful Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes

Dec 1, 2016 by News Staff

The same hormone produced in the gut of the duck-billed platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) to regulate blood glucose is also produced in the animal’s...

As computer models predicted, genetically modified plants are better able to make use of the limited sunlight available when their leaves go into the shade. Image credit: Julie McMahon.

New Biotechnology Increases Crop Yield by 20%

Dec 1, 2016 by Marcus Nield

Scientists from the University of Illinois have boosted crop yields in a revolutionary procedure that genetically enhances photosynthesis. The UN claims...

Hen Harrier is Actually Two Different Species

Nov 24, 2016 by News Staff

New research confirms that the hen harrier (Circus cyaneus), a medium-sized bird of prey found in parts of North America and Eurasia, is two different...

Only Half of Chromosome is DNA, New Study Reveals

Nov 24, 2016 by News Staff

DNA makes up only half of the material inside chromosomes, according to a new study published in the journal Molecular Cell. Up to 47% of their structure...

Caenorhabditis elegans. Image credit: Bob Goldstein / University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

LITE-1: Researchers Discover New Type of Photoreceptor

Nov 21, 2016 by News Staff

Scientists have discovered a new type of photoreceptor protein that is about 50 times more efficient at capturing light than the rhodopsin, a protein that...

Trypanosoma cruzi, a parasite of the order Kinetoplastida. Image credit: Myron Schultz / CDC.

Scientists Demonstrate that Diets of Organisms Can Affect Their DNA

Nov 17, 2016 by News Staff

In a study on eukaryotic and bacterial parasites, a duo of researchers at the University of Oxford has detected differences in DNA sequences that could...

Goffin’s cockatoos can cut out elongated tools of a cardboard to rake pieces of food. Image credit: Bene Croy.

Goffin’s Cockatoos Filmed Making Same Tool Type from Different Materials

Nov 16, 2016 by News Staff

An international team of researchers from Austria and the UK has shown that Goffin’s cockatoos (Cacatua goffiniana) can manufacture and use stick-type...

Piezo proteins transduce physical forces and are activated by mechanical indentation and stretching of cell membranes. By reconstituting these channels in lipid bilayers, Syeda et al show that Piezo 1 channels are stimulated in the absence of other cellular components via a variety of methods, including osmotic imbalance and membrane perturbation. Image credit: Syeda et al, doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2016.10.033.

Researchers Discover How Piezo Protein Senses Touch

Nov 15, 2016 by News Staff

A new study published in the journal Cell Reports reveals that a protein called Piezo 1 is directly responsible for sensing touch. Knowledge about Piezo...