Biology news

Hip dysplasia susceptibility in dogs may be underreported, according to comparative study

Biology / Plants & Animals

2 hours ago | not rated yet | 0

A study comparing a University of Pennsylvania method for evaluating a dog's susceptibility to hip dysplasia to the traditional American method has shown that 80 percent of dogs judged to be normal by the traditional method ...

Metal-mining bacteria are green chemists

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

8 hours ago | 5 / 5 (4) | 0 |

Microbes could soon be used to convert metallic wastes into high-value catalysts for generating clean energy, say scientists writing in the September issue of Microbiology.

Cornell leads fight against invasive emerald ash borer

Biology / Ecology

6 hours ago | not rated yet | 1

Cornell University is leading efforts to manage outbreak populations of the emerald ash borer (EAB), a beetle that has the potential to devastate ash trees in the Northeast. The new invasive species is already ...

Getting a tail up on conservation?

Biology / Plants & Animals

23 hours ago | not rated yet | 0

Lizards are an important indicator species for understanding the condition of specific ecosystems. Their body weight is a crucial index for evaluating species health, but lizards are seldom weighed, perhaps due in part to ...

Famed Tasmanian devil euthanized after tumor found

Biology / Plants & Animals

Sep 01, 2010 | 4 / 5 (3) | 1

(AP) -- A Tasmanian devil named Cedric, once thought to be immune to a contagious facial cancer threatening the iconic creatures with extinction, has been euthanized after succumbing to the disease, researchers ...

High social status, maternal support play important role in mating success of male bonobos

Biology / Plants & Animals

Sep 01, 2010 | 5 / 5 (2) | 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Success makes sexy - this does not only apply to human beings, but also to various animals. Male bonobos appear to benefit from this phenomenon as well.

Feds appeal order blocking stem cell research

Biology / Biotechnology

Sep 01, 2010 | 5 / 5 (5) | 0

(AP) -- The Obama administration on Tuesday asked a federal judge to lift a restraining order that it says could undercut federally funded embryonic stem cell research.

Are wolves saving Yellowstone's aspen trees from elk?

Biology / Ecology

Sep 01, 2010 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

Previous research has claimed that the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone National Park in 1995 is helping restore quaking aspen in risky areas where wolves prowl. But apparently elk hungry for winter ...

Frugal microbes reduce the cost of proteins

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

Sep 01, 2010 | not rated yet | 0

Bacteria tend to be more frugal when constructing proteins for use outside of the cell versus internally, saving their energy for synthesizing compounds that can be recycled, according to research published in the current ...

Panel: India must secure elephant reserves

Biology / Ecology

Sep 01, 2010 | not rated yet | 0

(AP) -- India should protect its elephant population by securing its wildlife reserves, curbing poaching and restricting development in the corridors they use to travel between forested areas, a panel recommended.

Helping corn-based plastics take more heat

Biology / Biotechnology

Sep 01, 2010 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

A team of scientists from USDA and a cooperating company are working to make corn-derived plastics more heat tolerant -- research that may broaden the range of applications for which these plastics could be used as an alternative ...

New perspectives and guidance for managing white pine blister rust

Biology / Ecology

Sep 01, 2010 | not rated yet | 0

The August 2010 journal, Forest Pathology, provides a synthesis of knowledge on C. ribicola, identifies policy and management actions to mitigate disease impacts, and reviews future issues facing white pine management such ...

Evolution rewritten, again and again

Biology / Evolution

Aug 31, 2010 | 2.9 / 5 (13) | 5 |

A team of researchers at the University of Bristol decided to find out, with investigations of dinosaur and human evolution. Their study, which is published this week in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, suggests most f ...

Species cooperate out of self-interest rather than to be mutually beneficial, study says

Biology / Plants & Animals

Aug 31, 2010 | not rated yet | 4 |

(PhysOrg.com) -- Applying employment contract theory to symbiosis, a new paper suggests that the mutually beneficial relationships that species create are maintained because of simple self-interest, with partners ...

Oily whale bones puzzle solved

Biology / Plants & Animals

Aug 31, 2010 | 4.7 / 5 (7) | 3 |

The puzzle of why some oily whale bones make great habitats for weird and wonderful deep sea creatures has been solved by Natural History Museum scientists this month.

Thinnest eggs belonged to largest Moas

Biology / Plants & Animals

Aug 31, 2010 | 5 / 5 (3) | 2 |

(PhysOrg.com) -- In a detailed online study published by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on August 30th, scientists investigate questions surrounding New Zealand's moa eggs and the result ...

Scientists identify, isolate adult mammary stem cells in mice

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

Aug 31, 2010 | 5 / 5 (2) | 2 |

For the first time, researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have identified and isolated adult mammary stem cells in mice. Long-term implications of this research may include the use of such cells to regenerate ...

Mosquitoes use several different kinds of odor sensors to track human prey

Biology / Plants & Animals

Aug 31, 2010 | 4.8 / 5 (4) | 1 |

It now appears that the malaria mosquito relies on a battery of different types of odor sensors to mediate its most critical behaviors, including how to choose and locate their blood-meal hosts. In an article ...