Number of fungal species has been greatly overestimated

The good news for the Estonian mycophile is that when it comes to mycorrhizal fungi, which include almost all edible and poisonous mushrooms, the forests of our climate zone are the richest in species. A study led by the researchers of the University of Tartu Natural History Museum discovered that the most species-rich fungal communities...

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Scientists question tropical protected areas' role under climate change

Prothoe franck (marked in pink to allow to its dispersal to be studied), is a forest dependent butterfly that may be at risk from climate change in lowland forest habitats. New research led by University of York scientists highlights how poor connectivity of protected area (PA) networks in Southeast Asia may prevent lowland species...

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Female mice do not avoid mating with unhealthy males

Mating choice is not based solely on odor. Female mice are attracted more strongly to the odour of healthy males than unhealthy males. This had already been shown in an earlier study by researchers from the Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology at the Vetmeduni Vienna. Now the team of behavioural scientists went one step further --...

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Hidden meaning and 'speed limits' found within genetic code

Case Western Reserve scientists have discovered that speed matters when it comes to how messenger RNA (mRNA) deciphers critical information within the genetic code -- the complex chain of instructions critical to sustaining life. The investigators' findings, which appear in the March 12 journal Cell, give scientists critical new information in determining how best to engage cells to treat illness -- and, ultimately, keep...

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Nature's inbuilt immune defense could protect industrial bacteria from viruses

Findings from a new study that set out to investigate the evolution of immune defences could boost the development of industrial bacteria that are immune to specific viral infections. The study is published today in the journal Current Biology. Bacteria have many industrial uses including the production of cheese and yoghurt, paper making, biogas and the synthetic production of hormones like insulin. Viral infections...

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'Warhead' molecule to hunt down deadly bacteria

Targeting deadly, drug-resistant bacteria poses a serious challenge to researchers looking for antibiotics that can kill pathogens without causing collateral damage in human cells. A team of Boston College chemists details a new approach using a "warhead" molecule to attack bacteria -- and spare healthy human cells -- by targeting a pair of lipids found on the surface of deadly germs, according to a report today in the...

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Why do cells rush to heal a wound? Mysteries of wound healing unlocked

These are leader cells, shown fluorescing green in this photomicrograph, pull follower cells in their wake as they move to cover and heal a wound. Researchers at the University of Arizona have discovered what causes and regulates collective cell migration, one of the most universal but least understood biological processes in all...

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Giant sea creature hints at early arthropod evolution

Artist's rendering of Aegirocassis benmoulae. (Screenshot from video available at:    http://youtu.be/vzvCH2td-AM Newly discovered fossils of a giant, extinct sea creature show it had modified legs, gills on its back, and a filter system for feeding -- providing key evidence about the early evolution of arthropods. The...

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Some Genes 'Foreign' in Origin and Not from Our Ancestors

Abstract illustration depicting DNA (stock image). Many animals, including humans, acquired essential 'foreign' genes from microorganisms co-habiting their environment in ancient times, according to research published in the open access journal Genome Biology. The study challenges conventional views that animal evolution relies solely...

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Carnivorous plant packs big wonders into tiny genome

Light micrograph of the bladder of Utricularia gibba, the humped bladderwort plant (color added). Great, wonderful, wacky things can come in small genomic packages. That's one lesson to be learned from the carnivorous bladderwort, a plant whose tiny genome turns out to be a jewel box full of evolutionary treasures. Called Utricularia...

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Retracing the roots of fungal symbioses

Mycorrhizal fungi include some of the most conspicuous forest mushrooms, such as the iconic fly agaric (Amanita muscaria), of the fungi sequenced for this project. With apologies to the poet John Donne, and based on recent work from the U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (DOE JGI), a DOE Office of Science user facility,...

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