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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Bacteria network for food

Electron micrograph of genetically modified Acinetobacter baylyi and Escherichia coli strains. The bacteria exchange amino acids via nanotubes (i.e. tube-like connections between cells). It is well-known that bacteria can support each others' growth and exchange nutrients. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology...

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Yellow Sugarcane Aphid Detected in Continental Europe

Researchers from the UAB and CREAF and from the University of León have discovered this species in Tarragona and Girona, which probably arrived from Northern Africa. It is also the first time that this species is found in Continental Europe. Aphids are a kind of insects typically living on the aerial part of plants, feeding on the...

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New products from bark to replace fossil compounds: Adhesives and insulating foams from softwood bark tannins

In collaboration with its partners, VTT developed tannin extraction from softwood bark as part of an ERA-NET project. At least 130 kg of crude tannin powder can be produced from one tonne of dry wood bark, still leaving 87% of the original bark mass available for incineration. In Finland, tannin could replace, in particular, fossil-based phenols in adhesives used in the wood products industry. Hundreds of tonnes of tannin...

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Virus-cutting enzyme helps bacteria remember a threat

Microbial memory: CRISPR systems allow bacteria to adapt to new viral threats. Above, Staphylococcus aureus microbes lacking a CRISPR system are killed off by the bacteria-attacking virus ?NM4. This plate approximates the concentration of virus particles used in the recent experiments. Bacteria may not have brains, but they do have...

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Newborn neurons in adult brain may help us adapt to environment

Neurons (stock image). "New neurons may serve as a means to fine-tune the hippocampus to the predicted environment," Opendak says. "In particular, seeking out rewarding experiences or avoiding stressful experiences may help each individual optimize his or her own brain. The discovery that the human brain continues to produce new neurons...

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Breastfeeding, other factors help shape immune system early in life

Henry Ford Hospital researchers say that breastfeeding and other factors influence a baby's immune system development and susceptibility to allergies and asthma by what's in their gut. The striking findings from a series of studies further advance the so-called hygiene hypothesis theory that early childhood exposure to microorganisms affects the immune system's development and onset of allergies, says Christine Cole Johnson,...

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Popular YouTube videos drown viewers with positive portrayals of drunkenness

The 70 most popular videos depicting drunkenness on YouTube account for more than 330 million views, with little portrayal of the negative outcomes of excessive alcohol consumption, according to an analysis led by the University of Pittsburgh Center for Research on Media, Technology, and Health (CRMTH). The popularity of such videos on YouTube could be an opportunity for public health interventions aimed at educating...

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A lower IQ has been linked to greater and riskier drinking among young adult men

Although several studies have shown an association between intelligence and various health-related outcomes, the research on cognitive abilities and alcohol-related problems has been inconsistent. A new study of the association between IQ-test results and drinking, measured as both total intake and pattern of use, has found that a lower IQ is clearly associated with greater and riskier drinking among young adult men, although...

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Caribbean coral findings may influence Barrier Reef studies

Corals may be better equipped to tolerate climate change than previously believed, according to research led by Griffith University's Dr Emma Kennedy. Working with scientists from the University of Exeter in the UK, Dr Kennedy says the findings -- published in the journal Coral Reefs -- relate to an extensive study of Caribbean corals,...

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Bacterial Memories: Host influences bacterial metabolism

Bacteria are masters in adapting to their environment. This adaptability contributes to the bacteria's survival inside their host. Researchers at the Vetmeduni Vienna now demonstrated that the bacterial pathogen Listeria monocytogenes adapts its metabolism specifically to the host genotype. The bacterial metabolic fingerprint correlated with the susceptibility of the infected mouse strain. The researchers published their...

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Insect and mammal ovulation more alike than not?

The average American woman lives more than 80 years and ovulates for 35 of them, producing an egg approximately once a month. The typical fruit fly lives about 4 weeks as an adult and ovulates every 30 minutes. Now researchers at the University of Connecticut report in PLOS Genetics that during a key process, the same gene may govern both. If correct, the results could bring insight to cancer metastasis, human fertility...

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Probiotic toxin fights coldwater disease in rainbow trout

The trout food is coated with the Coldwater Disease-fighting probiotic developed by Cain and Call. The rainbow trout is a work of art and diner's delight. But when the freshwater fish falls prey to Coldwater Disease, its colorful body erodes into ragged wounds and ulcers. The bacterial infection can kill up to 30 percent of hatchery...

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Gene may help reduce GM contamination

Genetically modified crops have long drawn fire from opponents worried about potential contamination of conventional crops and other plants. Now a plant gene discovered by University of Guelph scientists might help farmers reduce the risk of GM contamination and quell arguments against the use of transgenic food crops, says Sherif Sherif, lead author of a new research paper describing the findings. This is believed to...

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Invasive weed Kochia's resistance to well-known herbicide stems from increase in gene copies

Kochia, invasive weed populations that are taking over crops and non-crop areas in western Kansas and the Great Plains. A recent study by a Kansas State University weed scientist finds why the invasive weed kochia is like a cockroach of the plant world. Mithila Jugulam, assistant professor of agronomy, led a study that looked at...

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Proteins pull together as cells divide

A cleavage furrow begins to separate a dividing cell into daughter cells. Like a surgeon separating conjoined twins, cells have to be careful to get everything just right when they divide in two. Otherwise, the resulting daughter cells could be hobbled, particularly if they end up with too many or two few chromosomes. Successful cell...

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New brain mapping reveals unknown cell types

There are estimated to be 100 million cells in a mouse brain, and 65 billion in a human brain. Nerve cells are approximately 20 micrometres in diameter, glial cells about 10 micrometres. A micrometre is equivalent to a thousandth of a millimetre. Using a process known as single cell sequencing, scientists at Karolinska Institutet...

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New nanogel for drug delivery: Self-healing gel can be injected into the body and act as a long-term drug depot

Syringe (stock image). A newly developed gel consists of a mesh network made of two components: nanoparticles made of polymers entwined within strands of another polymer, such as cellulose. Scientists are interested in using gels to deliver drugs because they can be molded into specific shapes and designed to release their payload ...

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Animals tend to evolve toward larger size over time

Does evolution follow certain rules? If, in the words of the famed evolutionary biologist Stephen Jay Gould, one could "rewind the tape of life," would certain biological trends reemerge? Asked another way: can evolution be predicted? New research suggests that, for at least one important biological trait-body size-the answer is yes. In one of the most comprehensive studies of body size evolution ever conducted, Stanford...

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