Biology News

The evolutionary consequences of infidelity Tuesday, April 2, 2013 - 09:55

In the bird world, male and female blue tits are hard to distinguish for the human observer. However, in the UV-range, visible to birds, the male is much more colourful. A closer look at the monogamous mating system of these birds again reveals that all is not what it seems: in every second nest there are chicks that are not related to the care-giving father. An already mated male can increase the number of his offspring by siring extra-pair offspring in other nests than the one he cares for with his mate

 

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Study Finds Heat Key Factor In Population Growth Of Some Urban Insect Pests Friday, March 29, 2013 - 10:30

New research from North Carolina State University finds that higher temperatures found in urban environments are a key contributor to higher populations of insect pests called scale insects – indicating that an increase in temperatures associated with global climate change could lead to a significant increase in scale insect populations.

 

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Lunar cycle determines hunting behaviour of nocturnal gulls Wednesday, March 27, 2013 - 09:37

Zooplankton, small fish and squid spend hardly any time at the surface when there's a full moon. To protect themselves from their natural enemies, they hide deeper down in the water on bright nights, coming up to the surface under cover of darkness when there's a new moon instead.

 

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Study finds men benefit more than women from authority on the job Wednesday, March 27, 2013 - 09:30

Having more authority in the workplace comes with many rewards – including greater forms of job control and higher earnings – but University of Toronto research says those benefits are not evenly distributed for women and men.

 

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Many genes are completely new inventions and not just modified copies of old genes Tuesday, March 26, 2013 - 14:22

It is easier to copy something than to develop something new - a principle that was long believed to also apply to the evolution of genes. According to this, evolution copies existing genes and then adapts the copies to new tasks. However, scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology in Plön have now revealed that new genes often form from scratch. Their analyses of genes from mice, humans and fish have shown that new genes are shorter than old ones and simpler in structure.

 

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Wnt Signal Regulates the Geometry of Dividing Stem Cells Thursday, March 21, 2013 - 14:31

 For organisms to develop and grow, asymmetry is essential. New research from Howard Hughes Medical Institute scientists reveals how a localized source of a signaling molecule directs a dividing stem cell to produce two different cells—one identical to its parent, the other a more specialized cell type—and aligns those cells. In a developing tissue, such oriented divisions will position cells to migrate to the right place to ensure the right architecture.

 

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Microbes use a channel protein as a syringe for toxins Wednesday, March 20, 2013 - 16:53

The bacterium Photorhabdus luminescens is a constant companion of some roundworms. These worms assault insect larvae, thereby infecting them with the bacteria; the pathogens then attack the cells of their victims with a deadly cocktail of various toxins. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology in Dortmund working together with colleagues from Freiburg University and Jacobs University Bremen, have discovered that the bacteria use an important toxin complex like a syringe.

 

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Transplanted brain cells in monkeys light up personalized therapy Thursday, March 14, 2013 - 11:31

For the first time, scientists have transplanted neural cells derived from a monkey's skin into its brain and watched the cells develop into several types of mature brain cells, according to the authors of a new study in Cell Reports. After six months, the cells looked entirely normal, and were only detectable because they initially were tagged with a fluorescent protein.

 

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