Barbed Porcupine Quills Could Help Enhance Various Biomedical Devices
A porcupine quill only needs half the force of a hypodermic needle in order to pierce skin. This new study also explains why the quills…
Biology News
Growth Bands Provide Exact Ages of Crustaceans
Crustaceans shed their exoskeleton every year, making it hard for biologists to determine their exact age. Now researchers have found well-hidden growth bands in the…
Radiation Exposure Could Be Countered By Ingesting Ex-Rad Pills
The US Department of Defense has been developing pills that will protect humans from radiation. The pills are named Ex-Rad and were developed by Onconova…
First New Biological Structure Solved With a Free-Electron Laser
Scientists at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory are using X-ray lasers to determine the structures of biological molecules that are important for human health, solving…
Roots Show Similar Growth Patterns in Space
Long periods in space can be detrimental to human biology, but it wasn’t exactly known how the lack of gravity affected plants. A new study…
Maggots Secretions Suppress Immune Response
Researchers have figured out how fly larvae works as a healing balm that’s been used by battlefield surgeons for centuries to close wounds. The scientists…
Using Urine to Make Brain Cells
Urine could be used as a powerful source of brain cells to study some diseases, and could even be used one day in therapies to…
Brain Pacemaker Implanted to Treat Alzheimer’s
In November, researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine implanted a pacemaker-like device into the brain of a patient in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease. This…
European Catfish Learn to Catch Pigeons
A group of European catfish in Southwestern France has learned to catch pigeons, as they get close to the River Tarn. European catfish (Silurus glanis)…
Study Shows that Genetics Play an Important Role in Anti-Tobacco Policies
A newly published study from Yale University suggests that genetics play an important role in whether a person responds to tobacco-control policies, finding that…
Urban Birds Use Cigarette Butts to Get Rid of Pests
A team of ecologists discovered that city birds may be inserting cigarette butts into the lining of their nests in order to repel arthropods. The…
Genetic Trickery Coaxes Heart to Heal Itself
Two new studies suggest that heart muscle cells can make copies of themselves at a very low rate, but researchers have developed a genetic trick…
Eurasian Jays Aware When Others Are Listening
A new study indicates that Eurasian jays (Garrulus glandarius) are aware that others may be watching them while they hide away nuts and seeds for the…
Nyasasaurus, Oldest Dinosaur Believed to Be 243 Million Years Old
Paleontologists think that they may have identified the earliest known dinosaur, which was no bigger than a Labrador retriever and lived 243 million years ago,…
Triassic-Period Protozoan Preserved in Cocoon for Over 200 Million Years
Cocoons form to protect eggs and larvae, but they can also help preserve fossils for hundreds of millions of years. This 25-micrometer-long protozoan was trapped…
Humans Are a Greater Disturbance to Elk Than Natural Predators
A new study has shown that elk become more fearful when people are around because they perceive humans as predators. The scientists published their findings…
“Coughing” Scallops Are Early Warning System for Worsening Water Quality
Scallops cough to expel feces and water from their central cavities. The friction between the mollusk’s two valves makes a sharp crack, followed by a…
Drunken Larvae Learn Just As Well as Sober Larvae
Many studies suggest that the behavioral effects of alcohol in humans can be modeled in fruit flies and other animals. Scientists that were trying to…
