Geneticists Grow Fish with Limbs to Duplicate Evolutionary Pressure
The fossil record gives clues about how limbs grew from fish fins in a series of stages, but scientists are still trying to fill in…
Biology News
X-rays Reveal Potential Drug Target for Ulcer-Causing Bacteria
Using X-rays from SLAC’s Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource, scientists have deciphered the three-dimensional molecular structure of a very promising drug target in H. pylori, the…
Novel Coronavirus hCoV-EMC Infects Humans & Animals
The novel coronavirus which was discovered this summer in the Middle East might infect more than just human patients. The pathogen is closely related to…
Homosexuality Might Develop in the Womb Due to Epigenetic Changes
According to a newly released hypothesis, homosexuality might not lie in DNA itself. Instead, as an embryo develops, sex-related genes are turned on and off…
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…
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…
Diuretic Drug Could Help Treat Autism
The drug bumetanide, which has been used for decades to treat high blood pressure and other conditions, has now shown some promise in a small…
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…
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 disease, 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 have 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 people…
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,…