'Fossil genes' reveal how life sheds form and function
... to zero, mutations will begin to accumulate. This steady bombardment of mutations will erase the genes over time." However, there is a window of preservation before the genes are wiped completely away, leaving relics as diagnostic as any fossil bone and providing scientists with important clues to biologic...USC study links historical increases in life span to lower childhood exposure to infection
...h and Eileen Crimmins firmly link this gradual yet steady increase in human life span to lower childhood rates of exposure to infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and malaria. The key to their theory lies in one word: inflammation. Infectious diseases cause chronic inflammation in the blood that,...Lehmann lovegrass won't succumb to fire
...nd native grasses, Lehmann lovegrass has reached a steady state and will not spread any further. However, researchers had thought the same thing in the 1980s, he said, but since then the lovegrass has spread from Arizona to New Mexico and even into areas of northwestern Mexico. Geiger and McPherson...Gene therapy alternative to calcium channel blockers
...cts of an irregular heartbeat, Gem infusion helped steady the heartbeat, returning it to a normal rhythm, just like calcium channel blockers do. No adverse side effects were observed. "Calcium channel blockers are a valuable tool in combating arrhythmias and other forms of heart disease, but they can cau...Espionage may have driven the evolution of bee language according to UCSD-led study in Brazil
...ther species provides the aggressor species with a steady means to find new rich food sources. Bees are among a very limited number of species, besides humans, able to abstractly encode information about the physical world into signals understood by receivers. While scientists do not know what kind of c...Vision: how perceptions survive in the face of ambiguity
...to overcome conflicting information and maintain a steady perception of an image. Visual perception is generally accurate and stable. However, when a visual stimulus provides conflicting or insufficient information, perception can be bi-stable or even multi-stable that is, the way an image is perceived ...Are bacteria turning our own weapons against us?
...oteins its blood-sucking lifestyle brings along a steady stream of invaders. "These α2m-type genes are a strong line of defense they trap molecules that parasites use to attack our cells," notes Blandin. The malaria researchers wanted to learn more about the evolution of TEP, so they enlisted the hel...Two studies weigh in on low-carb diets
... the average weight in the low-carb group remained steady after 6 months. This twelve-month study is the longest study comparing low-carb vs. low-fat diets using subjects who have a high prevalence of diabetes. "Americans are overweight because we're eating too much food and ingesting too many calories," sa...Imaging study shows brain maturing
...ring the first 18 months of life was followed by a steady decline as unused circuitry is discarded. Then, in the late l990s, NIMH's Dr. Jay Giedd, a co-author of the current study, and colleagues, discovered a second wave of overproduction of gray matter just prior to puberty, followed by a second bout of "...Scripps scientists look deep inside sharks and their high-performance swimming system
...ilarity between the two, including the dynamics of steady swimming and functional design of their complex locomotor systems. The researchers set out to investigate the evolutionary crossroads between lamnid sharks and tunas in regards to the mechanics and architecture of their muscle-tendon systems. Recent...Human brain works heavy statistics learning language
... consonants and vowels so that the vowels remained steady as the consonants varied, resulted in the test subjects picking out the words with great accuracy. Turkish, as an example, uses this "vowel harmony" quite regularly. "These results suggest that human learning ability is not just limited to a few elem...Is that plant a tortoise or a hare? Answer predicts its response to environmental change
... equipment fast. Or, a factory can have a slow and steady output. It's fundamental tradeoff for every leaf, and the strategy it follows determines how it reacts to change." Besides Reich, authors of the paper were Ian Wright (first author) and Mark Westoby of Macquarie University, Australia, Jeannine Cavend......ey function. Kidneys filter the blood and maintain steady levels of materials such as sodium and potassium in the bloodstream. To sustain control, these organs employ a gradient a rising concentration of sodium from the outer layer, called the cortex, (where concentrations are around those of normal body t...East Texas feral hog numbers skyrocketed in last decade
... sightings continued," Higginbotham said. Why the steady climb and then an increase? Did the feral hog population suddenly reach some sort of critical mass and then explode? Or was it just a matter of an increased awareness of feral hogs? Higginbotham frankly admits this is not known for sure, but from ea...Scientists seek cause for what makes good cell go bad
...ed that the bacteria switched their direction at a steady rate. "We showed that at the single-cell level it was totally the other way around," Cluzel said. "Variability is a part of nature and this can be regulated." Previous researchers had come to a different conclusion because they applied different stat...Survey reports fall in stem cell transplants for breast cancer
...ous transplants in different cancers a continuing steady increase in transplant use in neuroblastoma and Ewing's sarcoma, a stable situation in glioma, soft tissue sarcoma and germ cell tumours and an increase followed by a decrease in breast, lung and ovarian cancer. For allogenic transplants, figures rem...MGH study finds female mammals produce egg cells into adulthood
...of these cells, called oocytes, that are lost at a steady rate until the supply is exhausted, leading to menopause in women. "If these findings hold up in humans, all theories about the aging of the female reproductive system will have to be revisited," says Jonathan Tilly, PhD, of the Vincent Center for ...Discoveries reveal that gene regulation is bipolar
...ing genes may not need as much attention, although steady expression of these genes is essential. TFIID may be particularly suited for this role. " These studies may help guide researchers who are trying to understand a gene's function and its regulation by giving them some useful clues about where to star...Envisat concludes a busy second year in orbit
...oughout the last year Envisat has been returning a steady stream of striking images and scientific data showing the ever-changing face of our planet. Some of the most memorable results of the year include: The splitting of the gigantic B-15 iceberg off the Antarctic coast, captured by a sequence of ASAR im......ter in wastewater-to releaseelectrons that yield a steady electrical current. The single-chambered prototy... a circuit wired from the anodeto the cathode. A steady flow of wastewater pumped into the chamber feeds thebacteria. Bacterial digestion of the wastewater'...