Newly Identified Tomato Gene Appears Key To Fruit Softening
..., of the tomato plant. And the gene was found only when ethylene --a hormone known to induce and coordinate fruit ripening -- was either presentin the plant or applied externally. The researchers also identified genes closely related to LeExp1 in ripeningmelons and strawberries, an indication that this g...Enzymes Targeted As Key To Understanding Drug Interactions
...ient -- or the health care professional -- to know when the potential exists for a serious, even life-threatening, interaction between medications? Or when one drug may render another ineffective? News stories have highlighted the problem of pharmacists wh...New understanding of crab populations may not bring fishermen's delight
...internalforces that help crabs rebuild populations when the numbers are too lowor reduce populations when the numbers are too high. Then the researchers threw in random external forces, also called "noise,...Low Iron Levels Cause Weakness In Women Who Are Not Anemic
...t non-anemic rats have impaired endurance capacity when compared with normal rats. Haas and Zhu set out to determine whether mild iron deficiencies affect work. Since studying women working in fields would be too difficult, they assessed the physical performance of women working out on exercise bikes. Fi...Early Tests Indicate Motor Skills Unharmed In Consumers Of Tainted Fish
...ted fish have had anynegative effects. The study, when completed, will provide a rare, comprehensive look atthe effects of environmental contaminants on older people. Scientists begana neurological assessment in 1992 of a group of men and women older thanage 50 who have consumed 24 or more pounds of spor...Bacterium gobbles up chlorinated pollutants
...reatment plant, a microbe-rich relic from the days when dry-cleaning solvents and industrial degreasing agents were flushed down the drain. An anaerobic bacterium, Strain 195, "uses tetrachloroethene much like we use oxygen," Zinder said, describing the reduction process that leaves little more than et...Ozone 'Chat Room' Provides Real-Time Air-Quality Research
...ributor to smog, ozone is an irritating gas formed when hydrocarbons mix with nitrogen oxide in sunlight. ...ughly from Illinois to western Pennsylvania -- and when the wind blows from the Midwest toward the east, neighboring areas receive higher doses. The data a...Natural Shelters on Leaves House Plant Bodyguards
...es. His notionlay dormant until about a decade ago when a few research groups around theworld began to probe its validity. One of the striking features of domatia is that they seem to be inhabitedstrictly by insects and mites that feed on other bugs rather than on plants,further evidence of a mutually be...Enhancin Protein Attacks Insect Immune System
...archers have discovered and cloned a protein that, when delivered into an insect's gut by way of a "trojan... this discovery allows: the enhancin (an enzyme), when consumed by the insect, will break down the mucinous component of the peritrophic matrix, facilitati...Better Peroxidase Improves Disease Diagnosis
...ck, Texas. Morrow and Vierling had worked together when Vierling was a graduate student. Vierling asked Mo...kewarm about the idea at first," says Morrow, "but when I tried it, I was converted. I think he's got something that's a nice improvement over current techn...Two Parasitic Wasps Show Promise For Controlling Pest Flies
... said, "gives us some baseline data forcomparisons when future biological control measures involve the introductionof new species of parasites." The research is part of an effort tocontrol fly populations more effectively with natural biological enemiesbecause of the flies' growing resistance to insectic...Couch Potatoes, Not French Fries, May Be To Blame For Obesity
...inkley says. That is what Binkley expected to find when he compared the data. "It wouldn't have surprised me to find that there isn't any relationship at all at this level," he says. "But what we found was a slightly negative association. There certainly wasn't a positive relationship." In other words, pe......esistant substances can be extracted and are toxic when reapplied, likeBacillus thuringiensis (Bt) and pyrethrins. "To safeguard the public, transgenic plants should be regulated as isalready being done via the FDA and the USDA," Sanford stated. "However, EPA'spolicy does not seem designed to pro...Fighting Wheat Scab In New York State
...ties are susceptible to scab, which is most severe when wet weather occurs while the crop flowers in late May-early June," he said. Fortunately, wet weather was not encountered during wheat flowering this year in New York, and preliminary estimates call for excellent yields of New York winter wheat in 199...CSIRO Discovery Fights Cell Ageing
...human andanimal tissues, has remarkable properties when it comes to fighting theageing process. His discovery, the result of many years' laboratory research, has ledto today's launch by the Sydney-based Beta Peptide Foundation PL of threerevolutionary skin-care products which contain Beta Alistine' as th...Resistance To Leptin Contributes To Obesity
... much lower doses wereeffective in reducing weight when the hormone was delivered as a constantinfusion. ...t of their body weight,yet this dose had no effect when given to other lean mice by thesubcutaneous injection. "The difference between the increased...UW Smogmobile Offers Cleaner, Safer Alternative To Gas Or Electric Cars
...mobile is powered by energy from pressure built up when super-cooled liquid nitrogen is heated by ambient ...hers have known for decades that pressure built up when super-cooled liquid nitrogen is converted to a gas could power a car. But the UW group was the first......ria for the pastsix years. "You can never predict when basic investigations will yieldimportant practical discoveries, which underscores the importance of continuedsupport for non-applied research." Next Step for Researchers The next step in finding a practical way to restore drug sensitivity,...Huntington's Disease Findings Pave Way For Potential Cure
...t start theprocess? "In early development, when everything is normal, the protein isswimming in the cytoplasm like Odysseus sailing in his boat," she explains. "Hehears the siren song of Circe and ends up marooned in the nucleus instead ofgoing home." Dr. Wexler is "ecstatic" about these...Scientists Discover How Genes Work Together To Control Neural Development
...ound that proto-eyecells could become neurons only when the gene for making a protein knownas Tramtrack was inactivated. "Tramtrack is a kind of 'gatekeeper' protein that prevents thecell from differentiating into a neuron," Carthew explains. "Whenthe cell receives a signal to become a neuron the signal...