Newly discovered protein kills anthrax bacteria by exploding their cell walls
...nt to most of the chemicals that emergency workers rely on to sterilize contaminated areas, a solution based on the protein would be a powerful tool for cleaning up after an anthrax attack. All bacteria, anthrax included, have natural predators called bacteriophage. Just as viruses infect people, bacterio...Lactic acid not athlete's poison, but an energy source - if you know how to use it
...d too slow as an energy source, forcing muscles to rely on glycogen, a carbohydrate stored inside muscle cells. For both fuels, the basic chemical reactions producing ATP and generating lactate comprise the glycolytic pathway, often called anaerobic metabolism because no oxygen is needed. This pathway was...Ancient DNA provides clues to the evolution of social behavior
...o, likely caused the die-off. Most genetic studies rely entirely on modern DNA to estimate historical population size, but Hadly and Chan's technique provides much more detailed information. ''You can't get the bottleneck time or the bottleneck size without both modern and ancient DNA,'' Chan explains. S...Salmonella bacteria use RNA to assess and adjust magnesium levels
...uction on and off. A riboswitch, however, doesn't rely on anything binding to DNA; instead, the switch is incorporated into messages for construction of proteins. These messages are protein-building instructions copied from DNA into strands of RNA. The riboswitch is a sensor within the RNA that can twist...Salk scientist Ron Evans wins 2006 Gairdner Award for his discovery of hormone sensors
...lab in 1993, pharmaceutical companies increasingly rely SXR screens to improve the safety of new drugs. Dr. Evans' current research focuses on deepening our understanding of the molecular basis of obesity-related diseases such as diabetes and syndrome X, a disorder characterized by high blood pressure, he...Alaska seal pup diet may hold key to decline of population
...rough the winter when food is less abundant. Seals rely on blubber both for insulation and as a source of energy. Nutritionally stressed adolescent females may take longer to reach sexual maturation and mature females that are nutritionally stressed may not reproduce, offering clues to why some harbor sea...New male contraceptive clears hurdle
... long-term relationship means that I don't want to rely on condoms for birth control. I'm not ready for a vasectomy, though. This new procedure could be the answer that gives men the decisive control we lack with current contraceptives." In the RISUG study, doctors inject a gel into the tube that sperm tr...Pain killer fights breast cancer by targeting key enzyme
...ans that other tissues, like bone and brain, which rely on normal aromatase production, may suffer," he sa...ts that aromatase production in other tissues that rely on the enzyme could be spared if a nimesulide analog was taken as a drug." He said that the next st...USC, Rice to develop bacteria-powered fuel cells
...igation of the genetic pathways that some microbes rely upon to maintain their respiratory metabolism in oxygen-poor environments. Shewanella oneidensis, one such bacterium, uses metals instead of oxygen to fully metabolize its food. "Since this organism is capable of passing electrons directly to solid m...Wound monitor 'sniffs out' infections
...bacteria are emitted into the air. Current methods rely on medical staff taking swabs from a wound and testing them in a lab, which can take several days. Professor Krishna Persaud, of The University of Manchester's School of Chemical Engineering and Analytical Science, who will coordinate the European-w...Hopkins researchers discover genetic switch that turns off an oxygen-poor cell's combustion engine
...he internal combustion engine at higher speeds and rely on an electric engine without need for oxygen consumption at lower speeds. Cells consume glucose through its main energy-producing machine, the mitochondrion, when oxygen is ample. But like the internal combustion engine, this process generates pol...Training improves sound localization in ferrets
... street until the ambulance has cleared. Mammals rely on sound localization skills to communicate, escape threats, and forage, among many other tasks. All through development the adult brain retains the capacity to rewire the networks that underlie these skills but it's not clear which tasks benefit fr...A better tool to study role of iron in Alzheimer's, Parkinson's
...s is that most treatments currently in development rely on early detection to slow or halt progression of the disease, as they cannot reverse it," he said....Story tips from the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory
...he system prevents mistakes common to methods that rely on manual scales, tape measures, calculators, paper and pencil. With military missions all over the world, transporting vehicles safely and efficiently is critical, and the ORNL weigh-in-motion system addresses a great need. Field testing began at Fo...Genetic and environmental influences on alcohol consumption among rhesus monkeys
...r exposure to alcohol, whereas human studies often rely on self-reported consumption patterns." Researchers examined data drawn from an ongoing longitudinal study of genetic and environmental factors affecting the neurobiology, behavior and alcohol consumption among rhesus macaques. For this particular ...Proteins are key to cell death in heart disease, stroke and degenerative conditions
... wide variety of health and disease processes that rely on apoptosis." ...Scientists look to the Bahamas as a model for coral reef conservation
...serves may affect the local human communities that rely on these fishing grounds must also be considered,"...ve approaches for managing the resources that they rely upon most directly?" Such questions are being addressed by social scientists working within the Baha...Scientists discuss evolutionary roots of social behavior
...n mothers, like marmoset and tamarin females, also rely on the help of their partners to rear children, Snowdon notes. So insights into marmoset and tamarin affiliation behaviors may help shed light on complex social questions, such as how males and females can maintain quality relationships....First wolverine radio-collared in Pacific Northwest
...y prey on everything from moose to mice, and often rely heavily on scavenging for food during winter. "The young female wolverine we collared weighed about 19 pounds, and was in excellent health and condition. She hasn't had kits yet, and is probably just a year old," said Aubry. "It's likely that her pa......nfections caused by biological threat agents (BTA) rely upon early diagnosis and rapid initiation of therapy. However, most methods for identifying pathogens or infectious agents in body fluids and tissues required that the pathogen proliferate to detectable and dangerous levels, thereby delaying diagnos...