Tag: "existing" at biology news

Nicotine rush hinges on sugar in neurons

...molecular and computational biology at USC. Many existing theories, which do not consider sugar’s role, are probably incomplete, Chen said. The debate over how signals pass from the outside of a cell to the inside is a long-standing one. Some researchers had suggested that when a chemical such as nicoti...

The insect vector always bites twice

... used in endemic areas to evaluate the efficacy of existing vector control strategies, such as the use of impregnated mosquito nets. Analysis of the host-vector relationship, up to now dealt with mainly from the angle of allergic responses to bites or in the search for veterinary vaccines, constitutes now an ...

Caribbean frogs started with a single, ancient voyage on a raft from South America

...t devastated the islands, probably eliminating any existing fauna at that time," Hedges said. The original frogs that successfully colonized the Caribbean islands likely hitched a ride on floating mats of vegetation called flotsam, which is the method typically used by land animals to travel across salt wa...

Ancient DNA traces the woolly mammoth's disappearance

...y concerned about the potential extinction of many existing large mammals, studying those that occurred in the geologically recent past can provide many insights,” Lister said. “Our work, together with that of others, shows that the conditions for extinction can be set up long before the actual extinction eve...

New study finds genetically engineered crops could play a role in sustainable agriculture

...ls how an in-depth analysis of large quantities of existing data from many individual experiments can provide a greater understanding of a complex issue. The project is enhanced by the creation of a public database, Nontarget Effects of Bt Crops, developed by NCEAS ecoinformatics expert, Jim Regetz, that wil...

U-M researchers discover gene switched off in cancer can be turned on

...reast cancers. The researchers were able to use existing drugs, which showed some usefulness in turning on ...d – like flipping the switch back on. While the existing HDAC inhibitors did return BRM expression, the effect was short-lived. Once the drugs were taken awa...

Undergraduate research shows leaderless honeybee organizing

... a form of “modulatory communication” that alters existing bee behaviors (making bees perform their jobs more actively, perhaps) or changes bees response to other signals. Pierce and Schneider have documented in their current paper how workers use the vibration signal to prepare the queen for swarming by...

Mutating the entire genome

...r gene or other DNA sequence knocked out. So using existing technology to knock out the estimated 20,000 mouse...o disable genes more easily and inexpensively than existing knockout techniques, Wu says. In their study, Wu and Capecchi demonstrated that by using a jumpi...

UCF nanoparticle offers promise for treating glaucoma

...te in the article that while barely 1-3 percent of existing glaucoma medicines penetrate into the eye, earlier experiments with nanoparticles have shown not only high penetration rates but also little patient discomfort. The miniscule size of the nanoparticles makes them less abrasive than some of the comple...

Weizmann Institute scientists develop a general 'control switch' for protein activity

... decrease the production of a certain protein, but existing manipulations of this sort are complicated and do not fully meet the researchers’ needs. Prof. Mordechai “Moti” Liscovitch and graduate student Oran Erster of the Weizmann Institute’s Biological Regulation Department, together with Dr. Miri Eisenste...

Human genetic 'deserts' are teeming with significant life

... 1% of the human genome. By testing and comparing existing methods for annotating the human genome the consortium members hope to find the most effective ways of analysing it in its entirety. Although the finished sequence of the human genome announced in 2003 was a great achievement, it left a number of ...

Want to save polar bears? Follow the ice

...main question for conservationists is which of the existing 18 populations of polar bears occurring on two continents and one sub-continent stand the best chance of surviving as the polar cap shrinks in size. To that end, the project will utilize remote sensing satellite imagery on sea ice extent and concentr...

'Virtual Patient' to simulate real-time organ motions for radiation therapy

...athing in real time. When used in conjunction with existing 3-D models, adding the fourth dimension of time could significantly improve the accuracy and effectiveness of radiation treatment for lung and liver cancers. X. George Xu, professor of nuclear and biomedical engineering, and Suvranu De, associate ...

Scientists discover 5 new species of sea slugs from the Tropical Eastern Pacific

...animals in the new collection by comparing them to existing collections, consulting specialists and using a scanning electron microscope to examine the jaws and other hard parts of the nudibranchs that distinguish species. This was part of the formal project “Phylogenetic Systematics of Nudibranchia,” spon...

Catching cancer's spread by watching hemoglobin

... angiogenesis—the growth of new blood vessels from existing ones—often signals the proliferation of tumors. This may make the technique convenient and powerful for helping to diagnose diseases such as melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. The technique can image blood vessels up to a millimeter below t...

More recycling on the farm could reduce environmental problems

...al benefits could be expected. Pearson argues that existing funding programs for farmers could be modified to encourage more regenerative agriculture, and suggests that philanthropists and professional bodies could stimulate its uptake....

Ecology in an era of globalization

...l knowledge system to facilitate access to new and existing sources of ecological information throughout the w...cts of alien invasives to better manage and assess existing infestations. The special issue also contains workshop reports, including "Ecological impacts of ...

Madagascan tropical forests return thanks to better management and well-defined ownership

...ry tropical forests to spontaneously regenerate if existing local rules and norms (including well-defined property rights) mitigate other drivers of deforestation and alternative land-use. ...

Legal ruling may put endangered species in danger

...e.' That means the Act can't be used to expand the existing range, even if that is necessary for the viability of a species." "The proposed rule would have allowed our national symbol, the bald eagle, to become extinct in the lower 48 states, surviving only in Alaska, and it would have allowed the gray wh...

Newborn neurons like to hang with the 'in' crowd

...rn brain cells need to find their place within the existing network of neurons. The newcomers jump right into ... Diseases. "But if they are only replacing already existing connections there is less chance of error," he adds. Neurons make contact via specialized structu...

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