Algae

Evidence of 600-million-year old fungi-algae symbiosis discovered in marine fossils

Researchers from China and the United States have found evidence of lichen-like symbiosis in 600-million-year-old fossils from South China. The previous earliest evidence of lichen was 400 million years old, discovered in Scotland. The discovery also adds to the scarce fossil record of fungi and raises new questions about lichen evolution. Xunlai Yuan, a paleontologist with the Nanjing Ins...

Deep sea algae connect ancient climate, carbon dioxide and vegetation

Assistant Professor Mark Pagani in the Department of Geology and Geophysics at Yale and his colleagues mapped the first detailed history of atmospheric carbon dioxide between 45 - 25 million years ago based on stable isotopes of carbon in a National Science Foundation study reported in Science Express. "Through the energy we consume, each of us makes a contribution to increasing greenhouse...

The secret life of algae

A fundamental process that has puzzled researchers for many years has been explained by UK scientists. Some simple plants that are crucial in maintaining the balance of carbon in the Earth's atmosphere require vitamin B12 to grow properly but it has been a mystery to scientists why some types needed external sources and others did not. Now researchers at the Universities of Cambridge and Kent hav...

'Cellular antennae' on algae give clues to how human cells receive signals

By studying microscopic hairs called cilia on algae, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found that an internal structure that helps build cilia is also responsible for a cell's response to external signals. Cilia perform many functions on human cells; they propel egg and sperm cells to make fertilization possible, line the nose to pick up odors, and purify the blood, among...

A new male-specific gene in algae unveils an origin of male and female

By studying the genetics of two closely related species of green algae that practice different forms of sexual reproduction, researchers have shed light on one route by which evolution gave rise to reproduction though the joining of distinct sperm and egg cells. The findings, which indicate that a gene underlying a more primitive system of reproduction was likely co-opted during evolution to part...

Detecting microalgae in coastal waters

Dr. Hugh MacIntyre, Senior Marine Scientist at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab, Alabama, and colleague Richard Cox of Kaitech Inc. have been awarded $270,274 to develop a tool for improved detection of microalgae by the Cooperative Institute for Coastal and Estuarine Environmental Technology (CICEET). Microalgae are the foundation of the aquatic food web. However, 'blooms', which are very den...

Chemicals in brown algae may protect against skin cancer

Substances extracted from a marine seaweed may protect against skin cancer caused by too much sun, new research suggests. UVB radiation in sunlight is thought responsible f...

Florida Tech explores microalgae for biofuel

Responding to the urgent need for alternative energy, Florida Tech Professor of Biological Science, Junda Lin, has received a $430,000 contract from Aurora Biofuels for large-scale production of microalgae. Successful microalgae production for fuel so far is in small-scale cultivation. Lin will cultivate the energy source at the university’s Vero Beach Marine Laboratory. His work is to tes...

Common algae helps illustrate mammalian brain electrical circuitry

Mice whose brain cells respond to a flash of light are providing insight into the complexities of the sense of smell and may ultimately yield a better understanding of how the human brain works. Investigators at Duke University Medical Center and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute have engineered a strain of mice whose olfactory brain cells "fire" when exposed to light. This was accomplis...