Category Archives: News & Archives

Alien Species Reconsidered: Finding a Value in Non-Natives

Alien Species Reconsidered: Finding a Value in Non-Natives
The tale of the honeybee is a sadly familiar one: a once-thriving species is on the ropes. After brutal bouts with mites and fungi, honeybees are now facing their most dangerous threat yet: a mysterious disease called colony collapse disorder. In the winter of 2010 alone, U.S. beekeepers reported losing 34 percent of their hives…
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Biologists identify pathways that extend lifespan by 500 percent

Biologists identify pathways that extend lifespan by 500 percent
Scientists at the MDI Biological Laboratory, in collaboration with scientists from the Buck Institute for Research on Aging in Novato, Calif., and Nanjing University in China, have identified synergistic cellular pathways for longevity that amplify lifespan fivefold in C. elegans, a nematode worm used as a model in aging research. The increase in lifespan would be the equivalent…
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Global warming is the kindling that caused extensive wildfire

Global warming is the kindling that caused extensive wildfire
In November of last year, the wildfire that started in California, U.S.A burned areas that amount about the size of Seoul and destructed over 500 buildings for two weeks. In 2018, six fires started simultaneously in southern California and spread out to the neighboring areas, burning total of 405 km2 with 86 fatalities and 200,000…
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Black Coyotes in Florida

Black Coyotes in Florida
These two black coyotes were photographed on a Wildlife Management Area in Florida. Black coyotes are uncommon everywhere and hardly ever seen in Florida—hunters occasionally post photos of dead animals, but photos of live black coyotes are extremely rare. A recent study at Stanford University on the genetics of melanism (black color morph) in wolves,…
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Evolutionary changes in brain potentially make us more prone to anxiety

Evolutionary changes in brain potentially make us more prone to anxiety
Neurochemicals such as serotonin and dopamine play crucial roles in cognitive and emotional functions of our brain. Vesicular monoamine transporter 1 (VMAT1) is one of the genes responsible for transporting neurotransmitters and regulating neuronal signaling. A research team led by Tohoku University has reconstructed ancestral VMAT1 proteins, revealing the functional changes in neurotransmitter uptake of…
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Breakthrough in Zika virus vaccine

Breakthrough in Zika virus vaccine
Researchers from the University of Adelaide have made significant advances in developing a novel vaccine against Zika virus, which could potentially lead to global elimination of the disease. The virology team, led by Professor Eric Gowans and Dr Branka Grubor-Bauk -- based at the Basil Hetzel Institute for Translational Health Research and supported by The…
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Florida’s black bears remain off limits from hunters — but only for now

Florida’s black bears remain off limits from hunters — but only for now
The Florida black bear will remain off limits from hunters, but only for now. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission on Wednesday approved a 10-year management plan and decided there was no need to schedule a hunt to control the growing population of bears in the wild. But despite intense pressure from conservation groups, animal advocates…
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Thought extinct for 30 years, the starry night toad is rediscovered

Thought extinct for 30 years, the starry night toad is rediscovered
At less than two inches in size, and with a stunning coloration of shiny black skin with white spots, these marvelous little critters can be found in just one location—Colombia’s Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, one of the tallest and most remote coastal mountain ranges on Earth. In fact, the amphibian’s common name is an ode to…
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