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ScienceDaily: Plants & Animals News |
| Loss of picky-eating fish threatens coral reef food webs Posted: 20 Sep 2021 12:20 PM PDT The networks of predator fish and their prey found on coral reefs all over the world are remarkably similar, and those predator fish are pickier eaters than previously thought. These delicate ecosystems become even more vulnerable when these specialized hunters go extinct. |
| Behold the humble water flea, locked in a battle of mythological proportions Posted: 20 Sep 2021 09:18 AM PDT Biologists sized up an unlikely natural phenomenon: when parasitism actually causes the number of hosts to increase, an effect known as a hydra effect. A study of common water fleas and their fungal parasites includes laboratory components and an analysis of 13 fungal epidemics in nature. The scientists use consumer-resource theory to explain why -- and in what types of systems -- the hydra effect can occur. |
| How pruning the cytoskeleton moves the cell Posted: 20 Sep 2021 09:17 AM PDT Cells are characterized to be stable yet highly flexible. They constantly modify their shape and even move through tissue. These vital properties are based on a dynamically organized network of branched actin filaments, which generates pushing forces to move the cell membrane. An interdisciplinary team has now revealed a previously unknown mechanism, explaining how stopping the growth of older actin filaments within the network promotes the formation of new ones, thereby maintaining the structure and function of the cytoskeleton, much like proper pruning of hedges in the garden. |
| How resistant germs transport toxins at molecular level Posted: 20 Sep 2021 09:17 AM PDT In order to counter the increasing threat posed by multi-drug resistant germs, we need to understand how their resistance mechanisms work. Transport proteins have an important role to play in this process. Scientists have now described the three-dimensional structure of transport protein Pdr5, found also in a similar form in pathogenic fungi. The results could help develop mechanisms to combat dangerous pathogens. |
| New computational platform to study biological processes Posted: 20 Sep 2021 09:17 AM PDT Scientists have launched a unique software that is able to perform highly complex simulations of a variety of biological processes. |
| Extreme volcanism did not cause the massive extinction of species in the late Cretaceous Posted: 20 Sep 2021 08:14 AM PDT A new study rules out that extreme volcanic episodes had any influence on the massive extinction of species in the late Cretaceous. The results confirm the hypothesis that it was a giant meteorite impact what caused the great biological crisis that ended up with the non-avian dinosaur lineages and other marine and terrestrial organisms 66 million years ago. |
| Augmented reality helps tackle fear of spiders Posted: 20 Sep 2021 07:09 AM PDT Researchers have developed an augmented reality app for smartphones in order to help people reduce their fear of spiders. The app has already shown itself to be effective in a clinical trial, with subjects experiencing less fear of real spiders after completing just a few training units with the app at home. |
| Conservation study: Fostering wanderlust benefits pandas Posted: 20 Sep 2021 05:21 AM PDT New study shows home sweet home can be too sweet for some wildlife, and easing conservation standards can benefit both wildlife and people. |
| Lessons from how bats resist COVID could inform new treatments in humans Posted: 17 Sep 2021 01:11 PM PDT A new paper explores the idea that studying bats' responses to SARS-CoV-2 may provide key insights into how and when to best use existing therapies for COVID-19, and to develop new treatments. The paper is a major review of how the virus that has caused the current pandemic wreaks havoc on the human immune system. |
| Can fruit fly research help improve survival of cancer patients? Posted: 16 Sep 2021 10:13 AM PDT Scientists don't really know what kills many cancer patients, but fruit fly research could provide answers. By following flies with tumors up to the point of death, researchers have discovered chemicals produced by tumors that shorten life span apart from the damage done locally to critical organs. This suggests a novel strategy for extending a healthy life span in those with a cancer burden: block the tumor-generated chemicals and the damage they do. |
| World-famous sardine migration explained by genomics Posted: 15 Sep 2021 01:13 PM PDT Scientists have discovered how the Sardine Run, one of the world's biggest migration events, works. This spectacular event, considered the 'Greatest Shoal on Earth', involves the movement of hundreds of millions of sardines from their cool-temperate core range into the warmer subtropical waters of the Indian Ocean, on South Africa's east coast. |
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