Although Zika is primarily thought of as mosquito-borne illness, sexual transmission plays an important role in the spread of the virus. Weeks or even months after the virus has been cleared from the bloodstream, Zika can still be found...
Scientists are one step closer to adapting the bacteria-killing power of a naturally occurring nanomachine, a tiny particle that performs a mechanical action. In a study published in Nature, a UCLA-led team of researchers describe how the nanomachine recognizes and kills...
Smart boxers bind their hands with strips of cloth to avoid injury when they pack a punch. Millions of years ago, the "smasher" mantis shrimp, one of nature's feistiest predators, figured out a similar way to protect the hammer-like...
CRISPR-based tools have revolutionized our ability to target disease-linked genetic mutations. CRISPR technology comprises a growing family of tools that can manipulate genes and their expression, including by targeting DNA with the enzymes Cas9 and Cas12 and targeting RNA...
To determine how well the sea turtle hatchlings could perform after their walk on the treadmill, the hatchlings swam in a small tank using a specially designed swimsuit. Researchers measured oxygen consumption and lactate accumulation as well as their...
In certain turtle species, the temperature of the egg determines whether the offspring is female or male. But now, new research shows that the embryos have some say in their own sexual destiny: they can move around inside the...
A ZSL study published in Nature Communications today maps the evolutionary history of the world's terrestrial vertebrates—amphibians, birds, mammals and reptiles—for the first time, exploring how areas with large concentrations of evolutionarily distinct and threatened species are being impacted by our...
A smart new microscope has given scientists a front-row seat to the drama of mammalian development. For the first time, researchers can now peek inside a living mouse embryo and watch the gut begin to form and heart cells take...
Researchers at The Francis Crick Institute in London have discovered that cells can trap viruses in a protein cage to stop them from spreading to neighboring cells. The study, which will be published June 19 in the Journal of...
Humans' guts are a dangerous place. Bacteria living in people's intestines pump out toxins to deter microbial intruders. But each person's gut comes with its own set of toxins—an individualized "passcode" microbes must solve to survive, scientists report October 30,...
The gene of autumn colours

The gene of autumn colours

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SGR induces colour changes in leaves. SGR was experimentally induced (bottom) in Arabidopsis and compared with the normal leaves (top). Excised leaves were observed for up to 30 hours. Credit: Shimoda Y et al., Plant Cell, September 7, 2016 Researchers...