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Volcanoes in the genome, blowing out pieces of DNA

Roughly 10 million years ago, a major genetic change occurred in a common ancestor of gorillas, chimpanzees, and humans.

11 Feb 2009

Discovery of gene network that gave rise to first tooth

A paper in this week's PLoS Biology reports that a common gene regulatory circuit controls the development of all dentitions, from the first teeth in the throats of jawless fishes that lived half a billion years ago, to the incisors and molars of modern vertebrates, including you and me.

10 Feb 2009

Scientists create first crystal structure of an intermediate particle in virus assembly

The structure, described February 8 in an advance online publication of the journal Nature , provides fresh insights into the elegant dance that viral proteins perform to create the infectious structure that causes all manner of misery and disease, say researchers.

8 Feb 2009

Scientists deconstruct cell division

The last step of the cell cycle is the brief but spectacularly dynamic and complicated mitosis phase, which leads to the duplication of one mother cell into two daughter cells.

8 Feb 2009

Research links photosynthesis genes to marine virus fitness

A recent Northeastern University study has shown, for the first time, the effect of individual genes on the fitness of a marine species at the ecosystem level.

5 Feb 2009

Animal eggs no source for embryonic stem cells

Stem cell researchers in the U.S. say that eggs from cows, rabbits and other animals are not a good source for creating embryonic stem cells.

3 Feb 2009

Groundbreaking human evolution book launch to kick start Imperial's Darwin bicentenary celebrations

A new book by eminent Darwin historians, which will revolutionise our understanding of Darwin's path to human evolution, will be launched at Imperial College London on Monday 9 February 2009

3 Feb 2009

Peptide loaded gold nanospheres find, penetrate, then fuel burning of melanoma

Hollow gold nanospheres equipped with a targeting peptide find melanoma cells, penetrate them deeply, and then cook the tumor when bathed with near-infrared light, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center reported in the Feb. 1 issue of Clinical Cancer Research.

2 Feb 2009

Quantum dot hazards

Quantum dots have the potential to bring many good things into the world: efficient solar power, targeted gene and drug delivery, solid-state lighting and advances in biomedical imaging among them.

2 Feb 2009

The origin of species may be almost as random as a throw of the dice

Iosif Pinelis, a professor of mathematical sciences at Michigan Technological University, has worked out a mathematical solution to a biological puzzle: Why is the typical evolutionary tree so lopsided?

2 Feb 2009

Discovery of new class of non-protein coding genes in mammals with key functions

A research team at the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center has uncovered a vast new class of previously unrecognized mammalian genes that do not encode proteins, but instead function as long RNA molecules.

2 Feb 2009

Smallest quantum dots ever created

Single atom quantum dots created by researchers at Canada's National Institute for Nanotechnology and the University of Alberta make possible a new level of control over individual electrons, a development that suddenly brings quantum dot-based devices within reach.

29 Jan 2009

Rare amino acid helps establish how proteins evolve

Three billion years ago, a "new" amino acid was added to the alphabet of 20 that commonly make up proteins in organisms today.

29 Jan 2009

Social and ethical issues concerning nanotechnology

Recent action in Congress to reauthorize the U.S. federal nanotechnology research program offers the chance to address the social and ethical issues concerning the emerging scientific field, experts say.

29 Jan 2009

Genetic testing may not lead to demand for 'designer babies'

A new study by researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center found a high desire for additional genetic testing among consumers for life altering and threatening medical conditions including mental retardation, blindness, deafness, cancer, heart disease, dwarfism and shortened lifespan from death by 5 years of age.

27 Jan 2009

Advances in metagenomics

In an upcoming issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , Yale researchers used newly developed mathematical models to analyze huge amounts of data on physical characteristics such as temperature and salinity in different ocean habitats and metabolic activity in marine micro-organisms.

23 Jan 2009

More scientific evidence supporting Darwinian views of evolution

Studies at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine on brain electrical signaling offer a fresh perspective on vertebrate evolution, provide additional evidence supporting Darwinian views of evolution, and may also lead to more effective treatment of epileptic seizures in infants.

21 Jan 2009

Health and environmental hazards of tungsten

Surprising new scientific research is raising concerns about the potential health and environmental hazards of tungsten - a metal used in products ranging from bullets to light bulbs to jewelry - that scientists once thought was environmentally-benign, according to an article scheduled for the Jan. 19 issue of Chemical & Engineering News , ACS' weekly newsmagazine.

19 Jan 2009

Ancient fish provides new piece in the jigsaw puzzle of human origins

In an article in the journal Nature, Uppsala researcher Martin Brazeau describes the skull and jaws of a fish that lived about 410 million years ago.

19 Jan 2009

Nanotechnology safety high on Congress' priority list

The House Science and Technology Committee has introduced legislation that highlights the growing attention on Capitol Hill to the need to strengthen federal efforts to learn more about the potential environmental, health and safety (EHS) risks posed by engineered nanomaterials.

19 Jan 2009