A study by Wei et al. in Science identified a unique sexual binary neural circuit encoding a sexual preference switch, known as the ventral tegmental area dopaminergic (VTADA) circuit, which exhibits…
Category: 5. Biology
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Live Colossal Squid Captured on Film for First Time
A juvenile colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni) has been filmed alive in its environment by a team of marine biologists on board Schmidt Ocean Institute’s R/V Falkor (too) in waters off the South Sandwich Islands.
The colossal squid…
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Finland finds its first giant virus
Many viruses measure just tens of nanometers (nm) in size, but that’s not always the case. In some rare instances , so-called “giant viruses” can…
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Land-use drives energy dynamics of boreal lake food webs
Lake ecosystems can receive high inputs of terrestrial organic matter (t-OM) that microbes make available to higher trophic level consumers. Finnish Dutch research group examined terrestrial reliance of 19 consumer groups from 35 boreal lakes…
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Early detection of wood coating deterioration to better maintain wooden structures
From the Japanese cypress to the ponderosa pine, wood has been used in construction for millennia. Though materials like steel and concrete have largely taken over large building construction, wood is making a comeback, increasingly being used in…
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European potato genome decoded: Small gene pool with large differences
A research team has decoded the genome of historic potato cultivars and used this resource to develop an efficient method for analysis of hundreds of additional potato genomes.
Potatoes are a staple food for over 1.3 billion people. But despite…
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Curious isolation: New butterfly species discovered
In the heart of Canada’s Rocky Mountains, an unassuming yet remarkable butterfly has been quietly flying under our scientific radar for years. With a wingspan of an inch to an inch and a half, and wings that are brown on top and greyish brown…
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A new record for California’s highest tree
UC Davis Professor Hugh Safford was hiking for pleasure in California’s High Sierra when he stumbled upon a new elevation record for the Jeffrey pine, which may now be the state’s highest-altitude tree. His serendipitous finding is published in…
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Edibles, Vaping, and Dabbing on the Rise Among U.S. Adults
How does the average U.S. adult consume marijuana? This is what a recent report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) hopes to address as a team of CDC researchers investigated the…
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Experimental bird flu vaccine excels in animal models
A vaccine under development at the University at Buffalo has demonstrated complete protection in mice against a deadly variant of the virus that causes bird flu.
The work, detailed in a study published today (April 17) in the journal Cell…
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