ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• Bering Sea study finds prey density more important to predators than biomass
• Improving DNA amplification from problematic plants
• Editing genome with high precision: New method to insert multiple genes in specific locations, delete defective genes
• Rethinking bacterial persistence: Optofluidics allow for new understanding of resistance to antibiotics
• Coral records suggest El Nino activity rises above background
• Big brains are pricey, guppy study shows
• Rare form of active 'jumping genes' found in mammals
• Biologists unlock 'black box' to underground world: How tiny microbes make life easier for humans
• Unlocking sorghum's gene bank
• Key mechanism in calcium regulation discovered: May help lead to new drugs for neurodegenerative diseases

Bering Sea study finds prey density more important to predators than biomass Posted: 03 Jan 2013 04:24 PM PST Marine resource managers often gauge the health of species based on overall biomass, but a new study of predator-prey relationships in the Bering Sea found that it isn't the total number of individuals that predators care about -- it's how densely they are aggregated.

Improving DNA amplification from problematic plants Posted: 03 Jan 2013 11:32 AM PST The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a common technique used to amplify, or copy, pieces of DNA. Amplified DNA is then used in genetic analyses for everything from medicine to forensics. In plant research, PCR is a vital step in detecting and sequencing genes, and its applications are endless. However, compounds found in plants often inhibit PCR. Researchers have discovered that the use of an additive allows PCR to successfully amplify DNA from once problematic plants.

Editing genome with high precision: New method to insert multiple genes in specific locations, delete defective genes Posted: 03 Jan 2013 11:32 AM PST Researchers have developed a new technique for precisely altering the genomes of living cells by adding or deleting genes.

Rethinking bacterial persistence: Optofluidics allow for new understanding of resistance to antibiotics Posted: 03 Jan 2013 11:31 AM PST Scientists have used microfluidics to observe the behavior of individual tuberculosis-like bacteria in the presence of antibiotics. Their observations call into question the prevailing theory of bacterial resistance, and they have proposed a new explanation for why some bacteria become resistant.

Coral records suggest El Nino activity rises above background Posted: 03 Jan 2013 11:31 AM PST By examining a set of fossil corals that are as much as 7,000 years old, scientists have dramatically expanded the amount of information available on the El Nino-Southern Oscillation, a Pacific Ocean climate cycle that affects climate worldwide.

Big brains are pricey, guppy study shows Posted: 03 Jan 2013 10:11 AM PST Bigger brains can make animals, well, brainier, but that boost in brain size and ability comes at a price. That's according to new evidence in which researchers artificially selected guppies for large and small brain sizes.

Rare form of active 'jumping genes' found in mammals Posted: 03 Jan 2013 10:08 AM PST Much of the DNA that makes up our genomes can be traced back to strange rogue sequences known as transposable elements, or jumping genes, which are largely idle in mammals. But researchers report they have identified a new DNA sequence moving around in bats -- the first member of its class found to be active in mammals.

Biologists unlock 'black box' to underground world: How tiny microbes make life easier for humans Posted: 03 Jan 2013 06:20 AM PST Biologists have unlocked the "black box" to the underground world home to billions of microscopic creatures. That first peek inside may well explain how the number of species in an ecosystem changes the way it functions.

Unlocking sorghum's gene bank Posted: 03 Jan 2013 06:20 AM PST Climate change poses a major challenge to humanity's ability to feed its growing population. But a new study of sorghum promises to make this crop an invaluable asset in facing that challenge.

Key mechanism in calcium regulation discovered: May help lead to new drugs for neurodegenerative diseases Posted: 03 Jan 2013 04:32 AM PST All living cells keep their cellular calcium concentration at a very low level. Since a small increase in calcium can affect many critical cellular functions (an elevated calcium concentration over an extended period can induce cell death), powerful cellular mechanisms ensure that calcium concentration quickly returns to its low level.

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