ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• Home teams hold the advantage
• Archaeologists find oldest evidence of Late Stone Age settlement on Cyprus
• Genetic flaw in males triggers onset of liver cancer, diabetes
• More light shed on possibility of life on Mars
• Mapping the demise of the dinosaurs
• Survey of supposed deep-sea chemical munitions dump off Southern California
• Hard rock life: Collecting census data on microbial denizens of hardened rocks
• Rivers and streams release more greenhouse gas than all lakes
• New long-lived greenhouse gas discovered: Highest global-warming impact of any compound to date
• System developed for assessing how effective species are at pollinating crops
• Leaf beetle larvae secrete defensive compound when feeding
• Peaceful bumblebee becomes invasive
• New insights into immune system of gastrointestinal tract
• Aging out of bounds: New demographic data show how diversely different species age and biologists cannot explain why
• Slimy tunicates may be worth billions
• Fish that work as sentinels of water quality
• Bed bugs can survive freezing temperatures, but cold can still kill them
• Measuring life's tugs and nudges: Tiny oil droplets help measure mechanical forces produced by living cells that shape tissues and organs
• Who's patenting whose genome?
• Genetic mutations, molecular alterations may explain racial differences in head, neck cancers
• Resistant against the flu
• Barriers, molecular trains trap Joubert syndrome protein in cilia
• Vaccine study reveals link between immunity, cells' starvation response
• Malignant cells adopt different pathway for genome duplication
• Single microRNA powers motor activity

Home teams hold the advantage Posted: 09 Dec 2013 12:23 PM PST The home team holds the advantage over visitors – at least in the plant world. However, a mere handful of genetic adaptations could even the playing field. Researchers and their collaborators found that plant adaptation to different environments involves tradeoffs in performance.

Archaeologists find oldest evidence of Late Stone Age settlement on Cyprus Posted: 09 Dec 2013 11:25 AM PST Artifacts found at an archaeological site in Cyprus support a new theory that humans occupied the tiny Mediterranean island about 1,000 years earlier than previously believed -- a discovery that fills an important gap in Cypriot history.

Genetic flaw in males triggers onset of liver cancer, diabetes Posted: 09 Dec 2013 10:25 AM PST Researchers have uncovered a genetic deficiency in males that can trigger the development of one of the most common types of liver cancer and forms of diabetes.

More light shed on possibility of life on Mars Posted: 09 Dec 2013 10:24 AM PST Humankind is by nature inquisitive, especially about the prospect of life on other planets and whether or not we are alone. The aptly named Curiosity, a NASA Mars rover, has been scouring that planet's surface as a potential habitat for life, either past or present. Now there are some exciting new findings.

Mapping the demise of the dinosaurs Posted: 09 Dec 2013 09:45 AM PST About 65 million years ago, an asteroid or comet crashed into a shallow sea near what is now the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, resulting in the extinction of many land plants and large animals, including most of the dinosaurs. The remnants from this devastating impact are exposed along the Campeche Escarpment -- an immense underwater cliff in the southern Gulf of Mexico, according to new research.

Survey of supposed deep-sea chemical munitions dump off Southern California Posted: 09 Dec 2013 09:45 AM PST Researchers have described a preliminary seafloor survey of an area off the Southern California coast marked on charts as a chemical munitions site. The preliminary survey turned up trash and 55-gallon drums, but no chemical munitions.

Hard rock life: Collecting census data on microbial denizens of hardened rocks Posted: 09 Dec 2013 09:41 AM PST Scientists are digging deep into the Earth's surface collecting census data on the microbial denizens of the hardened rocks. What they're finding is that, even miles deep and halfway across the globe, many of these communities are somehow quite similar.

Rivers and streams release more greenhouse gas than all lakes Posted: 09 Dec 2013 09:41 AM PST Rivers and streams release carbon dioxide at a rate five times greater than the world's lakes and reservoirs combined, contrary to common belief.

New long-lived greenhouse gas discovered: Highest global-warming impact of any compound to date Posted: 09 Dec 2013 09:41 AM PST Scientists have discovered a novel chemical lurking in the atmosphere that appears to be a long-lived greenhouse gas. The chemical -- perfluorotributylamine -- is the most radiatively efficient chemical found to date, breaking all other chemical records for its potential to impact climate.

System developed for assessing how effective species are at pollinating crops Posted: 09 Dec 2013 09:20 AM PST From tomatoes to pumpkins, most fruit and vegetable crops rely on pollination by bees and other insect species -- and the future of many of those species is uncertain. Now researchers are proposing a set of guidelines for assessing the performance of pollinator species in order to determine which species are most important and should be prioritized for protection.

Leaf beetle larvae secrete defensive compound when feeding Posted: 09 Dec 2013 07:52 AM PST Scientists have discovered the decisive biological stimulator for the accumulation of defensive substances in leaf beetle larvae used by the insects to fend off predators: ABC transport proteins, which are found in large quantities in glandular cells of the larvae.

Peaceful bumblebee becomes invasive Posted: 09 Dec 2013 07:52 AM PST European bumblebees were introduced into Chile as pollinators. However, these socially living insects have since spread across the southern part of South America -- very much to the detriment of native species.

New insights into immune system of gastrointestinal tract Posted: 09 Dec 2013 06:09 AM PST Lymphotoxin is a cytokine, or intercellular messenger, and plays an important role in the immunological balance of the gastrointestinal tract. It regulates the immune system of the digestive tract, which is made up of immune cells, immunoglobulins (antibodies) as well as intestinal bacteria. An international team of scientists has now discovered how this complex interaction functions and how lymphotoxin controls the production of immunoglobulins in the gut.

Aging out of bounds: New demographic data show how diversely different species age and biologists cannot explain why Posted: 09 Dec 2013 06:07 AM PST Despite aging being one the hottest topic in the media recently, scientists have no coherent explanation for it. New demographic data on humans, animals and plants for the first time unveil such an extraordinary diversity of aging processes that no existing evolutionary theory can account for. Both life spans and mortalities vary from species to species. The fact that the probability of dying rises with age applies to humans, but is not principally true. This is shown by a catalog of 46 species with their respective mortality and fertility rates.

Slimy tunicates may be worth billions Posted: 09 Dec 2013 06:07 AM PST Tunicates that were placed in the sea six months ago have now been harvested. These ocean weeds can become a new aquaculture adventure.

Fish that work as sentinels of water quality Posted: 09 Dec 2013 05:56 AM PST Scientists have studied how to use fish farms to detect water quality in our rivers. There is a slight contamination that does not affect product quality and can trigger physiological reactions on fish.  The analysis of these changes can be a good biomarker for water quality.

Bed bugs can survive freezing temperatures, but cold can still kill them Posted: 08 Dec 2013 10:36 AM PST A new study has found that bed bugs may be less susceptible to freezing temperatures than previously reported, but given adequate time and cold enough temperatures, freezing can still be an effective means of control.

Measuring life's tugs and nudges: Tiny oil droplets help measure mechanical forces produced by living cells that shape tissues and organs Posted: 08 Dec 2013 10:35 AM PST As embryonic tissue develops, cells push and pull on each other, and they must do so correctly for the tissue to develop properly. Now scientists have devised the first method to measure these tiny forces in three-dimensional tissues and living embryos.

Who's patenting whose genome? Posted: 08 Dec 2013 06:06 AM PST An international project has developed a free and open public resource that will bring much-needed transparency to the murky and contentious world of gene patenting.

Genetic mutations, molecular alterations may explain racial differences in head, neck cancers Posted: 08 Dec 2013 06:02 AM PST A team of scientists has identified a handful of genetic mutations in black Americans, in addition to some chemical alterations affecting gene activity, which may help explain why the death rate among African-Americans from the most common form of head and neck cancer continues to hover some 18 percent higher above the death rate of whites with the same cancer.

Resistant against the flu Posted: 05 Dec 2013 03:56 PM PST A new study published points out that mice lacking a protein called Tmprss2 are no longer affected by certain flu viruses.

Barriers, molecular trains trap Joubert syndrome protein in cilia Posted: 05 Dec 2013 03:55 PM PST A cilia disease protein causing Joubert Syndrome, ARL-13, is actively trafficked across the base of cilia and molecular diffusion barriers prevent its exit, according to new research. Primary cilia are hair-like projections extending from the surfaces of most human cell types that serve as important antennae to relay external sensory and signalling information back to the cell. Disrupting cilium structure or function leads to a wide range of diseases, termed ciliopathies, linked to multiple symptoms including cystic kidneys, blindness, bone formation defects, mental retardation and obesity.

Vaccine study reveals link between immunity, cells' starvation response Posted: 05 Dec 2013 02:17 PM PST Scientists studying immune responses to the yellow fever vaccine have identified a gene whose activation in key immune cells is a sign of a robust response. The results suggest vaccine components that activate the GCN2 gene could provide long-lasting immunity.

Malignant cells adopt different pathway for genome duplication Posted: 05 Dec 2013 02:01 PM PST Genomes must be replicated in two copies during cell division. This process occurs at structures called 'replication forks', which are equipped with enzymes and move along the separated DNA strands. In tumor cells, the replication forks are frequently damaged, giving rise to breaks in the double-stranded DNA. An international study has revealed how cancer cells repair the damaged replication forks in order to complete their division.

Single microRNA powers motor activity Posted: 05 Dec 2013 02:00 PM PST New research shows that microRNA-128 is one of the strongest regulators of nerve cell excitability and motor activity, and that it does so by adjusting an entire neuronal signaling pathway. The preclinical study suggests that developing new drugs for treatment-refractory epilepsy that target the microRNA signaling pathway might prove beneficial for patients with severe epilepsy, including the epilepsy of infancy.

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