ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

---

• Super-charged tropical trees: Borneo’s productive trees vitally important for global carbon cycling
• Fueling aviation with hardwoods
• Extinct kitten-sized hunter discovered
• Ending the perfect storm: Protein key to beating flu pandemics
• IL-27 balances the immune response to influenza and reduces lung damage
• 'Electrosmog' disrupts orientation in migratory birds, scientists show
• Higher-yielding crop plants? Plant hormone has dual role in triggering flower formation
• 'Rice theory' explains north-south China cultural differences
• How immune cells use steroids
• Humans may benefit from new insights into polar bear's adaptation to high-fat diet
• Spurt of heart muscle cell division seen in mice well after birth: Implications for repair of congenital heart defects
• New technology using fluorescent proteins tracks cancer cells circulating in blood
• Antibiotic resistance genes are essentially everywhere
• What vigilant squid can teach us about the purpose of pain
• Anti-aging factor offers brain boost, too
• Sockeye salmon vs. Pebble Mine: Protecting a fragile ecosystem in Alaska from destruction
• Free radicals: What doesn't kill you may make you live longer
• Yeast study identifies novel longevity pathway
• Mummy-making wasps discovered in Ecuador
• 'Teenage' songbirds experience high mortality due to many causes, study finds
• Fungus may help stop invasive spread of tree-of-heaven
• First method for generating specific, inheritable mutations revealed by researchers
• New grasshopper species named after Grammy winner
• Hepatitis C virus: How viral proteins interact in human cells
• If they know it's good for them, will they eat it?
• Plant defends itself from pests with mustard bomb
• Luminescent nanocrystal tags enable rapid detection of multiple pathogens in a single test
• First-ever study describes deep-sea animal communities around a sunken shipping container
• Why a bacterium got its curve -- and why biologists should know
• Homemade stink bug traps squash store-bought models, researchers find
• Gluten-free diet reduces risk of type 1 diabetes in mice
• Improving air quality in NYC would boost children's future earnings by increasing IQ
• 'Parent' cells reset cell division clock
• Pesticides: New insights into their effects on shrimps and snails
• Spanish, Japanese centenarians reveal genetic key to longevity
• Humans and their pet dogs: Shared cancers, shared hope
• A lab in your pocket: Using CAD to load dozens of tests on a lab-on-a-chip
• Malaria severity not determined solely by parasite levels in blood
• Recent Ebola outbreak highlights need for better global response
• New order of marine creatures discovered among sea anemones
• Scientists focus on role of ventilation in preventing tuberculosis transmission
• School-based gardening encourages healthier eating in children
• Mindfulness: Think before you eat and make healthier choices
• Airborne measurements confirm leaks from oil and gas operations
• The logic behind solving the climate change issue
• Simple model underpins building safety in the wake of landslides
• Argentina yields three new tarantula species
• Phytoplankton and zooplankton biomass are expected to decrease by 6% and 11% respectively by the end of century due to climate change

Super-charged tropical trees: Borneo’s productive trees vitally important for global carbon cycling Posted: 08 May 2014 04:23 PM PDT A team of scientists has found that the woody growth of forests in north Borneo is half as great again as in the most productive forests of north-west Amazonia, an average difference of 3.2 tons of wood per hectare per year.

Fueling aviation with hardwoods Posted: 08 May 2014 02:23 PM PDT A multi-university team has addressed challenges of introducing advanced biofuels in the transportation pool through the concerted development of technology designed to transform lignocellulosic biomass into a jet fuel surrogate via catalytic chemistry. This promising approach highlights the versatility of lignocellulose.

Extinct kitten-sized hunter discovered Posted: 08 May 2014 02:22 PM PDT Researchers have discovered an ancient kitten-sized predator that lived in Bolivia about 13 million years ago -- one of the smallest species reported in the extinct order Sparassodonta. The species has the features of a tenacious hunter that could feed on animals its own size, the scientists say.

Ending the perfect storm: Protein key to beating flu pandemics Posted: 08 May 2014 02:22 PM PDT A protein called SOCS4 has been shown to act as a handbrake on the immune system's runaway reaction to flu infection, providing a possible means of minimizing the impact of flu pandemics. Scientists have found that without SOCS4 the immune response to influenza infection is slowed and there is a vast increase in the number of damaging inflammatory molecules in the lungs. This flood of inflammatory molecules, known as a 'cytokine storm', is thought to contribute to flu-related deaths in humans.

IL-27 balances the immune response to influenza and reduces lung damage Posted: 08 May 2014 02:22 PM PDT Highly pathogenic (dangerous) influenza strains elicit a strong immune response which can lead to uncontrolled inflammation in the lung and potentially fatal lung injury. A new study demonstrates the importance of IL-27 for the control of immunopathology -- damage to the lung tissue caused by the immune system -- and the therapeutic potential of well-timed IL-27 application to treat life-threatening inflammation during lung infection.

'Electrosmog' disrupts orientation in migratory birds, scientists show Posted: 08 May 2014 01:36 PM PDT For the first time, scientists have demonstrated that the magnetic compass of robins fails entirely when the birds are exposed to AM radio waveband electromagnetic interference -- even if the signals are just a thousandth of the limit value defined by the World Health Organization as harmless.

Higher-yielding crop plants? Plant hormone has dual role in triggering flower formation Posted: 08 May 2014 11:18 AM PDT A plant hormone once believed to promote flower formation in annual plants also plays a role in inhibiting flowers from forming. The dual role of this hormone, gibberellin, could be exploited to produce higher-yielding crop plants.

'Rice theory' explains north-south China cultural differences Posted: 08 May 2014 11:17 AM PDT A new cultural psychology study has found that psychological differences between the people of northern and southern China mirror the differences between community-oriented East Asia and the more individualistic Western world -- and the differences seem to have come about because southern China has grown rice for thousands of years, whereas the north has grown wheat.

How immune cells use steroids Posted: 08 May 2014 10:30 AM PDT Some immune cells turn themselves off by producing a steroid, researchers have found. The findings have implications for the study of cancers, autoimmune diseases and parasitic infections. "We were really surprised to see that these immune cells are producing a steroid. In cell culture, we see that the steroids play a part in regulating T cell proliferation," says the study's designer. "We had already seen that T-helper cells were producing steroids, but initially we were blind -- what was going on?"

Humans may benefit from new insights into polar bear's adaptation to high-fat diet Posted: 08 May 2014 09:13 AM PDT The polar bear diverged from the brown bear, or grizzly, as recently as several hundred thousand years ago, according to a genome comparison by American, Chinese and Danish researchers. They pinpointed genes that underwent extreme selection over time, specifically genes that deal with fat metabolism and apparently allowed the bear to adapt to a diet unusually high in fat. These genes could provide clues to help humans deal with health problems caused by high-fat diets.

Spurt of heart muscle cell division seen in mice well after birth: Implications for repair of congenital heart defects Posted: 08 May 2014 09:13 AM PDT The entire heart muscle in young children may be capable of regeneration. In young mice 15 days old, cardiac muscle cells undergo a precisely timed spurt of cell division lasting around a day. This previously unobserved phenomenon contradicts the long-held idea that cardiac muscle cells do not divide after the first few days of life.

New technology using fluorescent proteins tracks cancer cells circulating in blood Posted: 08 May 2014 09:13 AM PDT After cancer spreads, finding and destroying malignant cells that circulate in the body is usually critical to patient survival. Now, researchers report that they have developed a new method that allows investigators to label and track single tumor cells circulating in the blood. This advance could help investigators develop a better understanding of cancer spread and how to stop it.

Antibiotic resistance genes are essentially everywhere Posted: 08 May 2014 09:13 AM PDT The largest metagenomic search for antibiotic resistance genes in the DNA sequences of microbial communities from around the globe has found that bacteria carrying those vexing genes turn up everywhere in nature that scientists look for them. The findings add to evidence showing just how common and abundant those resistance genes really are in natural environments.

What vigilant squid can teach us about the purpose of pain Posted: 08 May 2014 09:13 AM PDT Most of us have probably felt that lasting sense of anxiety or even pain after enduring some kind of accident or injury. Now, researchers have the first evidence in any animal that there may be a very good reason for that kind of heightened sensitivity. Squid that behave with extra vigilance after experiencing even a minor injury are more likely to live to see another day, according to a report.

Anti-aging factor offers brain boost, too Posted: 08 May 2014 09:13 AM PDT A variant of the gene KLOTHO is known for its anti-aging effects in people fortunate enough to carry one copy. Now researchers find that it also has benefits when it comes to brain function. The variant appears to lend beneficial cognitive effects by increasing overall levels of KLOTHO in the bloodstream and brain.

Sockeye salmon vs. Pebble Mine: Protecting a fragile ecosystem in Alaska from destruction Posted: 08 May 2014 09:13 AM PDT Scientists are laying the foundation for the extremely controversial topic of building the proposed Pebble Mine just miles away from Bristol Bay, Alaska. When referring to Alaska as the last great frontier, Bristol Bay is what would come to mind. It is 40,000 square miles teaming with caribou, wolves, moose, and, most importantly, salmon.

Free radicals: What doesn't kill you may make you live longer Posted: 08 May 2014 09:12 AM PDT What is the secret to aging more slowly and living longer? Not antioxidants, apparently. Many people believe that free radicals, the sometimes-toxic molecules produced by our bodies as we process oxygen, are the culprit behind aging. Yet a number of studies in recent years have produced evidence that the opposite may be true. A team of researchers discovered that free radicals -- also known as oxidants -- act on a molecular mechanism that, in other circumstances, tells a cell to kill itself.

Yeast study identifies novel longevity pathway Posted: 08 May 2014 09:12 AM PDT A new molecular circuit that controls longevity in yeast and more complex organisms has been identified by a study. Researchers also suggest a therapeutic intervention that could mimic the lifespan-enhancing effect of caloric restriction, no dietary restrictions necessary. The team looked for answers in the ISW2 protein, and found that its absence alters gene expression involved in DNA damage protection. Deletion of ISW2 increases the expression and activity of genes in DNA-damage repair pathways –- also seen in calorie restriction.

Mummy-making wasps discovered in Ecuador Posted: 08 May 2014 08:10 AM PDT Field work in the cloud forests of Ecuador has resulted in the discovery of 24 new species of Aleiodes wasps that mummify caterpillars. Among the 24 new insect species described by Shimbori and Shaw, several were named after famous people including the comedians and television hosts Jimmy Fallon, John Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and Ellen DeGeneres, as well as the Ecuadorian artist Eduardo Kingman, American poet Robert Frost, and Colombian singer and musician, Shakira.

'Teenage' songbirds experience high mortality due to many causes, study finds Posted: 08 May 2014 08:10 AM PDT The majority of juvenile bird deaths occur in the first three weeks after they leave the nest, a researcher has found. "Just like teenagers leaving home to live on their own for the first time, these juvenile birds are inexperienced and vulnerable to the outside world," said one researcher. "It is important for conservationists to find ways to provide the right habitats for these birds to survive during what is an important, yet vulnerable, time in their development."

Fungus may help stop invasive spread of tree-of-heaven Posted: 08 May 2014 08:10 AM PDT A naturally occurring fungus might help curb the spread of an invasive tree species that is threatening forests in most of the United States, according to researchers. Researchers tested the fungus -- Verticillium nonalfalfae -- by injecting it into tree-of-heaven, or Ailanthus, plots. The treatment completely eradicated the tree-of-heaven plants in those forests.

First method for generating specific, inheritable mutations revealed by researchers Posted: 08 May 2014 08:10 AM PDT The first method for generating specific and inheritable mutations in the species of the Platynereis model system has been revealed by researchers. The researchers found out that the induced mutations are heritable, demonstrating that TALENs can be used for generating mutant lines in this bristle worm. "This new tool opens the door for detailed in vivo functional analyses in Platynereis and can also facilitate further technical developments. For example, we hope to use TALENs to insert fluorescent reporter genes into the genome. In this way we can study how gene expression is regulated across the entire lifecycle," explains the study's first author.

New grasshopper species named after Grammy winner Posted: 08 May 2014 08:10 AM PDT A newly discovered grasshopper now bears the name of Grammy-award winning singer and activist Ana Lila Downs Sanchez. The scientists named the new species discovered on the side of a mountain road near Oaxaca, Mexico, after the Mexican-American singer as a nod to her efforts to preserve indigenous culture and penchant for wearing colorful, local costumes as part of her performances.

Hepatitis C virus: How viral proteins interact in human cells Posted: 08 May 2014 08:09 AM PDT For the first time scientists have decrypted the interaction network of hepatitis C virus proteins in living human cells. Their findings will contribute to a better understanding of the mechanisms behind inflammatory liver disease caused by hepatitis C viruses and open up new avenues for therapy development.

If they know it's good for them, will they eat it? Posted: 08 May 2014 08:08 AM PDT One of the problems with getting kids to eat more healthful foods has been pinpointed by research: Children reject nourishing fare simply because they know it is good for them, and once they know that, they assume the food won't taste good. "Our study focused on very young children, and we should keep in mind that older children might rely less on taste when making food decisions due to higher self-control," said one author. "On the other hand, we all know teenagers who only eat six foods, so it could turn out that their thinking is similar to their younger counterparts."

Plant defends itself from pests with mustard bomb Posted: 08 May 2014 07:08 AM PDT Cruciferous plants use a sophisticated defense system, known as the mustard oil bomb, to get rid of their enemies: If plant tissues are wounded, glucosinolates and an enzyme known as myrosinase come into contact, and, as a result, toxic metabolites are formed which deter most insects. This mechanism, however, has no negative effect on flea beetles, according to scientists. Flea beetles are even able to sequester glucosinolates without the mustard oil bomb being set off by the plant's enzyme.

Luminescent nanocrystal tags enable rapid detection of multiple pathogens in a single test Posted: 08 May 2014 07:04 AM PDT A research team using tunable luminescent nanocrystals as tags to advance medical and security imaging have successfully applied them to high-speed scanning technology and detected multiple viruses within minutes.

First-ever study describes deep-sea animal communities around a sunken shipping container Posted: 08 May 2014 07:03 AM PDT Thousands of shipping containers are lost from cargo vessels each year. In 2004, scientists discovered a lost shipping container almost 1,300 meters below the surface of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. In the first-ever survey of its kind, researchers recently described how deep-sea animal communities on and around the container differed from those in surrounding areas.

Why a bacterium got its curve -- and why biologists should know Posted: 08 May 2014 07:03 AM PDT The banana-like curve of the bacteria Caulobacter crescentus provides stability and helps them flourish as a group in the moving water they experience in nature, researchers have discovered. The findings suggest a new way of studying the evolution of bacteria that emphasizes using naturalistic settings.

Homemade stink bug traps squash store-bought models, researchers find Posted: 08 May 2014 07:03 AM PDT Homemade, inexpensive stink bug traps crafted from simple household items outshine pricier models designed to kill the invasive, annoying bugs, research shows. This discovery comes just as warm weather is coaxing the critters out of crevices of homes they were hiding in during the cold winter and homeowners will be looking for a way to get rid of the pest.

Gluten-free diet reduces risk of type 1 diabetes in mice Posted: 08 May 2014 06:58 AM PDT New experiments on mice show that mouse mothers can protect their pups from developing type 1 diabetes by eating a gluten-free diet. According to preliminary studies by researchers, the findings may apply to humans. "Preliminary tests show that a gluten-free diet in humans has a positive effect on children with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes. We therefore hope that a gluten-free diet during pregnancy and lactation may be enough to protect high-risk children from developing diabetes later in life," said one investigator.

Improving air quality in NYC would boost children's future earnings by increasing IQ Posted: 08 May 2014 06:58 AM PDT Reducing air pollution in New York City would result in substantial economic gains for children as a result of increasing their IQs. The study is the first to estimate the costs of IQ loss associated with exposure to air pollution, and is based on prior research on prenatal exposure to air pollutants among low-income children.

'Parent' cells reset cell division clock Posted: 08 May 2014 06:58 AM PDT A 40-year-old theory on when and how cells divide has been overturned by a study that shows that 'parent' cells program a cell division time for their offspring that is different from their own. Scientists have shown that both phases of the cell cycle contribute to the overall change in division time rather than one staying fixed in duration as previously thought. They have developed these findings into a new model that helps scientists predict how a population of cells has divided.

Pesticides: New insights into their effects on shrimps and snails Posted: 08 May 2014 06:54 AM PDT Scientists now have a greater understanding of the effects of pesticides on aquatic invertebrates such as shrimps and snails, thanks to new research. It provides an important new approach for systematically measuring and modelling the sensitivity of aquatic invertebrates to various pesticides.

Spanish, Japanese centenarians reveal genetic key to longevity Posted: 08 May 2014 06:54 AM PDT The genes of 894 men and women over the age of one hundred in Spain and Japan have revealed that the secret to longevity, at least in southern Europe, lies in a variant on chromosome 9p21.3, which had already been associated with the risk of cardiovascular disease. Centenarians live at least fifteen years longer than the average person in the West. This exceptional longevity is partially genetic, and it appears that there are a number of gene variants that may hold the key to a healthy old age life.

Humans and their pet dogs: Shared cancers, shared hope Posted: 08 May 2014 06:52 AM PDT Scientists have developed an extensive cytogenetics "toolbox" designed to provide the necessary means to identify key cytogenetic signatures in numerous canine cancers.

A lab in your pocket: Using CAD to load dozens of tests on a lab-on-a-chip Posted: 07 May 2014 06:23 PM PDT Labs-on-a-chip hold huge promise for reducing the cost of medical diagnostics while expanding access to health care. Now scientists have developed software that would make them even more powerful: by enabling dozens of tests on a single biochip.

Malaria severity not determined solely by parasite levels in blood Posted: 07 May 2014 06:23 PM PDT Although malaria kills some 600,000 African children each year, most cases of the mosquito-borne parasitic disease in children are mild. Repeated infection does generate some immunity, and episodes of severe malaria are unusual once a child reaches age 5. However, the relative contributions of such factors as the level of malaria-causing parasites in a person's blood -- parasite density -- to disease severity and to development of protective immunity are not well understood.

Recent Ebola outbreak highlights need for better global response Posted: 07 May 2014 06:23 PM PDT The need for scientists to make their data available to colleagues in real-time to improve the public health response to outbreaks has been highlighted by one expert. He cites past responses to influenza and SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) outbreaks as successful examples of global information sharing.

New order of marine creatures discovered among sea anemones Posted: 07 May 2014 06:22 PM PDT A deep-water creature once thought to be one of the world's largest sea anemones, with tentacles reaching more than 6.5 feet long, actually belongs to a new order of animals. The finding is part of a new DNA-based study that presents the first tree of life for sea anemones, a group that includes more than 1,200 species.

Scientists focus on role of ventilation in preventing tuberculosis transmission Posted: 07 May 2014 06:22 PM PDT Scientists studying the role of room ventilation in tuberculosis transmission found that students in Cape Town, South Africa, spend almost 60 percent of their day in poorly ventilated rooms, at risk of transmission.

School-based gardening encourages healthier eating in children Posted: 07 May 2014 06:17 PM PDT School-based gardening schemes can increase the amount of fruit and vegetables school children eat. Forty-six children aged between nine and ten years old took part in a twelve week school-based project to create a garden. As well as building the garden the children also had lessons devoted to cooking, plants and growth (in science) and writing (in literacy). The results showed that children who took part in the school-based gardening project ate 26 per cent more fruit and vegetables.

Mindfulness: Think before you eat and make healthier choices Posted: 07 May 2014 06:16 PM PDT Making individuals more aware of their eating behaviour (mindfulness) can lead to healthier choices and help prevent emotional eating. The link between food consumption and psychological wellbeing seems more complex than the direct relationship of hunger and eating, one of the researchers said.

Airborne measurements confirm leaks from oil and gas operations Posted: 07 May 2014 11:28 AM PDT During two days of intensive airborne measurements, oil and gas operations in Colorado's Front Range leaked nearly three times as much methane, a greenhouse gas, as predicted based on inventory estimates, and seven times as much benzene, a regulated air toxic. Emissions of other chemicals that contribute to summertime ozone pollution were about twice as high as estimates, according to the new article.

The logic behind solving the climate change issue Posted: 07 May 2014 10:23 AM PDT The looming threat of climate change has been plastered all over the media in recent years. The solution just may lie in the research development of all possible scenarios that the effects of climate change may have.

Simple model underpins building safety in the wake of landslides Posted: 07 May 2014 08:47 AM PDT A new simple model can quickly determine which masonry buildings are most at risk of collapse following a serious landslide.

Argentina yields three new tarantula species Posted: 07 May 2014 07:50 AM PDT Scientists have discovered and described three native to northern Argentina new species of the engaging spider group of the tarantulas. The subfamily Theraphosinae to which the new species belong is a large group of tarantulas distributed exclusively in the New World, whose greatest diversity is found in South America.

Phytoplankton and zooplankton biomass are expected to decrease by 6% and 11% respectively by the end of century due to climate change Posted: 07 May 2014 07:49 AM PDT It is estimated that ocean temperature warming will cause phytoplankton and zooplankton biomass to decrease by 6% and 11% respectively by the end of the century. A lower amount of these two main elements in the marine food web could reduce fish biomass in certain regions.

You are subscribed to email updates from Top Environment News -- ScienceDaily To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610