Jellyfish and flies use the same hormone when they’ve had enough to eat
The regulation of hunger may go back to the base of the animal family tree. Enlarge / A Moon jellyfish. (credit: Dan Kitwood / Getty Images) The sensation of hunger seems pretty simple on the surface, but behind the sce.....»»
Fungi-eating plants and flies team up for reproduction
Fungi-eating orchids were found for the first time to offer their flowers to fungi-eating fruit flies in exchange for pollination, which is the first evidence for nursery pollination in orchids. This unique new plant-animal relationship hints at an e.....»»
New study shows hormone distortion still widespread in fish
Wild roach that swim in English rivers are exposed to lower levels of hormone-altering chemicals than 20 years ago, yet current amounts are concerning, scientists say......»»
Google Bard could soon become your new AI life coach
A new report claims Google is building an AI life coach to help people with their problems. But it flies in the face of warnings from Google’s own AI experts......»»
Astra’s new rocket won’t launch until 2024—if it ever flies
"We're reducing our expenses as much as we possibly can." Enlarge / Astra revealed a prototype of its Rocket 4 launch vehicle in May. (credit: Astra) Astra is running out of money. It's been a year since Astra shelved it.....»»
Transforming flies into degradable plastics
Imagine using insects as a source of chemicals to make plastics that can biodegrade later—with the help of that very same type of bug. That concept is closer to reality than you might expect. Researchers describe their progress to date, including i.....»»
Replication of prior studies fails to find purported evidence of magnetic sensing in fruit flies
A team of neurosensory researchers from the University of Oxford, Universität Oldenburg and the University of Exeter has replicated landmark studies reporting magnetic sensing in Drosophila fruit flies and failed to find any evidence for it. In thei.....»»
Hormone alters electric fish"s signal-canceling trick
During the rainy breeding season, the underwater "conversation" among electric fish changes. Fish revved up to make a match broadcast slightly different signals to advertise their presence and identify compatible mates......»»
What do a jellyfish, a cat, a snake, and an astronaut have in common? Math.
Across the animal kingdom there are creatures that move through their environments not by walking or running or climbing but instead by simply changing the shape of their bodies. This kind of locomotion is found in snakes as they slither, in stingray.....»»
NASA"s Ingenuity Mars helicopter flies again after unscheduled landing
NASA's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter successfully completed its 54th flight on Aug. 3, the first flight since the helicopter cut its July 22 flight short. The 25-second up-and-down hop provided data that could help the Ingenuity team determine why its 53.....»»
MHZ9 modulates ethylene signaling at translational level in rice
Ethylene is a versatile gaseous plant hormone that plays an important role in rice growth, development, and environmental adaptation. Translational control allows the mRNA to be translated in an mRNA-selective, signal-responsive, and rapid manner......»»
Researchers identify oldest known species of swimming jellyfish
The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) announces the oldest swimming jellyfish in the fossil record with the newly named Burgessomedusa phasmiformis. These findings are announced in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B......»»
"Virgin Birth" Engineered into Female Animals for First Time
Scientists altered the genomes of female fruit flies, allowing them to reproduce without any contribution from a male.....»»
Singapore races to save "Garbage of Eden"
Visitors to the island hosting Singapore's only landfill might expect foul odors and swarms of flies, but instead they are greeted with stunning views of blue waters, lush greenery and wildlife......»»
Modifying shelf-life of melons via gene editing
The gaseous plant hormone ethylene has been long known to promote fruit ripening and plays a certain role in shelf-life. In a study published in Frontiers in Genome Editing, researchers performed gene editing using the Clustered Regularly Interspaced.....»»
Light-activated molecular machines get cells "talking"
One of the main ways cells "talk" to each other to coordinate essential biological activities such as muscle contraction, hormone release, neuronal firing, digestion and immune activation is through calcium signaling......»»
Biting flies are attracted to blue traps—researchers use AI to work out why
Flies which feast on blood—such as tsetse and horse flies—inflict painful bites and spread debilitating diseases among people and animals alike. So a lot of work has gone into designing the most efficient traps to control the populations of these.....»»
All animal intelligence was shaped by just five leaps in brain evolution, new paper argues
The animal world is full of different types of intelligence, from the simple bodily coordination of jellyfish to the navigation abilities of bees, the complex songs of birds and the imaginative symbolic thought of humans......»»
Understanding the regulation of apicoplast gene expression in the malaria parasite
Gene expression within the apicoplast, an organelle in the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, is regulated by melatonin (the circadian signaling hormone) in host blood and intrinsic parasite cues, via a factor called ApSigma, as identified by a.....»»
New laser-based method could help scientists discover new puncture-resistant materials
A bullet piercing the protective armor of a first responder, a jellyfish stinging a swimmer, micrometeorites striking a satellite: High-speed projectiles that puncture materials show up in many forms. Researchers constantly aim to identify new materi.....»»
Sheep and cattle-killing disease carriers are still active in winter, study shows
Bluetongue virus, an incurable cattle and sheep-killing disease, is spread by tiny flies once thought to disappear in winter. New research demonstrates that though they are harder to find when it's cold, they remain active......»»