Why eukaryotes, not bacteria, evolved complex multicellularity
Prokaryotic single-celled organisms, the ancestors of modern-day bacteria and archaea, are the most ancient form of life on our planet, first appearing roughly 3.5 billion years ago. The first eukaryotic cells appeared around 1–1.5 billion years la.....»»
Findings reveal eurypterids evolved giant size independently at least nine times
Sea scorpions, ancient predators that patrolled Earth's marine and freshwater habitats hundreds of millions of years ago, are the focus of a sizable scientific mystery......»»
A new robotic platform to reproduce and study complex ciliary behavior
Cilia are sensory structures extending from the surface of some cells. These hair-like structures are known to contribute to the sensorimotor capabilities of various living organisms, including humans......»»
Chemists synthesize plant-derived molecules that hold potential as pharmaceuticals
MIT chemists have developed a new way to synthesize complex molecules that were originally isolated from plants and could hold potential as antibiotics, analgesics, or cancer drugs......»»
The Physics of Cold Water May Have Jump-Started Complex Life
When seawater gets cold, it gets viscous. This fact could explain how single-celled ocean creatures became multicellular when the planet was frozen during “Snowball Earth,” according to experiments......»»
Achieving quantum memory in the notoriously difficult X-ray range
Light is an excellent carrier of information used not only for classical communication technologies but also increasingly for quantum applications such as quantum networking and computing. However, processing light signals is far more complex, compar.....»»
Bacteria encode hidden genes outside their genome; do we?
Since the genetic code was first deciphered in the 1960s, our genes have seemed like an open book. By reading and decoding our chromosomes as linear strings of letters, like sentences in a novel, we can identify the genes in our genome and learn why.....»»
New ligand-guided technique enhances drug development
Achieving a level of precision to create complex medicines and materials with extreme accuracy is a longstanding goal of scientists and pharmaceutical companies. If achieved, that precision could lead to the development of more effective drug treatme.....»»
Largest protein yet discovered builds algal toxins
While seeking to unravel how marine algae create their chemically complex toxins, scientists at UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography have discovered the largest protein yet identified in biology......»»
The earliest traces of life on Earth—researchers explore carbon in 3.9-billion-year-old Canadian rocks
The isotopic composition of carbon in iron formations from the Saglek-Hebron Complex in Nunatsiavut (northern Labrador) has been seen as evidence of the earliest traces of life on Earth. But a new study by the University of Ottawa, Carleton Universit.....»»
Predicting metabolic potential in bacteria from limited genome data
How bacteria eat food, and what kinds of products they can make from that food, is dictated by the metabolic network of enzyme patterns encoded in their genomes. Using computational methods to learn these patterns across a large number of known bacte.....»»
AI Reaches Silver-Medal Level at This Year’s Math Olympiad
During the 2024 International Mathematical Olympiad, Google DeepMind debuted an AI program that can generate complex mathematical proofs.....»»
New ‘Hobbit’ Fossil Clarifies Origin Story of this Tiny Human Relative
A tiny human relative called the hobbit, or Homo floresiensis, may have evolved from a larger ancestor that shrunk upon arriving on the Indonesian island of Flores, a new fossil suggests.....»»
Smells may prime our gut to fight off infection
Many organisms react to the smell of deadly pathogens by reflexively avoiding them. But a recent study from the University of California, Berkeley, shows that the nematode C. elegans also reacts to the odor of pathogenic bacteria by preparing its int.....»»
Researchers create new device for on-the-spot water testing
Researchers at University of Galway have developed a new, portable technology for on-the-spot testing of water quality to detect one of the most dangerous types of bacteria......»»
New nasal microbiome: Depriving multi-resistant bugs of iron
A research team led by Simon Heilbronner, Professor of Microbiology at LMU's Biocenter, has investigated how various bacteria that colonize the nasal cavity deal with the lack of iron there and interact with one another......»»
Scientists take atomic look at a protein complex that grants access to our DNA
To transcribe the information contained in our genes or to repair the dozens of breaks that occur daily in our DNA, our enzymes must be able to directly access the DNA to perform their functions. However, in the cell nucleus, this access is limited b.....»»
Bacterial gut diversity improves the athletic performance of racehorses
The composition of gut bacteria of thoroughbred racehorses at one month old can predict their future athletic performance, according to a new study from the University of Surrey. In the study, foals with lower bacterial diversity at 28 days old also.....»»
Treatment with smoke can favor seed germination in Brazil"s Cerrado biome
For thousands of years, plants have evolved in the presence of wildfires in the Cerrado, Brazil's savanna-like biome. Scientists at São Paulo State University (UNESP) studied the effect of smoke on seed germination for 44 plant species typical of th.....»»
Hero AI by Swimlane enhances security with context-aware recommendations
Swimlane has introduced Hero AI innovations that transform traditional security operations, enabling security teams to tackle complex cases, alerts, and intelligence with unprecedented speed. Hero AI expands case summarization capabilities with conte.....»»
Double whammy antibiotic makes antibiotic resistance much harder—new study
Most antibiotics are natural products of bacteria and other microorganisms from the environment. They are part of a silent chemical warfare among microorganisms in soils, rivers and seas right now. The fact that they are natural products that have be.....»»