It might sound weird, but it's true: the steppes of Eastern Europe are home to a similar number of plant species as the regions of the Amazon rainforest.
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How historical precedents impeded recognition of airborne COVID-19 transmission
A comprehensive historical assessment of knowledge and beliefs about disease transmission sheds light on why influential institutions worldwide took too long to recognize that COVID-19 is primarily airborne. The authors trace this deadly resistance one hundred years back in history, to the rejection of sickly air called 'miasma,' the rise...
Motion of DNA linked to its damage response, ability to repair itself
Researchers have discovered that the motion of chromatin, the material that DNA is made of, can help facilitate effective repair of DNA damage in the human nucleus -- a finding that could lead to improved cancer diagnosis and treatment.
From wound healing to regeneration
The phenomenon of regeneration was discovered over 200 years ago in the freshwater polyp Hydra. Until now, however, it was largely unclear how the orderly regeneration of lost tissues or organs is activated after injury. In its investigations of Hydra, an interdisciplinary research team was able to show how wound...
Variation matters: Genetic effects in interacting species jointly determine ecological outcomes
The greatest diversity of life is not counted in the number of species, says an evolutionary geneticist, but in the diversity of interactions among them. He says it's often unclear if the outcome of an interaction, such as whether a microbe can infect a host, is the same for all...
New approach predicts disease transmission among wildlife and humans
A new methodology predicts disease transmission from wildlife to humans, from one wildlife species to another and determines who is at risk of infection.
People generate their own oxidation field and change the indoor air chemistry around them
High levels of hydroxyl radicals (OH) can be generated indoors, simply due to the presence of people and ozone.
Researchers propose new framework for regulating engineered crops
A Policy Forum article calls for a new approach to regulating genetically engineered (GE) crops, arguing that current approaches for triggering safety testing vary dramatically among countries and generally lack scientific merit -- particularly as advances in crop breeding have blurred the lines between conventional breeding and genetic engineering.
American River Basin Study Finds That Increasing Temperatures and Changing Precipitation Will Impact Basin Through Rest of 21st Century
The study highlights a changing climate's impact to water resources and recommends evaluating adaptation strategies to address these vulnerabilities to the water supply.
Giant Viruses in Climate-Endangered Arctic Epishelf Lake
Less than 500 miles from the North Pole, the Milne Fiord Epishelf Lake is a unique freshwater lake that floats atop the Arctic Ocean, held in place only by a coating of ice.