Researchers identified the first known microcin, a group of naturally produced antimicrobials, that targets the strains of bacteria that cause cholera.
Self-medicating gorillas and traditional healers provide clues for new drug discovery
Four plants consumed by wild gorillas in Gabon and used by local communities in traditional medicine show antibacterial and antioxidant properties, researchers report.
Mirror, mirror, in my tank, who’s the biggest fish of all?
Researchers have demonstrated that bluestreak cleaner wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus) checked their body size in a mirror before choosing whether to attack fish that were slightly larger or smaller than themselves, saying it was the first time for a non-human animal to be demonstrated to possess some mental states that are...
Risky play exercises an ancestral need to push limits
Since their invention in the 1920s, jungle gyms and monkey bars have become both fixtures of playgrounds and symbols of childhood injury that anxious caretakers want removed. Anthropologists mark 100 years of the iconic playground equipment by arguing that risky play exercises a biological need passed on from apes and...
Surprising hormone-related gene activity discovered in the early larval stage of the Malabar grouper
Researchers have highlighted patterns of gene activation during Malabar grouper larval development, revealing an unusual early peak of activation of thyroid and corticoid genes during the early larval stage of these fish. Their paper shows that thyroid and corticoid genes are activated twice during larval development, once during the early...
Due to humans, Salish Sea waters are too noisy for resident orcas to hunt successfully
New research has revealed how underwater noise produced by humans may help explain why southern resident orca populations have not recovered from historic lows. The team reports that underwater noise pollution -- from both large and small vessels -- forces northern and southern resident orcas to expend more time and...
Summer storms are stronger and more frequent over urban areas
Summer storms are generally more frequent, intense and concentrated over cities than over rural areas, according to new, detailed observations of eight cities and their surroundings. The results could change how city planners prepare for floods in their cities, especially as urban areas expand and as climate change alters global...
Novel bone cancer therapy has 99% success rate, tests show
Bioactive glasses, a filling material which can bond to tissue and improve the strength of bones and teeth, has been combined with gallium to create a potential treatment for bone cancer. Tests in labs have found that bioactive glasses doped with the metal have a 99 percent success rate of...
Researchers identify new tools for anti-Acinetobacter drug development and AMR preparedness
Researchers have engineered a library of strains that can be used to develop new antibacterial compounds to help address antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Acinetobacter baumannii bacteria.
Promoting horse welfare with an intestinal disease screening method
Researchers are developing a promising method to support the diagnosis of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) in horses. Awareness of the prevalence of IBD in both humans and animals has increased in recent decades, and the need for effective and affordable diagnostic methods has become increasingly urgent.