Genetic Archaeology News - May 2007 Archives

Mule Deer Better Mothers Than Whitetail Cousins (5/31/2007)

Mule deer are giving a whole new dimension to the term 'maternal instinct.' ...> Full Article

For Many Insects, Winter Survival Is In The Genes (5/31/2007)

Many insects living in northern climates don't die at the first signs of cold weather. Rather, new research suggests that they use a number of specialized proteins to survive the chilly months. ...> Full Article

Evidence From Ancient Graves Raises Questions About Ritual Human Sacrifice Among Hunter Gatherers In Europe (5/30/2007)

A new article explores ancient multiple graves and raises the possibility that hunter gatherers in what is now Europe may have practiced ritual human sacrifice. This practice - well-known in large, stratified societies - supports data emerging from different lines of research that the level of social complexity reached in the distant past by groups of hunter gatherers was well beyond that of many more recent small bands of modern foragers. ...> Full Article

Recently Excavated Headless Skeleton Expands Understanding Of Ancient Andean Rituals (5/30/2007)

Images of disembodied heads are widespread in the art of Nasca, a culture based on the southern coast of Peru from AD 1 to AD 750. But despite this evidence and large numbers of trophy heads in the region's archaeological record, only eight headless bodies have been recovered with evidence of decapitation, explains Christina A. Conlee (Texas State University). Conlee's analysis of a newly excavated headless body from the site of La Tiza provides important new data on decapitation and its relationship to ancient ideas of death and regeneration. ...> Full Article

Rare Footprints of Infant Dinosaur Discovered (5/29/2007)

Researchers at the Morrison Natural History Museum have discovered two rare hatchling dinosaur footprints in the foothills west of Denver, near the town of Morrison. ...> Full Article

Color Vision Drove Primates to Develop Red Skin and Hair (5/28/2007)

You might call it a tale of 'monkey see, monkey do.' Researchers at Ohio University have found that after primates evolved the ability to see red, they began to develop red and orange skin and hair. ...> Full Article

New Genetic Data Overturn Long-Held Theory Of Limb Development (5/27/2007)

Long before animals with limbs (tetrapods) came onto the scene about 365 million years ago, fish already possessed the genes associated with helping to grow hands and feet (autopods) report University of Chicago researchers in the May 24, 2007, issue of Nature. ...> Full Article

Analysis Reveals Extent of DNA Repair Army (5/27/2007)

Cells have the remarkable ability to keep track of their genetic contents and - when things go wrong - to step in and repair the damage before cancer or another life-threatening condition develops. ...> Full Article

Definitive Evidence Found of a Swimming Dinosaur (5/26/2007)

An extraordinary underwater trackway with 12 consecutive prints provides the most compelling evidence to-date that some dinosaurs were swimmers. The 15-meter-long trackway, located in La Virgen del Campo track site in Spain's Cameros Basin, contains the first long and continuous record of swimming by a non-avian therapod dinosaur. ...> Full Article

Ancient Meteor Blast May Have Caused Extinctions (5/26/2007)

New scientific findings suggest that a large, extraterrestrial rock may have exploded over North America 13,000 years ago, explaining riddles that scientists have wrestled with for decades, including an abrupt cooling of the atmosphere and the extinction of large mammals. ...> Full Article

Botulism Genome Completed With Few Surprises (5/25/2007)

Genome of Clostridium botulinum reveals the background to world's deadliest toxin ...> Full Article

DNA Clues To Inform Conservation In Africa (5/25/2007)

Tracing the evolutionary history of wildlife could improve global habitat conservation, a major Cardiff University study has found. ...> Full Article

Cannibalism Of The Young Allows Individual Fish To Specialize (5/25/2007)

If you go fishing for Arctic char you may end up catching distinctly different-looking individuals although they were all caught in the same lake. Similarly, whitefish, threespine stickleback, and some sunfishes also display quite discrete groups living in the same lakes but utilizing different food resources in order to survive. ...> Full Article

Gene That Allows Us to Taste Sugars Identified (5/25/2007)

USC College neuroscientist Emily Liman reveals a pathway from the tongue to the brain. ...> Full Article

Discovery Of Ecological And Metabolic Roles Of Archaea In Hot Springs May Shed Light On Early Evolution (5/24/2007)

Discovered in the late 1970s, archaea are one of the three main branches on the tree of life, with bacteria and eukaryotes such as plants and animals on the other two branches. But scientists are just now gaining a fuller understanding of what archaea do – in an ecological sense – to make a living. ...> Full Article

Creating Proteins By Synthetic Evolution (5/24/2007)

Nature, through the trial and error of evolution, has discovered a vast diversity of life from what can only presumed to have been a primordial pool of building blocks. Inspired by this success, a new Biodesign Institute research team, led by John Chaput, is now trying to mimic the process of Darwinian evolution in the laboratory by evolving new proteins from scratch. Using new tricks of molecular biology, Chaput and co-workers have evolved several new proteins in a fraction of the 3 billion years it took nature. ...> Full Article

Math and Language Abilities Linked to Finger Length (5/24/2007)

The results of numeracy and literacy tests for seven-year-old children can be predicted by measuring the length of their fingers, shows new research. ...> Full Article

Resistance Genes In Our Food Supply (5/24/2007)

Could the food we eat be contributing to the continuing rise of antibiotic-resistant infections? Harmless and even beneficial bacteria that exist in our food supply may also be carrying genes that code for antibiotic resistance. Once in our bodies, could they transmit the resistance genes to disease-causing bacteria? ...> Full Article

Genes Affect Aggression In Mice Species (5/24/2007)

Imagine if a naturally occurring chemical in your body could help make you feel more calm and relaxed - but it would only work during the long days of summer. ...> Full Article

Shark Born From Virgin Birth (5/23/2007)

On 14 December 2001, workers at Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo, came to work to discover a mystery that went unsolved for six years. That day they discovered a new baby hammerhead shark, in a tank with only females. ...> Full Article

Scientists Reconstruct Prehistoric Behavior And Ecology Of Northern Fur Seals (5/23/2007)

A team of researchers has documented major changes in the behavior, ecology, and geographic range of the northern fur seal over the past 1,500 years using a combination of techniques from archaeology, biochemistry, and ecology. Among their findings is evidence of reproductive behavior in the past that is not seen in modern populations of northern fur seals. ...> Full Article

Latent Memory Of Cells Comes To Life (5/23/2007)

New research has examined the mechanisms behind latent cell memory, which can come to life and cause previously non-existent capacities suddenly to appear. Special yeast cells for example, can abruptly change from being of a single sex to hermaphrodite. ...> Full Article

Tropical Birds Have Slow Pace of Life Compared to Northern Species (5/23/2007)

In the steamy tropics, even the birds find the pace of life a bit more relaxed, research shows. ...> Full Article

Entomologist Finds Host of New Aquatic Insect Species in Thailand (5/22/2007)

While in Thailand, a University of Missouri-Columbia researcher found a treasure-trove of previously unknown information about aquatic insects in the country. In the process, he learned firsthand that a few of these little critters pack quite a punch when they bite. ...> Full Article

Circadian Clocks Explained (5/22/2007)

Circadian clocks regulate the timing of biological functions in almost all higher organisms. Anyone who has flown through several time zones knows the jet lag that can result when this timing is disrupted. ...> Full Article

Chromosomes Of Genghis Khan (5/21/2007)

Approximately 16 million Asian men can consider themselves to be Genghis Khan's descendants, but there are no such men among the Russian population. These conclusions were made by Russian geneticists and their Polish colleagues, who had investigated Y-chromosomes with representatives of 18 nations of Northern Eurasia. ...> Full Article

Study Details Demographic, Ecological, Genetic Spread of Rabies in Raccoons (5/21/2007)

Analyzing 30 years of data detailing a large rabies virus outbreak among North American raccoons, researchers at Emory University have revealed how initial demographic, ecological and genetic processes simultaneously shaped the virus's geographic spread over time. The study appears online in the Proceedings of The National Academy of Sciences. ...> Full Article

Clock Gene Plays Role In Weight Gain (5/21/2007)

Scientists at the University of Virginia and the Medical College of Wisconsin have discovered that a gene that participates in the regulation of the body's biological rhythms may also be a major control in regulating metabolism. Their finding shows that mice lacking the gene Nocturnin, which is regulated by the circadian clock in the organs and tissues of mammals, are resistant to weight gain when put on a high fat diet and also are resistant to the accumulation of fat in the liver. This new understanding of weight gain could potentially lead to therapies for inhibiting obesity and for treating its effects on health. ...> Full Article

Fused Nasal Bones Helped Tyrannosaurids Dismember Prey (5/20/2007)

New evidence may help explain the brute strength of the tyrannosaurid, says a University of Alberta researcher whose finding demonstrates how a fused nasal bone helped turn the animal into a "zoological superweapon." ...> Full Article

Amphibian Evolution in Losing Race With Environmental Change (5/20/2007)

Even though they had the ability to evolve and survive for hundreds of millions of years - since before the time of the dinosaurs and through many climatic regimes - the massive, worldwide decline of amphibians can best be understood by their inability to keep pace with the current rate of global change, a new study suggests. ...> Full Article

Scientists Discover Over 700 New Species In The Antarctic Deep Sea (5/20/2007)

Scientists have found hundreds of new marine creatures in the vast, dark deep-sea surrounding Antarctica. Carnivorous sponges, free-swimming worms, crustaceans, and molluscs living in the Weddell Sea provide new insights into the evolution of ocean life. ...> Full Article

Study Of Protein Folds Offers Insight Into Metabolic Evolution (5/19/2007)

Researchers at the University of Illinois have constructed the first global family tree of metabolic protein architecture. Their approach offers a new window on the evolutionary history of metabolism. ...> Full Article

Herpes Infection May Be Symbiotic, Help Beat Back Some Bacteria (5/19/2007)

Mice with chronic herpes virus infections can better resist the bacterium that causes plague and a bacterium that causes one kind of food poisoning, researchers report in this week's Nature. ...> Full Article

Scientists Demonstrate First Use Of Nanotechnology To Enter Plant Cells (5/18/2007)

A team of Iowa State University plant scientists and materials chemists have successfully used nanotechnology to penetrate plant cell walls and simultaneously deliver a gene and a chemical that triggers its expression with controlled precision. Their breakthrough brings nanotechnology to plant biology and agricultural biotechnology, creating a powerful new tool for targeted delivery into plant cells. ...> Full Article

Researchers Examine How Early Childhood Nutrition Affects Genetic Expression (5/18/2007)

Could a baby's early diet be setting it up for a lifetime of problems? New research by the Faculty of Kinesiology suggests that infants who receive a high fat, high protein diet could alter the way their body and metabolism work later in life, making them more susceptible to certain chronic diseases and conditions. ...> Full Article

Biotechnology Solves Debate Over Origin Of European Potato (5/17/2007)

Molecular studies recently revealed new genetic information concerning the long-disputed origin of the "European potato." Scientists from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the University of La Laguna, and the International Potato Center used genetic markers to prove that the remnants of the earliest known landraces of the European potato are of Andean and Chilean origin. They report their findings in the May-June 2007 issue of Crop Science. ...> Full Article

Female Of The Species As Deadly As The Male (5/17/2007)

Female chimpanzees can be as violent and demonic as males, shattering the stereotype that males are the more aggressive of the species. ...> Full Article

Childhood Environment Influences Reproductive Function (5/17/2007)

A study led by researchers at UCL (University College London) demonstrates that female reproductive function is influenced by childhood environment. This suggests there is a critical window of time from about 0-8 years of age that determines the rate at which girls physically mature and how high their reproductive hormone levels reach as adults. ...> Full Article

Research To Protect Kangaroos (5/17/2007)

A PhD student from James Cook University hopes her research will help defend Australian shores from an exotic wasting disease which, in the event of an outbreak, could have devastating implications for the iconic kangaroo. ...> Full Article

Genetic Study of Snail Migration May be Linked To Human Migration (5/17/2007)

Researchers from The University of Nottingham want the public to get involved in a project which could tell us how our ancestors came to Britain and Ireland. Experts from the School of Biology need people living in Ireland and Scotland to get involved in collecting snails. ...> Full Article

Study On The Transoceanic Colonization Of A Drosophila Fly (5/17/2007)

Drosophila buzzatii is a fruit fly species which arrived to Europe from Argentina 300 years ago. European flies show some genome differences compared to their homologous in South America. UAB scientists have studied the different molecular structure of a mobile gene named Osvaldo in order to understand the colonizing process. ...> Full Article

Scientists Attach Genes To Mini-Chromosomes In Maize (5/17/2007)

A team of scientists at the University of Missouri-Columbia has discovered a way to create engineered mini-chromosomes in maize and attach genes to those mini-chromosomes. This discovery opens new possibilities for the development of crops that are multiply resistant to viruses, insects, fungi, bacteria and herbicides, and for the development of proteins and metabolites that can be used to treat human illnesses. ...> Full Article

Reproductive Speed Protects Large Animals From Being Hunted to Extinction (5/17/2007)

Understanding the importance of reproductive rates could help conservation managers zero in on which species are in the greatest peril ...> Full Article

Brain, Size and Gender Surprises in Latest Fossil Tying Humans, Apes and Monkeys (5/16/2007)

A surprisingly complete fossil skull of an ancient relative of humans, apes and monkeys bears striking evidence that our remote ancestor was less mentally advanced than expected by about 29 million years ago. ...> Full Article

DNA Damage To Nuclear Test Vets Prompts Call For Study Of Children (5/16/2007)

The Government is considering whether to fund studies into the health of nuclear test veterans' children, after a Massey study confirmed that the veterans had suffered genetic damage as a result of radiation. ...> Full Article

Nimblegen Systems Adds Dna Methlyation Arrays And Services To Growing Product Portfolio (5/16/2007)

NimbleGen Systems, Inc. announced today the addition of DNA methylation analysis microarrays and services to its growing suite of genomic and epigenetic analysis tools. In addition to microarray designs allowing researchers to survey whole genomes, promoter regions, CpG islands, and ENCODE-defined regions, researchers can customize the content of their arrays based on individual study goals. ...> Full Article

Summer Course Combines Archaeology With Filmmaking In Yellowstone (5/15/2007)

A summer course for teachers combines the science of archaeology with the art of documentary filmmaking at a working archaeological site in Yellowstone National Park. ...> Full Article

Researchers Find Cause of Muscle-Stiffness Disease (5/15/2007)

Imagine a dog running after a ball, only to stiffen up and fall over because of a genetic muscle cell disorder. It may sound almost comical, but this disorder, called Myotonia congenita, affects dogs, cats, horses, water buffalo, and even people. ...> Full Article

Frog Muscles Survive Big Sleep (5/14/2007)

A rare Australian frog that burrows underground for a summer siesta resurfaces more than nine months later in just as good a shape as before its rest, according to UQ research. ...> Full Article

Cataloging the Structural Variations in Human Genetics (5/14/2007)

A major new effort to uncover the medium- and large-scale genetic differences between humans may soon reveal DNA sequences that contribute to a wide range of diseases, according to a paper by Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator Evan Eichler and 17 colleagues published in the May 10, 2007, Nature. The undertaking will help researchers identify structural variations in DNA sequences, which Eichler says amount to as much as five to ten percent of the human genome. ...> Full Article

Species Thrive When Sexual Dimorphism Broadens Their Niches (5/13/2007)

Some Caribbean lizards' strong sexual dimorphism allows them to colonize much larger niches and habitats than they might otherwise occupy, allowing males and females to avoid competing with each other for resources and setting the stage for the population as a whole to thrive. The finding, reported this week in the journal Nature, suggests sex differences may have fueled the evolutionary flourishing of the Earth's wildly diverse fauna in a way not previously appreciated by scientists. ...> Full Article

Researchers Identify A Process That Enables Access To Genes (5/12/2007)

It turns out there's more than one way to skin a gene. New research from Rockefeller University suggests that two closely related DNA unpackaging mechanisms may not work the way scientists thought. ...> Full Article

DNA Evidence Confirms Theory That Modern Humans Have Common Ancestry (5/11/2007)

Researchers have produced new DNA evidence that almost certainly confirms the theory that all modern humans have a common ancestry. ...> Full Article

Secret Of A Long Life And Sex Appeal? (5/11/2007)

Researchers at the Universities of Glasgow and Exeter have found that eating certain plant substances can slow down the rate of aging. ...> Full Article

Egyptians, Not Greeks Were True Fathers Of Medicine (5/11/2007)

Scientists examining documents dating back 3,500 years say they have found proof that the origins of modern medicine lie in ancient Egypt and not with Hippocrates and the Greeks. ...> Full Article

Newly Decoded Opossum Genome Sheds Light On Evolution (5/11/2007)

'Restless lifestyle' of so-called junk DNA has meaning for all ...> Full Article

Scientists Trying to Reconstruct Prehistoric Flood Levels (5/10/2007)

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory geologists have put out a call for teeth tusks, femurs and any and all other parts of extinct mammoths left by massive Ice Age floods in southeastern Washington. ...> Full Article

Gene Mutation Linked To Cognition Is Found Only In Humans (5/10/2007)

The human and chimpanzee genomes vary by just 1.2 percent, yet there is a considerable difference in the mental and linguistic capabilities between the two species. A new study showed that a certain form of neuropsin, a protein that plays a role in learning and memory, is expressed only in the central nervous systems of humans and that it originated less than 5 million years ago. The study, which also demonstrated the molecular mechanism that creates this novel protein, will be published online in Human Mutation, the official journal of the Human Genome Variation Society. ...> Full Article

Genetic Roots Of Bipolar Disorder Revealed (5/10/2007)

The likelihood of developing bipolar disorder depends in part on the combined, small effects of variations in many different genes in the brain, none of which is powerful enough to cause the disease by itself, a new study shows. However, targeting the enzyme produced by one of these genes could lead to development of new, more effective medications. The research was conducted by scientists at the National Institutes of Health's National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), with others from the Universities of Heidelberg and Bonn and a number of U.S. facilities collaborating in a major project called the NIMH Genetics Initiative. ...> Full Article

DNA Study Shows Caribbean Bats Migrate to Mainland to Breed (5/9/2007)

Ever since the relationship between land area and number of species crystallized into a mathematical power function, islands and island archipelagoes have been thought of as biological destinations where species from large continents arrive and, over time, evolve into new species in geographic seclusion. ...> Full Article

Research Suggests Men's Sexual Behavior Adapts to Perceived Threats (5/9/2007)

A review of the latest research in sexual adaptation shows that evidence is building for what researchers call "sperm competition."ť According to a review appearing in Current Directions in Psychological Science, physical and behavioral sexual characteristics exhibited by human males indicate that males have evolved to deliver their sperm more effectively to females with multiple partners. ...> Full Article

Researchers Learn How Cells Keep Their Chromosomes Intact To Avoid Range Of Genetic Diseases (5/9/2007)

For more than a century, scientists have studied the process of meiosis, the type of cell division that produces egg and sperm cells. But a full understanding of the process, which is known to play a key role in causing birth defects such as Down syndrome, has remained elusive. ...> Full Article

Researchers Explore Queen Bee Longevity (5/9/2007)

The queen honey bee is genetically identical to the workers in her hive, but she lives 10 times longer and - unlike her sterile sisters - remains reproductively viable throughout life. A study from the University of Illinois sheds new light on the molecular mechanisms that account for this divergence. The study appears in the online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. ...> Full Article

New Technique Will Produce A Better Chromosome Map (5/8/2007)

Researchers at the University of Illinois have developed a simple and economical technique for imaging and mapping fruit fly chromosomes. This new approach will enable them to construct the first accurate map of the chromosomes and tease out the secrets hidden in their stripes. ...> Full Article

Researchers Explore Genetics Of Canine Speed (5/8/2007)

Whippets are bred for speed. These dogs have the appearance of a small greyhound and have been clocked sprinting to speeds approaching 40 miles per hour over a 200-yard racing course. Recently, scientists at the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), discovered a genetic mutation that helps to explain why some whippets run even faster than others. ...> Full Article

Largest Dinosaur Bones In Australia Discovered (5/7/2007)

The largest bones of any dinosaur known in Australia went on display at the Queensland Museum for the first time today. ...> Full Article

Lab-on-a-chip Device To Speed Proteomics Research (5/7/2007)

In recent years, the science of biology has been dominated by genomics - the study of genes and their functions. The genomics era is now making way for the era of proteomics - the study of the proteins that genes encode. ...> Full Article

Team Sheds Light on Long-Sought Cold Sensation Gene (5/7/2007)

For years, scientists have struggled to identify the genes responsible for mammals' sensation of cold. Finally, scientists from The Scripps Research Institute and the Novartis Research Foundation have shown that a gene called TRPM8 is responsible for the bulk of this ability in mice. ...> Full Article

Gene Helps Distinguish Self from Non-Self During Neural Development (5/7/2007)

Like the elegant branching of a tree, the dendritic limbs of developing nerve cells must organize themselves to cover as much space as they can evenly and efficiently. To complicate matters, they must also take care to avoid overlapping with their sister dendrites. ...> Full Article

Mitochondria Regulates Cellular Copper Levels (5/6/2007)

Copper is an essential part of our lives. From copper pipes and wires - to important copper-containing proteins in the body, copper is necessary for healthy growth and neurological development. Researchers at the Montreal Neurological Institute at McGill University are studying how copper is processed in our bodies and its distinct role in early development. ...> Full Article

University Of Oregon's Mongolia Efforts Land NEH Grant (5/6/2007)

Rock art, altars, burial mounds and standing stones of the Altai Mountains in Mongolia reveal cultural traces of ancient hunters, herders and nomads of the Eurasian steppes. Mapping this archaeology and the significance of its physical settings is the mission of a team of scholars from the University of Oregon. ...> Full Article

Arsenic-Absorbing Fern May Soak Up Toxic Metal To Repel Hungry Bugs (5/5/2007)

In the struggle for survival, plants are often at the mercy of hungry animals - but one fern has turned the tables by using poisonous arsenic to reduce its appeal, say University of Florida researchers. ...> Full Article

How To Look At Dinosaur Tracks (5/5/2007)

A new study appearing in the May issue of The Journal of Geology provides fascinating insight into the factors geologists must account for when examining dinosaur tracks. The authors studied a range of larger tracks from the family of dinosaurs that includes the T. Rex and the tridactyl, and provide a guide for interpreting the effects of many different types of erosion on these invaluable impressions. ...> Full Article

Climate Change Pushed Neanderthal Into Extinction In Iberian Peninsula (5/4/2007)

Climate – and not modern humans – was the cause of the Neanderthal extinction in the Iberian Peninsula. Such is the conclusion of the University of Granada research group RNM 179 - Mineralogy and Geochemistry of sedimentary and metamorphic environments, headed by professor Miguel Ortega Huertas and whose members Francisco José Jiménez Espejo, Francisca Martínez Ruiz and David Gallego Torres work jointly at the department of Mineralogy and Petrology of the University of Granada (Universidad de Granada) and the Andalusian Regional Institute of Earth Sciences (CSIC-UGR). ...> Full Article

Global Survey of Lizards Reveals Greater Abundance of Animals on Islands Than on Mainland Ecosystems (5/4/2007)

A comprehensive survey of lizards on islands around the world has confirmed what island biologists and seafaring explorers have long observed: Animals on islands are much more abundant than their counterparts on the mainland. ...> Full Article

Ape Gestures Offer Clues to the Evolution of Human Communication (5/4/2007)

Researchers at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, have found bonobos and chimpanzees use manual gestures of their hands, feet and limbs more flexibly than they do facial expressions and vocalizations, further supporting the evolution of human language began with gestures as the gestural origin hypothesis of language suggests. This study appears in the current issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. ...> Full Article

Coral Genome Project Suspects Coral Genome Bigger Than Humans (5/3/2007)

The humble coral may possess as many genes - and possibly even more - than humans do. And remarkably, although it is very distant from humans in evolutionary terms, coral has many of the immune system genes that protect people against disease. ...> Full Article

Australian Marsupials Challenge Gene Theory (5/3/2007)

Scientists studying the kangaroo genome have cast doubt on the credentials of a gene thought to be crucial to the process of inactivating one sex chromosome in women. ...> Full Article

Female Ducks Evolve To Protect Them From Rape (5/3/2007)

A team of scientists from the University of Sheffield and Yale University in the US have discovered that the female reproductive systems in some ducks and geese have evolved in order to keep unwanted male attention at bay. ...> Full Article

Researcher Shed Light On Diet Of Early Human Ancestors (5/3/2007)

Eight years ago, the field of anthropology was rocked by isotopic evidence that suggested one-third of the diet of early human ancestors consisted of grasses and sedges, or the tissue of animals that ate such plants. The news puzzled scientists, who were unable to reconcile the results with what they knew about the teeth of human ancestors who lived more than 2 million years ago. ...> Full Article

Plankton Have Gene That Integrates Foreign Dna Into Its Own Genome (5/2/2007)

Prominent evidence of selenium use by microbes may force new ideas of element's role in planetary processes such as carbon cycling and photosynthesis ...> Full Article

Scientists Target Manta Ray Mysteries (5/2/2007)

Manta rays are hard to miss - big, black and stretching up to seven metres wide, but scientists are still in the dark about the world's largest ray. ...> Full Article

Scientists Learn To Change Body Clock From 24-Hour-Cycle To A 27-Hour-Cycle (5/1/2007)

Wheel-running mice have helped scientists to identify an altered body clock gene that can make a normal day up to three hours longer. The altered gene, named "after hours" or Afh, is a variant of a gene called Fbxl3 which was previously unknown to play a role in keeping mammals internal body clocks running on time. ...> Full Article

Scientists Create Historical Map Of Avian Flu Migration And Genetic Evolution (5/1/2007)

Scientists here have designed a new, interactive map of the spread of the avian flu virus (H5N1) that for the first time incorporates genetic, geographic and evolutionary information that may help predict where the next outbreak of the virus is likely to occur. ...> Full Article