Dollar signs for eyes — cartoonists have been drawing them for years, and the artists, while whimsical, may have been onto something. According to new research, areas of the brain responsible for vision respond more strongly to objects of value.
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Scientists are reporting evidence that humans can make their own salicylic acid — the material formed when aspirin breaks down in the body. Salicylic acid, which is responsible for aspirin’s renowned effects in relieving pain and inflammation, may be the first in a new class of bioregulators, according to a study in the Journal of [...]
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During bison mating season, the quietest bulls score the most mates and sire the most offspring while studs with the loudest bellows see the least action, according to a surprising new study. The researchers also found that the volume of a bull’s bellow was not related to its weight or age.
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Familial hemiplegic migraine (FHM) is an inherited form of severe migraine that is accompanied by visual disturbances known as aura. As with other types of migraine, it affects women more frequently than men. New research in mice has now provided insight into events in the brain that lead to FHM and demonstrated that hormones produced [...]
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Deriving plentiful electricity from sunlight at a modest cost is a challenge with immense implications for energy, technology and climate policy. A new article describes a relatively new approach to solar cells: lacing them with nanoscopic metal particles. The method helps solar cells harvest light more efficiently.
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A national alcohol research group is concerned that the media’s misinterpretation of a recent British research study could encourage pregnant women to be more at ease with temperate alcohol consumption.
Shakespeare wrote “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” But would it if the molecules that generate its fragrance were to change their shape?
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A professor of medicine and biochemistry has discovered an unexpected mechanism governing alternative splicing. The new mechanism suggests that curing the more than half of genetic diseases that are caused by mutations in the genetic code that in turn create mistakes in alternative splicing may be considerably more complicated than researchers have previously assumed.
Nitric oxide gets neurons together. And it seems to do it backward. New research suggests that a protein called PSD-95 prompts nitric oxide release from postsynaptic dendritic spines, prompting nearby presynaptic axons to lock on, and develop new synapses.
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Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder that impairs movement, balance, speech, and other functions. Although immune cells accumulate in the brain of individuals with Parkinson’s disease, these cells were not thought to have a role in the development of disease. However, new research has now shown that immune cells known as CD4+ T cells make [...]
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