The reproductive spores of many species of fungi have evolved remarkably drag-minimizing shapes, according to new research by mycologists and applied mathematicians at Harvard University. In many cases, the scientists report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the drag experienced by these fungal spores is within one percent of the absolute minimum [...]
Continue reading about In Many Fungi, Reproductive Spores Are Remarkably Aerodynamic
Administering antibiotics as a preventive measure to patients in intensive care units increases their chances of survival. This has emerged from a study involving nearly six thousand Dutch patients in thirteen hospitals.
Continue reading about Fewer Deaths With Preventive Antibiotic Use
Sinalbin, the same compound that gives white mustard its pungent flavor, could also prove useful in fighting weeds.
Continue reading about Organic Weed Control: Scientists Serve Up Mustard Meal To Tame Weeds
Scientists have explored the expression of an immune molecule (CXCL1) that interacts with myelin-producing cells, finding that CXCL1 decreases the severity of disease in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS).
Continue reading about Immune Molecule Decreases Severity Of Multiple Sclerosis-like Disease In Mice
New computer visualization technology developed by the Harvard Initiative in Innovative Computing has helped astrophysicists understand that gravity plays a larger role than previously thought in deep space’s vast, star-forming molecular clouds.
A network of emotion-regulating brain regions implicated in the pathological worry that can grip patients with anxiety disorders may also be useful for predicting the benefits of treatment.
Continue reading about Expectant Brains Help Predict Anxiety Treatment Success
Attention in biofuel development has shifted recently from the soil to the sea, and specifically to marine algae. An emerging algal biofuel consortium now sees algae as a “green bullet” — science and society’s best hope for a clean bioenergy source that will help loosen broad dependence on fossil fuel, counteract climate warming, and power [...]
Continue reading about Biofuel Development Shifting From Soil To Sea, Specifically To Marine Algae
Researchers have discovered a new therapy for transplant patients, targeting the antibody-producing plasma cells that can cause organ rejection.
Continue reading about Cancer Drug Effectively Treats Transplant Rejections
Entirely new protein structures are very rarely found to drive known biochemical processes. But molecular biologists have just succeeded in finding an example. They studied the protein ASST, present in pathogenic E. coli bacteria, which cause urinary tract infections. In addition to an entirely new structure, the researchers found a transfer mechanism similar to ping-pong, [...]
Continue reading about Sulfurous Ping-pong In The Urinary Tract
Women who took beta carotene or vitamin C or E or a combination of the supplements had a similar risk of cancer as women who did not take the supplements, according to data from a randomized controlled trial.