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'Trophic cascades' of disruption may include loss of woolly mammoth, saber-toothed cat

CORVALLIS, Ore. – A new analysis of the extinction of woolly mammoths and other large mammals more than 10,000 years ago suggests that they may have fallen victim to the same type of "trophic cascade" of ecosystem disruption that scientists say is being caused today by the global decline of predators such as wolves, cougars, and sharks.

In each case the cascading events were originally begun by human disruption of ecosystems, a new study concludes, but around 15,000 years ago the problem was not the loss of a key predator, but the addition of one – human hunters with spears.

Doctors to treat septic patients with hypothermia

Inducing mild hypothermia is easy to implement in clinical practice and may be a valuable tool in the treatment of human sepsis patients, say researchers at the University of Brest, France.

Sepsis is an inflammatory response to infection and will often result in septic shock, which is the biggest cause of death in intensive care units.

New research shows that the development of sepsis in rats living under hypothermic conditions was slower than in normal conditions and they survived much longer.

Feathered friends: Ostriches provide clues to bipedal dinosaur movement

Ostriches provide clues to bipedal dinosaur movement

Once thought to be "evolutionary leftovers", new research has shown that the feathered forelimbs of ostriches are sophisticated air-rudders and braking aids. Even more, say the researchers, learning wing-use and hindlimb function in ostriches may help palaeontologists in their quest to reconstruct locomotor techniques in bipedal (two-legged) dinosaurs.

When food intake stops, enzyme turns off production of fats, cholesterol

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators have found that an enzyme with several important roles in energy metabolism also helps to turn off the body's generation of fats and cholesterol under conditions of fasting. The report in Genes & Development describes how SIRT1, one of a group of enzymes called sirtuins, suppresses the activity of a family of proteins called SREBPs, which control the body's synthesis and handling of fats and cholesterol. The findings could lead to new approaches to treating conditions involving elevated cholesterol and lipid levels.

New variants found that indicate a predisposition to type 2 diabetes

ANN ARBOR, Mich.---An international team co-led by scientists from the University of Michigan have discovered 12 more regions on the genome with DNA variants that are associated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes, bringing the number to 38.

A variant is a place on a string of DNA where one of the "letters," or nucleotides, differs between people. At most places along the DNA, any two people will have the same letter. The variable places in the DNA are important because some variants can increase predisposition to disease and other conditions, or offer drug targets.

Flowering and freezing tolerance linked in wheat, study shows

New research by UC Davis wheat geneticist Jorge Dubcovsky and his colleagues could lead to new strategies for improving freezing tolerance in wheat, which provides more than one-fifth of the calories consumed by people around the world.

The new findings, published June 22 in the Online First issue of the journal Plant Physiology, shed light on the connection between flowering and freezing tolerance in wheat.

Conserving nature and dollars: Delivering cost-effective biodiversity protection

A more flexible approach to the expansion of protected area systems could ultimately protect much more biodiversity for the same budget according to a new paper in the scientific journal Nature.Lead author Dr Richard Fuller of the CSIRO Climate Adaptation Flagship and The University of Queensland said that without spending extra money "we could dramatically improve the performance of protected area systems by replacing a small number of poor performing areas with more cost-effective ones".

Nitrogen pollution alters global change scenarios from the ground up

As atmospheric carbon dioxide levels rise, so does the pressure on the plant kingdom. The hope among policymakers, scientists and concerned citizens is that plants will absorb some of the extra CO2 and mitigate the impacts of climate change. For a few decades now, researchers have hypothesized about one major roadblock: nitrogen.

Genetic basis of alopecia areata established for first time by Columbia research team

NEW YORK – A team of investigators led by Columbia University Medical Center has uncovered eight genes that underpin alopecia areata, one of the most common causes of hair loss, as reported in a paper in the July 1, 2010 issue of Nature. Since many of the genes are also implicated in other autoimmune diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis and type 1 diabetes – and treatments have already been developed that target these genes – this discovery may soon lead to new treatments for the 5.3 million Americans suffering from hair loss caused by alopecia areata.

Little E/Z changes make a big difference

Little E/Z changes make a big difference

Stanford study shows key enzyme in fetal heart development also involved in adult heart disease

STANFORD, Calif. — Scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine have identified for the first time an enzyme that plays vital roles in both fetal heart development and in causing cardiac hypertrophy — an enlargement of the heart — in adults. The discovery could be used in the future to try to develop new treatments for heart disease.

Scientists find direct line from development to growth

DURHAM, N.C. -- It may seem intuitive that growth and development somehow go together so that plants and animals end up with the right number of cells in all the right places. But it is only now that scientists at the Duke Institute for Genome Sciences & Policy have gotten some of the first insights into how this critical coordination actually works in a plant.

The answer is surprisingly simple.

Researchers show that organic farming enhances biodiversity and natural pest control

WASHINGTON, June 30, 2010 – A team of researchers from Washington State University and the University of Georgia have found that organic farming increases biodiversity among beneficial, pest-killing predators and pathogens. In potato crops, this led to fewer insect pests and larger potato plants.

"It's always been a mystery how organic farmers get high yields without using synthetic insecticides," says co-author Bill Snyder, associate professor of entomology at Washington State University. "Our study suggests that biodiversity conservation may be a key to their success."

'Balanced' ecosystems seen in organic ag better at controlling pests

'Balanced' ecosystems seen in organic ag better at controlling pests

PULLMAN, Wash.—There really is a balance of nature, but as accepted as that thought is, it has rarely been studied. Now Washington State University researchers writing in the journal Nature have found that more balanced animal and plant communities typical of organic farms work better at fighting pests and growing a better plant.

Breakthrough in understanding cell development

How do plants and animals end up with right number of cells in all the right places?

For the first time, scientists have gained an insight into how this process is co-ordinated in plants. An international team, including Cardiff University's School of Biosciences and Duke University in the USA, have linked the process of cell division with the way cells acquire their different characteristics.

A protein called Short-root, already known to play a part in determining what cells will become, was also found to control cell division.