In the near future a bio-sensing nano-device developed by Arizona State University researcher Wayne Frasch could eliminate long lines at airport security checkpoints and revolutionize health screenings for diseases like anthrax, cancer and antibiotic resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) - and it will all happen with the world’s tiniest rotary motor.

Frasch works with the enzyme F1-adenosine triphosphatase, better known as F1- ATPase. This enzyme, only 10 to 12 nanometers in diameter, has an axle that spins and produces torque. This tiny wonder is part of a complex of proteins key to creating energy in all living things, including photosynthesis in plants. F1-ATPase breaks down adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to adenosine diphospahte (ADP), releasing energy. Previous studies of its structure and characteristics have been the source of two Nobel Prizes awarded in 1979 and 1997.

Low doses of hydrogen sulfide, the toxic gas responsible for the unpleasant odor of rotten eggs, can safely and reversibly induce 'suspended animation', in mice, say Massachusetts General Hospital reseachers. They report that effects seen in earlier studies do not depend on a reduction in body temperature and include a substantial decrease in heart rate without a drop in blood pressure.

“Hydrogen sulfide is the stinky gas that can kill workers who encounter it in sewers; but when adminstered to mice in small, controlled doses, within minutes it produces what appears to be totally reversible metabolic suppression,” says Warren Zapol, MD, chief of Anesthesia and Critical Care at MGH and senior author of the Anesthesiology study. “This is as close to instant suspended animation as you can get, and the preservation of cardiac contraction, blood pressure and organ perfusion is remarkable.”

Some new research indicates that a key component of soybean plant defenses against leaf-eating insects go down as CO2 goes up.

The new study, led by University of Illinoise entomology professor and department head May Berenbaum, used the Soybean Free Air Concentration Enrichment (Soy FACE) facility at Illinois, an open-air research lab that can expose the plants in a soybean field to a variety of atmospheric CO2 and ozone levels – without isolating the plants from other environmental influences, such as rainfall, sunlight and insects.

High atmospheric carbon dioxide is known to accelerate the rate of photosynthesis. It also increases the proportion of carbohydrates relative to nitrogen in plant leaves.

Corn has long been a primary food crop in prehistoric North and Central America but, according to a new study, it was also an important part of the South American diet for much longer than previously thought.

PhD student Sonia Zarrillo and archaeology professor Dr. Scott Raymond report that a new technique for examining ancient cooking pots has produced the earliest directly dated examples of domesticated corn (maize) being consumed on the South American continent.

As we learn more and more about the human genome and delve into specifics about what makes certain people healthier than others at the genetic levl, it becomes possible for health care providers, insurers and even employers to use genetic information against individuals even when no health issue exists.

A policy monograph highlighting the need for federal protections against genetic discrimination in employment and insurance practices was released today by the American College of Physicians (ACP). The six policy positions ACP believes should be included in the federal protections are the focus of the policy paper.

“While they’re not quite there, Congress does continue to move closer to passing federal legislation that protects the use of genetic information in employment and insurance coverage decisions,” noted David C. Dale, MD, FACP president of the 125,000 member ACP. “This monograph is important for the ongoing discussion.”

ACP’s first two positions consider insurance providers:

There's no McAlgae drive-through, but coral have their own addiction to 'junk food' and, say researchers, we may be in the position of needing to halt global warming in order to keep that fast food coming. 200 million humans depend on it for their subsistence.

The symbiosis between coral, a primitive animal, and zooxanthellae, tiny one-celled plants, is not only powerful enough to build the largest living organism on the planet, the Great Barrier Reef, but also underpins the economies and living standards of many tropical nations and societies who harvest their food from the reefs or have developing tourism industries.