Microbiology

Microsporidia Fungi Could Be Having Sex Inside Your Body Right Now

A fungus called microsporidia that causes chronic diarrhea in AIDS patients, organ transplant recipients and travelers has been identified as a member of the family of fungi that have been discovered to reproduce sexually. A team at Duke University Medical ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 30 2008 - 3:43pm

Like That Perfume? Thank This Bacteria

Scientists in Italy have found bacteria in the root of a tropical grass whose oils have been used in the cosmetic and perfumery industries. These bacteria seem to promote the production of essential oils, but also they change the molecular structure of the ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 2 2008 - 12:12am

A Good Drug Mule- Polymer Patch Is A 'Backpack' For Cells

MIT engineers have outfitted cells with tiny “backpacks” that could allow them to deliver chemotherapy agents, diagnose tumors or become building blocks for tissue engineering. Michael Rubner, director of MIT’s Center for Materials Science and Engineering ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 5 2008 - 6:59pm

Discovery- Melanin Production In Fat Tissue

A two-year study conducted by researchers at George Mason University, INOVA Fairfax Hospital and the National Cancer Institute may open the door to new therapies for combating chronic diseases associated with obesity, a condition that affected more than 33 ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 7 2008 - 10:23am

Umbilical Cord Blood May Help Build New Heart Valves

Children with heart defects may someday receive perfectly-matched new heart valves built using stem cells from their umbilical cord blood, according to research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2008. When infants are ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 10 2008 - 7:31pm

100 Million Year Old Marine Plankton Found In Amber

Marine microorganisms have been found in amber dating from the middle of the Cretaceous period. The fossils were collected in Charente, in France. This completely unexpected discovery will deepen our understanding of these lost marine species as well as pr ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 16 2008 - 12:40pm

Gene Discovery Will Double Production Of Rice In Times Of Drought

University of Alberta research has yielded a way to double the output of rice crops in some of the world's poorest, most distressed areas. Jerome Bernier, a PhD student in the U of A Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science, has found ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 20 2008 - 5:23pm

Serotonin- Why It Takes Guts To Build Bones

Bone growth is controlled in the gut through serotonin, the same naturally present chemical used by the brain to influence mood, appetite and sleep, according to a new discovery from researchers at Columbia University Medical Center. Until now, the skeleto ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 26 2008 - 1:02pm

Sperm Receptors Revealed Through 3-D Structure

Scientists at the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet have determined the first 3D structure of ZP3, a protein essential for the interaction between the mammalian egg coat and sperm. The findings, presented in Nature, gives a first glimpse in ...

Article - News Staff - Jan 27 2009 - 3:09pm

Not Just Hormones- Food Can Affect Cells Also, Says Study

Every living thing is composed of cells and, via receptor proteins on their outer surface, cells communicate with each other and with the outside world. Receptors are found on skin cells (pain and pressure receptors, for example) as well as on the cells of ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 7 2008 - 1:30pm