Invasive surgeries to spay cats could one day be a thing of the past, replaced instead with a single shot. An injected gene therapy given to female cats prevented…
Category: Life
A novel perspective when assessing the effect of plant community structure on productivity—The spatial aggregation of individual neighborhoods – Functional Ecologists
In this new post, Changjin Cheng—a PhD candidate from the School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, China—presents his latest work ‘Spatial Assembly of Grassland Communities and Interrelationships…
Marjorie Weber explores plant-protecting ants and other wonders of evolution
A crack team of arthropod bodyguards may be defending that cherry tree in your backyard or the maple across the street. Mites protect plants by acting like herds of grazing…
Organ shortage and genetic modification: Tissues from 3D-bioprinting and GM pigs could address organ shortages but regulation causes lags
Modern medicine has produced many kinds of high-tech miracles, among them gene therapy to correct malfunctioning genes, electrical stimulation devices to restore significant function after traumatic spinal cord injury, surgery performed by robots,…
Microglia’s Role in Controlling Anxiety and OCD
Summary: A new study reveals how microglia can regulate anxiety and obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorder (OCSD) behaviors. Traditionally overlooked in favor of neurons, specific microglia populations were found to both stimulate…
Air pollution monitoring may accidentally help scientists track biodiversity
The ability to track animals and plants is up in the air — literally — thanks to help from an unexpected source. Around the globe, many air quality control stations…
Depression and Urban Deprivation: Unseen Accelerators of Biological Aging
Summary: A new study reveals a possible link between depressive symptoms, living in deprived urban neighborhoods, and accelerated aging. The research utilized DNA methylation-based epigenetic clocks to estimate biological age…
Hitching a Ride: mRNA’s Transport System in Brain Cells Revealed
Summary: Researchers made significant advancements in understanding how mRNA is distributed in brain cells. They discovered that a protein complex called FERRY aids Early Endosomes (EEs) to carry mRNAs to…
Shaping Young Minds: Neurodevelopment Interventions for Psychiatric Disorders
Summary: Researchers explored potential treatments for neuropsychiatric disorders like schizophrenia and autism that act during critical windows of brain development. They specifically targeted underperforming dopamine neurons, which connect to the…
Youth Alcohol Dependency Could Signal Future Depression Risk
Summary: Adolescents with signs of alcohol dependency are more likely to suffer from depression in their mid-20s. The research, involving 3,902 participants from the ALSPAC study, examined the correlation between…
