The EDGE: ScienceDaily Environment Headlines -- for Thursday, January 12, 2012

ScienceDaily Environment Headlines

for Thursday, January 12, 2012

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New hope to save hemlock trees from attack (January 12, 2012) -- Thousands of broken trees line the banks of the Chattooga River. The dead gray stabs were once evergreen monsters offering shade to trout and picturesque views to visitors. These Eastern hemlocks are dying rapidly, and researchers are working to save them. ... > full story

Renewable fuel: Clearing a potential road block to bisabolane (January 12, 2012) -- Researchers have determined the three-dimensional crystal structure of a protein that is key to boosting the microbial-based production of bisabolane as a clean, green and renewable biosynthetic alternative to D2 diesel fuel. ... > full story

Asthma rates double for World Trade Center first responders (January 12, 2012) -- A recent study has revealed that World Trade Center responders suffer from asthma at more than twice the rate of the general U.S. population, presumably as a result of their exposure to the toxic dust from the collapse of the WTC towers in 2001. ... > full story

Tracking genes' remote controls: New method for observing enhancer activity during development (January 12, 2012) -- Inside each cell's nucleus, genetic sequences known as enhancers act like remote controls, switching genes on and off. Scientists can now see -- and predict -- exactly when each remote control is itself activated, in a real embryo. ... > full story

Predators hunt for a balanced diet (January 11, 2012) -- Predators select their prey in order to eat a nutritionally balanced diet and give themselves the best chance of producing healthy offspring. A new study shows for the first time that predatory animals choose their food on the basis of its nutritional value, rather than just overall calorie content. ... > full story

Fish offspring grow best at same temperature as parents (January 11, 2012) -- Fish parents can pre-condition their offspring to grow fastest at the temperature they experienced, according to new research. ... > full story

Scientists look to microbes to unlock Earth's deep secrets (January 11, 2012) -- Of all the habitable parts of our planet, one ecosystem still remains largely unexplored and unknown to science: The igneous ocean crust. This rocky realm of hard volcanic lava exists beneath ocean sediments that lie at the bottom of much of the world's oceans. While scientists have estimated that microbes living in deep ocean sediments may represent as much as one-third of Earth's total biomass, the habitable portion of the rocky ocean crust may be 10 times as great. ... > full story

Greenhouses and solar power: Crop testing with a special photovoltaic panel for greenhouses (January 11, 2012) -- A new photovoltaic module allows electricity to be generated without greenhouse crops being affected by over-shading. ... > full story

Gut microbe networks differ from norm in obese people, systems biology approach reveals (January 11, 2012) -- People harbor more than 100 trillion microbes. These microbes live in various habitats on and within the human anatomy; the gut houses the densest population of all, containing hundreds of bacterial species. Scientists detected organizational shifts away from the normal lean state in the gut flora of people who were obese. The differences relate to how the microbial community interacts with the human gut environment, rather than variations in its core energy-use processes. ... > full story

Engineers make 'building blocks of chemical industry' from wood while boosting production 40 percent (January 11, 2012) -- Chemical engineers using a catalytic fast pyrolysis process that transforms renewable non-food biomass into petrochemicals, have developed a new catalyst that boosts the yield for five key “building blocks of the chemical industry” by 40 percent compared to previous methods. ... > full story

Solar energy: New sunflower-inspired pattern increases concentrated solar efficiency (January 11, 2012) -- A new sunflower-inspired pattern increases concentrated solar efficiency. ... > full story

Mosquito immune system engineered to block malaria (January 11, 2012) -- Researchers have demonstrated for the first time that the Anopheles mosquito’s innate immune system could be genetically engineered to block the transmission of the malaria-causing parasite to humans. In addition, they showed that the genetic modification had little impact on the mosquito’s fitness under laboratory conditions. ... > full story

Molecular 'culprit' in rise of planetary oxygen (January 11, 2012) -- A turning point in the history of life occurred two to three billion years ago with the unprecedented appearance and dramatic rise of molecular oxygen. Now researchers report they have identified an enzyme that was the first – or among the first – to generate molecular oxygen on Earth. ... > full story

Climate change driving tropical birds to higher elevations (January 11, 2012) -- Tropical birds are moving to higher elevations because of climate change, but they may not be moving fast enough, according to a new study. ... > full story

Scientists characterize protein essential to survival of malaria parasite (January 11, 2012) -- A biology lab has successfully cracked the structure of an enzyme made by Plasmodium falciparum, the parasitical protozoan that causes the most lethal form of malaria. Plasmodium cannot live without the enzyme, which is uses to make cell membrane. Because people don't make this enzyme, it is an ideal target for an anti-malarial drug. Such a drug might kill Plasmodium but have minimal side effects for people. ... > full story

Dramatic links found between climate change, elk, plants, and birds (January 11, 2012) -- Climate change in the form of reduced snowfall in mountains is causing powerful and cascading shifts in mountainous plant and bird communities through the increased ability of elk to stay at high elevations over winter and consume plants, according to a groundbreaking study. ... > full story

Female fish choose sexier friends to avoid harassment (January 11, 2012) -- Scientists have observed a strategy for females to avoid unwanted male attention: Choosing more attractive friends. The study is the first to show females spending time with those more sexually attractive than themselves to reduce harassment from males. The study focuses on the Trinidadian guppy, a species of small freshwater fish. The research shows that the tactic is successful and by ensuring they are less attractive than other group members, the fish experience less harassment and fewer mating attempts from males. ... > full story

Novel anti-viral immune pathway discovered in mosquito (January 10, 2012) -- Virginia Tech researchers have identified a novel anti-viral pathway in the immune system of culicine mosquitoes, the insect family to which mosquitoes that spread yellow fever, West Nile fever, dengue fever, and chikungunya fever belong. ... > full story

Satellite imagery detects thermal 'uplift' signal of underground nuclear tests (January 10, 2012) -- A new analysis of satellite data from the late 1990s documents for the first time the "uplift" of ground above a site of underground nuclear testing, providing researchers a potential new tool for analyzing the strength of detonation. The findings provide another forensic tool for evaluation, especially for the potential explosive yield estimates. ... > full story

Comprehensive picture of the fate of oil from Deepwater Horizon spill (January 10, 2012) -- A new study provides the composite picture of the environmental distribution of oil and gas from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico. It amasses a vast collection of available atmospheric, surface and subsurface chemical data to assemble a "mass balance" of how much oil and gas was released, where it went and the chemical makeup of the compounds that remained in the air, on the surface, and in the deep water. ... > full story

Cosmetic chemical hinders brain development in tadpoles (January 10, 2012) -- A new study finds that low concentrations of the chemical methylisothiazolinone has subtle but measurable negative effects on the neural development of tadpoles. The chemical is found in some cosmetics, although the study does not provide any evidence that cosmetics are unsafe for humans. ... > full story

An apple a day isn't enough: Many people not eating enough fruits and vegetables (January 10, 2012) -- Adults from 30 to 60 years old, especially those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, aren't consuming the daily recommended levels of fruits and vegetables. ... > full story

Reuse of municipal wastewater has potential to augment future drinking water supplies (January 10, 2012) -- With recent advances in technology and design, treating municipal wastewater and reusing it for drinking water, irrigation, industry, and other applications could significantly increase the nation's total available water resources, particularly in coastal areas facing water shortages. ... > full story

Microbial communities on skin affect humans' attractiveness to mosquitoes (January 10, 2012) -- The microbes on your skin determine how attractive you are to mosquitoes, which may have important implications for malaria transmission and prevention, according to a new study. ... > full story

Gulf of Mexico topography played key role in bacterial consumption of Deepwater Horizon spill (January 10, 2012) -- When scientists reported that bacterial blooms had consumed almost all the deepwater methane plumes after the 2010 Gulf of Mexico Deepwater Horizon oil spill, some were skeptical. ... > full story

Could Siberian volcanism have caused the Earth's largest extinction event? (January 10, 2012) -- Around 250 million years ago there was a mass extinction so severe that it remains the most traumatic known species die-off in Earth's history. Although the cause of this event is a mystery, it has been speculated that the eruption of a large swath of volcanic rock in Russia was a trigger for the extinction. New research offers insight into how this volcanism could have contributed to drastic deterioration in the global environment of the period. ... > full story

Mercury releases into the atmosphere from ancient to modern times (January 10, 2012) -- In pursuit of riches and energy over the last 5,000 years, humans have released into the environment 385,000 tons of mercury, the source of numerous health concerns, according to a new study that challenges the idea that releases of the metal are on the decline. ... > full story

Members of small monkey groups more likely to fight for their group (January 10, 2012) -- Small monkey groups may win territorial disputes against larger groups because some members of larger, invading groups avoid aggressive encounters. Scientists show that individual monkeys that don't participate in conflicts prevent large groups from achieving their competitive potential. ... > full story

Senses of sophistication: Mosquitoes detect subtle cues finding food, spreading diseases (January 10, 2012) -- Researchers have unraveled the mystery as to how the malaria mosquito uses its sensory powers to find food and spread disease. ... > full story

Remote wilderness polluted by humans (January 10, 2012) -- Nitrogen from human activity has been polluting lakes in the northern hemisphere since the late 19th century. The clear signs of industrialization can be found even in very remote lakes, thousands of kilometers from the nearest city. ... > full story

The path less traveled: Research is driving solutions to improve unpaved roads (January 10, 2012) -- To improve the quality of unpaved roads, a graduate student is working with lignin, a sustainable material found in all plants. Lignin's adhesive properties make it good for binding soil particles together and protecting unpaved roads from erosion. ... > full story

Who's the boss? Research shows cells influence their own destiny (January 9, 2012) -- In a major shake-up of scientists' understanding of what determines the fate of cells, researchers have shown that cells have some control over their own destiny. ... > full story

New quantitative method enables researchers to assess environmental risks posed by non-native species (January 9, 2012) -- The Harlequin ladybeetle, Japanese knotweed and the American lobster -- while this trio of creatures may have friendly sounding names, they are all introduced species in Norway, and may be anything but friendly to the Norwegian environment. But determining exactly how damaging introduced species may be in their new environment has always been something of a challenge for biologists and land managers -- until now. ... > full story

Belize protected area boosting predatory fish populations (January 9, 2012) -- A 14-year study in an atoll reef lagoon in Glover's Reef, Belize has found that fishing closures there produce encouraging increases in populations of predatory fish species. However, such closures have resulted in only minimal increases in herbivorous fish, which feed on the algae that smother corals and inhibit reef recovery. ... > full story

Nanoparticles hold promise as potential vehicle for drug delivery in brain (January 9, 2012) -- In the images of fruit flies, clusters of neurons are all lit up, forming a brightly glowing network of highways within the brain. It's exactly what researchers were hoping to see: It meant that ORMOSIL, a novel class of nanoparticles, had successfully penetrated the insects' brains. And even after long-term exposure, the cells and the flies themselves remained unharmed. ... > full story

Maintaining balance: Blood progenitor cells receive signals from niche cells and the daughter blood cells they create (January 9, 2012) -- Maintaining balance is crucial. In Drosophila, the common fruit fly, the creation and maintenance of the blood supply requires such balance. Stem cell scientists have now uncovered that two-way signaling from two different sets of cells is necessary for that balance, both to ensure enough blood cells are made to respond to injury and infection and that the blood progenitor cell population remains available for future needs. ... > full story

New culprit in Earth's massive extinction: Mercury (January 9, 2012) -- Researchers have discovered a new culprit likely involved in Earth's greatest extinction event: an influx of mercury into the ecosystem. ... > full story

Fit females make more daughters, mighty males get grandsons (January 9, 2012) -- Females influence the gender of their offspring so they inherit either their mother's or grandfather's qualities. "High-quality" females -- those which produce more offspring -- are more likely to have daughters. Weaker females, whose own fathers were stronger and more successful, produce more sons. ... > full story

Newly formed plants could lead to improved crop fertility (January 9, 2012) -- A new study shows genomes of a recently formed plant species to be highly unstable, a phenomenon that may have far-reaching evolutionary consequences. ... > full story

Hatcheries change salmon genetics after a single generation (January 9, 2012) -- The impact of hatcheries on salmon is so profound that in just one generation traits are selected that allow fish to survive and prosper in the hatchery environment, at the cost of their ability to thrive and reproduce in a wild environment. Researchers were surprised by the speed of evolution and natural selection. ... > full story

Pneumonia outbreak in endangered markhor goats (January 9, 2012) -- If they didn't have enough to worry about from dodging poachers, snow leopards, and landslides in Central Asia's rugged mountains, a population of endangered markhor -- a majestic wild goat species -- has contracted pneumonia. ... > full story

Whiff of 'love hormone' helps monkeys show a little kindness (January 8, 2012) -- Oxytocin, the "love hormone" that builds mother-baby bonds and may help us feel more connected toward one another, can also make surly monkeys treat each other a little more kindly. ... > full story

Hybrid silkworms spin stronger spider silk (January 7, 2012) -- Silk produced by transgenically engineered silkworms in the lab exhibit the highly sought-after strength and elasticity of spider silk. This stronger silk could possibly be used to make sutures, artificial limbs and parachutes. ... > full story

Multi-year prediction of Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation at 26.5 °N possible (January 7, 2012) -- Climate scientists have now shown for the first time that the strength of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation at 26.5 °N can be skillfully predicted for up to four years. ... > full story

Salt water alone unlikely to halt Burmese python invasion (January 6, 2012) -- Invasive Burmese python hatchlings from the Florida Everglades can withstand exposure to salt water long enough to potentially expand their range through ocean and estuarine environments. ... > full story

DNA mismatch repair happens only during a brief window of opportunity (January 6, 2012) -- In eukaryotes-the group of organisms that include humans –- a key to survival is the ability of certain proteins to quickly and accurately repair genetic errors that occur when DNA is replicated to make new cells. Researchers have solved part of the mystery of how these proteins do their job, a process called DNA mismatch repair. ... > full story

Molecular 'maturation clock' modulates branching architecture in tomato plants (January 6, 2012) -- The secret to pushing tomato plants to produce more fruit might not lie in an extra dose of Miracle-Gro. Instead, new research suggests that an increase in fruit yield might be achieved by manipulating a molecular timer or so-called "maturation clock" that determines the number of branches that make flowers, called inflorescences. ... > full story

Sea snails help scientists explore a possible way to enhance memory (January 6, 2012) -- Efforts to help people with learning impairments are being aided by a species of sea snail. The mollusk, which is used by researchers to study the brain, has much in common with other species including humans. Neuroscientists have used this animal model to test an innovative learning strategy designed to help improve the brain's memory and the results were encouraging. ... > full story

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