The EDGE: ScienceDaily Environment Headlines -- for Monday, July 2, 2012

ScienceDaily Environment Headlines

for Monday, July 2, 2012

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Curvy mountain belts (June 29, 2012) -- Mountain belts on Earth are most commonly formed by collision of one or more tectonic plates. The process of collision, uplift, and subsequent erosion of long mountain belts often produces profound global effects, including changes in regional and global climates, as well as the formation of important economic resources, including oil and gas reservoirs and ore deposits. Understanding the formation of mountain belts is thus a very important element of earth science research. ... > full story

Easter Island drug raises cognition throughout life span in mice (June 29, 2012) -- Cognitive skills such as learning and memory diminish with age in everyone, and the drop-off is steepest in Alzheimer's disease. Texas scientists seeking a way to prevent this decline reported exciting results this week with a drug that has Polynesian roots. The researchers added rapamycin to the diet of healthy mice throughout the rodents' life span. Rapamycin, a bacterial product first isolated from soil on Easter Island, enhanced learning and memory in young mice and improved these faculties in old mice, the study showed. ... > full story

New fuel cell keeps going after the hydrogen runs out (June 29, 2012) -- Materials scientists have demonstrated a solid-oxide fuel cell that converts hydrogen into electricity but can also store electrochemical energy like a battery. This fuel cell can continue to produce power for a short time after its fuel has run out. ... > full story

Scientists urge new approaches to plant research (June 29, 2012) -- If humans are to survive as a species, we must turn more to plants for any number of valuable lessons, experts say. ... > full story

Bees shed light on human sweet perception and metabolic disorders (June 29, 2012) -- Scientists have discovered that honey bees may teach us about basic connections between taste perception and metabolic disorders in humans. By experimenting with honey bee genetics, researchers have identified connections between sugar sensitivity, diabetic physiology and carbohydrate metabolism. Bees and humans may partially share these connections. ... > full story

Stealthy microscopy method visualizes E. coli sub-cellular structure in 3-D (June 29, 2012) -- A sub-cellular world has been opened up for scientists to study E. coli and other tissues in new ways, thanks to a microscopy method that stealthily provides 3-D, high-quality images of the internal structure of cells without disturbing the specimen. ... > full story

Welsh reindeer is Britain's oldest rock art, U-series dating suggests (June 29, 2012) -- A reindeer engraved on the wall of a cave in South Wales has been found to date from at least 14,505 years ago -- making it the oldest known rock art in the British Isles. ... > full story

Caffeine boosts power for elderly muscles (June 29, 2012) -- Caffeine boosts power in older muscles, suggesting the stimulant could aid elderly people to maintain their strength, reducing the incidence of falls and injuries, according to new research. ... > full story

Evidence of life on Mars could come from Martian moon Phobos (June 29, 2012) -- A mission to a Martian moon could return with alien life, according to experts, but don't expect the invasion scenario presented by summer blockbusters like "Men in Black 3" or "Prometheus." A sample from the moon Phobos, scientists believe, would almost surely contain Martian material blasted off from large asteroid impacts. If life on Mars exists or existed within the last 10 million years, a mission to Phobos could yield our first evidence of life beyond Earth. ... > full story

What you eat can prevent arsenic overload (June 29, 2012) -- New research has demonstrated that people who ate more dietary vitamin B12 and animal protein had lower levels of arsenic (measured by deposition in toenails). Total dietary fat, animal fat, vegetable fat and saturated fat were also all associated with lower levels of arsenic, while omega 3 fatty acids, such as those found in fish oil, were associated with increased arsenic. ... > full story

Insights into primate diversity: Lessons from the rhesus macaque (June 29, 2012) -- The rhesus macaque has three times as much genetic variation as humans. However despite much of this extra variation within genes, protein function is not affected. Consequently damaging variations are at similar levels in macaques and humans -- indicating a strong selection pressure to maintain gene function regardless of mutation rate or population size. ... > full story

Both innate and adaptive immune responses are critical to the control of influenza (June 29, 2012) -- Both innate and adaptive immune responses play an important role in controlling influenza virus infection, according to a new study. ... > full story

Adoption of advanced techniques could propel crop improvement (June 28, 2012) -- Scientists could take greater strides toward crop improvement if there were wider adoption of advanced techniques used to understand the mechanisms that allow plants to adapt to their environments, researchers say. ... > full story

Programmable DNA scissors found for bacterial immune system (June 28, 2012) -- Scientists have discovered a programmable RNA complex in the bacterial immune system that guides the cleaving of DNA at targeted sites. This discovery opens a new door to genome editing with implications for the green chemistry microbial-based production of advanced biofuels, therapeutic drugs and other valuable chemical products. ... > full story

New insights into the effects of stress on pregnancy (June 28, 2012) -- Expectant mothers who dealt with the strain of a hurricane or major tropical storm passing nearby during their pregnancy had children who were at elevated risk for abnormal health conditions at birth, according to a new study that offers new insights into the effects of stress on pregnancy. ... > full story

Maya archaeologists unearth new 2012 monument with 'end date' of Dec. 21, 2012 (June 28, 2012) -- Archaeologists working at the site of La Corona in Guatemala have discovered a 1,300-year-old-year Maya text that provides only the second known reference to the so-called "end date" of the Maya calendar, Dec. 21, 2012. The discovery is one of the most significant hieroglyphic finds in decades. ... > full story

How flu can cause severe infections (June 28, 2012) -- Scientists have discovered a new gene in the influenza virus that helps the virus control the body's response to infection. Although this control is exerted by the virus, surprisingly it reduces the impact of the infection. ... > full story

Discovery may lead to new tomato varieties with vintage flavor and quality (June 28, 2012) -- A new genetic discovery may help plant breeders recapture heirloom flavor, processing quality and a health-promoting compound in modern tomato varieties. ... > full story

Date of earliest animal life reset by 30 million years (June 28, 2012) -- Researchers have uncovered physical proof that animals existed 585 million years ago, 30 million years earlier than all previous established records show. The discovery was made U of A geologists Ernesto Pecoits and Natalie Aubet in Uruguay. They found fossilized tracks of a centimeter long, slug-like animal left behind 585 million years ago in a silty sediment. ... > full story

Study on fungi helps explain coal formation and may advance future biofuels production (June 28, 2012) -- The evolution of white rot fungi might have helped bring an end to the geologic period characterized by the formation of large coal deposits, and may help lay the groundwork for the future production of biofuels. ... > full story

Master regulator protein brings plethora of coactivators to gene expression sites (June 28, 2012) -- A master regulator protein brings plethora of coactivators to gene expression sites. Molecular geneticists call big boss proteins that switch on broad developmental or metabolic programs "master regulators," as in master regulators of muscle development or fat metabolism. ... > full story

Native species fight back: First evidence of coevolution between invasive, native species (June 28, 2012) -- Invasive species such as kudzu, privet and garlic mustard can devastate ecosystems, and, until now, scientists had little reason to believe that native plants could mount a successful defense. A new study shows that some native clearweed plants have evolved resistance to invasive garlic mustard plants -- and that the invasive plants appear to be waging a counterattack. ... > full story

Earth's oldest known impact crater found in Greenland (June 28, 2012) -- Scientists in working in Western Greenland have found evidence of an asteroid or comet impact early in the Earth's history. At three billion years old, the crater is a billion years older than the previously oldest known crater. ... > full story

Pollutants could pose health risks for five sea turtle species (June 28, 2012) -- Researchers have measured for the first time concentrations of 13 compounds in five different endangered species of sea turtles that approach the amounts known to cause adverse health effects in other animals. ... > full story

A new source of maize hybrid vigor (June 28, 2012) -- Scientists think they may have discovered a new source of heterosis, or hybrid vigor, in maize. They have been looking at small RNAs, a class of double-stranded RNA molecules that are 20 to 25 nucleotides in length. ... > full story

Part of the genome of two hunter-gatherers from 7,000 years ago (June 28, 2012) -- A team of scientists has recovered part of the genome of two individuals who were alive in the Mesolithic Period, 7,000 years ago. The remains were found at La Braña-Arintero site, located at Valdelugueros (León), Spain. The study results indicate that current Iberian populations do not come from these recently discovered humans. ... > full story

Lymph node roundabout: Researchers probe origin of optimized antibodies against infections (June 28, 2012) -- An organism's ability to make new antibodies is of central importance in the fight against pathogens. In case of severe infections, the speed with which an immune response proceeds could mean the difference between life and death. Scientists have now found out how the division of B cells contributes to a fast immune defense. ... > full story

Global migration trends discovered in email data (June 28, 2012) -- For the first time comparable migration data is available for almost every country of the world. To date, records were incompatible between nations and especially by gender and age, nonexistent. New research for the first time provides a rich migration database by compiling the global flow of millions of emails. ... > full story

Photosynthesis re-wired: Chemists use nanowires to power photosynthesis-like process (June 28, 2012) -- Chemists have developed a process that closely resembles photosynthesis and proved capable of synthesizing compounds found in the pain-killers ibuprofen and naproxen. ... > full story

Flu immunity is affected by how many viruses actually cause the infection (June 28, 2012) -- Both the number of viruses in initial flu infection, and the virus type, affects the patient's outcome. Mice infected by high concentrations developed immunity, and generated immune cells in the lungs to fight other strains. Mice with low concentrations developed weaker immunity, did not generate cells in the lungs, and delayed immunity toward other strains. This could help develop novel strategies to fight flu infections. ... > full story

Searching for the origin of muscles (June 28, 2012) -- Scientists have addressed the origin of musculature. A new analysis reveals for the first time that some central components of muscles of higher animals are much older than previously assumed. These results indicate that muscle-like cell contraction originated already very early during animal evolution, while the specialization of basal muscle cell types, such as striated muscles, occurred only later and several times independently. ... > full story

Acoustic tweezers capture and manipulate tiny creatures with ultrasound (June 28, 2012) -- Bioengineers and biochemists are using a miniaturized ultrasound device to capture and manipulate biological materials, such as the tiny roundworm, C. elegans. ... > full story

Dietary fiber alters gut bacteria, supports gastrointestinal health (June 28, 2012) -- Dietary fiber promotes a shift in the gut toward different types of beneficial bacteria, a new study shows. ... > full story

How sticky toepads evolved in geckos and what that means for adhesive technologies (June 28, 2012) -- Geckos are known for sticky toes that allow them to climb up walls and even hang upside down on ceilings. A new study shows that geckos have gained and lost these unique adhesive structures multiple times over the course of their long evolutionary history in response to habitat changes. ... > full story

Interacting mutations promote diversity (June 28, 2012) -- Frequency-dependent selection fosters the diversity of populations but does not always increase the average fitness of the population. ... > full story

Dinosaurs were warm-blooded reptiles: Mammal bone study sheds light on dinosaur physiology (June 28, 2012) -- A study with extant mammals refutes the hypothesis on which the assumption that dinosaurs were ectotherms was based. The study analyzing the lines of arrested growth (LAG) in the bones of around a hundred ruminants, representative of the specific and ecological diversity of that group of mammals. The results show that the presence of these lines is not an indicator of an ectothermic physiology (does not generate internal heat), as had previously been thought, since all warm-blooded mammals have them. The study therefore dismantles the key argument of the hypothesis that dinosaurs could have been cold-blooded reptiles. ... > full story

Africa's savannas may become forests by 2100, study suggests (June 28, 2012) -- Large parts of Africa’s savannas may well be forests by 2100. The study suggests that fertilization by atmospheric carbon dioxide is forcing increases in tree cover throughout Africa. A switch from savanna to forest occurs once a critical threshold of carbon dioxide concentration is exceeded, yet each site has its own critical threshold. The implication is that each savanna will switch at different points in time, thereby reducing the risk that a synchronous shock to the earth system will emanate from savannas. ... > full story

Palladium-gold nanoparticles clean TCE a billion times faster than iron filings (June 27, 2012) -- In the first side-by-side tests of a half-dozen palladium- and iron-based catalysts for cleaning up the carcinogen TCE, scientists have found that palladium destroys TCE far faster than iron -- up to a billion times faster in some cases. ... > full story

Physics of going viral: Rate of DNA transfer from viruses to bacteria measured (June 27, 2012) -- Researchers have been able, for the first time, to watch viruses infecting individual bacteria by transferring their DNA, and to measure the rate at which that transfer occurs. Shedding light on the early stages of infection by this type of virus -- a bacteriophage -- the scientists have determined that it is the cells targeted for infection, rather than the amount of genetic material within the viruses themselves, that dictate how quickly the bacteriophage's DNA is transferred. ... > full story

Potential for tsunamis in northwestern California documented (June 27, 2012) -- Using studies that span the last three decades, scientists have compiled the first evidence-based comprehensive study of the potential for tsunamis in Northwestern California. ... > full story

Pressure testing of new Alvin Personnel Sphere successful (June 27, 2012) -- The human-occupied submersible Alvin reached a major milestone in its upgrade project on June 22 when its new titanium personnel sphere successfully completed pressure testing, reports the vehicle's operator. ... > full story

Scientists measure soot particles in flight (June 27, 2012) -- For the first time, air-polluting soot particles have been imaged in flight down to nanometer resolution. Pioneering a new technique scientists snapped the most detailed images yet of airborne aerosols. ... > full story

Ancient human ancestors had unique diet (June 27, 2012) -- When it came to eating, an upright, 2-million-year-old African hominid had a diet unlike virtually all other known human ancestors, says a new study. ... > full story

Dying trees in Southwest set stage for erosion, water loss in Colorado River (June 27, 2012) -- New research concludes that a one-two punch of drought and mountain pine beetle attacks are the primary forces that have killed more than 2.5 million acres of pinyon pine and juniper trees in the American Southwest during the past 15 years, setting the stage for further ecological disruption -- including more water loss in the Colorado River basin. ... > full story

Diabetes reversed in mice using stem cells (June 27, 2012) -- Scientists have reversed diabetes in mice using stem cells. Scientists have shown that human stem cell transplants can successfully restore insulin production and reverse diabetes in mice. Crucially, they re-created the "feedback loop" that enables insulin levels to automatically rise or fall based on blood glucose levels. ... > full story

Happy accident answers cell signal controversy (June 27, 2012) -- Using a new tool allowing proteins in a living cell to be manipulated in real time, researchers have stumbled across the answer to a longstanding debate about where and how a certain protein is turned on in the cell. Scientists show that protein kinase A is also activated in the nucleus rather than inside the cell’s body, a challenge to traditional beliefs. ... > full story

Most new pesticides have roots in natural substances (June 27, 2012) -- Scientists who search for new pesticides for use in humanity's battle of the bugs and other threats to the food supply have been learning lessons from Mother Nature, according to a new analysis. It concludes that more than two out of every three new pesticide active ingredients approved in recent years had roots in natural substances produced in plants or animals. ... > full story

Role of urban greenery in CO<sub>2</sub> exchange demonstrated (June 27, 2012) -- In what might be the first study to report continuous measurements of net CO2 exchange of urban vegetation and soils over a full year or more, scientists conclude that not only is vegetation important in the uptake of the greenhouse gas, but also that different types of vegetation play different roles. ... > full story