SciGlow | All Science News In One Place
SciGlow is a newsletter of science stories from the major research labs. Headlines link to in-depth articles and editorials. SciGlow keeps scientists and others up-to-date on current research.
The protection of Australia’s threatened species could be improved by a factor of seven, if more efficient ‘umbrella’ species were prioritised for protection, according to University of Queensland research. Umbrella species are species which when preserved, indirectly protect many other plant and animal species. UQ PhD candidate Michelle Ward said different choices in Australia could … Read more
It’s no secret there’s a close relationship between humans and our microbiomes – the communities of microbes that live in and on us. In fact, researchers can usually guess what an animal’s gut microbiome might look like by studying closely related species. Or at least, that’s what they thought. It turns out that while there’s … Read more
Field trials in the Northwest and Southwest show that poplar trees can be genetically modified to reduce negative impacts on air quality while leaving their growth potential virtually unchanged, says an Oregon State University researcher who collaborated on the study. The findings, published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, are important because … Read more
In the January 2020 issue of Nature Genetics, scientists from SciGenom Research Foundation (SGRF), India, AgriGenome Labs, India, MedGenome, India/USA, SciGenom, India, and Genentech, a member of the Roche group, along with a team of international collaborators from academia and industry report the sequencing and assembly of a high-quality genome of the highly venomous, medically … Read more
Alone, as a pair or in groups – the diversity in social systems of primates is interesting because it may also provide insights into human social life. An evolutionary biologist from the German Primate Center – Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, together with a colleague from the University of Texas at San Antonio, investigated how … Read more
Scientists have shown for the first time that brittle stars use vision to guide them through vibrant coral reefs, thanks to a neat colour-changing trick. The international team, led by researchers at Oxford University Museum of Natural History, described a new mechanism for vision in the red brittle star Ophiocoma wendtii, a relative to sea stars … Read more
A novel immunotherapy treatment has saved family dog Griffin from a rare type of cancer, thanks to collaborative research at The University of Queensland. The Rottweiler was diagnosed with T cell lymphoma in December 2017 and given three months to live. UQ’s Dr Rachel Allavena and her PhD student, veterinarian Dr Annika Oksa, enrolled Griffin … Read more
The American coot is a somewhat drab water bird with gray and black feathers and a white beak, common in wetlands throughout North America. Coot chicks, however, sport outrageously bright orange and red feathers, skin, and beaks. A new study explains how the bright coloring of coot chicks fits in with the reproductive strategy of … Read more
Neuroscience researchers at Western University have developed the first open-access repository for raw data from mouse cognitive testing. Called MouseBytes, the database gives researchers a platform to share rodent cognition data using touchscreen cognitive testing with labs around the world. It is supported by Western’s BrainsCAN, and built on previous funding from the Weston Brain … Read more
For the first time since 1991, biologists have documented the stunning black-and-white-spotted starry night harlequin toad (Atelopus aryescue). The photo documentation is the result of a unique and poignant partnership between Global Wildlife Conservation partner Fundación Atelopus—a Colombian NGO—and the indigenous Arhuaco people of the Sogrome community in Colombia’s Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, the … Read more