news: ScienceDaily Environment Headlines -- for Sunday, January 3, 2010

ScienceDaily Environment Headlines

for Sunday, January 3, 2010

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Tasmanian devil facial tumor disease: Nervous culprit found (January 3, 2010) -- Cells that protect nerves are the likely origin of the devil facial tumor disease that has been devastating Australia's Tasmanian devil population, an international team of scientists has discovered. ... > full story

Scientists identify DNA that regulates antibody production (January 3, 2010) -- Performance enhancers are the currency of a competitive society. But there's one that we have always had: For millions of years, segments of our DNA have improved the performance of our genome, revving up protein production at those times we need it most. New research now show that these genome enhancers regulate how our bodies make germ-fighting antibodies, molecules that keep savvy viruses and bacteria at bay. ... > full story

Fungus contaminant in corn, peanuts, soybeans: Chlorophyll effective against aflatoxin (January 3, 2010) -- A new study has found that chlorophyll and its derivative chlorophyllin are effective in limiting the absorption of aflatoxin in humans. Aflatoxin is produced by a fungus that is a contaminant of grains including corn, peanuts and soybeans; it is known to cause liver cancer -- and can work in concert with other health concerns, such as hepatitis. ... > full story

How the Moon gets its exosphere (January 2, 2010) -- Several decades ago scientists discovered that the Moon, long thought to have no atmosphere, actually does have an extremely thin exosphere. Scientists generally believe that the ions that make up the lunar exosphere are generated at the Moon's surface by interaction with solar photons, plasma in the Earth's magnetosphere, or micrometeorites. However, scientists have been uncertain about which processes are the main contributors of lunar exosphere ions. ... > full story

High fat diet increases inflammation in the mouse colon (January 2, 2010) -- Colorectal cancer, the third most common type of cancer worldwide, has been linked to an increased prevalence of the Western diet: one high in fat and low in fiber, vitamin D and calcium. Now, scientists have shown what happens to colon tissue when mice are fed such a diet: an inflammatory response that could be the trigger for carcinogenic processes. ... > full story

Imaging study shows HIV particles assembling around genome of infected cell (January 2, 2010) -- HIV is a wily and lethal replicator. In less than 25 years, it's killed more than 25 million people. Scientists are exploring exactly how this virus reproduces because they would like to find a way to abort the process. Now, just two years after scientists witnessed the birth of a single HIV particle in real time, the same team has zoomed in for a closer look at how the virus packages its genetic material as it assembles beneath the surface of an infected cell. ... > full story

Elusive protein points to mechanism behind hearing loss (January 2, 2010) -- A serendipitous discovery of deaf zebra fish larvae has helped narrow down the function of an elusive protein necessary for hearing and balance. The work suggests that hearing loss may arise from a faulty pathway that translates sound waves into electrical impulses the brain can understand. ... > full story

Will higher global temperatures make it easier for viruses to jump species? (January 2, 2010) -- Scientists soon will begin investigating whether viruses that have adapted to higher temperatures -- similar to increases due to global warming -- can jump species more easily. ... > full story

Major offshore quake could surge inland to Seattle area (January 2, 2010) -- Large megathrust earthquakes occur on average every 550 years on the northern Cascadia subduction zone, where the Juan de Fuca tectonic plate subducts underneath the North American plate off the coast of Washington State. Scientists had thought that major earthquakes were likely to occur only offshore, but a new analysis shows that a giant earthquake could extend deeper along the subduction zone, and thus farther inland. ... > full story

Final moments of bee landing tactics revealed (January 2, 2010) -- When bees come into land they slow their speed as they approach, but what happens in the final instants before touch down? Using high speed video, scientists from Australia and Sweden have found that there are three stages to the final touch down: a quasi-hover, a stable hover 16mm from the surface and finally a gentle touch down. Using this approach, bees can land on surfaces ranging from the horizontal to completely inverted ceilings. ... > full story

Bacterial protein mimics its host to disable a key enzyme (January 2, 2010) -- Helicobacter pylori infects up to 90 percent of people in the developing world and causes gastric ulcers and cancers of the gut. Now scientists have revealed a subterfuge used by the bacterium to trick stomach cells into playing along. By injecting a protein into the stomach lining that mimics a native protein but has its opposite effect, the bacterium shuts down a process that helps properly structure stomach tissue, scientists say. ... > full story

Fast pace of glacier melt in the 1940s: lower aerosol pollution (January 1, 2010) -- In the 1940s Swiss glaciers were melting at an even-faster pace than at present, according to new research. This is despite the fact that the temperatures in the 20th century were lower than in this century. Researchers see the main reason for this as the lower level of aerosol pollution in the atmosphere. ... > full story

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