Phys.org Biology

• Cells remember short durations of force. What does it mean for exercise?

  Anyone who's been pleasantly surprised that they can still ride a bike or swim laps after a long hiatus might surmise that our cells have some sort of memory. But how could this work?

• Clustered neurons in bat midbrain encode categories of vocalizations, study finds

  The ability to quickly recognize sounds, particularly the vocalizations made by other animals, is known to contribute to the survival of a wide range of species. This ability is supported by a process known as categorical perception, which entails the transformation of continuous auditory input (e.g., gradual changes in pitch or tone) into distinct categories (i.e., vocalizations that mean something specific).

• Zoo life boosts object exploration in orangutans, study finds

  A new study comparing wild and zoo-housed Sumatran orangutans reveals that life in a zoo significantly alters how orangutans interact with their environment.

• Palatable versus poisonous: Scientists reveal how bats learn to identify which prey is safe to eat

  Scientists at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) found that the fringe-lipped bat, known to eavesdrop on frog and toad mating calls to find its prey, learns to distinguish between palatable and unpalatable frogs and toads through experience.

• Giant croc-like carnivore fossils found in the Caribbean

  Imagine a crocodile built like a greyhound—that's a sebecid. Standing tall, with some species reaching 20 feet in length, they dominated South American landscapes after the extinction of dinosaurs until about 11 million years ago. Or at least, that's what paleontologists thought, until they began finding strange, fossilized teeth in the Caribbean.

• Dogs with meningiomas live longer with radiation therapy than surgery

  Researchers at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (VMBS) have discovered that dogs with meningiomas—the most common type of brain tumor in dogs—live longer if they receive radiation therapy rather than surgery.

• Bringing farms back to Chernobyl-affected lands: New protocol offers hope

  Thousands of hectares of Chernobyl-affected farmland, long deemed too dangerous for cultivation in northern Ukraine can safely return to production, according to new research.

• Computational tool sheds light on DNA regulation in cancer and genome editing

  Researchers from the University of Eastern Finland, Aalto University and the University of Oulu have developed a new computational method for exploring DNA sequence patterns. The method, called KMAP, enables intuitive visualization of short DNA sequences and helps reveal how regulatory elements behave in different biological contexts. The study was recently published in Genome Research.

• Deciphering the migratory behavior and connectivity of Mediterranean and Atlantic Cory's shearwaters

  A good wildlife management plan must include information on their migratory processes if the conservation of species, particularly endangered species, is to be improved. In the marine environment, for example, regulating fishing activity in certain wintering areas could improve and complement conservation and protection measures carried out along the breeding grounds.

• Dogs may more easily understand natural communication than trending AIC buttons

  A new study published in Scientific Reports questions the functionality of using the Augmentative Interspecies Communication (AIC) button with dogs. This tool has captivated social media and fueled a global citizen science movement.

• Feeding methods show different growth rates in baby pigs, but similar body composition

  When piglets don't get enough milk in the first weeks of life, the chances of them thriving dramatically decline. In the U.S. pork production system, piglets with limited access to their mothers' milk are typically "cross-fostered" with other sows. But in the EU, a different solution is gaining ground. In certain circumstances, underfed piglets are artificially reared with milk replacer, mimicking feeding setups used in biomedical research.

• South Africa's frogs and reptiles get their own list of names in local languages

  Naming all the creatures and plants in nature is no small task. Fortunate Phaka is a zoologist who has conducted the first comprehensive analysis of naming and classification of frogs and reptiles in nine South African cultures. The list includes 136 frog and 407 reptile species that have been scientifically described. He explains why it's important to record all the species names that people use in their own languages.

• Shaping future sugarcane: Researchers propose ideal plant architecture and breeding strategies

  In an article published in Molecular Plant on April 8, researchers led by Prof. Wang Bing and Prof. Li Jiayang from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology (IGDB) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) have proposed an innovative concept of "ideal plant architecture for sugarcane" and discussed the challenges, opportunities, and strategies for shaping it.

• Why aren't South Africans growing more indigenous crops? How farmers can be nudged to change their ways

  Western diets make up most of South Africa's food systems. This displaces indigenous crops and edible forest plants.

• Natural compounds found to inhibit DNA topoisomerase 1 and reduce DNA damage

  Researchers have identified two natural compounds, patulin and xestoquinol, as new inhibitors of the enzyme topoisomerase 1, a key element in the correct functioning of DNA. The finding, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, opens new doors to understanding and treating diseases related to damage to genetic material.

• Treating animals with acupuncture has become mainstream in veterinary medicine

  A perentie lizard in Dallas, an African penguin in Boston and an Oberhasli goat in Chicago are just a few recent examples of animals at zoos and aquariums benefiting recently from acupuncture therapy. As acupuncture has gained wide use in human medicine in the U.S., it also has become increasingly common in veterinary practice, especially for pain management.

• Unexpected bacterial blocker: Antisense molecules inhibit oral Fusobacterium species linked to cancer progression

  Fusobacteria, which are part of the oral microbiome, are suspected of playing a role in cancer progression. Scientists at the Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research (HIRI) are working on innovative strategies to inhibit the spread of these bacteria.

• Open-access AI tool makes biomedical image analysis accessible to non-experts

  An international team of researchers has developed BiaPy, an open-code artificial intelligence platform that facilitates the analysis of biomedical images using deep learning techniques. The work has been published in Nature Methods.

• Florida Wildlife Corridor provides panthers and black bears a literal path for survival

  Imagine a Florida panther slinking its way 400 miles (645 kilometers) from the Big Cypress Swamp, in the southwest part of the state, to Okefenokee Swamp, on Florida's northern border with Georgia, without ever being spotted by a human.

• Microbial research suggests that biodiversity does not always increase ecosystem stability

  Although many conservationists believe biodiversity is intrinsically valuable, the protection of biodiversity has also been argued for on the basis that diversity makes ecosystems healthier and more stable. But are highly diverse ecosystems more stable and productive than ecosystems with low diversity?

• Coral seeding boosts early coral survival—but long-term gains require more research

  A new study led by James Cook University Senior Research Officer and Lecturer, and University of New South Wales Ph.D. candidate, Hillary Smith, has examined the effectiveness of coral seeding devices to help corals survive in warming oceans.

• AI model found to be better than humans at picking puppies that will be good service dogs

  A team of computer scientists, AI specialists and veterinary medicine researchers in the U.S. and the U.K., working with the dog training center, The Seeing Eye, Inc., has found that an AI model was better than humans at assessing puppies for characteristics of good service dogs.

• Sugar signaling treatment could boost wheat yields by up to 12%

  Enhancing wheat plants' sugar signaling ability could deliver increased yields of up to 12%, according to researchers from Rothamsted, Oxford University and the Rosalind Franklin Institute, published in the journal Nature Biotechnology. That is an order of magnitude greater than the annual yield increases currently being achieved through breeding.

• Fossil of a new mammal species from the age of dinosaurs discovered in Mongolia's Gobi desert

  A joint research team has discovered a fossil belonging to a previously unknown genus and species of mammal in the Late Cretaceous (100–66 million-year-old) strata of Mongolia's Gobi Desert.

• Less-thirsty rice offers hope in drought-stricken Chile

  A cold, dry part of Chile might not sound like the best place to grow rice, a famously thirsty grain that thrives in tropical conditions.