The It Ain't Magic Science Blog

H2AK119ub1: How you inherit acquired traits from your mom

H2AK119ub1. Say that three times really fast! But seriously, it allows maternally acquired traits to be inherited.

Clean and green: a moss that removes lead (Pb) from water

Scientists show that the moss Funaria hygrometrica can remove harmful lead from water when in the protonema stage of development.

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Super-thin wearable electronics just got more flexible

A method for making super-flexible and ultra-thin wearable electronics uses water-vapor plasma to create gold-gold bonds.

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The sound of molecules: NMR-inspired music

Science & art: how NMR works and how NMR spectra have been used to compose music based on molecular structures.

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Cyborg cockroaches to the rescue!

The key to this remote-controllable cyborg cockroach is a solar-cell rechargeable battery and an ultrathin flexible backpack.

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Boosting betaine may be a treatment for schizophrenia

Supplementing model mice with glycine betaine (trimethylglycine), a compound originally derived from beets, can alleviate symptoms of schizophrenia.

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Latest research animations

Self-assembly of spider silk

This gut microbe might protect against diabetes and reduce insulin resistance

NEW: One-way hydrogel guides motion of tiny worms!

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Tape and vermilion: ingredients for mapping artifact origins

Vermilion samples taken from ancient artifacts with sulfur-free tape can tell us about trade patterns 3000 years ago.

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First hydride-ion battery that works at room temperature

Researchers develop a new solid electrolyte that can conduct hydride ions, thus allowing better hydrogen-based batteries and fuel cells.

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Massive filaments, galaxies, and supermassive black holes

Big telescopes yield big data! Detailed observations gas filaments connecting galaxies in a distant proto-cluster in the early Universe.

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Stem cell exhaustion and proliferation: An aging fly’s tale

Blocking the gene ced-6 led to stem cell exhaustion in aging fruit flies and prevented repair of damaged intestines.

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Social novelty in the brain: haven’t I seen you someplace before?

Social novelty and contextual novelty are segregated in the SuM region of the hypothalamus and in projections to the hippocampus, allowing memories of meeting new people to be formed separately from memories of new places.

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Photosynthetic bacteria spin spider silk for the masses

A little genetic engineering and a special recipe allows photosynthetic bacteria to mass-produce super lightweight spider silk for use in manufacturing.

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Aug

Transgenic plants ??on acid survive without water

by adam phillips | Featured, Research Highlight

Scientists designed transgenic plants that survive drought-like conditions by bumping up acetic acid production only when water is scarce.

Aug

Two genes that regulate how much we dream

by masataka sasabe | Hot Off the Press

An international research team led by RIKEN BDR has identified a pair of genes that regulate how much REM (dream) and non-REM sleep an animal experiences.

Aug

Flies use fecal deposits as pheromones

by amanda alvarez | Hot Off the Press

Bioluminescence imaging of fly brains reveals neurons sensitive to fly poo laced with pheromones (you can see the fecal “landmark” in the dotted circle). Need we say more?

Jul

Hippocampal memory isn’t all about place cells

by amanda alvarez | Hot Off the Press

Scientists have found evidence that hippocampal memories of experience are not stored in place cells.

Jul

Summer fun: how plants beat the heat

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

Scientists have discovered a gene that allows plants to cope with extreme heat by changing the composition of chloroplast membranes.

Jun

Freedom from fear ?‍♀️

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

Researchers discover a dopaminergic circuit in the brain that allows fear associations to disappear when there isn’t anything to be afraid of anymore.

Jun

Blue gene regulation helps plants respond properly to light

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

Blue light alters some gene expression in plants by changing the transcription start sites to downstream locations.

Jun

Out on a limb: the many ‘brains’ of the octopus

by amanda alvarez | Drop of science

Learn how (neurologically) cool octopus arms are (as if you didn’t already know).

Jun

Mutation links bipolar disorder to mitochondrial disease

by amanda alvarez | Hot Off the Press

ANT1 mutations found in bipolar disease that affect mitochondria lead to hyperexcitable serotonergic neuronal activity in the brain.

Talking science Illustration with Misaki Ouchida

Whether it’s bird anatomy or science cartoons, Masaki Ouchida can do it all. She spoke with us about her career in science illustration, from the US to Japan.

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H2AK119ub1: How you inherit acquired traits from your mom

H2AK119ub1. Say that three times really fast! But seriously, it allows maternally acquired traits to be inherited.

Read on

Transgenic plants ??on acid survive without water

Scientists designed transgenic plants that survive drought-like conditions by bumping up acetic acid production only when water is scarce.

Read on

Opossums are the first genome edited marsupials

A new piezoelectronic microinjection method has allowed the first successful genome editing in marsupials: albino opossums.

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May

A new imaging biomarker for the aging brain

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

Enlarged ventricles is a sign of an aging brain. New research shows that this phenomenon can be predicted by lagging brain circulation that is detected by MRI.