Jun

5

Gene linked to intellectual ability affects memory replay in mice

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

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Scientists have discovered a gene in mice that allows memory replay at rest, a process necessary for forming long-lasting memories in mice.

May

30

Quick, call Spiderman: scientists discover how spider silk is formed

by jens wilkinson | Hot Off the Press

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A group of scientists led by researchers have discovered a key mechanism through which spider silk is formed.

May

16

Mutation protects against Alzheimer’s disease in mice

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

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Scientists discover a deletion mutation that reduces amyloid-beta plaque formation in Alzheimer’s disease model mice.

May

15

Plant peptide spells relief from salty stress

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

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Newly discovered plant peptide hormone can be used to protect plants from excessive environmental salt.

May

14

Putting E. coli to work for us

by riken research highlights | Research Highlight

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Specially engineered bacteria can produce an industrially significant chemical from renewable sources in a much gentler process than the one currently used by industry.

Apr

9

Why being sick can create anxiety

by riken research highlights | Research Highlight

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Researchers have linked changes in mouse immune-cell metabolism to anxiety-related behavior and alterations in brain chemistry.

Apr

6

Plant hormone combats dehydration

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

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Scientists show that CLE25 is a plant hormone that travels from roots to leaves and helps close stomata in times of dehydration stress.

Mar

9

Heat shock system helps dried up bug come back to life

by jens wilkinson | Hot Off the Press

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An international collaboration has determined that cooption of the Heat Shock Factor (HSF) gene system is what allows larvae of the sleeping chironomid to be able to survive severe desiccation.

Feb

23

In living color: imaging the brain with synthetic bioluminescence

by amanda alvarez | Hot Off the Press

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A new way to image the brain from outside the head using bioluminescence.

Feb

9

Deep-brain exploration with nanomaterials

by amanda alvarez | Hot Off the Press

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A new way to optogenetically activate neurons deep in the brain using infrared light and upconversion nanoparticles. It’s non-invasive!

Feb

7

Running away from carbon dioxide: the terminal connection

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

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Even fish want to avoid carbon dioxide. Now we know that they can because of chemosensation and the Terminal Nerve.

Jan

19

Rainbow engineering to make the brain glow

by amanda alvarez | Drop of science

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Bar talk about tinkering with bioluminescent molecules from jellyfish, corals, and algae, figuring out how they work, and making them more useful for brain science.

Jan

18

Geostationary satellite enables better precipitation and flood predictions

by jens wilkinson | Hot Off the Press

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Data from the Himawari-8 geosynchronous satellite was used in weather simulations to improve forecasts of sudden precipitation and tropical storm development.

Jan

17

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

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

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

Jan

15

The brain’s GPS has a buddy system

by amanda alvarez | Hot Off the Press

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In addition to encoding self location, brain cells in the rat hippocampus act like a GPS that encodes the location of other rats.

Dec

25

Leaky plants bad for drought resistance

by adam phillips | Research in Depth

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The KAI2 receptor for compounds found in smoke helps plants retain water and survive during drought.

Dec

22

Helping the body clock keep its cool

by riken research highlights | Research Highlight

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Two parallel temperature-responsive mechanisms ensure that circadian rhythms are not skewed by changes in temperature

Dec

21

The stars align

by amanda alvarez | Drop of science

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The stars align. That’s what you say, when things work out perfectly. In the case of an eclipse, of course, it’s not stars that align but rather the moon and sun.

Dec

7

What’s that smell? The advantage of sniffing

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

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Rhythmic sniffing boosts phase-coded neuronal signals in the mouse olfactory bulb that allow odors to be identified.

Nov

27

Quantum dots light up cancer with a little help

by riken research highlights | Research Highlight

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Researchers have found a small connecting protein that can help make quantum dot-based probes for biomedical imaging.

Nov

24

Most precise measurement ever of proton magnetic moment

by jens wilkinson | Hot Off the Press

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Using a sophisticated setup, scientists have made the most precise measurement to date of the proton magnetic moment.

Nov

9

Proton and antiproton still seem identical

by jens wilkinson | Hot Off the Press

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Using a novel two-particle measurement method, scientists have measured the magnetic moment of the antiproton at a precision 350 times higher than any previous measurement.

Nov

4

Microcolumns: elementary neuronal units that carpet the (mouse) brain

by amanda alvarez | Hot Off the Press

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A hexagonal lattice organizes major cell types in the cerebral cortex, with similar cells synchronizing their activity in microcolumns.

Oct

24

Jupiter’s volcano-powered auroral lights

by riken research highlights | Research Highlight

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A collaborative effort used data from NASA’s Juno spacecraft to explain the transient auroras found on Jupiter.

Oct

13

Hepatoma (liver cancer) blocked by a sugar look-a-like

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

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A sugar (fucose) analog can prevent liver cancer (hepatoma) from invading healthy liver cells.

Oct

3

Random movements help color-detecting cells form the proper pattern

by jens wilkinson | Hot Off the Press

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Scientists have used a mathematical model to explain why zebrafish cone cells in the eye are arranged in a specific pattern in all individuals.

Sep

29

Visualizing chick-brain morphogenesis

by riken research highlights | Research Highlight

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A new statistical-based method provides insight into the morphogenesis of developing organs.

Sep

25

Skin-like wearable electronics

by riken research highlights | Research Highlight

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Sensors made from stretchable nanomesh allow skin to breathe naturally while continuously monitoring patient health.

Sep

22

Solar cells you can put in the wash

by jens wilkinson | Hot Off the Press

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Scientists have developed ultra-thin photovoltaic solar cells that can be incorporated into fabric and even washed.

Sep

20

Learning and unlearning to fear: The two faces of noradrenaline

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

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Fear association and unlearning fear association require different populations of noradrenaline neurons in the locus coeruleus.

Sep

14

ּּּBigger oocytes = more mistakes

by riken research highlights | Research Highlight

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The large size of mouse oocytes is shown to create errors when chromosomes divide between daughter cells.

Sep

7

Superfly flight simulator helps unravel navigation in the brain

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

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Optical imaging neural activity in flies as they use a flight simulator can help us understand how the brain codes navigation.

Sep

5

Skipping fatty acids could be recipe for schizophrenia

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

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Prenatal lack of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids linked to epigenetic changes that lead to schizophrenic symptoms in mice.

Aug

21

A gut-wrenching defense against parasitic worms

by riken research highlights | Research Highlight

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Mast cells in the gut help fight off parasitic worms in the early stages of infection.

Aug

18

Memory retrieval needs a neuronal connecting flight

by adam phillips | Hot Off the Press

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Scientists use optogenetics to discover a part of the brain necessary for retrieving memories of personal experiences.

Aug

10

From egg to embryo

by riken research highlights | Research Highlight

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A newly discovered gene turns off an egg’s egginess, allowing it to become an embryo.

Aug

3

This nickel catalyst bats from both sides of the plate

by riken research highlights | Research Highlight

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Scientists discover that a nickel catalyst acts as both a acid and a base during molecule assembly.

Jul

27

New info about how chromosomes form

by riken research highlights | Research Highlight

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Fewer components are needed for chromosome assembly during cell division than previously supposed.

Jul

25

Tracking how stars grow up in a virtual playground

by amanda alvarez | Research Highlight

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Amanda Alvarez writes about Steven Rieder and his research in modeling clusters of growing new stars.