Scicurious
A peek behind the science curtain
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Neuroscience
To beat sleepiness of anxiety drugs, team looks to body’s clock
Studying basic functions, such as the body’s clock, has inadvertently led to a compound that relieves anxiety in mice.
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Animals
The scent of a worry
The smell of fear makes other rats stressed. Now, scientists have isolated the Eau de Terror that lets rats communicate their concerns.
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Science & Society
This study of hype in press releases will change journalism
A survey of press releases and their related scientific studies shows that hype may creep from press releases to news coverage. But this doesn’t give anyone at any stage of the news cycle a pass.
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Animals
‘Tis the season for white-nose syndrome in bats
While bats are active, the fungus that causes white-nose syndrome stays put in the caves the bats call home in winter. New findings show how the fungus varies through the seasons.
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Science & Society
Compassionate colleagues can help labs restart after disaster
Scientists plan for many things, but often not for disaster. Two scientists share their story of recovery after Superstorm Sandy.
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Neuroscience
The molecular path of best resilience
Many studies focus on susceptibility to stress and how it triggers depression. But a new study highlights a protein important in resilience, showing that resisting stress takes work, too.
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Health & Medicine
Add high-fat diet to the ‘don’t’ list for pregnant moms
There’s always controversy over what to eat while pregnant. Four animal studies at this year’s Society for Neuroscience meeting bring together negative effects of high-fat diets.
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Neuroscience
Serotonin lies at the intersection of pain and itch
Serotonin may help relieve pain, but it also causes itch. A study shows why scratching just makes it worse.
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Neuroscience
For a friendlier zebra finch, just add stress
Adding stress hormones to the diet of developing zebra finches produced birds that were social butterflies.
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Neuroscience
Study of psychiatric disorders is difficult in man and mouse
Studying human psychiatric disorders in animals presents a challenge. A new study highlights one of the ways scientists can study human mutations by slipping them into mice.
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Science & Society
Is NIH policy the best way to sex equality in studies?
A new NIH policy will require females to be studied alongside males in preclinical studies. The mandate comes with both opportunities and challenges, and little funding.
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Animals
A stressful youth makes for a devoted finch dad
Stress is generally thought to be a bad thing. But a new study shows that under certain conditions, a stressful childhood could make a zebra finch a better father.