Life
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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Animals
Without a ban on trade in old ivory, elephant killing continues
Samuel Wasser has been working to track down where poached ivory comes from. But to stop the killing, he says, a ban on the ivory trade is necessary.
- Genetics
Dads pass health effects of stress on to sons, mouse study finds
In mice, males exposed to repeated psychological stress developed high blood sugar — and so did their unstressed male offspring.
- Microbes
Missing gut microbes linked to childhood malnutrition
The right mix of gut microbes could prevent kids from succumbing to malnutrition.
By Meghan Rosen - Health & Medicine
Mini-stomachs brew insulin in mice
Scientists transform stomach cells into insulin factories and grow mini-stomachs for diabetic mice.
- Animals
Chubby king penguins wobble when they waddle
King penguins’ weight gain makes their waddle a bit wobbly, study suggests.
- Humans
Human DNA found in a Neandertal woman
Interbreeding between humans and Neandertals happened earlier than thought, leaving traces in the Neandertal genome.
- Animals
Slow-moving nurse sharks have a metabolism to match
The nurse shark has the slowest metabolism of any shark measured so far, a new study finds.
- Life
Memory cells enhance strategy for fighting blood cancers
Immune therapy made more powerful with memory T cells.
- Neuroscience
Re-creating womb sounds perks preemies’ attention
Babies born prematurely may benefit from hearing a recording of their mothers’ voices and heartbeats.
- Neuroscience
Tiny bare-bones brains made in lab dishes
A reliable way to make standard-issue minibrains could help scientists study the human brain.
- Animals
Saving salamanders from amphibian killer may take extreme measures
Experience from lethal Bd fungus outbreak is helping researchers defend North America’s salamander paradise from new Bsal threat.
By Susan Milius - Neuroscience
Early exposure to signing helps deaf kids on mental task
Deaf kids exposed to sign language from birth performed better on a task that required attention and impulse control.