Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Life
Hunting dark matter with DNA
Particle physicists propose a new way to detect dark matter using the molecule of life.
- Neuroscience
Highlights from Neuroscience 2012
A collection of reports from the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting, New Orleans.
- Genetics
Cloning-like method targets mitochondrial diseases
Providing healthy ‘power plants’ in donor egg cells appears feasible in humans, a new study finds.
- Paleontology
Earliest primate had tree-climber ankles
A creature known only from fossils of its teeth gets some more parts.
- Chemistry
Human blood types have deep evolutionary roots
The ABO system may date back 20 million years or more, a genetic analysis suggests.
- Life
Hind wings gave four-winged dino flight control
Much-debated rear wings could have given Microraptor extra help in airborne maneuvers.
- Life
Fasting hormone helps mice live longer
A protein can trick the body into entering starvation mode.
- Microbes
Protecting the planet
Catharine “Cassie” Conley has the coolest job title at NASA: She’s the agency’s planetary protection officer. (The best title used to be “director of the universe,” but a reconfiguration a few years back eliminated that job description, she says.)
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- Genetics
Genetic mutations may explain a brain cancer’s tenacity
DNA damage may transform adult cells in glioblastoma, making the malignancy harder to kill.
- Neuroscience
Drug helps put bad memories to rest
A brain injection before sleep aids fearful mice — and might lead to a PTSD treatment strategy.
- Neuroscience
Teens can keep their cool to win rewards
An unexpected experimental result suggests adolescent impulsivity is not inevitable.
