ScienceDaily Environment Headlines -- for Saturday, September 3, 2011

ScienceDaily Environment Headlines

for Saturday, September 3, 2011

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Powerful antioxidant resveratrol prevents metabolic syndrome in lab tests, study finds (September 2, 2011) -- Researchers in Canada have discovered that resveratrol, a powerful antioxidant found in common foods, prevents a syndrome in some offspring that could lead to later health issues such as diabetes. Resveratrol is found in fruits, nuts and red wine, and has been shown to extend the lifespan of many species. ... > full story

New insight in how cells' powerhouse divides (September 2, 2011) -- New research puts an unexpected twist on how mitochondria, the energy-generating structures within cells, divide. The work could have implications for a wide range of diseases and conditions. ... > full story

Up from the depths: How bacteria capture carbon in the 'twilight zone' (September 2, 2011) -- Located between 200 and 1,000 meters below the ocean surface is a "twilight zone" where insufficient sunlight penetrates for microorganisms to perform photosynthesis. Details are now emerging about a microbial metabolic pathway that helps solve the mystery of how certain bacteria capture carbon in the dark ocean, enabling a better understanding of what happens to the carbon that is fixed in the oceans every year. ... > full story

Woolly rhino fossil discovery in Tibet provides important clues to evolution of Ice Age giants (September 2, 2011) -- Fossil discoveries from Tibet offer new insights into the origin of the cold-adapted Pleistocene megafauna. A new research paper posits that the harsh winters of the rising Tibetan Plateau may have provided the initial step towards cold-adaptation for several subsequently successful members of the late Pleistocene mammoth fauna in Europe, Asia, and to a lesser extent, North America. The Tibetan Plateau, therefore, may have been another cradle of the Ice Age giants. ... > full story

Cryptococcus infections misdiagnosed in many AIDS patients, study suggests (September 2, 2011) -- Most AIDS patients, when diagnosed with a fungal infection known simply as cryptococcosis, are assumed to have an infection with Cryptococcus neoformans, but a new study suggests that a sibling species, Cryptococcus gattii, is a more common cause than was previously known. The difference between these strains could make a difference in treatment, clinical course, and outcome. ... > full story

New microscope might see beneath skin in 4-D (September 2, 2011) -- Other devices can take 3-D pictures of tissue below the surface of skin, but a new microscope adds an extra dimension: a spectroscopic "fingerprint" that measures the wavelength (or color) of light reflected off each point within a sample in a single snapshot. Researchers hope this innovation may one day be used for early detection of skin cancer. ... > full story

Biological 'computer' destroys cancer cells: Diagnostic network incorporated into human cells (September 2, 2011) -- Researchers have successfully incorporated a diagnostic biological "computer" network into human cells. This network recognizes certain cancer cells using logic combinations of five cancer-specific molecular factors, triggering cancer cells destruction. ... > full story

First long-term study of WTC workers shows widespread health problems 10 years after Sept. 11 (September 2, 2011) -- In the first long-term study of the health impacts of the World Trade Center (WTC) collapse on Sept. 11, 2001, researchers have found substantial and persistent mental and physical health problems among Sept. 11 first responders and recovery workers. ... > full story

To clear digital waste in computers, 'think green,' researchers say (September 2, 2011) -- A digital dumping ground lies inside most computers, a wasteland where old, rarely used and unneeded files pile up. Such data can deplete precious storage space, bog down the system's efficiency and sap its energy. Computer scientists now propose adapting a real-world approach to the cleanup effort. ... > full story

World Trade Center-exposed NYC firefighters face increased cancer risk, study finds (September 2, 2011) -- In the largest cancer study of firefighters ever conducted, researchers have found that New York City firefighters exposed to the Sept. 11 World Trade Center (WTC) disaster site were at least 19 percent more likely to develop cancer in the seven years following the disaster as their non-exposed colleagues and up to 10 percent more likely to develop cancer than a similar sample from the general population. ... > full story

Feeding cows natural plant extracts can reduce dairy farm odors and feed costs (September 2, 2011) -- With citizens' groups seeking government regulation of foul-smelling ammonia emissions from large dairy farms, scientists report that adding natural plant extracts to cow feed can reduce levels of the gas by one-third while reducing the need to fortify cow feed with expensive protein supplements. ... > full story

Glowing, blinking bacteria reveal how cells synchronize biological clocks (September 2, 2011) -- Biologists have long known that organisms from bacteria to humans use the 24 hour cycle of light and darkness to set their biological clocks. But exactly how these clocks are synchronized at the molecular level to perform the interactions within a population of cells that depend on the precise timing of circadian rhythms is less well understood. ... > full story