Biosentients - Science Biology… etc

University of Missouri scientist Ray Semlitsch studies creatures most people dont ever see. These creatures are active only at night and thrive in the shallow, cool, wet surroundings of headwater streams, an oft-overlooked biological environment. A collaborative study, with MU graduate student Bill Peterman, recently reported in the journal Freshwater Biology, revealed the biomass (total mass of an organism in an area) of the black-bellied salamander far exceeds any prior estimates, and the contribution of the species and its habitat may be critical in the food chain. While the ecological role of the salamander is not fully understood, radio-telemetry and mark-recapture tracking methods used in the study indicate the salamanders are a critical component in the productivity of headwater streams, possibly ensuring the survival of other species of fauna……..

Hunted to near extinction, sea otters are making a steady comeback along the Pacific coast. Their reintroduction, however, is expected to reduce the numbers of several key species of commercially valuable shellfish dramatically, such as sea urchins and geoducks. Despite of this potential conflict, Kai Chan, an NSERC-funded researcher at the University of British Columbia, believes there is a way to ensure Canadian First Nations fishers can benefit from the otters presence……..

The Wildlife Conservation Society and the Panthera Foundation announced plans to establish a 5,000 mile-long genetic corridor from Bhutan to Burma that would allow tiger populations to roam freely across landscapes. The corridor, first announced at the United Nations on January 30th, would span eight countries and represent the largest block of tiger habitat left on earth……..

An MIT team has used an engineering approach to show that complex biological systems can be studied with simple models developed by measuring what goes into and out of the system. Such an approach can give scientists an alternative way to look at the inner workings of a complicated biological system–such as a pathway in a cell–and allow them to study systems in their natural state……..

By creating a genetic mutation in zebrafish, University of Oregon scientists say they’ve discovered a previously unknown mechanism for cleft palate, a common birth defect in humans that has challenged medical professionals for centuries. Many molecular pathways in zebrafish are present in humans and other vertebrates. By studying the induced mutation in zebrafish, the 10-member research team isolated a disruption in early developmental signaling involving Pdgf, a platelet-derived growth-factor protein, and a microRNA known as Mirn140, the researchers write in a paper posted online in advance of regular publication the monthly journal Nature Genetics……..

Laws protecting the critically endangered Sumatran Tiger have failed to prevent tiger body parts being openly sold in Indonesia, as per a TRAFFIC report launched today. Tiger body parts, including canine teeth, claws, skin pieces, whiskers and bones, were on sale in 10 percent of the 326 retail outlets surveyed during 2006 in 28 cities and towns across Sumatra. Outlets included goldsmiths, souvenir and traditional Chinese medicine shops, and shops selling antique and precious stones……..

Thank you to Michael Charters of Calflora.net for contributing today’’s photograph via the Botany Photo of the Day submissions forum on the garden’’s site (in this thread). As Michael notes, “Here’’s a picture of a beautiful species that has few if any images displayed on the ………

Preventing Alzheimer’s disease is a goal of Raphael Kopan, Ph.D., professor of molecular biology and pharmacology at the Washington University School of Medicine. The moss plant Physcomitrella patens studied in the laboratory of Ralph S. Quatrano, Ph.D., the Spencer T. Olin Professor and chair of the biology department on WUSTL’s Danforth Campus, might inch Kopan toward that goal. Here’s how……..

This Valentines Day, Cupid wont be making a stop at the Smithsonians National Zoo. Unlike the spontaneous attraction that most humans equate with love and romance, mating and dating at the National Zoo is planned, strategic and science-basedquite an unromantic encounter. Successful breeding is often much more complicated than putting a male and female together and expecting nature to take its course. Animals in captivity need to be managed carefully to ensure the most genetically diverse populationwhich leads to healthier animals and a sustainable population that can safeguard a species from extinction……..

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University’s Molecular Biosensor and Imaging Center (MBIC) have developed new “fluorogen activating proteins” (FAPs) that will become a key component of novel molecular biosensor technology being created at Carnegie Mellon. The FAPs, which can be used to monitor biological activities of individual proteins and other biomolecules within living cells in real time, are described in the recent issue of Nature Biotechnology……..