ScienceDaily: Plants & Animals News

Researchers have mapped the regions of the brain in mormyrid fish in extremely high detail. The new measurements can help illuminate longstanding questions in neuroanatomy. As brains get bigger, do all regions of the brain scale up in a predictable way? Or does natural selection act independently on separate regions of the brain -- such that certain parts of the brain become enlarged in animals that have extra reasons to use them?

Scientists have discovered that a mysterious family of cellular proteins called OSCAs and TMEM63s are a novel class of mechanosensitive ion channels. The scientists also deciphered the atomic structure of one member of the OSCA protein family, an advance that will allow them to study how these ion channels do their jobs, information that could be critical to identifying how dysfunctions in mechanosensing play a role in disease.

Farmers can now quickly monitor changes in pasture nutrients and adapt their animals' grazing methods accordingly, using a new, real-time method to check nutrient levels in grassland. This relatively cheap and easy approach will greatly improve the sustainable management of pasture for sheep and cattle. Using this new method, the researchers show that overgrazing pasture to below 7 cm significantly reduces the amount protein and digestibility of the grassland.

The gut bacteria of four Himalayan populations differ based on their dietary lifestyles, according to a new study.

Malaria parasites know good times from bad and plan their offspring accordingly, scientists have found, in a development that could inform new treatments.

More and more bacteria are resistant to available antibiotics. A team of chemists now presents a new approach: they have identified important enzymes in the metabolism of staphylococci. Blocking these enzymes in a targeted manner would allow the pathogens to be starved.

Representing a group of successful biocontrol agents for various pest fruit flies, a parasitic wasp genus remains overlooked, with its most recent identification key dating back to 1969, even though many new species have been added since then. Scientists now demonstrate the advantages of new-age interactive identification keys, produced with specialized, free-to-use software.