ScienceDaily: Plants & Animals News

A new mapping analysis estimates the amounts of nitrogen and pathogens released into coastal ecosystems from human wastewater sources around the world.

Life isn't always easy for small primates in the Soutpansberg Mountains of South Africa -- foraging for food, contending with cold temperatures and fighting off rivals. A new study explores how they may weather the environmental changes ahead.

A gene-silencing therapy protected against Zika virus transmission from pregnant mice to the mouse fetuses, finds a new study. The treatment, which harnesses nanoparticles called small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) for drug delivery, crossed the placenta and blood-brain barrier to greatly reduce fetal neurological damage, including virus-induced brain shrinkage.

By triangulating data from linguistics, archaeology and genetics, a new study by an international team of researchers proposes a 'Farming Hypothesis' for the spread of Transeurasian languages, tracing the origins of Japonic, Koreanic, Tungusic, Mongolic and Turkic to the movements of Neolithic millet farmers from the region of the West Liao River.

Human neurons have a lower density of ion channels than expected, compared to neurons of other mammals, according to a new study. The researchers hypothesize that a lower channel density may have helped the human brain evolve to operate more efficiently.

Dried snack foods such as apple chips are a convenient alternative to fresh fruit, providing longer shelf life and easier storage. Consumers increasingly demand product variety, so companies coat such snack foods with fruit and vegetable powders to enhance taste and sensory appeal. A new study explores the drying process of coated and uncoated apple chips using near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy to measure moisture content in real time. NIR technology greatly enhances the speed and accuracy of measurements, the researchers say.

Worldwide, millions of people follow vegan and vegetarian diets for religious, ethical, environmental or economic reasons. While these diets have purported health benefits, they can also lack essential nutrients, such as vitamins B12 and D3, if not well-planned or supplemented correctly. Now, researchers have packed a strawberry-flavored gummy with these vitamins, formulating it without any animal products so vegans and vegetarians can reach their recommended daily allowances (RDA).

Eukaryotic plankton are an essential and highly diverse component of marine ecosystems. A research team has established their global geographic distribution using DNA data and a probabilistic model. The study highlights large variations in geographic structure between plankton groups depending on their diversity, body size, and ecology, which can be linked to variations in sensitivity to local environmental conditions.

Researchers have found that fast evolution can lead to nowhere.

The amount and types of proteins our cells produce tell us important details about our health. Researchers have shown that it is possible to identify individual proteins with single-amino acid resolution and nearly 100% accuracy. Their method uses nanopores -- engineered openings that generate an electrical signal when molecules are pulled through by a specific enzyme.

In a new study, biologists laid to rest a century-old debate by confirming that a single species of frog, out of the more than 7,000 living today, has true teeth on its lower jaw.

Researchers have found that common household noises may be making dogs anxious. Owners may be underestimating their dog's stress.

New research suggests free-roaming cats are likely to blame in the spread of the potentially deadly Toxoplasma gondii parasite to wildlife in densely populated urban areas.

For the first time, the unique sounds honey bees (Apis cerana) use to alert members of their hive when giant 'murder' hornets attack have been documented.