ScienceDaily: Plants & Animals News

Follow the pollen. Records from past plant life tell the real story of global temperatures. Warmer temperatures brought plants -- and then came even warmer temperatures, according to new model simulations.

Researchers have developed the maps at a fine-enough resolution to help conservation managers focus their efforts where they are most likely to help birds -- in individual counties or forests, rather than across whole states or regions.

Gut microbiota by-products circulate in the bloodstream, regulating host physiological processes including immunity, metabolism and brain functions. Scientists have discovered that hypothalamic neurons in an animal model directly detect variations in bacterial activity and adapt appetite and body temperature accordingly. These findings demonstrate that a direct dialog occurs between the gut microbiota and the brain, a discovery that could lead to new therapeutic approaches for tackling metabolic disorders such as diabetes and obesity.

This South American wildflower was presumed extinct -- to the point that its official scientific name is Gasteranthus extinctus. But now, scientists are reporting the first confirmed sightings in 40 years. This not only means that this one little flower made it, but that an important concept in conservation biology called Centinelan extinction needs to be re-examined.

Deadly brain cancers called diffuse midline gliomas are uniquely dependent on methionine, an amino acid abundant in legumes and poultry.

The growth of human shoulders slows down just before birth and speeds up thereafter; this alleviates the problem of shoulder dystocia. Computed tomography was used to obtain cross-sectional representations of the clavicle in humans, chimpanzees, and Japanese macaques; the researchers then looked at different shoulder-width to birth-risk correlations between humans and the two other primates.

A photocatalyst made using a combination of titanium dioxide and copper oxide nanoclusters inactivates various variant types of novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Scientists have developed this antiviral photocatalyst, in a recent breakthrough, which has been proven to be effective under both darkness and indoor light.