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'Harmless' species of Listeria developing characteristics potentially harmful to humans

In the food processing industry, the deadly bacteria Listeria monocytogenes is monitored closely. Not only can the bacteria make people extremely ill, it is known to be developing resistance to various food safety measures across the world.

6 Dec 2022

Investigating new ways to grow food in space

Growing food in space is fraught with daunting challenges, including extreme environmental stressors like radiation and microgravity.

2 Dec 2022

Chemical-biological method to upcycle plastic waste into pharmacologically useful products

Plastic waste is one of the most significant ecological and economic problems of our time. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, a research team has now introduced a chemical–biological method for upcycling polyethylene waste: catalytic cleavage is used to make carboxylic diacids that are subsequently converted into pharmacologically useful natural products by genetically engineered fungi.

29 Nov 2022

Phosphorous "loading" after a storm sparks algae explosions

In the lake-rich regions of the world, algae blooms are a growing problem. Not only are the floating green scums a nuisance for anyone hoping to enjoy the water, they can turn toxic and threaten public health.

29 Nov 2022

Plants can precisely tune the chemistry of petal surface to create bee-luring signals

Cambridge researchers led by CUBG Director, Professor Beverley Glover, have shown that plants can regulate the chemistry of their petal surface to create iridescent signals visible to bees.

25 Nov 2022

Preventing warming by cutting greenhouse gas emissions can save valuable freshwater resource

Snowcapped mountains not only look majestic – They're vital to a delicate ecosystem that has existed for tens of thousands of years.

23 Nov 2022

Expanding the CRISPR-based toolbox for extensive genome engineering

Researchers from North Carolina State University describe a variety of CRISPR-Cas systems-based molecular tools to rewrite, rather than just edit, significant portions of an organism’s DNA.

23 Nov 2022

Scientists discover how plant roots adapt their shape to maximize water uptake

Researchers have discovered how plant roots adapt their shape to maximise their uptake of water, pausing branching when they lose contact with water and only resuming once they reconnect with moisture, ensuring they can survive even in the driest conditions.

19 Nov 2022

Genetically modifying plant protein to yield more vegetable oil

At the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore), researchers have been successful in genetically modifying a plant protein that is accountable for oil accumulation in edible nuts and plant seeds.

From Nanyang Technological University Singapore (NTU Singapore) 11 Nov 2022

Short-term tomato consumption alters gut bacteria toward a more favorable profile

Two weeks of eating a diet heavy in tomatoes increased the diversity of gut microbes and altered gut bacteria toward a more favorable profile in young pigs, researchers found.

9 Nov 2022

Discovery may help alleviate the increasing global problem of high soil salinity on farmland

To avoid salt in soil, plants can change their root direction and grow away from saline areas. University of Copenhagen researchers helped find out what makes this possible.

3 Nov 2022

Newly sequenced Honeycrisp apple genome could be a boon for scientists and breeders

A team of researchers has sequenced the Honeycrisp apple genome, a boon for scientists and breeders working with this popular and economically important cultivar.

27 Oct 2022

A new outlook on sow breeding using dietary nucleotides

The primary fetal organ systems’ growth and development are strongly influenced by the nutrition status of the mother. Late gestation is when fetal growth is rapidly accelerated, and the nutritional needs of sows rise dramatically as a result of the fetus’ rapid growth and the placenta’s quick expansion.

26 Oct 2022

Genome Editing Has A New Code

In this interview, we speak to Samantha Maragh, the leader of the genome editing program at NIST, about the genome editing vocabulary and what this means for researchers worldwide.

From National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) 21 Oct 2022

New consortium for scaled up meat produced from cultivated cells

Competition promotes innovation, but for a nascent industry, one strategy is for competitors to band together to tackle fundamental technical obstacles, set standards, and exchange knowledge in a way that benefits the industry as a whole.

20 Oct 2022

Innovative method opens myriad new avenues for understanding the biology behind COVID-19

A highly innovative method using the latest technology has generated a comprehensive list of SARS-CoV-2 viral and human proteins that interact with each other, with one such interaction showing the virus directly influencing proteins that regulate the human immune system.

18 Oct 2022

Genomics-informed pre-breeding strategy for wheat improvement

IPK Leibniz Institute was able to test its vast collection of old wheat varieties for their yield performance and resistance to yellow rust not only in the lab but also in field trials.

5 Oct 2022

Increasing soil carbon storage and longevity

As atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations continue to rise, there is an urgent need for new, bold solutions for carbon dioxide removal.

5 Oct 2022

Fungus can be used for biological control of banana borers and Fusarium wilt

The banana borer Cosmopolites sordidus and the disease Fusarium wilt, caused by the soil-borne fungus Fusarium oxysporum, are among the most harmful pests that threaten the livelihoods of banana growers, who face major challenges in attempting to control them.

29 Sep 2022

Excess carbon in the atmosphere has increased wood volume of forests

Trees have long been known to buffer humans from the worst effects of climate change by pulling carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Now new research shows just how much forests have been bulking up on that excess carbon.

28 Sep 2022