ScienceDaily: Biotechnology News

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• Superbugs from space offer new source of power
• Caught in the act: Scientists discover microbes speciating
• Cell energy sensor mechanism discovered
• Molecular basis of touch sensation: Researchers identify new function of a well-known gene
• Scientists unlock evolutionary secret of blood vessels
• Gene affecting the ability to sleep discovered in fruit flies
• How the tiger got its stripes: Proving Turing's tiger stripe theory

Superbugs from space offer new source of power Posted: 21 Feb 2012 06:26 PM PST Scientists have created a "designer slime" that can double the electrical output of existing microbial fuel cells. Bacillus stratosphericus -- a microbe commonly found in high concentrations in the stratosphere orbiting Earth with the satellites -- is a key component of a new 'super' biofilm.

Caught in the act: Scientists discover microbes speciating Posted: 21 Feb 2012 06:25 PM PST Not that long ago in a hot spring in Kamchatka, Russia, two groups of genetically indistinguishable microbes decided to part ways. They began evolving into different species – despite the fact that they still encountered one another in their acidic, boiling habitat and even exchanged some genes from time to time, researchers report. This is the first example of what the researchers call sympatric speciation in a microorganism.

Cell energy sensor mechanism discovered Posted: 21 Feb 2012 11:59 AM PST Researchers have discovered more details about how an energy sensing "thermostat" protein determines whether cells will store or use their energy reserves. The researchers have shown that a chemical modification on the thermostat protein changes how it's controlled. Without the modification, cells use stored energy, and with it, they default to stockpiling resources. When cells don't properly allocate their energy supply, they can die off or become cancerous.

Molecular basis of touch sensation: Researchers identify new function of a well-known gene Posted: 21 Feb 2012 09:48 AM PST A gene known to control lens development in mice and humans is also crucial for the development of neurons responsible for mechanosensory function, as neurobiologists have now discovered. They found that in mice in which they had removed the c-Maf gene in the nerve cells, touch sensation is impaired. This similarly applies to human carriers of a mutant c-Maf gene.

Scientists unlock evolutionary secret of blood vessels Posted: 21 Feb 2012 09:48 AM PST Scientists have shed light on how vertebrates evolved closed circulation systems designed to more effectively carry blood to organs and tissues.

Gene affecting the ability to sleep discovered in fruit flies Posted: 20 Feb 2012 06:10 PM PST On the surface, it's simple: when night falls, our bodies get sleepy. But behind the scenes, a series of complex molecular events, controlled by our genes, is hard at work to make us groggy. Now, research suggests that a newly identified gene known as insomniac may play a role in keeping us asleep. By cloning and testing this gene in fruit flies researchers say they have discovered an entirely new mechanism by which sleep is regulated.

How the tiger got its stripes: Proving Turing's tiger stripe theory Posted: 19 Feb 2012 11:33 AM PST Researchers have provided the first experimental evidence confirming a great British mathematician's theory of how biological patterns such as tiger stripes or leopard spots are formed.

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