What did Megalodon eat? Anything it wanted — including other predators.
New Princeton research shows that prehistoric megatooth sharks — the biggest sharks that ever lived — were apex predators at the highest level ever measured. Megatooth sharks get their name from their massive teeth, which can each be bigger than a human hand. The group includes Megalodon, the largest shark that ever lived, as well […]
Study shows people ‘right size’ portions of high-calorie foods
New research has revealed that humans moderate the size of energy-rich meals they eat, suggesting people are smarter eaters than previously thought. The findings, led by the University of Bristol, revisit the long-held belief that humans are insensitive to the energy content of the foods they consume and are therefore prone to eating the same […]
Europe’s largest land predator unearthed on the Isle of Wight
Research led by palaeontologists at the University of Southampton has identified the remains of one of Europe’s largest ever land-based hunters: a dinosaur that measured over 10m long and lived around 125 million years ago. Several prehistoric bones, uncovered on the Isle of Wight, on the south coast of England, and housed at Dinosaur Isle […]
Bacterial cellulose could enable microbial life on Mars: Research team studies kombucha cultures under simulated extraterrestrial conditions
An international research team including the University of Göttingen has investigated the chances of survival of kombucha cultures under Mars-like conditions. Kombucha is known as a drink, sometimes called tea fungus or mushroom tea, which is produced by fermenting sugared tea using kombucha cultures — a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast. Although the simulated […]
DNA shed from colon cancers into bloodstream successfully guides chemotherapy after surgery: Helps clarify the benefit of chemotherapy in stage II cancers
A new research study showed that circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) — genetic material shed from tumors into the bloodstream — can identify stage II colon cancer patients who can most benefit from chemotherapy following surgery and spare other patients the need for this form of treatment. The multi-institutional, international study, led by researchers at the […]
Scientists show that at least 44 percent of Earth’s land requires conservation to safeguard biodiversity and ecosystem services
New research published in the June 3, 2022 journal Science reveals that 44 percent of Earth’s land area — some 64 million square kilometers (24.7 million square miles) requires conservation to safeguard biodiversity. The team, led by Dr James R. Allan from the University of Amsterdam, used advanced geospatial algorithms to map the optimal areas […]
‘Traffic calming’ boosts breeding on coral reefs
Coral reef fish breed more successfully if motorboat noise is reduced, new research shows. Scientists introduced “traffic calming” on three reefs for an entire breeding season — cutting the number of boats within 100m, and reducing the speed of those within that distance. They then tracked the breeding of fish called spiny chromis — and […]
Dietary cholesterol worsens inflammation, sickness in mice with influenza
New research from the University of Illinois suggests high levels of dietary cholesterol make mice sicker when infected with influenza. The study is the first to link cholesterol in the diet with exacerbation of a viral infection. Previously, scientists linked high-fat diets and elevated blood cholesterol with increased susceptibility to infection and lowered immune response. […]
From cavefish to humans: Evolution of metabolism in cavefish may provide insight into treatments for a host of diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and stroke
New research from the Stowers Institute for Medical Research examines how cavefish, surface-dwelling river fish that flooded into underground cave systems over 100,000 years ago, developed unique metabolic adaptations to survive in nutrient-scarce environments. The study, published online in Nature Genetics on May 12, 2022, led by Jaya Krishnan, PhD, a senior research associate in […]
New research pinpoints ‘blue corridors’ for highly migratory fish
New research has pinpointed four high-traffic areas in the Pacific Ocean that should be considered of high priority if conservation efforts focused on large pelagic fishes such as tuna, blue marlin and swordfish are to be successful. By studying the tendency of fish to return to their place of birth to reproduce — a concept […]