PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Insect DNA offers tiny clues about animals' changing habitats

The long-term impact of climate change on natural communities of wild animals could be better understood thanks to a new study

2012-03-12
(Press-News.org) The long-term impact of climate change on natural communities of wild animals could be better understood thanks to a new study.

The research will help predict how migration of animals or changes to their habitats associated with climate change could impact on the evolution of relationships between predators and their prey.

Scientists have shed light on how species and their natural enemies chase each other across continents in a game of cat and mouse lasting for millions of years. They used a technique known as population genetics to reveal historical information hidden in the DNA of small plant-feeding insects and their wasp enemies, and to show how closely predators track their prey over long periods of time.

The study, involving University of Edinburgh scientists, reconstructed the evolutionary arms race between the insects and their wasp enemies. The study looked at 31 species, all of which originated in Iran and Turkey, and spread into Europe over the past four million years. The timing of each species' journey was determined by how well it coped with the many ice ages during this period of the Earth's history.

Researchers found that during these natural cycles of climate change, the plant-feeding insects often outran their predators, moving faster and so escaping attack – often for hundreds of thousands of years. Battles between predators and prey were sometimes interrupted for long periods of time, suspending the arms race between the two groups.

Scientists say relationships between species that evolve closely together can be fragile, leading to biological communities that can be easily disrupted by climate change. However, this research suggests that, at least for these insects, the predator-prey relationships are less fragile and are resistant to disruption. In addition, however, modern environments are much more fragmented than those in the past, making all natural communities more sensitive to change.

The study, carried out in collaboration with the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology and the City University New York, was published in Current Biology and supported by the Natural Environment Research Council.

Professor Graham Stone of the University of Edinburgh's School of Biological Sciences, who led the study, said: "Insects account for more than half of all animal species found on Earth. Interactions between insects, and between insects and other kinds of organism, fulfil many important biological roles – including crop pollination and pest control. We hope that our study will improve understanding of how interactions between modern species may respond to climate change."

### END


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Clock gene helps plants prepare for spring flowering, study shows

2012-03-12
Scientists have made fresh discoveries about the processes that govern plants' internal body clocks and help them adjust to changing seasons, triggering the arrival of flowers in spring. Researchers tested computer models of gene networks in a simple cress plant to determine the role played by a protein, known as TOC1, in governing these daily cycles. The model shows how 12 genes work together to run the plant's complex clockwork, and reset the clock at dawn and dusk each day. Researchers found that the TOC1 protein, which was previously associated with helping plants ...

Smithsonian scientists discover that multiple species of seacows once coexisted

Smithsonian scientists discover that multiple species of seacows once coexisted
2012-03-12
Sirenians, or seacows, are a group of marine mammals that include manatees and dugongs; today, only one species of seacow is found in each world region. Smithsonian scientists have discovered that this was not always the case. According to the fossil record of these marine mammals, which dates back 50 million years ago, it was more common to find three, or possibly more, different species of seacows living together at one time. This suggests that the environment and food sources for ancient seacows were also different than today. The team's findings are published in the ...

Avis Israel Offers Unique "On Demand" Car Rental Program for Evenings and Weekends

Avis Israel Offers Unique "On Demand" Car Rental Program for Evenings and Weekends
2012-03-12
Based on successful consumer research conducted through Facebook advertising, Avis Israel has launched its new "On Demand" car rental program. On Demand offers flexible and convenient access to short-term car rentals, without having to register or schedule ahead of time. Focused on younger, urban drivers who would usually use public transportation or borrow a parents' vehicle, the On Demand program provides an attractive option. Drivers can now rent a car for short periods, ranging in time from only one hour up through a long weekend of Thursday afternoon ...

Radiation oncologists are discussing infertility risks with young cancer patients

2012-03-12
More than 80 percent of radiation oncologists discuss the impact of cancer treatments on fertility with their patients of childbearing age, which can lead to improved quality of life for young cancer patients who are living much longer after their original diagnosis thanks to modern treatment options, according to a study in Practical Radiation Oncology (PRO), the official clinical practice journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). In the past, the clinical focus for young cancer patients was strictly survival. With the success of today's treatment ...

New pig model may lead to progress in treating debilitating eye disease

2012-03-12
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – A newly developed, genetically modified pig may hold the keys to the development of improved treatments and possibly even a cure for retinitis pigmentosa (RP), the most common inherited retinal disease in the United States. The pig model was developed by researchers in the University of Louisville Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences and at the National Swine Resource and Research Center at the University of Missouri. "We have previously relied mostly on rodent models to study the development and progression of this disease, and although very ...

Teach your robot well (Georgia Tech shows how)

2012-03-12
Within a decade, personal robots could become as common in U.S. homes as any other major appliance, and many if not most of these machines will be able to perform innumerable tasks not explicitly imagined by their manufacturers. This opens up a wider world of personal robotics, in which machines are doing anything their owners can program them to do—without actually being programmers. Laying some helpful groundwork for this world is, a new study by researchers in Georgia Tech's Center for Robotics & Intelligent Machines (RIM), who have identified the types of questions ...

'Chum cam' underwater video survey shows that reef sharks thrive in marine reserves

Chum cam underwater video survey shows that reef sharks thrive in marine reserves
2012-03-12
STONY BROOK, NY -- A team of scientists, led by the Institute for Ocean Conservation Science at Stony Brook University, used video cameras to count Caribbean reef sharks (Carcharhinus perezi) inside and outside marine reserves on the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef in the Caribbean Sea. Using survey data collected from 200 baited remote underwater video (BRUV) cameras, nicknamed "chum cams," the scientists compared the relative abundance of these reef sharks in two marine reserves with those in two areas where fishing is allowed, and demonstrated that the sharks were more abundant ...

OzeVision Web Hosting Nabs Two Web Hosting Awards In February 2012

OzeVision Web Hosting Nabs Two Web Hosting Awards In February 2012
2012-03-12
OzeVision Web Hosting repeats history by nabbing 15th position amongst the "Top 25 Most Poplar" web hosting companies in the category "Australian Web Hosting Directory" by WebHostDir.com and 7th position in the category "Australian Dedicated Servers Directory" by DedicatedServerDir.com for the month of February 2012. The awards pages can be viewed at: http://ozevision.com/web_hosting/top-25-most-popular-webhosting-awards.html http://ozevision.com/web_hosting/top-25-most-popular-dedicated-awards.html Every month WebHostDir.com and DedicatedServerDir.com ...

Study pinpoints effects of different doses of an ADHD drug; Finds higher doses may harm learning

2012-03-12
MADISON – New research with monkeys sheds light on how the drug methylphenidate may affect learning and memory in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The results parallel a 1977 finding that a low dose of the drug boosted cognitive performance of children with ADHD, but a higher dose that reduced their hyperactivity also impaired their performance on a memory test. "Many people were intrigued by that result, but their attempts to repeat the study did not yield clear-cut results," says Luis Populin, an associate professor of neuroscience at the University ...

Drug helps purge hidden HIV virus, study shows

Drug helps purge hidden HIV virus, study shows
2012-03-12
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- A team of researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have successfully flushed latent HIV infection from hiding, with a drug used to treat certain types of lymphoma. Tackling latent HIV in the immune system is critical to finding a cure for AIDS. The results were presented today at the 19th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Seattle, Washington. While current antiretroviral therapies can very effectively control virus levels, they can never fully eliminate the virus from the cells and tissues it has ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Signs identified that precede sudden arrhythmic death syndrome in young people

Discovery of bacteria's defence against viruses becomes a piece of the puzzle against resistance

Pre-eclampsia is associated with earlier onset and higher incidence of cardiovascular risk factors

Warwick astronomers discover doomed pair of spiralling stars on our cosmic doorstep

Soil conditions significantly increase rainfall in world’s megastorm hotspots

NK cells complexed with bispecific antibody yield high response rates in patients with lymphoma

Planetary health diet and mediterranean diet associated with similar survival and sustainability benefits

Singapore launches national standard to validate antimicrobial disinfectant products

Molecular stool test could improve detection of tuberculosis in adults with HIV

Suspected fibrocartilaginous embolus in Asian small-clawed otter (Aonyx cinereus)

Enhancing heat transfer using the turbulent flow of viscoelastic fluids

Exercise as an anti-ageing intervention to avoid detrimental impact of mental fatigue

UMass Amherst Nursing Professor Emerita honored as ‘Living Legend’

New guidelines aim to improve cystic fibrosis screening

Picky eaters by day, buffet by night: Butterfly, moth diets sync to plant aromas

Pennington Biomedical’s Dr. Leanne Redman honored with the E. V. McCollum Award from the American Society for Nutrition

CCNY physicists uncover electronic interactions mediated via spin waves

Researchers’ 3D-printing formula may transform future of foam

Nurture more important than nature for robotic hand

Drug-delivering aptamers target leukemia stem cells for one-two knockout punch

New study finds that over 95% of sponsored influencer posts on Twitter were not disclosed

New sea grant report helps great lakes fish farmers navigate aquaculture regulations

Strain “trick” improves perovskite solar cells’ efficiency

How GPS helps older drivers stay on the roads

Estrogen and progesterone stimulate the body to make opioids

Dancing with the cells – how acoustically levitating a diamond led to a breakthrough in biotech automation

Machine learning helps construct an evolutionary timeline of bacteria

Cellular regulator of mRNA vaccine revealed... offering new therapeutic options

Animal behavioral diversity at risk in the face of declining biodiversity

Finding their way: GPS ignites independence in older adult drivers

[Press-News.org] Insect DNA offers tiny clues about animals' changing habitats
The long-term impact of climate change on natural communities of wild animals could be better understood thanks to a new study