Ancient bacteria are able to survive nearly half a million years in harsh, frozen conditions, researchers said on Monday in a study that adds to arguments that permafrost environments on Mars could harbor life. picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

For the first time, satellite imagery reveals thick Martian salt deposits scattered across the planet's southern surface, which one planetary scientist claims could be sites of ancient life. The mats of sodium chloride — the same taste-enhancing mineral found on your kitchen table — serve as more evidence of Mars' watery past, and researchers think the briney pools that made them could... read full post picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

Researchers in the United States melted ice samples ranging from 100,000-years old to eight million and were able to grow bacteria from the younger samples. picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

Stem cell researchers at UCLA were able to grow functioning cardiac cells using mouse skin cells that had been reprogrammed into cells with the same unlimited properties as embryonic stem cells. picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

A huge volcanic eruption in China some 260 million years ago led to the sudden extermination of marine life clear around the world. The researchers were able to pinpoint the exact timing of the massive eruption thanks to a layer of fossilized rock which showed mass extinction of different life forms - clearly linking the volcanic blasts to a major environmental catastrophe. picked by AutumnLotus 6 months ago

Ice crystals plucked from clouds contain biological material, including bacteria, which play a role in the formation of clouds, say US researchers. picked by AutumnLotus 6 months ago

Researchers studying life in the deep subsurface of our planet have discovered a unique bacterium living 1 mile (1.7 km) below the Earth's surface. The tiny bacteria live in a community of subsurface microbes inhabiting a South African platinum mine. picked by AutumnLotus 1 year ago

The rise of oxygen and the oxidation of deep oceans between 635 and 551 million years ago may have had an impact on the increase and spread of the earliest complex life, including animals, according to a study. picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

UCLA researchers have found that a key protein in the body's dendritic cells can stop the virus that causes AIDS from "budding" part of the virus' life cycle that is crucial to its ability to replicate and infect other cells. picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

Globs of human fat removed during liposuction conceal versatile cells that are more quickly and easily coaxed to become induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells, than are the skin cells most often used by researchers, according to a new study from Stanford's School of Medicine. picked by Bingo 3 months ago

University of Georgia researchers have developed a successful way to grow molecular wire brushes that conduct electrical charges, a first step in developing biological fuel cells that could power pacemakers, cochlear implants and prosthetic limbs. The journal Chemical Science calls the technique 'a significant breakthrough for nanotechnology.' picked by kakana 5 months ago

Brain's mirror neurons swayed by ethnicity and culture. picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

University of Illinois researchers have built a better plant, one that produces more leaves and fruit without needing extra fertilizer. The researchers accomplished the feat using a computer model that mimics the process of evolution. Theirs is the first model to simulate every step of the photosynthetic process. picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

The UK’s national computing grid, along with their counterparts in the US (TeraGrid) and Europe have helped UCL (University College London) scientists shed light on how life on earth may have originated. picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

The green dots indicate Pseudomonas syringae bacteria suspended in ice. Like other so-called biological ice nucleators, P. syringae gives water vapor a place to meet, join and form ice crystals that later fall to Earth. Brent Christner/Louisiana State University The sky is not an ethereal, sterile realm. It's teeming with bacteria, and scientists say that the microbes play a powerful role in prod... read full post picked by mutil8or 2 years ago

Archaeologists digging in northern Israel have discovered evidence of a 3,000-year-old beekeeping industry, including remnants of ancient honeycombs, beeswax and what they believe are the oldest intact beehives ever found. picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

The elixir of life may be a concoction of honey, cherries and secret herbs infused in a full Chianti wine, according to a centuries-old recipe discovered in one of Italy's oldest pharmacies. picked by AutumnLotus 1 year ago

Scientists have suspected that the three known domains of life -- eukaryotes, bacteria, and archaea -- branched off and went their separate ways around three billion years ago. But pinning down the time of that split has been an elusive task. Now, a team of scientists present direct evidence that the three domains of life coexisted at least as long as 2.7 billion years ago. picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

An important discovery has been made with respect to the mystery of "handedness" in biomolecules. Researchers found that some of the possible abiotic precursors to the origin of life on Earth have been shown to carry "handedness" in a larger number than previously thought. They studied the organic materials of a special group of meteorites that contain among a variety of compou... read full post picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

Taking a significant step toward the creation of synthetic forms of life, researchers reported Thursday that they had manufactured the entire genome of a bacterium by stitching together its chemical components. picked by willster09 2 years ago