Scientists have developed a new biosensor that allows them to see, in real time, what happens when a plant’s defenxe system swings into action.

When plants come under attack internal alarms signal and their defense mechanisms swing into action. For the first time, plant scientists have imaged, in real time, what happens when plants beat off the bugs and respond to disease and damage.

Malcolm Bennett, Professor in Plant Science at The University of Nottingham and Director of the Centre for Plant Integrative Biology, said, “Understanding how plants respond to mechanical damage, such as insect attack, is important for developing crops which cope better under stress.”

Land-based plants respond to hormones in order to survive and it was once assumed that such hormone signaling machinery only existed in these relatively complex plants but new research shows that some types of freshwater algae can also detect ethylene gas - the same stress hormone found in land plants - and might use these signals to adapt to changing environmental conditions.

Interbreeding of two malaria mosquito species in the West African country of Mali has resulted in a "super mosquito" hybrid that's resistant to insecticide-treated bed nets.

Anopheles gambiae, a major malaria vector, is interbreeding with isolated pockets of another malaria mosquito, A. coluzzii. Entomologists initially considered them as the "M and S forms" of Anopheles gambiae. They are now recognized as separate species. Interbreeding of two malaria mosquito species in the West African country of Mali has resulted in a "super mosquito" hybrid that's resistant to insecticide-treated bed nets.

A new study identifies the BCL11A gene is especially active in aggressive subtypes of breast cancer. The research suggests that an overactive BCL11A gene drives triple-negative breast cancer development and progression. The research, which was done in human cells and in mice, provides new routes to explore targeted treatments for this aggressive tumor type.

There are many types of breast cancers that respond differently to treatments and have different prognoses. Approximately one in five patients is affected by triple-negative breast cancer; these cancers lack three receptor proteins that respond to hormone therapies used for other subtypes of breast cancer. In recent years it has become apparent that the majority of triple-negative tumors are of the basal-like subtype.

For patients with spinal stenosis, long-term outcomes are comparable with surgery or conservative treatment, according to a new study.

While earlier reports suggested an advantage of surgery, the updated analysis finds no significant difference in pain, functioning, of disability at eight years' follow-up, report Dr Jon D. Lurie and colleagues of Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, N.H. The results--representing the largest and highest-quality study to date--provide new evidence on what patients can expect several years after deciding whether or not to have or not have surgery for spinal stenosis.

Better Initial Results with Spinal Stenosis Surgery...

Dolphins and seals have had eons to adapt to aquatic life, but they can still be taxed while pushing the boundaries, according to a paper in Nature Communications which found a surprisingly high frequency of heart arrhythmias in bottlenose dolphins and Weddell seals - at least during their deepest dives.