The pressure sensor of the Venus flytrap

All plant cells can be made to react by touch or injury. The carnivorous Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) has highly sensitive organs for this purpose: sensory hairs that register even the weakest mechanical stimuli, amplify ...

A 'door' into the mitochondrial membrane

Mitochondria—the organelles responsible for energy production in human cells—were once free-living organisms that found their way into early eukaryotic cells over a billion years ago. Since then, they have merged seamlessly ...

How light and temperature work together to affect plant growth

Plants lengthen and bend to secure access to sunlight. Despite observing this phenomenon for centuries, scientists do not fully understand it. Now, Salk scientists have discovered that two plant factors—the protein PIF7 ...

Scientists identify molecular basis for DNA breakage

Scientists from the Hebrew University have identified the molecular basis for DNA breakage, a hallmark of cancer cells. The findings of this research have just been published in the journal Molecular Cell.

How stress hormones guide bacteria in their host

In humans and animals, catecholamines such as epinephrine, norepinephrine, and dopamine are common stress hormones. Stress can increase the body's susceptibility to bacterial infections. In the laboratory, stress hormones ...

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