Different subpopulations of a plant species can have distinct traits, varying in size, seed count, coloration, and so on. The primary source of this variation is genes: different versions of a gene can lead to different traits. ...
Biotechnology
Nov 20, 2018
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20
Metabarcoding, a technique of mass DNA sequencing, allows for tracing migratory routes of insects, an understudied subject due to technical limitations. A small DNA fragment of the pollen that insects transport is used as ...
Ecology
Nov 12, 2018
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5
Epigenetic changes can bring about new traits without altering the sequence of genes. This may allow plants to respond quicker to changes in their environment. Plant biologists at the University of Zurich have now demonstrated ...
Plants & Animals
Nov 8, 2018
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13
An international team of researchers has found that sand flies have a strong preference for Cannabis sativa plants over all other plant choices. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, ...
Using the famous CRISPR-Cas9 gene scissors, plant biotechnologists at ETH Zurich have been able to improve cassava. The new variety has amylose-free or 'waxy' starch, which is preferred by industry.
Biotechnology
Sep 6, 2018
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27
Ecological surveys of biodiversity provide fundamental baseline information on species occurrence and the health of an ecosystem, but can require significant labor and taxonomic expertise to conduct. However, as the cost ...
Ecology
Aug 10, 2018
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7
DNA in parasite eggs recovered from ancient latrines provides new clues to the foods eaten by past populations, as well as their animal domestication and hunting practices, according to a study published April 25, 2018 in ...
Cell & Microbiology
Apr 25, 2018
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123
If the ultraviolet radiation from the sun damages human DNA to cause health problems, does UV radiation also damage plant DNA? The answer is yes, but because plants can't come in from the sun or slather on sunblock, they ...
Cell & Microbiology
Apr 17, 2018
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322
A team of University of Georgia researchers has developed a new way to breed plants with better traits. By introducing a human protein into the model plant species Arabidopsis thaliana, researchers found that they could selectively ...
Biotechnology
Mar 6, 2018
2
161
The dry, mothball-scented stacks of a herbarium might seem to be far away from the cutting edge of plant science. However, the curated plant specimens stored there contain irreplaceable genetic, morphological, ecological, ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 13, 2018
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