Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Health & Medicine
New studies add evidence to a possible link between Alzheimer’s and herpesvirus
Researchers saw higher levels of herpesvirus in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients, which may contribute to plaque formation.
- Anthropology
Koko the gorilla is gone, but she left a legacy
An ape that touched millions imparted some hard lessons about primate research.
- Life
Here’s how drinking coffee could protect your heart
Coffee’s heart-healthy effects rely on boosting cells’ energy production, a study in mice suggests.
- Life
It may take a village (of proteins) to turn on genes
Clusters of proteins transiently work together to turn on genes, new microscopy studies of live cells suggest.
- Neuroscience
Splitting families may end, but migrant kids’ trauma needs to be studied
The long-term effects of separating children from their parents at the U.S. border need to be studied, scientists say.
- Animals
Each year painted lady butterflies cross the Sahara — and then go back again
Painted ladies migrate the farthest of any butterfly.
- Ecosystems
Madagascar’s predators are probably vulnerable to toxic toads
The Asian common toad, an invasive species in Madagascar, produces a toxin in its skin that’s probably toxic to most of the island’s predators.
- Plants
The most ancient African baobabs are dying and no one knows why
Scientists aren’t sure what’s killing the oldest African baobabs, nine of which have lost big chunks or died in the last 13 years.
- Animals
Leaf-cutter ants pick up the pace when they sense rain
Leaf-cutter ants struggle to carry wet leaves, so they run to avoid rain.
- Paleontology
These newfound frogs have been trapped in amber for 99 million years
Trapped in amber, 99-million-year-old frog fossils reveal the amphibians lived in a wet, tropical climate.
- Humans
What I actually learned about my family after trying 5 DNA ancestry tests
Ancestry results vary widely depending on which company you use.
- Genetics
DNA testing can bring families together, but gives mixed answers on ethnicity
DNA testing has become a new way for millions of Americans to expand their family trees and learn something about themselves, but results vary widely.
