Plants
- Plants
Chemists pin down poppy’s tricks for making morphine
Scientists have figured out two of the final key steps in the chain of chemical reactions that the opium poppy uses to synthesize morphine, suggesting possible signaling strategies for new ways of making the drug and its cousin painkillers.
- Plants
Losing life’s variety
2010 is the deadline set for reversing declines in biodiversity, but little has been accomplished.
- Ecosystems
Impatiens plants are more patient with siblings
Streamside wildflower holds back on leaf competition when roots meet close kin
- Animals
Ants in the pants drive away birds
Yellow crazy ants can get so annoying that birds don’t eat their normal fruits, a new study finds.
- Agriculture
Potato famine pathogen packs unusual, sneaky genome
DNA of infamous Phytophthora microbe reveals big, quick-changing zones, possibly the key to the pathogen’s vexing adaptability
- Animals
Back off, extinct moa
A New Zealand tree’s peculiar leaves may have served as defenses against long-gone giant birds.
- Life
Bent innards give orchid its kick
Violent pollen delivery in Catasetum flowers gets its power from temporarily deformed inner strip
- Agriculture
How weed killers might protect our eyes: It’s corny
Herbicides can boost trace-nutrient concentrations in sweet corn.
- Physics
Pseudo pores help fling spores
New studies reveal that a thick, soft plant expels its progeny in an unexpected way.
- Health & Medicine
Downside of red-hot chili peppers
In the wild, a culinary kick comes with risks to the plant.
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- Plants
Climatic effects of tree-killing hurricanes
A new analysis suggests storm damage returns millions of metric tons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere each year.
