A new technique allows researchers to culture colonies of mouse brain stem cells that can either propagate without differentiating or become normal brain cells at the flip of a genetic switch. (Conti, et al.)It's hard to grow stem cells in a dish. In particular, while it is possible to multiply mouse embryonic stem cells in culture, propagating stem cells that are specific to distinct tissues (e.g. neural stem cells) has proven to be a challenge. Neural stem cells are normally found in a specialized environment known as a neurosphere, which is thought to provide the necessary cellular signals to maintain populations of these undifferentiated cells.

Researchers have identified a group of soil-dwelling microbes that help make Asian rice-farming one of the world's largest sources of a major greenhouse gas.

Methane is the most important greenhouse gas, after carbon dioxide. Although more carbon dioxide is emitted, methane is thought to be 20 times more effective at trapping heat in the atmosphere.

Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh report the first study to achieve success with gene therapy for the treatment of congenital muscular dystrophy (CMD) in mice, demonstrating that the formidable scientific challenges that have cast doubt on gene therapy ever being feasible for children with muscular dystrophy can be overcome. Moreover, their results, published in this week's online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), indicate that a single treatment can have expansive reach to muscles throughout the body and significantly increase survival.

Since passage of the Endangered Species Act in 1973, over 1,300 endangered species have been protected in the United States and its territories. In the forthcoming issue of Ecology Letters, Male & Bean assess 14 years of endangered plant and animal status trends and show that the length of time species are protected, and the amount of money spent on their conservation are key variables in explaining trends.

Marine environments around the world are being threatened by exotic species of the moon jellyfish being dispersed by international shipping, according to new research.

Across the United States, independent pet rescue organizations are growing in number, working to place abandoned animals in loving new homes. Although the majority of these organizations operate out of clusters of private foster homes, they're successfully winning high visibility for placing their pooches.

Acute renal failure, or ARF, is as serious as it sounds. An estimated 40% of critical care hospital admissions experience ARF. Estimates of their death rate range from 50% to 80%, complicated by the fact that patients with ARF often simultaneously suffer failure of other major organ systems.

Carnegie Mellon CyLab computer scientist Yang Cai is working with NASA's Earth-Sun System Technology Office (ESTO), the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to develop new software for detecting and tracking toxic algae plaguing North American waters.