In the primordial soup that produced life on earth, there were organic molecules that combined to produce the first nucleic acid chains, which were the first elements able to self-replicate. According to one of the more accepted theories, these molecules were ribonucleic acid (RNA) chains, a molecule that is practically identical to DNA and that today has the secondary role in cells of copying information stored in DNA and translating it into proteins.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), by its very name, indicates a disease of the respiratory tract. But SARS can also infiltrate brain tissue, causing significant central nervous system problems, according to an article in the Oct. 15 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases, now available online.

A team of researchers led by the University of Toronto has charted how and where a painful event becomes permanently etched in the brain - a discovery that has implications for pain-related emotional disorders such as anxiety and post-traumatic stress.

With their long necks and tails, sauropod dinosaurs---famous as the Sinclair gasoline logo and Fred Flintstone's gravel pit tractor---are easy to recognize, in part because they all seem to look alike.

Marine organisms hidden in caves, such as sponges, play an extremely important role in the nutrient cycle of coral reefs. Indeed they probably play the most important role of all, says Dutch biologist Sander Scheffers. And that is valuable information for nature conservationists who want to preserve the coral reefs.

This achievement has meant a great advance for human health. It is based on the biocidal and bacteriostatic effect of the SONOXIDE system, used in refrigeration towers of factory buildings and installations that are prone to be the focus for the proliferation of Legionnaires' disease.

Researchers have determined the first detailed molecular images of a piece of the spike-shaped protein that the SARS virus uses to grab host cells and initiate the first stages of infection. The structure, which shows how the spike protein grasps its receptor, may help scientists learn new details about how the virus infects cells. The information could also be helpful in identifying potential weak points that can be exploited by novel antiviral drugs or vaccines.

Water management is the key to regulating cell volume says Dutch researcher Bas Tomassen. He investigated the uptake and secretion of water by the plasma membrane of animal and human cells.

She went to investigate the local ecology. Yet during her field work on East Java, Dutch biologist Ansje Lohr became increasingly involved with the local residents, whose harvests failed and whose health was deteriorating due to extremely acidified and polluted river water. Lohr has recently received a second grant to help the Javanese population.