wire - news in brief

DNA Commercial whaling has left the bowhead whale vulnerable for many generations to come. A unique collection of prehistoric bowhead whale bones, dating back 11,000 years, reveals a previously untold story of the relative impacts of humans on nature. The time series of ancient fossils show that commercial hunting of bowhead whales, which spanned 400 years and ceased less than a century ago in 1931, has left irreversible destructive traces in the species' genetics.

DECISIONS New research from the University of Copenhagen, INSERM and Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research shows that the brain in mice works in separate channels at the same time, when they respond to emotionally significant stimuli. The research helps us better understand how the brain can quickly react to what is important.

It sounds almost impossible. And yet, the same nematodes live in two extremely isolated deep-sea trenches located 17,000 km apart.

How do you study gut bacteria when they keep dying every time you try? You build a model that makes it possible.

Food Seaweed has long been praised as a sustainable superfood, but its characteristic 'fishy' flavor has been a barrier for many Western consumers. Now, a new study from the University of Copenhagen shows that fermentation with lactic acid bacteria may be the key to making seaweed more palatable. Eating seaweed can be extremely healthy, we often hear.

Humpback whales are less picky eaters than other baleen whales. If cod runs out in an area, they may switch to krill.

Animals An international team of researchers have identified three new species of enchanting, pustular, tree-dwelling toads from Africa.

CIRCADIAN RHYTHM Food - in addition to sunlight - regulates our internal biological clock and its ability to adapt to the seasons, according to new research in mice. According to researchers, it could have health benefits to eat more seasonal and locally produced food. Our blood pressure rises in the morning, our brain releases sleep hormones before bedtime, and our body temperature drops during sleep.

Bacteria Two forgotten bottles in a basement in Frederiksberg containing bacterial cultures from the 1890s have provided researchers at the University of Copenhagen with unique insight into Denmark's butter production history.

How healthy is our soil, really? That is the question 30,000 school students from all'over Denmark are eagerly digging into when they, in weeks 36-39, carry out this year's Masseeksperiment. Armed with registration booklets, spades, the VESS index, earthworm keys and sample tubes, the students head out to playgrounds, football fields or local nature areas to investigate soil health at depths of 10 cm and 40 cm.

Between the years 1150 and 1450, more than 100 children were buried in a churchyard near Silkeborg. Just a tiny fragment of their tooth enamel is enough to reveal their sex-and that's exactly what researchers at SDU have now done.

Researchers at SDU will soon print a small piece of high-tech, plastic-free future. They are aiming to replace elastane with artificial spider silk.

Mysterious animals The Greenland shark - the world's longest-living vertebrate - is most often associated with cold Arctic waters. However, a new international study led by researchers from the Greenland Institute of Natural Resources and the University of Copenhagen shows that Skagerrak probably serves as a nursery area for young Greenland sharks.

Insects Botanists from the University of Copenhagen and the UK set out to find the best flower combinations for bees and hoverflies.

Protein research Designed proteins are anticipated to have groundbreaking impact on a range of issues from treating disease to tackling environmental problems.

GENETICS Modern HIV medicine is based on a common genetic mutation. Now, researchers have traced where and when the mutation arose - and how it protected our ancestors from ancient diseases. What do a millennia-old human from the Black Sea region and modern HIV medicine have in common? Quite a lot, it turns out, according to new research from the University of Copenhagen.

Cells in our body produce vast amounts of RNA - but only a fraction is actually useful. How do cells know which RNA molecules to keep and which to discard?

The Lundbeck Foundation grants DKK 313 million for a new centre for Parkinson's research in Aarhus. The goal is for the centre to test new treatments for the disease within the next 10 years.

Foods like fruit, vegetables and dairy products often get attacked by mold or fungus and therefore must be discarded.

Scientists' effort to bring the eelgrass back to Danish waters has proven very successful: After 2 years, there are now 70 times more eelgrass shoots in Horsens Fjord in Denmark.