To mark territory or not to mark territory: Breaking the pheromone code
A team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) has deciphered the surprisingly versatile code by which chemical cues help trigger some of the most basic behaviors in mice.
View ArticlePrecipitating urine into dry fertiliser
The next time you 'take a leak', consider the valuable resources you're flushing away.
View ArticleStudy shows oxytocin spray promotes social bonding behavior in dogs
(Phys.org) —A small team of researchers at Tokyo University has found that giving dogs oxytocin causes them to display stronger bonding behavior, both with people and other dogs. In their paper...
View ArticleUrination duration: Study finds most mammals need about 21 seconds
Headed to the bathroom? If you think you might have to "pee like a race horse," join the club - so does everyone else. Scientists who watched dozens of different mammals from rats to elephants relieve...
View ArticleBrown recluse spider bites crawling upward
Vanderbilt medical toxicologists are reporting an increase in patients seen with brown recluse spider bites this summer.
View ArticleProstate cancer, kidney disease detected in urine samples on the spot
When you flush the toilet, you may be discarding microscopic warning signs about your health.
View ArticleTest can smell ketosis
VTT has developed a quick, easy-to-use ketosis test for consumers that can detect acetone on exhaled breath. The test will benefit diabetics and dieters in particular, but it can easily be adapted to...
View ArticleA person's diet, acidity of urine may affect susceptibility to UTIs
The acidity of urine—as well as the presence of small molecules related to diet—may influence how well bacteria can grow in the urinary tract, a new study shows. The research, at Washington University...
View ArticleEarly exposure to cat urine makes mice less likely to escape from cats
Mice that are exposed to the powerful smell of cat urine early in life do not escape from cats later in life. Researchers at the A. N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russia, have...
View ArticleBoosting your body for lift off: NASA's One-Year Mission investigates the...
Everyone wants a metabolism boost, but understanding the processes that convert food to energy is challenging, and even more so in space. Achieving optimal health requires a proactive approach and a...
View ArticleVideo: How pee brought you the modern world
You might not believe it, but there was a time when urine, yes urine, was prized by chemists. Pee played a part in some of the most significant discoveries in science, and it helped shape the modern...
View ArticleTesting for secondhand marijuana exposure
With increased legalization of marijuana for medicinal and recreational purposes, interest is growing in the potential health effects of its secondhand smoke. A team now reports in ACS' journal...
View ArticleScientists sniff out female mouse scents that make males frisky
Scientists have identified two chemical scents in the urine of female mice that arouse sexual behavior in males, a discovery that shines a spotlight on how mouse pheromones control behavior.
View ArticleA new portable device to detect marijuana use almost right away
(Phys.org)—California based Hound Labs Inc. is claiming to have made a breakthrough in the rush to develop a portable device capable of detecting THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, in the breath...
View ArticleDogs (and probably many other animals) have a conscience too
The article has been published in the journal Ethology, Ecology and Evolution, with a title the researcher Roberto Cazzolla Gatti borrowed from the novel by Lewis Carroll: "Self-consciousness: beyond...
View ArticleWearable energy generator uses urine to power wireless transmitter
A pair of socks embedded with miniaturised microbial fuel cells (MFCs) and fuelled with urine pumped by the wearer's footsteps has powered a wireless transmitter to send a signal to a PC. This is the...
View ArticleNoninvasive solution to wombat conservation
Australia's critically endangered northern hairy-nosed wombats might not know it yet, but researchers from The University of Queensland are working on a wee solution to their population problems.
View ArticleSearching for signs of disease in spit
Testing for health conditions usually involves needles, X-rays and other invasive or uncomfortable measures. To make diagnostics less burdensome for patients, scientists are developing alternatives,...
View ArticleFinding Zika one paper disc at a time
An international, multi-institutional team of researchers led by synthetic biologist James Collins, Ph.D. at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University, has...
View ArticleEngineers design a home urine test that could scan for diseases
There's a good reason your doctor asks for a urine sample at your annual checkup. A simple, color-changing paper test, dipped into the specimen, can measure levels of glucose, blood, protein and other...
View ArticleMexican engineer extracts gas from urine to heat shower
Mexican engineer Gabriel Luna-Sandoval was urinating one day when he realized that the yellow liquid could be of "vital" use elsewhere.
View ArticleResearchers partner with brewery to collect urine and generate fertilizer
When customers of Sudwerk Brewery Co. in Davis, Calif., answer nature's call, they can do their part to help nature.
View ArticleUrine test for fatigue could help prevent accidents
Doctors, pilots, air traffic controllers and bus drivers have at least one thing in common—if they're exhausted at work, they could be putting lives at risk. But the development of a new urine test,...
View ArticleFish found to communicate with one another using urine
(Phys.org)—A trio of researchers with the University of Bern in Switzerland has found that at least one species of fish communicates with others of its kind using chemicals in its urine. In their paper...
View ArticleHow to monitor urine in pools—by testing sweetness
Even though Olympic swimmers have admitted doing it, peeing in the pool is not a condoned practice. Urine contributes to the formation of compounds in pool water that can be harmful to people's health....
View ArticleMonitoring astronauts' lung health
Astronauts in space are valuable sources of scientific data. Researchers collect blood and urine samples to understand what effects living in weightlessness has on their bodies. For one experiment,...
View ArticleImproving detection of a 'date rape' drug
Because gamma hydroxybutyric acid (GHB), commonly known as a "date rape drug" is rapidly absorbed and metabolized by the body, it's difficult for law enforcement to tell if someone has been given GHB....
View ArticleVideo: The spacefaring power of... pee?
Space scientists have to take advantage of all the materials available to them on a deep-space mission.
View ArticleArmy scientists discover power in urine
Scientists at the U.S. Army Research Laboratory observed an unexpected result when combining urine with a newly engineered nano-powder based on aluminum. It instantly releases hydrogen from the urine...
View ArticleNew minimally invasive procedure saves dog's life—and her kidney
Lucy, a Lab-Akita cross, was a perfectly healthy, happy nine-year-old dog until the day she started peeing blood.
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