Posts tagged as:

reproduction

Big babies and small families make evolutionary sense

10 July 2008

Why don’t elephants (and humans) have thousands of little babies instead of one big one? Sydney researchers have discovered and modelled the key factors responsible for offspring and family size.

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Bad eggs: more casualties in the obesity epidemic

23 August 2007

Studies by University of Adelaide doctoral student Cadence Minge have shown that a high fat diet can cause damage to eggs in ovaries. And when fertilised, these eggs do not develop into normal, healthy embryos.

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Female mice turn male with the help of a brain gene

20 August 2007

Edwina Sutton and colleagues at the University of Adelaide have been busily turning female mice into males.

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Australian orchids’ sneaky sex tricks: floral arms race seduces insects

20 August 2007

Australian orchids are engaged in an arms race, using sensory overload to seduce male insects.

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How sea slugs fall in love

14 August 2007

Scott Cummins and his colleagues at The University of Queensland have uncovered a potent mix of chemicals which acts like a cross between Chanel No 5 and Viagra-but only if you are a sea slug.

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How does an embryo find its way?

14 August 2006

A young Melbourne researcher has discovered that a compound which attracts white blood cells to areas of inflammation also plays an important role in attracting human embryos to the womb, supporting the establishment of a healthy pregnancy. Approximately 1 in 6 Australian couples will experience infertility. A large part of this may be due to [...]

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Playing possum: one love

10 August 2006

Why are some males faithful, stay-at-home partners while others sleep around, with no strings attached? In mountain brushtail possums, it turns out to depend on how disturbed their home is.

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Frog sex in the city

31 August 2004

Tree frogs defy the trend of urban decline Central Melbourne used to be a Mecca for frogs, but now there is only one species left. Southern brown tree frogs can still be heard calling to attract females for mating in parks throughout inner Melbourne, including the Royal Botanic Gardens and Fitzroy Gardens. A survey conducted [...]

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Which sex is best for coral reef fish

19 August 2003

Puberty blues: goby fish choose their sex to find a mate New research on the Great Barrier Reef has revealed that some young reef fish can choose when they mature and which sex they want to be when they grow up.

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The secret sex life of seaweed revealed

22 August 2002

In a world-first, research has used sophisticated time-lapse video microscope techniques to watch the sex lives of red seaweed in action. “Until now, no one knew what exactly happens when these seaweeds become sexy,” says University of Melbourne researcher, Dr Sarah Wilson. “Despite the fact that red seaweed is worth hundreds of millions of dollars [...]

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Breastfeeding is not a letdown!

2 August 2001

More mums can breast feed successfully First images of the breast in action Mothers can be concerned that they do not have a letdown when breastfeeding, so their babies cannot get enough milk.  For the first time, Donna Ramsey from The University of Western Australia has used ultrasound to capture moving images of letdown in [...]

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What Females Want: Just what do fish find sexy?

26 May 2001

Scientists agree: some people are universally gorgeous. Studies in evolutionary biology show that few things are more advantageous to success than being attractive, since good looking individuals leave more offspring than their unattractive contemporaries.

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Unexpected insight into female infertility

10 May 1998

New insight into the cause of female infertility: a certain hormone, interleukin 11, is absolutely essential for female fertility.

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Adults may pay for stress in the womb

10 May 1998

Stress before birth leads to hypertension in adulthood. Trial in sheep suggest that high blood pressure

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