Evolution of the whale shows scientists studying the bones of an ancestor of whales, porpoises, and dolphins, produced by Nature, a prestigious, international scientific journal.

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Young scientists like Maartje Bastings are set to revolutionise the way we deliver drugs. Her work will aid the development of 'smart drugs' which target specific proteins in the membranes of particular cells, proteins like the aquaporins discovered by Nobel Laureate Peter Agre. And knowing more about aquaporins might help Australian chemist David Jacques with his research.

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Many molecules are chiral, which means they have two possible forms that are non-superimposable mirror images of each other, just like your left and right hand. But in the amino acids and sugars that make up living things, we find only one of these forms -- and young chemist Abigail Hubbard wants to know why. She's keen to pick Jack Szostak's brain on the source of this 'homochirality', a subject...

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Each person's gut carries a different collection of bacteria-infecting viruses that may benefit their hosts, researchers report. The viruses contain DNA fragments whose functions include cell repair and food processing.

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Cell biologists often seem like modern-day alchemists. Instead of turning lead or straw into gold, they're looking for ways to turn one kind of cell into another, potentially more useful, cell. Now, one research team has found a way to turn a very common heart cell into a cell missing in injured hearts.

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